Mannicotti

1 pgk Mannicotti noodles (can sub jumbo shells)
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 pkg baby bella mushrooms, chopped
1 pkg ground turkey breast
1 pkg low fat ricotta
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup 2% mozzerella cheese
1 egg
1 can artichokes, drained and quartered
1 pkg frozen spinach defrosted and all water squeezed out
Italian Seasonings of choice (I like basil, fennel seeds, and oregano)
2 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs garlic, minced - jar is fine
1 jar/can spaghetti sauce

Boil noodles until aldente and rinse under cool water. Meanwhile, saute onions in olive oil on med heat, after a few min add mushrooms. When veggies are almost done add turkey and spices. When turkey is almost completely brown, add garlic. In a separate bowl mix ricotta cheese and half of the shreaded cheese (reserve other 1/2 for top). Add artichokes, egg, spinach, salt and pepper to taste. Add meat mix onced cooled slightly (so as not to scramble the egg) and mix thoroughly. Put 1/2 of sauce at bottom of glass baking dish. Next fill pasta with meat/cheese mix and place on sauce. Top with remaining sauce and cheese and bake 25-30 min until heated through and cheese is melted.

Crawfish Pasta

1 medium yellow onion diced
1/2 bell pepper diced
1 stalk celery diced
1 package sliced baby bella mushrooms
3 cloves garlic minced
2 tbs light butter
3 tbs flour
1 can cream mushroom soup - light and low sodium
2 cups milk - 2% or whole (instead of heavy cream)
1/2 small block 2% velveeta
1/2 package fresh prewashed spinach
1 package louisiana crawfish tails
1-2 cups water
Tony Casheres
Whole wheat pasta

Saute onion, bell pepper, celery and mushrooms in butter. Once almost done, add the garlic. Dont add garlic too early or it will burn and be bitter. Next add flour and cook 1-2 minutes. then add 1 cup of water and the milk. Bring to simmer. Next, add the mushroom soup and simmer about 10 minutes to thicken. Add Tony's and a pinch of cayenne if desired to taste and add crawfish tails. Add additional water it too thick, and continue to cook if still thin. Next, add velveeta. Stir spinach in when sauce is almost done, spinach will only take a couple of minutes to wilt in. Serve over whole wheat pasta.

This dish is reduced in fat and calories from the original that normally calls for 1 stick butter, heavy cream, and an entire block of full fat cheese. Also, by adding more veggies, it increases nutrient content.

Buttermilk Blueberry Bran Muffins

1 3/4 cup All Bran Flakes
1 cup lowfat buttermilk
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbs canola oil
1 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tbs baking powder
pinch cinnamon
1 cup frozen blueberries, no sugar added

Preheat oven to 400. Mix bran flakes, buttermilk, egg, vanilla, and oil and set aside to soak for 5 min. Meanwhile, mix the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mix to incorporate and spoon into a muffin/cupcake tin sprayed with baker's spray or nonstick cooking spray. Top with Crunchy topping (recipe follows), makes 12 muffins. Bake for 20-25 min.

Crunchy Topping:
3/4 cup All Bran flakes
3 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs butter

Mix flakes and sugar. Add butter cut into chunks and mix all ingredients, mashing the flakes to make a strussel like mixture.

Easy Crockpot BBQ Pulled Pork

Pork loin with fat trimmed
1 large bottle BBQ Sauce
Worshire sauce
Onion Powder
Garlic Powder
Mustard
Chipotle Chili Powder (optional)
Water
Whole Wheat hamburger buns

In a crockpot, mix Bbq sauce, (I like KC masterpiece original), 1 tsp Worshire sauce, 1 tbs mustard, and a pinch of Onion, garlic, and chipotle powder. Add approx 1/2 cup water to thin out the sauce a bit. Next, add the pork loin, roll it in the sauce and set the crockpot for 4-5 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low. Once the pork is tender, it will be easy to pull apart. Shread it with a fork and return to the sauce and serve on whole wheat buns.

Honey Dijon Salmon

Honey Dijon Salmon

2-4 pieces of salmon
1/4 cup mild dijon mustard
1 1/2 tbs honey
1 tbs light soy sauce
juice of 1/2 lemon
pinch garlic powder
pinch black pepper
small pinch crushed red pepper flakes
seafood seasoning or whatever seasoning blend you enjoy

Mix all ingredients except for seafood seasoning in dish and add salmon. Marinade for approx an hour. Next, preheat oven to 375 and place on baking sheet that's lined in foil (optional) and sprayed with cooking spray. Top with a pinch of seafood seasoning, I used McCormick's seafood rub and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn oven off and turn broiler to high and broil fish for a couple of minutes until the top is crispy, watch the fish closely while broiling as it may burn if left unattended. Finish with a fresh squeeze of lemon if desired.

I served this with a baked sweet potato and asparagus.

My favorite Salad Dressing

I wanted to share this recipe with everyone:

1 package plain nonfat yogurt (or ff greek yogurt)
1 package good seasons italian dressing mix
1 tbs Extra Virgin Olive oil
1 tbs vinegar

Mix all ingredients together. This can also be done with hidden valley ranch mix too, I usually add a bit of light mayo for ranch. I also mix yogurt with balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, and spices (onion powder, garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt and pepper) for a creamy balsamic vinagrette.

Recipe of the Week April 19

I will be posting a new recipe each week as long as I can think of new recipes. I dont eat "diet" food and refuse to make any changes I wont do for the rest of my life, so these are my everyday recipes that I eat on a daily basis, they may not be as healthy as a salad with chicken every night, but they are MUCH lower in calorie count than the original versions and they are the types of food Ive eaten while loosing my weight.
This is what we had for dinner tonight. Enjoy.

Crawfish Etoufee:

1 package crawfish tails
1 Tsp olive oil
1 medium onion
1/2 bellpepper
1-2 stalks celery
2 cloves garlic
1 &1/2 tbs real butter
4 tbs flour
1 can reduced sodium chicken broth
1 can rotel
3 cans water (use rotel can)
1/2 small can tomato sauce
Tonys seasoning
Cooked rice - Brown or White

Saute onion, bellpepper, celery in olive oil on med heat until translucent. Add garlic and saute for another minute. Dont burn the garlic, it will be bitter. Next, add butter and flour to the mix to make a roux on top of the veggies. Cook for a coulple of minutes to get the raw flour taste out then add 2/3 can of chicken broth and can of rotel. Mix well and add the water and some Tonys. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer. (Flour wont thicken unless broght to a boil first). Simmer for 15 minutes then add the crawfish. Simmer with a lid on for another 30-45 minutes. Remove lid, adjust seasoning and let cook without lid to thicken if needed or add water if too thick. Serve over 1/3 cup rice if you are female, 1/2 if you are a man (yes measuring here is important esp for starch) Serve with salad or nonstarchy veggies.

This dish usually requires an enitre stick of butter. I have reduced the fat content from 1/2 cup to 1 tbs butter and 1 tsp olive oil.

How the Journey Started

On November 13, 2008 I was in nursing school and my entire class got measured for new nursing uniforms. We all tried them on at the same time and I had to ask for an XL size in front of my peers. I could no longer put my head in the sand and pretend I was the same size as everyone else. That was the day that changed my life.

I went home and after crying I decided to do something about it. I joined Weight Watchers online and began my journey. First, I did something I had not done in a very long time. I got on a scale and AHHHH 196 lbs!!! So that was my starting point. I can say that with honesty now, but for many years I was not able to be honest with anyone, not even myself about my weight.

So, my first lesson, was the first step in this journey is to get honest. I told my husband my true weight, not 5-10 lbs less, but my actual weight.

What I hope to share in this blog is everything I have learned, my experiences, thoughts, recipes, tips and favorite foods. I look foward to hearing everyone's thoughts and opinions. I do not claim to be perfect, or to follow a perfect diet. I'm just a former fat girl doing it one day, one meal at a time.