Weight Loss Update
Tuesday 10th April
Total weight loss 13lb!
Week one and I have lost 4lbs, I am very pleased :)
Week two and I have lost 9lbs how on Earth? :O
We're all going on a summer holiday! The boys and I are off to Tunisia for a week of fun in the sun. The hotel looks lovely and we have heard good things about the resort which pleases me as I was not keen on Tunisia the first time we went. Port el Kantaoui is a purpose built resort in a traditional Moorish style, not the most authentic and back to basics holiday but with small children you have to be careful.
See you after a week of over indulging as it is an all inclusive holiday.
I intend to bring back lots of spices including harissa and tabil to add more interest to my cooking.
We had a wonderful family day out yesterday at Oakwell Football Stadium in Barnsley. A charity match had been arranged to support our local children's hospital charity and we went along with our friends and there children. That made no less than 4 over excited boys (6 counting the dads) and two mums enjoying every minute of it.
Even the rain could not spoil what was a thoroughly enjoyable day out and lots of money was raised for a cause very dear to my heart - without Sheffield Children's Hospital I would not have my second son Leo.
All the celebrities gave their time freely and spent ages signing autographs and chatting to the hoards of children that descended on them. It gave me a wonderful warm feeling and the atmosphere was unbelievable!
I love steak but I also love creamy sauces with them. This creamy mushroom sauce is a real cheats version and at 0.5 pts per serving is great value.
Creamy Mushroom Sauce
Serves 2 - 0.5 pts each
1/2 lb mushrooms sliced
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
2 light cheese triangles
Fry the mushrooms and garlic in oil from a mister. Add a little water and continue to cook until soft and reduced, there should still be a little liquid. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese triangles until they have melted and formed a smooth sauce.
I served this with steak and potato wedges but it would be lovely on toast or as a topping for a jacket potato or pasta.
I wanted something to serve with the vegetable curry that I had made and left the choice up to my husband as he was cooking. The result was a bed of basmati rice, vegetable curry and griddled salmon on top. The curry was even better for being left for a day as the flavours really develop.
It tasted wonderful and brought back memories of a fish curries served in Goa, but not as fattening. I wouldn't do this with wild salmon but with farmed salmon which has less flavour it is ideal. The thick texture of the salmon can stand up to the curry spices very well.
This is a very low point meal considering the man sized portions, the rice was 3 points and the salmon 3.5 points. The curry was free. Imagine the portion size of a ready meal you would get for 6.5 points! Also the cooking time was 10 minutes as the curry had been prepared in advance.
Vegetable Curry
Oil from a mister (or Frylight)
1 Tbsp Garam Masala
1 tsp ground coriander
2 finely chopped leeks
3 finely chopped onions
5 finely chopped cloves of garlic
2 grated carrots
2 grated courgettes
½ lb finely chopped mushrooms
1 pack fine beans
1 carton passatta
1 stock cube
Heat a large pan or wok and spray with oil. Add the garam masala and coriander and cook for a few seconds until it gives of an aroma. Add the leek, onion and garlic and a little water. Cook until translucent then add the all other ingredients. Simmer for 30 minutes .
This can be made with virtually any free vegetables
I have recently discovered Tesco Healthy Living quarter pounders. These are frozen burgers at 2.5 points each. They also are free from fillers and other nastiness and taste great cooked on the barbecue or on a griddle pan. I actually prefer these to any other pre-made burgers I have tried as they are meaty and juicy.
Here is my idea of junk food heaven.
Bread roll - 1.5 pts (I remove the middle to reduce the points)
Burger - 2.5 pts
Cheese slice - 1 pt (low fat of course)
Oven chips - 4 pts
Ketchup - 0.5 pts
Salad free
Total for cheeseburger and chips 9.5 pts and absolutely delicious
The warm weather makes me want to sit in the garden and drink lager, fatal at 1.5 pts for a bottle of premium lager e.g. Stella, Grolsch. I have taken to making shandy with it using low cal lemonade. I also use a glass rather than drink from the bottle.
This means that I can get three drinks from a bottle at 0.5 pts per drink. It also fills me up more leaving less room for snacking!
I have had a lot of social occasion to attend this weekend with it being a bank holiday. On Saturday evening we were invited out to a barbecue at a friends house and I knew that the wine would be flowing and the food tempting.
I made leek and potato bake, just cooked in chicken stock cubes - see my "Tasty Tatties" post under side dishes, I also added courgette which did not work as well the skin on the courgette was stringy and the texture just was not right. I think I may be tempted to try it with carrot or swede next time as they will soften beautifully. It could also be made with vegetable stock and would taste great.
3 pts worth of potato, free veg and served with 3 smoked bacon medallions at 1.5 points each. It was very filling for 4.5 pts.
I was thrilled to discover lots of fillet steak reduced at the supermarket. I bought the lot and put it into the freezer. I love fillet steak and I love a bargain so I was very happy, plus fillet is the leanest cut of beef so it's great for dieters. I weighed them and they were 4 pts each which is just a little more than a chicken breast and much tastier.
This chilled soup could not be easier to make and is a joy to eat on a warm day. Adjust the seasonings to taste as I like it quite hot.
Gazpacho Soup
Serves 4 - 0 pts
1 carton passata
1 red pepper peeled and de-seeded
1 green pepper peeled and de-seeded
1 red onion
A small bunch of fresh coriander
Juice of half a lemon
3 cloves of garlic - bashed
Sea salt
Black pepper
Worcester Sauce
Tabasco
Finely chopped spring onion, cucumber and tomato to garnish
Place all the ingredients apart from salt, pepper, Tabasco and the garnish into a food processor and puree until smooth. Add extra water if required. Season to taste then chill well.
Serve ice cold with the garnish in the centre
I absolutely love pate and in my pre-Weightwatchers days I would eat half a tub with butter spread thickly onto a baguette. Can you imagine how many points in that?!
ASDA is not my usual supermarket but I called in their today on my way home from work and discovered that they have low fat pate in individual sized portions. These are 3 points each and well worth it in my opinion. The Weightwatchers one is a little too dry for my taste but this one have the lovely creamy pate texture.
My treat tonight - pate and hot toast. The Weightwatchers Malted Danish is ideal for this as it toasts quickly and is crisp.
We're all going on a summer holiday! The boys and I are off to Tunisia for a week of fun in the sun. The hotel looks lovely and we have heard good things about the resort which pleases me as I was not keen on Tunisia the first time we went. Port el Kantaoui is a purpose built resort in a traditional Moorish style, not the most authentic and back to basics holiday but with small children you have to be careful.
