Snack of the Week/Recipe Time: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies!

Happy Sunday everyone!

I hope everyone's day has been as relaxing as mine! :)

It's September and I'm craving fall, my second favorite season (my favorite is winter!).  Sadly, in Baton Rouge we don't really get a fall or a winter... instead we get a vaguely-cooler time of year that I like to call "not summer."  As of this week we are still in the 90s in terms of temperatures, but next week we should drop down to the 80s (freezing, I know).

In honor of fall's approach, I baked some cookies in the Kreiger house today.  They are one of the Kyle's favorite: pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!  I usually save them for Halloween/Thanksgiving time, but we just couldn't resist!  Therefore, our snack of the week is also a recipe! They have THREE ingredients and are low-fat without sacrificing delicousness.  They are very ugly cookies though, don't let them fool you!  Also, a BIG thank you to Sara for giving me this recipe in the first place!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
1 box of Spice cake mix
1 small can of pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1 12-ounce bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix spice cake mix and canned pumpkin in a large bowl until smooth.  This is very hard to do by hand because the dough will be SO thick.  I usually use an electric hand mixer for at least 2 minutes.
• Once thoroughly mixed, add in the chocolate chips with a spoon until they are spread evenly through the dough.
• Use a nonstick cookie sheet and dip out the dough with a spoon. This batch makes between 20 and 24 cookies. Since the cookies are pretty big, I had to do more than one sheet full.
• Bake 18 minutes or until you can stick a knife in a cookie and pull it out clean.
• Serve with milk! :)

I count 3 pointsplus for these cookies, based on a estimate I saw on the Weight Watchers Recipe Builder when I had an online account. These cookies are much healthier than normal because you substitute pumpkin for eggs and oil!  I feel like the pumpkin/cake mix combo makes the cookies more moist/cake-y than other cookies.  Even people who don't like pumpkin seem to really enjoy these cookies.  I blame the delicious semi-sweet chocolate chips!  So if you are in the mood for something sweet that isn't going to offset your entire week of eating well, give these a try!  I hope you enjoy!

Until next time,
BK

Back in the 280s!

Happy Wednesday everyone!

It's weigh-in day and Kyle & I both lost weight! 

Current weight: 289.0
Kyle's current weight: 265.4

I lost 1.1 pounds and he lost 2.7 pounds! :)  I'm very pleased with those numbers considering the amount of social functions we had going on this weekend: Sushi party, tailgate, and Labor Day cook-out!  Plus Hurricane Isaac totally messed up our work-out plan so we only made it to 1 hour of exercise for the whole week!

As you can see from my previous post, we have been trying out new Weight Watchers recipes.  Last night we made Farmhouse Chicken and Dressing, which isn't necessarily a new recipe to us (my mom would make it frequently), but I have never made it solo and it's been over a year since I'd eaten it.  It turned out great, of course!  I'll post pics and that recipe later.  Cooking for both of us instead of just me hasn't been nearly as difficult as I had imagined.  Granted, it's more expensive (twice as much food!) and it takes more time, but so far so good! 

This weekend should be a bit tamer in terms of social functions, so there won't be as much temptation to eat poorly and we've already planned our date night for Friday (I know we're plan-aheaders)!  We're going to Chili's where they currently have a 2 for $20 special.  We perused the menu and found some tasty-looking options that are in the pointsplus range we want!

So today is the start of a brand new week and tonight is Kyle's (and Valerie's) second try at Zumba.  I think they both did wonderfully during their first class, but they still aren't sold on the idea of it yet, so they are still in the "trial phase."  Either way, I'm happy to be settling back into my exercise routine.

I hope everyone has an amazing end to the work week!

Until next time,
BK

Recipe time! Mozzarella-Stuffed Meat Loaves

Hello all!

As promised, I'm posting the new recipe Kyle and I tried this week!  It's a Weight Watchers recipe (and is thus trademarked by them and I cannot take credit for it AT ALL).  It was super delicious.  I paired it with some homemade mashed potatoes (my first attempt) and some low-sodium canned peas.

Mozzarella-Stuffed Meat Loaves

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 large egg
3/4 cup tomato-basil pasta sauce, divided (we used Classico Spicy Tomato Basil)
Salt (we didn't add this)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pound ground sirloin (we used 97% lean ground beef on our first attempt, for the second attempt we bought ground sirloin, we'll see how it does!)
1/3 cup uncooked quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded part-skin mozzarella cheese

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• The recipe says to use a broiler pan with the bottom lined with foil and the top sprayed with cooking spray.  I don't have a broiler pan (yet), so I just used a baking pan with tin foil in the bottom. It turned out fine!
• Place egg in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk.  Add 1/4 cup pasta sauce, salt, pepper, stirring with a whisk until blended. Add beef and oats.  Using hands, gently mix just until blended.
• Divide the meat mixture into 4 equal portions and then place three tablespoons of cheese in the middle of each portion.  Shape meat around cheese to form a small loaf.  This step was REALLY hard for me and I'm surprised mine looked as good as they did!
• Bake at 350 for 35 minutes; spoon remaining 1/4 cup pasta sauce over meat loaves.  Bake an additional 10 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160 degrees.

This makes 4 servings (serving size = 1 loaf).  Each serving is worth 6 points plus.

Hope you all enjoy! :)

Until next time,
BK

Snack of the Week: Light String Cheese

Happy Sunday, everybody!

I know we missed our snack of the week post for last week, but life was so busy.  My apologies.

Today's Snack of choice is light string cheese!

My favorite brand (and what I deem most delicious) is Sargento.  These sticks are 1 pointplus and I can't lie, sometimes I have two for a snack!  It's a good way to get some protein/dairy into your day, which is awesome for people like me who don't like drinking a lot of milk!  Quick, easy snack!

Last night I tried out a new Weight Watchers recipe for mine and Kyle's dinner: Mozzarella-Stuffed Meat Loaves and I must say it was delish!  I'll post the recipe online tomorrow with a picture of the finished product!  We are hoping to keep trying out new recipes and I will most certainly keep you all posted.

Kyle's first week on Weight Watchers is going great!  He's making great choices and going through that classic first week realization of "it's HOW MANY points?!" when we review some of our former favorite foods. Case in points, we went to our first LSU tailgate yesterday and both ate way too many points (yay for weekly points!!!) without eating too terribly much food (I'm blaming all the grilled meats!). Good thing we don't tailgate every weekend!  I'm hoping we burned some of those calories off during the super long walk to and from our car!

Speaking of calorie burns, Kyle also attended his first Zumba class this week.  He has agreed to give it a few more tries, but I don't think he's quite sold on it yet.  I think he's super amazing for just trying it and he did really well during his first class!  If you've never gone to a Zumba class and are thinking about trying it, I recommend giving it at least three classes before you make a decision.  The first class is always SUPER awkward because you don't know ANY of the dances and it feels weird to dance in front of people if you aren't used to it. One of my friends, Valerie, also came and has agreed to give it a few more tries!  I love having friends/family to work out with because it makes exercise so much more fun!  So yay for them!

Labor Day is tomorrow and we are headed to a cook-out at my friend Morgan's apartment.  Luckily, she and her boyfriend are also trying to eat healthier and shed some weight, so it'll be a healthier cookout than most!  I hope everyone has enjoyed their long weekend!

Until next time,
BK

First week living together (and first hurricane!)

Good morning everyone!

It's weigh-in day and I lost 1.8 pounds!

Current weight: 290.1

I ALMOST reached my goal of being in the 280s.  I was so close, but I'm just happy that I lost, honestly.  I got a little bit (a few points) off program with mine and Kyle's families being in town, but overall I'm pleased to have lost almost 2 pounds!

Kyle is officially moved in and he had his first weigh-in today (starting weight 268.1). I've given him his daily pointsplus value and he's already tracked his breakfast points. :)  It's going to be awesome to have a partner with me in this journey!  I'm so happy that we can FINALLY live together.

We had a great visit with our families.  We got all of Kyle's stuffed unpacked and put away in two days and were then able to just enjoy the visit. We did go out to eat quite a bit, but I made the best choices I could (baked fish instead of fried, veggie burger instead of beef, etc).  I still ate out a LOT more than I usually do and had went a few points over my daily and weekly points, BUT the loss was still there, thank goodness.

With Hurricane Isaac bearing down on us today, it'll be interesting to see what we are able to eat over the next few days.  We bought the best canned goods we could find (minus a can of Dinty Moore beef stew... that stuff is delicious).  We also have baked chips, crackers, Larabars, and other non-perishable yum yums.  So far, we haven't been without power, but that could change and we are prepared!

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers during the storm.

Until next time,
BK

Tropical Storm/Hurricane

Hello all!

I know I owe you a Snack of the Week post and I'll be sure to make that happen this week (maybe tomorrow if we have power). I've so busy with family/moving Kyle in that it slipped my mind!

Long story short, the weekend with mine and Kyle's families was amazing! We got him all moved in and I'm so happy that he's here and we are FINALLY living together.

As I'm sure you've heard on the news, Tropical Storm (and soon-to-be Hurricane) Isaac is making landfall later today/tonight in the Gulf Coast.  As such, I'm not sure if I'll have electricity over the next day or so, BUT if I do have power, I will definitely post my weigh-in entry and a snack of the week post. If not, I'll get to it as soon as I can!

Please pray for everyone's safety who has been and is being affected by this storm.

Until next time!
BK

The Pattern Has Been Broken!

Hello everybody!

It's weigh-in day and I lost 1.5 pounds!

Current weight: 291.9

That's a total of 15.9 pounds in the past 8 weeks and a grand total of 61.1 pounds since my heaviest weight!  I am thrilled!  I had already prepared myself to not lose any weight this week since my pattern has been lose, maintain, lose, maintain, lose... and so on and so forth. BUT this is the second week in a row of loss! :)  This is my last weigh-in post before Kyle moves in.  I'm sure over the next few weeks you will hear about the adjustments and growing that we will do as a married couple cohabitating for the first time. Luckily, Kyle also has a desire to lose weight and begin a healthier, more active lifestyle. So I'll continue this journey with the best partner ever (and keep you posted along the way)!

Kyle moves down in TWO days!!  He's bringing both our moms, my brother, and his sister (in addition to a van full of boxes). This weekend will be the double whammy of family AND out-of-town guests all rolled into one.  Of course we'll be eating out frequently, but as per usual I am already beginning to plan what I'll be ordering at each restaurant so I won't be tempted to get something completely out of my points-range. My goal for next week is to be back in the 280s, but as long as I don't GAIN weight during the next week I'll be satisfied, considering the move and the family being in town. I've proven it can be done before, I just need to keep my wits about me and do it again!

Another fun adjustment after Kyle moves will be planning meals and cooking for two.  For over a year I've been cooking for one, which is in some ways harder and some ways easier than cooking for two or more. I've gotten a bit spoiled by eating what I want to eat every night and not have to worry about pleasing someone else. Fortunately, Kyle and I have similar tastes with regards to food (minus the fact that he LOVES mushrooms and I think they are gross). I'm also looking for some low-sodium tips and recipes, so feel free to send those my way!

This week also marks the beginning of the fall semester for me, which means I'm back in class. This semester I'm taking 3 classes and working three 8-hour days of clinical work. With all of that AND my husband finally living with me, I am foreseeing a huge lesson in time management over the next few months. Historically, school starting back has been a deterrent for my weight loss because life gets busy and it's easy to let "less important" things slide when you are under a lot of stress.  It's also easy to eat the wrong things when you are feeling stressed and overwhelmed (or at least it is for me). My desire is to keep my weight loss and exercise plan a priority every week.  I may not make it to EVERY exercise class EVERY week, but my goal is to work out at least 2-3 times a week no matter what is going on.  It's going to be a challenge and I'm sure I will feel like giving up multiple times, but I'm determined and I have Kyle, my family, and my sweet friends to encourage me and motivate me.

If you've started school, I wish you nothing but the best for the upcoming school year!  If you're out of the school range and you are working the same way you work all year, then keep on keepin' on!

Until next time,
BK