Batch Freezer Cooking

This post is for Lisa.  And will be LONG.  But if anyone else is interested, feel free to use.  And if you have any questions, feel free to ask away!!

What will follow is a timeframe for a weekend of freezer meal cooking my Mom and I did last winter.  What worked for us, may need to be adjusted for you but it's a great starting point I think!  I didn't include a shopping list because some people may have some stuff on hand.  But, you can run down the recipes and quick do your own.  It's not hard. 

A couple of notes: 

When you grocery shop, if you do all the same recipes, check the crazy giant bulk canisters of stuff.  You know at the end of the aisle you never look at??  The industrial sized stuff? Yeah, that.  You use a LOT of tomato juice and stuff, so just add it all up and see if that makes $$ sense.

We portion and freeze everything flat in Ziploc freezer bags.  They take up less space and because they're flat, thaw out super quick.  You can do what you'd like, but this way is great.  Just write on it what it is, how much and quick cooking instructions and you're set!

I left our timeline on there to give you an idea of how long it all took.  Yours may vary.

The recipes listed are SINGLE BATCH (thank you for asking that Lisa!!).  If you'd like to double, triple, etc - you need to make that adjustment on your own.


Freezer Meals

Day 1 Menu: Stew x 2, potatoes x 2, pepper steak x 2, roasts x 4, beef gravy, sloppy joes x 2


(Start 8:45am) Roasts in to cook
Potatoes peeled and put on to boil (do this during the browning of meats)
Brown Stew Meat
Brown Pepper Steak Meat
Onions and Peppers chopped
Start Stew Veggies/Pepper Steak onto Simmer
Simmer Stew/Mash & Finish Potatoes
(11:45) Lunch break
Package Pepper Steak
Start Sloppy Joes/ Sloppy Joes start to simmer
Sloppy Joes Finish/roasts out/gravy start
(2:45) Package Sloppy Joes
Package Roasts
Package Gravy
(5:30) Package Stew

**~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*
Finished Portions:
Potatoes – 1 serving = 3/4c.                       
6 – 3 serv. bags; 6 – 6 serv. bags

Pepper Steak – 1 serving = 1c.                    
4 – 2 serv. bags; 4 – 1.5 serv. bags

Sloppy Joes - 1 serving = 1c.                      
2 – 1 serv. bags; 4 – 3 serv. bags

Roasts –                                                       
6 – 1.5 pound bags

Gravy –                                                       
4 – 3c. bags; 2 – 2c. bags

Stew –                                                         
8 – 4c. bags; 15 – 3c. bags



Day 2 Menu: Spaghetti Sauce x 4, pasties x 3, chili x 4, turkey breasts x 4, turkey gravy


(8:45 Start) Put turkey breasts in oven
Brown Spaghetti Meat/Start prepping pasty veggies
Brown Chili Meat
Brown Pasty meat/mix spaghetti sauce
(10:45) Put together chili and start in crockpot
Package pasties (done around Noon)
Turkey out/Gravy start
Package Turkey/Gravy/Spag Sauce/Chili as it finishes

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~
Finished Portions:

Pasties – 1 serving = 1/2 c.                        
8 – 1c. bags; 13 – 2c. bags

Chili - 1 serving = 1/2c.                             
4 – 4.5c. bags; 2 – 3c. bags

Spaghetti Sauce -                                        
10 – 2.5c. bags; 12 – 4c. bags

Turkey                                                         
(New this next time so no stats!)

Gravy                                                          
(New this year so no stats!)


THE RECIPES:

Oven Roast
Place roasts in oven (frozen or fresh), uncovered at 375 degrees for approx an hour or until the outside of the roast is browned.

Reduce heat to 325 degrees, add water to ½ way up the side of the roast (add carrots and peeled potatoes if desired as well). Cover. Cook all day/6 hours until done.


Roast Gravy
Strain remaining cooking liquid and put in large stockpot. Mix 1/2c. flour and 1c. water and add slowly to cooking liquid until desired thickness is achieved. You can also add jars of Heinz Homestyle gravy to stretch the quantity.


Fancy Mashed Potatoes

5 lb. white potatoes
2 – 3oz. packages of cream cheese, softened
1 c. sour cream
1 tsp onion salt
1 tsp salt
1 stick margarine
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp garlic powder

Boil and mash potatoes. Mix with remaining ingredients and beat with mixer until smooth.

To prepare: Put in baking dish and dot with butter. Cook at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.


Beef Stew

1 lb stew meat
Brown gravy mix
Frozen peas
Onions
Potatoes
Cabbage, sliced thin
Carrots
Rutabaga
1 can tomato soup

Chop veggies to bite size and place in large stock pot. Add water to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil and simmer all day.


Chinese Pepper Steak

1 lb. round steak
2 large green peppers, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 can beef consumme
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp corn starch
2 TBSP water

Cut steak into bite sized pieces. Brown in a deep electric skillet. Season to taste and add onion and green peppers. Add consumme and simmer for 1 hour. Combine corn starch, soy sauce and water to make a paste. Add to meat mixture and stir until thickened. Serve over rice or chow mein noodles.


Sloppy Joes

2 lb. ground beef
1 c. ketchup
1 Tbsp yellow mustard
1 big onion, chopped fine
4 stalks of celery, chopped fine
1 can tomato soup
1 scant can water
1 Tbsp Worchestershire Sauce

Cook ground beef in deep electric skillet or stock pot. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer for 1 hour.


Oven Turkey Breasts

Place turkey breasts in oven (frozen or fresh), uncovered at 375 degrees for approx an hour or until the skin is browned.

Reduce heat to 325 degrees, add water to ½ way up the side of the breasts. Cover. Cook all day/6 hours until done.


Roast Turkey Gravy
Strain remaining cooking liquid and put in large stockpot. Mix 1/2c. flour and 1c. water and add slowly to cooking liquid until desired thickness is achieved. You can also add jars of Heinz Homestyle gravy to stretch the quantity.

 
Ginette’s Spaghetti Sauce

2 lb. ground beef
5 cloves garlic
1 small onion

Cut garlic and onion fine and brown slowly with ground beef, salt and pepper in a large stockpot until beef is cooked.

Add:
1 quart tomato juice
4 – 15oz cans of tomato sauce
3 large cans tomato paste
1 scant can of water
Salt and pepper to taste
3 bay leaves
Simmer all day stirring frequently.


Crockpot Chili

1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 quart tomato juice
¼ tsp chili powder
1 can kidney beans
1 can Hormel chili
1 can cream of celery soup

Brown ground beef and onion. Combine all ingredients to crockpot and cook on low 8-10 hours.


Pasty Filling

1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained
4 carrots
4 potatoes
4 stalks of celery
1 rutabaga
1 medium onion
Salt and pepper

Chop all veggies into evenly sized, small diced pieces. Mix with cooked ground beef.

To Prepare:  Put desired amount of mix in pie crust. Cover with 2nd crust (slit the top in a few places). Cook 45 minutes at 350 degrees or until crust is brown. You can also make individual pasties by folding over one crust for individual pasty. (think calzone)  We just freeze up the mix to do meal by meal, but you could prebake individual pasties to freeze as well.

Finding my groove...

School's been back in session for a week.

Cue the angelic chorus, "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLELUIA!!"

This week has been me attempting to get back in a groove of some sort.  The more organized I am, the better this house runs.  Both Mark and I have a natural tendancy towards sloth and anything I can do to ward that off is a GOOD THING.

The biggest attempt at organizing?  I made my meal plan out for the entire month of September.  Yes, yes I did.  All the suppers, all of Holland's breakfasts (same thing for one week at a time), and all of Holland's school lunches/snacks (again, same thing for one week at a time).  So far, it's working beautifully!!

I tried to get a good mix of main ingredient (so we don't have chicken four nights in a row) as well as recipes that can be pushed off if things come up.  A perfect example of this is today's Mexican Polenta Bake.  Nothing in it is perishable so it can wait until tomorrow - or even next week - if it needed to.  As it is, it's just waiting until lunch tomorrow, but still.  It also takes into consideration things already on the radar like early soccer games or Girl Scouts after school.  Those days get crock pot or soup meals.  Fast and easy.

Thursday after work, I look at my calendar and start the grocery list for the meals/snacks/lunches.  Then, I add to that the other random things we might need like milk or lunch staples for Mark and me.  The only thing missing is a catagorized shopping list - broken down row by row according to the store I always shop it - and the whole thing would be perfect.  Friday morning is errand morning so the groceries get purchased then and we're all set for the next week.

An extra benefit is that it gives me the weekend to do any cooking needed for the week.  Last week it was three batches of muffin, a whole army of mini cupcakes and homemade ranch dressing.  This week will be mini quiches and bagels.

I haven't had time to put up recipes from the past two weeks, but here are some things I've learned:

• Turns out, Phyllo Dough and Puff Pastry aren't the same thing.  Whoops!  Now we all know.
• Sometimes recipes look not so awesome but end up being amazing.  Look for me to post the Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder recipe soon to prove that.
• I don't like scrambled eggs, but love fritattas.  Apparently what I do like is super overcooked eggs.
• What started as a winning recipe can sometimes turn into something that no one likes.  Interesting.
• Taking a cold lunch has made all the difference to the little kid.  She gets that extra 10 minutes she used to spend in the lunch line to settle down and eat.  And has come home with a completely empty lunchbox every day for the past week.  Maybe cutting her sandwich into a butterfly shape helps.  :)

So that's that for this Sunday morning.  I promise I'll try to get more recipes up in the next few weeks.  I've run across some really good ones that I'm excited to share!

Grilled Salad

I know.  Crazy.  But ohhhhhhhhhhh so good!! 

Let me link you to the original recipe so you can first peruse and I can give credit where it's due:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/salads/grilled-salad/

We love the Pioneer Woman and her recipes.  And I read this and thought someone had lost their minds.  Had a friend not specifically tried it and gave it a rave review, there's no way I'd have tried it.

Why?
Well, for one, I've never tried Feta cheese.  I know.  But good news, I can cross that off the ol' bucket list now.  I've tried it and *drum roll* I liked it.  The reason I've never tried it is that I always thought it was like blue cheese.  Which is not in my eating inventory at this point due to its stinkiness.  It looks too much like the stink cheese, so I've largely ignored it.  But it's not stinky at all.  It's sort of tart?  sour?  hmm...I don't know the best word.  But very very mild and worth trying.  The texture was sort of like fresh mozarella but not as wet.  Blah.  I know.  This description isn't going well.  In a nutshell, you should try it.  As well as be prepared for more recipes on here featuring feta now that it doesn't scare me.

Why else?  Well, have you ever even contemplated GRILLING LETTUCE??  It just doesn't make any sense, right?  But it works!

Here's the recipe:

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Grilled Salad

Ingredients
2 heads Romaine Lettuce, Washed And Dried
½ cups Feta Cheese, Crumbled
½ cups Balsamic Vinaigrette
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preparation Instructions
Split each head of lettuce lengthwise.
Drizzle the cut side of each half evenly with a tablespoon or two of oil.
Season the cut side of each half with salt and pepper.
Grill each half, cut-side-down, over a hot direct fire for about 90 seconds.
Remove to a sheet pan, sprinkle evenly with the cheese and let cool.
Drizzle each half with an equal amount of dressing.
Cut each half in half width-wise, serve and enjoy!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Julie's notes:

• When prepping the Romaine, I trimmed the tops off with a knife and left the root/base part intact.  I think you need to to keep the leaves from flying all over the place.  The when I served it, I trimmed the bottom off and cut it all up.
• We did this on our outdoor charcoal grill.  So it was delightfully smoky and charcoaly tasting.  Mark is in LOVE with this recipe, so we will be trying it again on our indoor grill pan.  Not sure if it will be the same but yum on the charcoal!
• The oil will drip off onto the grill and if you're like me, you're going to be waiting for those bundles of Romaine to just go up in flames.  But they don't.  Maybe because of the water content?  Not sure.  But if you leave it the 90 seconds, you'll be fine.  Just look for the grill marks and you'll know you're done.

And that's about it!  It's just really so so simple. 

Interesting "problem" to have I suppose!

I have 18 points to eat yet today.  And it's 4:39pm. 

Yikes.

In my defense, I really assumed that my lunch was waaay more points that it turned out to be when I actually inputted it on the WW website.  And that does include activity points which I try to eat the day I use them.  Just works better for me.

Hmm.  I mean, that's good because now I'm fairly unlimited for supper.  BUT.  I have no PLAN for supper.  And dont' grocery shop until tomorrow.  So I don't know how to use these bad boys up! 

Pretty standard for me though on the first day getting back on track.  Tomorrow I'll be RAVENOUS.  Just wait.  LOL!

Return of the Grapefruit Spoon!

Some of you may remember this moment:
http://juliesjourneytoawesomeness.blogspot.com/2010/05/crab-stuffed-tomatoes.html

The moment I realized my pure geniousness in using the lowly grapefruit spoon as a multi-tasker.

OK.  Hold onto your horses.  I've got another one for you.

Cucumber de-seeder.

Yup.  You read that right.  Today, as I was forcing my choice of veggie on my kiddo she said, "But I don't like the seeds in cucumbers Mommy!"  Which made me stop and think, "Huh.  Neither do I.  But being the mean Mommy I am, I always leave the seeds in her despite taking them off of mine."  What you should know is that I'm also a cheap Mommy and refuse to buy those delightfully individually wrapped English cucumbers for twice as much money. 

I had already cut her chunk off and had halved it.  And the the epiphany struck. 

GRAPEFRUIT SPOON!!!

Out it came from the depths of the silverware drawer and quick as a flash, seedless cucumber boat.

Awesomeness.

Carrot sticks and chicken broth

Isn't that what you used to be required to eat on a "diet" back in ye olde days?  Eat as little as possible and you'll lose weight? 

AGAIN, my body has proven to me that in order for it to lose weight, I just need to listen to it.  This week, I made great choices about 80% of the time, sort of questionable choices 15% of the time and totally splurged 5% of the time.  But really, who DOESN'T go for ice cream with their kid after their first soccer game??!  And what sort of a lame-o wilting flower would I be if I was all, "Oh no, none for me.  I couldn't POSSIBLY eat a scoop of ICE CREAM."  It's one scoop of ice cream.  And as long as I can make sure that doesn't parlay into 50 scoops, I'm good.

Yesterday though was a PERFECT example of having to listen to my body.  Trying to conserve points at the end of a mediocre week in which my cheat weighs had shown I was losing nothing, I ate a little "lighter" than usual.  Salad for lunch being the main culprit.  And that would have been fine had I been home at 3pm when the hungries hit.  But instead, I was at a finishing soccer practice and then on my way for a few errands.  One of which was the grocery. 

YIKES.  ALERT ALERT!!  Do NOT go to the grocery hungry!!

Well, I had to.  So, off I go and at this point am RAVENOUS.  But I'm also technically out of points (I'd preset my supper points earlier in the day and knew I'd be using them all).  So I have a choice.  I either get hungrier and hungrier until after supper is made in three hours OR I just eat something.  I grabbed a Luna bar and ate it on the way home. 

Now yes, back in "the day" BOY would that have been a no-no.  Strict was the way to go.  You don't allow yourself those indulgences as they make you week.  You remain loyal to your will power of steel and, by God, you will be thin.

Well, I not only ate that Luna bar but also shared a ball of fresh mozz cheese and sliced tomatoes with Mark and the kiddo BEFORE even starting supper. 

And lost a pound and a half "overnight".

So there carrot sticks.  While I do enjoy you as a side dish to my lunch, you no longer control what else I can eat on this journey.

And this is why we only weigh once a week...

I will totally admit to being a cheat weigher.  Not cheating in the NUMBER way.  But cheating in the "don't weigh more than once a week" way.  I *know* weights can fluctuate wildly even over the course of a day.  In know this. 

BUT....

I can't help myself when I'm doing Weight Watchers.  I feel like I'm working soooo hard controlling my food intake that I should be losing like a pound a day.  If not more.  Like 10 pounds a day. 

OK.  Not really THAT much, but still.  It's Friday morning.  I want to look at the scale just over halfway for the week and see that my previous days of hard work have started budging the scale.  And that hasn't happened this week.  In fact, I weighed in on Monday morning and promptly GAINED two pounds by Tuesday. 

HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN??!!

Blah.  I know how it happens.  It's just aggravating.  So now I'm barely back to that Monday number, feel like I lost two pounds and they won't even count because I'm busting my butt just to break even again.  I still weigh a LOT.  It isn't totally unrealistic for me to expect to lose at least 1.5-2 pounds a week at this weight.

Maybe it's all going to just shoot right off magically on Sunday while I sleep.  If that's going to be the case, it would be great if it would just take ALL the extra weight with it and we can just be done!

Day 2 Starvies

SOOOOO hungry today.  I'm willing to lay odds that a lot of it is phychological.  The first day back on plan is exciting and empowering.  The second day is sad and lonely and hungry.

I, being a girl of extreme intelligence, planned ahead and we are having the mouth wateringly amazing Murphy Hot Hambuger recipe and corn on the cob for supper.  It will be perfect.

If only I can make it to supper........

And there was even ice cream!

The past couple of weeks have seen an influx of time spent with friends from a long time ago.  I'm not sure what to make of that entirely so I'll just let the universe do what it's doing and go along for the fun!  From a weekend spent with Tom and Daniel last weekend to yesterday's surprise gathering in Canal Park with friends who now live in Colorado - I'm soaking it all up.

Moving to Duluth 6.5 years ago did something to my friendship bonds I never thought it would.  We became invisible somehow.  Life kept moving in the same way for our friends in Minneapolis and we fell out of that orbit.  No one ever comes up here.  I like to think that if we had a guest room, more would.  But I don't know how firmly I believe that.

I have tried to find additional "newer generation" friends in our time up here, but it's been a slow process.  Thank GOODNESS for my handful of good girlfriends up here (you know who you are!) because I'd be a mess. 

It's just tricky.  Before, I met my friends doing shows.  I'm barely on the brink of getting back into that so where the heck do I find them now??!  It's just me and the pastor at work.  And we're not going to be hanging out for cocktails and gossip anytime soon.  One of my goals on this journey is finding potential friend people and put myself out there to see what happens.

Yesterday was so great.  A couple of hours in the sun while the kids ran and played and the grown ups sat and talked.  And there was even ice cream.  :)  (Which was catalogued and counted on my Weight Watchers tracker!)  It just doesn't get much better than that!

Found

"Your playing small does NOT serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory that is within us. And as we let our light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same."

-Marianne Williamson (Nelson Mandela's 1994 Inaugural Speech)

 
Sometimes things find you when you're not looking for them.  Or when you are looking for them.  Or when you didn't know WHAT you should be looking for.
 
This quote found me this morning via a friend's status feed on Facebook.  And shook me up and slapped me around and called me Mama.  In short, I love it. 
 
And as I sit here on the eve of jumping back into my journey, it keeps rolling around in my mind. 
 
It's such a "female" concept.  To sell yourself short so as to not be perceived as being stuck up or conceited or haughty.  It's not really a rewarded female trait in mainstream life.  But why?  What's wrong with being assured and confident?  And one step further, what's wrong with letting people KNOW what it is you're good at?? 

I know.  I don't have the answer to that either.  I do know that sometimes fear of success can be as paralyzing as the fear of failure.  I know it because I live it.  And I think many people do.  And think what an amazing world this could be if everyone led according to their glory inspiring all they touched to do the same.  Could be a pretty powerful revolution.
 
As I said, it's the eve of my jumping back into my journey.  I took a scenic byway called "New Puppy Place" and along that road found "Lack of Inspiration Lane".  Good news?  I also travelled to "Happy Birthday Boulevard" and had such an wonderful couple of weeks that I'm refreshed and feeling capable of continuing the journey.
 
And be warned.....I won't be playing small.

Back at it! You know you missed me.

I missed you, too!  I'm officially back at "it" today.  It's just time.  At some point, I have to figure out how to take control of the household back from this new puppy, right?  Today's the day.

Had my All-Bran for breakfast.  Have my banana and Fiber 1 bar for snacks at work.  Have my meal plan all set for the week.  Have the groceried to make all of the things planned for the week.  I'm ready to ROLL!

Let's take a minute to talk about meal planning. SOOOOO important.  My brain needs to be locked down when it comes to food.  If I don't know what's for supper, it will just yell "ORDER PIZZA ORDER PIZZA ORDER PIZZA" until I do.  It's ugly.

To fight the pizza brain, I took all my recipes and ran them through the Recipe Builder on Weight Watcher's site.  There are other sites to do this as well if you search.  I *think* Sparkpeople.com has one as well.  But, I used Weight Watchers.  Most came through with a reasonable number of points per serving.  If they didn't, I looked at the recipe and figured out the best way to tweak the ingredients or portion size to get in a decent range.  Click print and put it in the magical recipe binder.  Ooooooo....ahhhhhhh.....magical recipe binder!  I can take a picture, but it's just a lime green three-ring-binder with colorful tabs and now, recipes in plastic sleeves.

Why is this nice?  Well, you have al lyour recipes pre-pointed out.  That way, you can add your intended supper points to your day right away and know your wiggle room for lunch and snacks.  It also makes meal planning WAY easier.  If you can just flip through your options, you know you need to pick enough to fill your week and be done.  The plastic sleeves are really nice too if you're a sloppy cook (like me!!) and need a buffer between your ingredients and the paper the recipe's on.  I shift the week's recipes to the front of the binder and as they're made, they go back to their spot.

Yup, it's a little anal-retentive.  Just like me.  But it works and that's the important part, right?  A girl needs to be prepared if she's going to succeed!!

ACK! I'm stuck in a puppy time warp.

It's bad people.  BAD.  Things have been in such uproar with the addition of Scout + the building of a GIANT patio for a swimming pool in the backyard + the end of the school year that I don't even have a firm timeframe in place of how long ago this puppy joined the family.

CHAOS.

And, for the record, I'm not a fan of chaos.  Some people thrive under it.  Not I.

Oh yeah, and the kid lost another tooth in the mix. 

The puppy needs CONSTANT attention.  Something we either totally neglected or blocked out from when Boo was a pup.  Or Boo was not this insane.  Scout would GLADLY chew up everything in this house.  Including the carpet, any random cords and all of the people.  Boo wasn't a chewer.  Scout would also gladly potty 850 times a day.  Boo was trained on indoor puppy pee pads.  It's just sooooo different and sooooooo exhausting.

So where does this leave the journey to awesomeness?  Well, it's still happening.....just a lot more slowly and solely fueled by the 1/2 of a brain cell I have left over after having to focus all the others on the puppy.

A beacon of light?  Now that school is out, Holland makes a great puppy wrangler and potty break facilitator.  Perhaps this will give my brain a chance to go back to writing amazing blog entries and focusing on being 100% on plan for Weight Watchers and my hiatused Couch 2 5K training.

He won't be a puppy forever..........he won't be a puppy forever.....he won't be a puppy forever.......

Who's getting their eyebrows waxed?

ME!  I AM!!

Goal #1 (Goal post ) reached and surpassed, baby!   Wooooo!  And not only did I lose the 10 pounds, I threw in a few extra for good measure.  12.6 to be exact.  I got to change to my next goal weight on the Weight Watchers site and even lost a daily point!

It's funny.  I don't really notice where I've lost the 12.6 pounds.  Blessing and a curse I guess.  That's how it is when I gain weight as well.  It just sort of evenly piles on.  I guess that's how it is coming off too.  As long as it's coming off, it can come off wherever it likes! 

So, after work, I'm heading out to reward myself before coming back home to puppy pandemonium.  What a great day!

Newest advancement in bringing awesomeness to my life...

Meet Scout.  The newest addition to our little family.  He has caused quite an uproar but in a mostly good way.  Can't say I've had much to say about my usual topics but give me a couple of days and I'm sure my brain will return to its normal programming.  Until then, enjoy the cute!

Weigh in day! SUCCESS!

Down another 2.2 pounds this week!  That makes a total of 9.6 pretty darn painless pounds over the past month.  Very motivating, very motivating indeed. 

This week will be interesting as we're eating out as a family to celebrate some really good news and I'm going out for dinner and cocktails with a friend on Wednesday.  I do plan on getting back to my Couch to 5K runs this week though, so hopefully it will all even out.

I'm soooooooooo close to Goal #1 and the eyebrow wax that comes with it!  YAY!!

What a day looks like for me.....in food.

Let's kick today off by talking about food.  Why not, right?

I've had a couple of emails wondering about what I typically eat in a day.  Clearly, the concern is about me not starving to death.  I understand - it's a large concern of mine as well.  Luckily, I have some natural padding to see me through the tough times still.  I'll have to start thinking of my survival plan to fight off starvation once I hit my goal weight though....

To get us started, here are a few broad ideas I like to keep in mind when planning my menus/meals:

• Don't bring food into the house that will tempt you to a point you're not ready to match with will power.  I have a six year old whose taste buds do not always go the way of healthy eating.  Intentionally, I'll allow her "fun" foods or snacks that I know I won't eat - fruit snacks, GoGurt, mini Baby Bel cheese.  She's a fan of dessert (who isn't??) but she has a drawer of things like mini Tootsie rolls and Dum Dum suckers.  If they were to get too frisky and entice me to eat one, damage would be minimal.  But she still likes them so it's a win/win.  We also have Cheez-Its in the house but I've built up a tolerance to their presence and only indulge when I know I have four points to burn. 
• Speaking of indulge, do it.  Not all day long obviously.  But if you KNOW there's something you always crave, find room for it.  What I have discovered is 90% of the time, I REALLY want a taste of chocolate after supper.  I have two choices, ignore it and hope I don't go C to the RAZY at some point and take down an entire pound of peanut M&Ms or induge it in a sensitive, controlled way.  Clearly, I indulge.  My indugence?  ONE Riesen candy.  It's exactly enough if I allow myself to slow down, taste it and enjoy it.  And one Riesen is ONE point.  Perfect!
• Along the lines of not bringing tempting foods into the house, it's also a huge help to have healthy tasty foods always available.  Some of the big ones for us are:  Homemade Ranch Dressing (see previous posts for that recipe!), pickles, carrots, blackberries, Fiber One 90 calorie bars, Jolly Ranchers (You get THREE for one point!) and sunflower seeds in the shell (that's for Mark.)  In a pinch, you've got something you love and will keep your mouth busy for zero to 1 points.
• Plan ahead.  I meal plan over the weekend and assign each supper to a night based on how busy our schedules are for that day.  Then, after breakfast I load in all my points for breakfast and morning snacks as well as my anticipated points for supper.  That automatically tells me how many points I have left for lunch, afternoon snacks or even dessert.  I've found this to be a great way to make sure I'm not only eating all my points and not hoarding them but also to spread them out appropriately throughout the day.  Trust me, I have no need for a points binge at the end of the day before going to bed!  That helps no one!
• Consistancy can really help.  I don't think it's the key to success, but if you take the thinking out of it, food gets put back to it's place as something YOU control - not something that controls you.  I always have cereal for breakfast.  This is a LEARNED behavior.  I've long since been one of those people who thinks that eating early makes me sick to my stomach.  And it did for the first two weeks I did it.  You're welcome metabolism, for getting you back on track.  Now, I'm appropriately hungry in the morning for the fuel to kick start my day.  I also have fruit and a Fiber One bar as my snack at work.  If I don't have it, by the time I'm home I'm ready to eat EVERYTHING.  Not good.  So, I pack a snack.  Lunch tends to be pretty similar every day - mostly so that I can just come home, make it and eat it before the hungries start blinding me.  Thomas bagel thins or mini bagels, Weight Watchers cream cheese spread, veggies and dip and some pickles are pretty common.  That leaves supper as my daily wild card.  So far, it's working.

Onto what an actual day or two looks like for me.  I'll go on record to say, at no point have I been out of my mind starving in the past month.  To me, that says I'm doing a good job with the types of foods I'm choosing.  Protein is always somewhat of a challenge for me because I don't like meat and eggs sort of make me gaggy unless I eat them at suppertime.  There are only so many beans a gal can eat and still be allowed to participate in society, so I just do the best I can.

So here's what I had a couple of days ago - note: I don't track water on my food list.  I drink plenty as it's the only thing I drink aside from coffee (and the occasionaly cocktail, but shhhhhhhhhh.....)

Morning
1/2 cup(s) Original All-Bran                          1
1 large banana(s)                                            2
1 serving(s) 90 Cal. Fiber One bar                 1
20 oz black coffee                                          0
1/2 cup(s) fat-free skim milk                          1
Subtotal 5

Midday
1 serving(s) Thomas Bagel Thin                    1
1 1/2 serving(s) Old Dutch FF Pretzel thins   3
1 oz Reduced Fat Cream Cheese Spread       1
3/4 cup(s) blackberries                                  0.5
1 cup(s) carrot(s)                                           0
1 Tbsp sunflower seeds                                 1
3 Homemade Ranch Dressing                        4.5
Subtotal 11

Evening
4 oz frozen grilled salmon                             3
2 Tbsp sliced almonds                                  1.5
1 1/3 cup(s) cooked green beans                   0.5
1/2 Tbsp canola oil                                       2
1 serving(s) Uncle Ben's Fast & Natural Brown Rice 3
1 cup(s) watermelon                                     1
1 serving(s) Smart Pop mini bag                   1
Subtotal 12

A perfect 28 points - which is what I'm allowed in a day.  I was never hungry.  And it's a LOT of food!  (As you can see by my lunch, I was craving salty/crunchy!)  While suppers change dramatically, I'd say, the point spread stays about the same - I use 5-7 for morning foods, 8-11 for lunch foods, and 10-15 on supper foods.  I'm working on trying to shift more calories to the mornings, but for now, this is working well.

Hopefully this will soothe some minds that I'm sitting here starving all day just nibbling away on clear broth and carrot sticks! 

What else?

As is evidenced here in the past posts, a big focus this journey is related to my physical health.

But what else?

There's just gotta be more to it.  And in an effort to not leave you hanging, I think I know what "that" is...

I've stopped challenging myself.  There was a time when I was totally fearless - informing my mother at 15 that I was going to volunteer at a camp for mentally handicapped kids and adults two hours from where we live; day trips to wherever felt fun at the moment; taking a year off from college to "discover myself" as well as learn more about my chosen profession - heck, just the CHOOSING of theatre as a profession.  I felt armed and dangerous (in a non-lethal, weapon free way of course!)

Somewhere, that love of challenges got lost.  I'd even go so far as to say it all but disappeared.

But fear not, dear anonymous blog readers!  The time for challenges has returned!

Bold, right?  I know.  Of course, I haven't really identified too many yet.  One is that whole being able to run a 5K.  So that's good.....every list needs something to kick it off!  Another, embarassingly enough, is that I NEED to get back to auditioning.  That one's trickier because I have qualifications to it.  I want to love the show, ideally it would be something Holland could see and it has to "fit" into our lives.  Lots harder to balance when there's a kiddo in the mix.  But it has to happen.  It's been too long and now I'm sort of scared of it.  Which is dumb.

What else is a good challenge?  Reasonable here people - I'm not putting bungee jumping in at #3 so let's calm that idea right down.  You think of some too and we'll get together for tea (virtual or not) and discuss.  I'll let you know as I come up with more!

Murphy's Hot Hamburger

AKA - Heaven on a plate for my meat loving husband.

I'm going to warn you.  This recipe contains gravy.  And fries.  And hamburgers.  MMMMmmmm.  I know.  It had me at gravy.

I originally found this on the Pioneer Woman website, but she links it to here:  http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen-blog/2010/03/a-tasty-recipe-murphys-hot-hamburger/

Here's the picture:

Seriously.  Do you hear the angels singing?  And I don't even LIKE hamburgers. 

This household always has a small challenge when it comes to meal planning.  Basically, Mark loves meat and I do not.  There's very little I enjoy about meat and in case you're fearing an ethical debate from me, fret not.  It's simply a texture thing.  I don't like to touch it raw and I don't love the texture when I eat it.  Fish being about the only exception to the taste texture issue.  Because I do most of the cooking, I win.  And Mark's pallatte has had to adapt.  I do try to have meat dishes a few times a week to play nice.  This is one of those that's great for both of us.  All I do is skip the eating of the hamburger patty.  Trust me, I'm down with just eating fries and gravy. 

Want to know the best part?  The way I prepare it comes out to only 8 points a serving!!  CRAZY, right??!  Doesn't it look way worse than that?  Onto the magical recipe...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Murphy's Hot Hamburger

Ingredients

1 pound lean Ground Beef (7% fat)

Garlic Powder to taste
Onion Powder to taste
1 teaspoon Seasoned Salt
Black Pepper to taste
5 Tablespoons Flour
28 oz. Fat Free Beef Broth
3 Large Potatoes
1 Tablespoon canola oil

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Slice potatoes into fries. Place on large baking sheet. Pour oil onto fries and toss to coat evenly. Bake for approx. 45 minutes or until golden and crispy.

In mixing bowl, mix hamburger, garlic, seasoned salt, onion powder, and salt and pepper. Mix well. For 4 large patties. Place in large preheated skillet over medium heat. Brown burgers on each side until fully cooked.
Remove burgers from skillet and place on plate covered in paper towels. DO NOT drain the grease. Add the flour one tablespoon at a time, stirring with a whisk until all grease is absorbed and flour mixture gets thick and bubbly. Slowly add the broth, whisking constantly. Bring to a simmer and allow to thicken.
To serve, place fries on plate, hamburger on top of fries and cover all in gravy!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Julie's Notes:

• Cutting the fries is actually not all that hard to do by hand.  I bought a cheap fry cutter from target and it was junk, so I threw it away and just do it by hand.  I also peel the potatoes due to a finicky 5 year old who lives in this house.
• Parchment paper rules.  I use it on the baking sheets under the fries and have no trouble with them sticking or burning.
• In using the 93/7 lean ground beef, I've found there is very little "fat" left over for the flour to get mixed into.  There's MAYBE enough for a tablespoon of flour and that doesn't make it thick enough.  I'm still researching a way for more flour to get incorporated without lumps.  Although the lumps don't seem to be slowing anyone down in this house when I make this recipe.

There's not much more that needs to be said for this recipe.  It's amazing. 

WHOA! Huh?

I lost this week!  .8 pounds to be exact!  Huh??!!!

To be 100% honest, I didn't track a single point from Wednesday afternoon on.  Life was just too busy with the craziness of the rummage sale and eating at my parents' house most of the meals.  There were donuts consumed, fancy coffee drinks swigged, Chinese food ordered and eaten.

And I still lost!

My theory?  I need to eat my activity points.  At least.  I've been trying not to - thinking it would help me lose weight faster.  And knowing that if I stopped losing, it would likely be due to needing to up my fuel intake.  This has proven it to me.  I wasn't eating enough.  I could sort of feel it too - I was really lethargic and FELT hungry pretty much all day long for the previous week and a half (pre-rummage sale madness).  But, since I don't have a great track record with proper eating, I didn't know if it was part of me adjusting to just eating LESS or if I wasn't eating enough. 

So, YAAAAAAAAAAAY!  I don't need to feel hungry and can still lose!  This has just totally jazzed me back up for the week.

(Although talk to me after tomorrow's run and you may not hear the same enthusiasm!)

Is this totally crazy?

There's a 5K walk/run on July 31st.  It was established in memory of a local doctor who died of a heart attack while out for her daily run three years ago.  She happens to be the doctor we credit with saving Holland from much more severe damage during her ear situation three years ago.

I'm considering registering.

ACK!!!

Is that totally insane??  Is there any way I'd be ready to run a 5K by then?  I certainly could walk it - it's not that far to walk.  But if I registered, I'd want to run it.  I feel such a strong pull to do this.  Even down to the last phrase on the registration pamphlet I picked up:

Those who ran with Nancy often remember her saying, "We must be nuts."

See - it's like everything is pointing me to do it as it would be NUTS for me to think I could!

To run or not to run.....that is the question...