What Did I Eat Yesterday?

 Well, I've got a great new recipe to share with you and I thought I'd write a bit more about what I'm eating on a daily basis, since there always seems to be lots of discussion about that.

My best advice is to find what works for you, and go with it! For example, I hate drinking calories. It has always felt like a waste to me. So I will never choose a protein shake when I could have actual food instead. Some people love the convenience and that's great too. What is more important is finding a way of eating that makes you feel satiated, not deprived, and is sustainable for you. Don't try to copy someone else's eating style if it doesn't feel right to you!

Here is another day in the life of Susie!

Breakfast:

1 ripe banana, sliced into coins

1 vanilla PC Greek yogurt cup

1/2 package Nutrisystem granola (substitute 1/3 cup of your favourite protein granola)

This always feels like a decadent treat for me. I like the mix of textures and I do have a major sweet tooth. The Greek yogurt gives this the protein I need for satiety and the protein granola helps prevent blood sugar spikes. It's important to always eat your carbs with protein for this reason. I also do still follow the glycemic index- this is one of the important lessons I learned when I was on the Nutrisystem plan. Now that I'm diabetic, this is even more important for my health and not just weight loss. If you're not familiar with the glycemic index, I'll be adding some more content for Ozempic users at my Tips for Newbies page soon!

Breakfast Summary: 345 calories, 3g of fat, 68g carbs, 16g protein.

Lunch: 

I really like the Tim Hortons soup at home line. I've always been a sucker for creamy soups and this line is surprisingly low calorie and fat for the flavour. I can eat a whole can without blowing my calorie budget. It's also really nice on a cold day. With my soup I made myself a sandwich on Weight Watcher's whole wheat bread with honey mustard, a slice of cheddar cheese, and some deli sliced ham. If you have a panini press, you can make it a grilled ham and cheese without the extra butter needed to pan fry!

Lunch Summary: 456 calories, 16g fat, 60g carbs, 18g protein.

Afternoon Snack:

Since I had a big lunch, I only wanted to have a small snack today. I really like the Sargento Balanced Breaks and how they're already preportioned. Yes, you could definitely make your own snacks if you buy bulk bags of almond and dried fruit and cut your own cheese, and if you choose to do that, more power to you! But sometimes it's nice just to have a quick grabbable snack available, and thanks to preservatives, these last a while in the fridge!

Snack Summary: 190 calories, 13g fat, 12g carbs, 7g protein

Dinner: Moroccan Shrimp with Couscous

285g shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tbsp harissa spice blend

160g Roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 cup dry couscous

50g shallots, diced

160g sweet bell pepper, diced

200g zucchini, cut into half moons

100mL plain Greek yogurt

1 sprig fresh cilantro

1 tbsp vegetable broth liquid concentrate (or substitute your favourite powder equivalent, or liquid broth with no water added)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 tsp sugar

3 cloves garlic, minced

You're going to love this one- tastes zesty and fancy, very filling, and ultra low calorie! 

 

Start by making your yogurt sauce so it has time for the flavours to blend. In a small bowl, mix your yogurt, the chopped cilantro, 2 tbsp of water, and the sugar. Add a little salt and pepper to taste and stir well. Set aside.

If you have a rice cooker, it's the easiest way to leave the couscous to set and forget. Follow the ratio instructions for water to "rice", and add the broth concentrate or your broth substitute (don't add water if you use premade stock!). If you don't have a rice cooker, take a medium pot and add 1/2 cup of water and your broth concentrate and bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove from heat, stir in the couscous, cover and set aside.

Drain and rinse your shrimp and pat them dry with a paper towel. Heat a large pan over medium heat and add 1 tsp oil once it's hot. Cook until the shrimp just turn pink, 2-3 min, then set aside and keep covered so they stay warm. 

Bring the pan heat up to medium-high, and add the remaining tsp of oil. Add the garlic, shallots, peppers, tomatoes, and harissa spice blend. Cook, stirring often, 4-5 minutes. When tender, add zucchini and cook until it is tender-crisp, 2-3 minutes. Stir in shrimp.

Divide couscous between plates, top with veggies and shrimp, and drizzle the herby yogurt dressing over top. Serves two.

Dinner Summary: 254 calories, 5g fat, 78g carbs, 38g protein.

Dessert:

Not all desserts have to be sweet! I like to eat later in the evening since I have dinner fairly early, and again, it's important to make sure that you have a protein as well even if you do choose a sweet snack. Many low calorie treats don't have protein and then you might find that your blood sugar spikes and you get hungry again.

That wasn't a problem for today though, when I decided to have a high protein late night snack anyway!

It's easy to make deviled eggs lighter- just use reduced fat or fat free mayo. Eggs are one place I don't recommend swapping Greek yogurt for mayo- while it works in a lot of places, I find it tastes terrible with eggs so I stick with lower calorie mayo for this one. For every 3 eggs, I use 1 tbsp of light mayonnaise. Then add your favourite seasonings and garnish! I like to add chopped onion, black pepper, and smoked paprika to mine.

There's still room left in the day to eat three whole eggs cut in half, so six deviled eggs for evening snack!

Dessert Summary: 255 calories, 18g fat, 4g carbs, 18g protein.

Daily Total: 1500 calories, 52g fat, 222g carbs, 97g protein.

I definitely don't feel deprived eating like this- nor am I hungry! Hope this helped give you some ideas! What did you eat today?

What Did I Eat Today?

 I've noticed a few posts asking what people are eating, so I thought I'd post what's on the menu for today! It can always help to see what others are doing to inspire us with our food choices.

Breakfast:

O'Dough's Pumpernickel Bagel Thin
1 tbsp cream cheese
fresh dill
75g of hot smoked salmon

I smoke my own salmon after brining it with a mixture of coarse brown sugar and sea salt. I wasn't sure how to calculate how much brine remains in the salmon but I found an estimated calorie count for hot smoked in my Lose It app, and I'm going with that.

Having a high protein breakfast really helps keep me alert and satiated, plus it's delicious. I tried the O'Dough's bagel thins not because they're gluten free (which they are) but because I couldn't find a low calorie pumpernickel bagel, and smoked salmon just calls out for it! They're actually not bad, as a dedicated gluten eater, although I do toast them nice and crispy.

Breakfast Summary: 308 calories, 15g fat, 25g carbohydrates, and 23g of protein.

Lunch:

2 Schneider's Turkey Pepperettes

1 cheddar string cheese

1 Oikos 2% blueberry Greek yogurt

cucumber slices

I was still pretty full from breakfast, so I decided to have a light lunch. I like to cut the pepperettes and string cheese into little rounds so that I can munch on them slowly. It also feels like I'm eating a bigger lunch, which was a trick I used pre-Ozempic. It's not as necessary now, but I still like the tapas feeling. The blueberry yogurt was dessert, but since it's Greek, it's still loaded with protein.

Lunch Summary: 258 calories, 11.5g fat, 16g carbohydrates, and 23g protein.

I try to get in my physical activity in the afternoon as well. I aim for a minimum of 20 minutes of activity a day, every day. So far, I've been pretty on target and I'm hoping to up to 30 minutes so that I can cover the occasional missed day if necessary. They recommend 150 minutes a week of physical activity so I'm close but not always quite there, but I'm trying.

Lately it's been walking, mostly. I'm still experiencing a lot of daytime fatigue (not related to the Ozempic but my other chronic health issues) and it's made it more difficult to work out hard like I used to with my Jillian Michaels DVDs. Today I can't go walking because of the terrible freezing rain, so I'm going to try doing a VR workout on the Oculus Quest. I've never done that before so I'm curious!

<workout> Well that didn't quite go as planned. The Oculus was dead and needed more than an hour to charge, and I knew if I didn't do my workout when I was all dressed and ready to do it, I wouldn't. So I did level one of the 30 Day Shred instead, just took it a little easy because I haven't exercised that hard in a while. According to my fitness tracker, I burned 229 calories and worked out for 27 minutes.

It feels like I'm eating all day sometimes, but I do try and squeeze in an afternoon snack post workout. Today it was a Nutrisystem Trail Mix Bar. They're really good for a protein bar in my opinion!

Afternoon Snack Summary: 200 calories, 8g fat, 24g carbohydrates, and 12g protein.

Dinner:

285g raw shrimp, peeled

1 tbsp teriyaki sauce

225g broccoli florets

170g raw shredded cabbage

28g cashews, chopped

1 tbsp sesame oil

60g yellow onion, diced

2 tbsp soy sauce

This is another Hellofresh meal box- each week they do offer both calorie and carb reduced meals, and this one is both! If you'd like to give them a try, you can get a free box through my referral link! 

Before starting, wash and dry all produce. Cut broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Using a strainer, drain and rinse shrimp, then pat dry with paper towels. Add shrimp, 1 tsp oil and half the teriyaki sauce to a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, then toss to coat. Set aside.

Heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat. When hot, add cashews to the dry pan. Toast, stirring often, until golden-brown, 4-5 min. Transfer cashews to a plate.

Heat the same pan over medium-high. When hot, add 1 tsp sesame oil, broccoli and onions. Cook, stirring often, until broccoli is tender-crisp, 5-6 min. Add coleslaw cabbage mix and soy sauce. Cook, stirring often, until coleslaw cabbage mix is tender, 3-4 min. Transfer veggies to another large bowl. Cover with foil to keep warm.

Heat the same pan over medium. When hot, add 1 tsp oil then shrimp. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp just turn pink, 2-3 minutes. 

Divide veggies between plates. Top with shrimp. Drizzle remaining teriyaki sauce over top, then sprinkle with cashews. Serves two.

Super colourful and healthy, not to mention delicious. You could add more veggies if you liked as well.

Dinner Summary: 439 calories, 11g fat, 46g carbohydrates, and 34g protein.

I'm also a bit of a late night snacker, since we eat dinner early. I'll often have another mini meal or a substantial snack around 8-9pm.

Dessert/Evening Snack:

Tonight I thought I'd make myself something a bit decadent and delicious, so I prepped it in the afternoon so it would have time to chill in the fridge. If you haven't tried my NY Style Cheesecake recipe, you're missing out! 

1 large graham cracker, crushed into crumbs
2 oz fat free cream cheese
2 tbsp light ricotta cheese
1 tbsp vanilla Greek yogurt
2 1/2 tbsp Splenda
1 1/2 tbsp Egg Beaters
1/2 tsp lemon juice or vanilla extract

2-3 tbsp of fruit or sugarfree pie filling
1-2 tbsp fat free whipped cream

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix together cheeses, yogurt, Splenda, juice/extract and Egg Beaters and stir until well blended. Spray your baking dish with cooking spray (I used a mini silicone loaf pan). Add in the graham cracker crumbs and shake around to coat bottom of dish. Pour cheesecake filling into dish and put the dish into a larger oven safe dish and add water about half way up the side of the mini pan in the larger dish to create a water bath. Bake the cheesecake for 40 minutes, then turn off toaster oven or oven and let it sit in the oven for 10 minutes. I put mine in the fridge to let it set while I had dinner, and then topped with the cherry filling and whipped cream.

It's so delicious, you won't believe it's healthy! This recipe serves one, so you may want to double or triple it so that you can have more in the fridge for another day!

You can also do variants- use different flavours of Greek yogurt! I like using key lime and some lime zest, or lemon meringue and lemon zest. I'd love to hear how you experiment with it!

Dessert Summary: 176 calories, 2.7g of fat, 18g carbohydrates, and 14.5g of protein.

Daily Total: 1381 calories, 48g of fat, 129g of carbohydrates, and 106.5g of protein.

A balanced diet works best for my body; restricting food groups is not healthy for me although I know it works for other people. I try to stay daily between 1200-1600 calories because I know this is the zone where I'll lose weight and not feel unsatisfied.

What do you eat in a day? Feel free to share in the comments!

New Ideas for a New Start

While I think it's great that all my old familiar recipes are still here and available for me to use when I don't feel like innovating, I find that I am really looking forward to learning about the new meals that Nutrisystem is going to release. It just opens up even more possibilities for recipes for me to create!

I've started doing a little tinkering again and my breakfast today was so sinful that I couldn't believe it was good for me. Seriously. If you see this product in your store, definitely give it a try!

Buttered Cinnamon Apple Toast (Breakfast):



1 pkg Nutrisystem Apple Strudel Scone
2 tsp Derlea Foods Cinnamon Raisin Spread

Quick and easy- just slice the scone in two to make two slices of "toast" and then pop them in the toaster until they are crispy. Then spread 1 tsp of the Cinnamon Raisin Spread on each half and enjoy.

This tastes so buttery and decadent... it made a great breakfast and I still had my dairy/protein and fruit serving to have later as a midmorning snack! The Cinnamon Raisin Spread counts as a fat serving, with 50 calories and 5g of fat- and it's well worth using it at breakfast, believe me!



I've also tried their Garlic Spread, with similar stats. I really like it melted over steamed veggies like green beans or broccoli. This company did not ask me to write about them- I just really like their products and wanted to share this one with you.


For snack today, I made myself a very filling snack that satisfied the crunch and munch craving. I'm not sure if I've written about it before, but it's worth another look anyway even if I have.

Veggies & Dip (Dairy/Protein Ideas):



Just slice up your favourite veggies along with a dairy/protein serving of plain yogurt (something fat free and high protein like a creamy Greek yogurt), and blend some dry seasoning mix into the yogurt to make a great dip. Hidden Valley Ranch makes a powdered mix that has only 5 calories per tsp, so you can use quite a lot and it's still a free food. I have also found some great mixes at Farmer's Markets- I had a salsa flavoured one today that was so spicy I could hardly eat it. Great way to get flavour without fat! (Note to self: try mixing salsa in with the yogurt as a dip!)

Two veggie servings equal a fruit, so go ahead and try this for your afternoon snack when you want something bulky that will take a while to eat, but still have enough protein to keep you going until dinner. It's 4 hours later and I'm still not really that hungry yet!

Great Summer Recipes!

Now that the summer heat wave is here, I'm sure we're all looking for ways to cool off. Here are a few ideas that I've tried recently!

I usually drink plain water now, but every once in a while I have a craving for something different. In the summer, I love lemonade with BBQ-type meals! I got this recipe off the back of a Realemon lemon juice bottle and changed the sugar to Splenda to make a great lemonade recipe that no one would believe has very few calories!

Summer Sweet Lemonade:

1.6L cold water
1 cup Splenda
1 cup pure lemon juice

Mix everything together and stir well, and enjoy! It doesn't technically count as water since it's been sweetened, but as long as you aren't drinking just lemonade I wouldn't worry about it too much.


Hungry Girl sent out an email with a dip recipe not too long ago and I tried it and thought it was great! Here is my version:

Dairy/Protein Ideas:




Veggielicious Dip:

1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup FF mayo
3 tbsp dried veggie soup mix
10 oz chopped frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes packed in water, drained and chopped

Mix everything together and stir until well blended- it's that simple! And because you're using Greek yogurt as a base instead of sour cream, you can actually use 1/2 cup of this as a dairy/protein serving at 84 calories and 7g of protein. It has tons of flavour and makes a great afternoon snack (substitute 2 veggie servings instead of your fruit).

More Dairy/Protein Ideas...

Continuing my comments from yesterday, dairy/protein servings are definitely the easiest way to adapt your program to your needs. You can pretty much have ANYTHING you want, as long as it fits into the stats of 100 calories or less, 3g of fat or less, and 7g of protein or more. Here are a couple of ideas that I really enjoy.

Dairy/Protein Ideas:



Here's one of my favourite breakfast accompaniments on a hungry day!

Smoked Salmon Omelette:

1/2 cup Eggbeaters
2oz smoked salmon
1 tbsp fat free Herb & Garlic cream cheese
green onions, chopped

It took me a lot of practice to make a pretty omelette, but the secret is not to turn it too quickly. When you think it's ready, lift up the edges just a little and let the liquid drip down underneath and then set it down again. There should be very little liquid on the top when it's actually ready to turn. Then allow it to cook a little and spread the cream cheese across half the omelette before folding it shut and scooping it onto your plate. Delicious! This counts as one dairy/protein serving and one free food. Change it up a little by using cubed ham and asparagus instead of salmon and green onions (and 20 calories' worth of shredded cheese instead of cream cheese) or increase the Eggbeaters to 3/4 cup and just have a plain veggie omelette if you prefer. This is a great and protein packed side for your breakfast!


I'll confess that for the longest time I was afraid of trying a product I had sitting in my cabinet. Usually I'm the first to try new things, but fake peanut butter? I didn't know... I'm glad I finally gave it a try, though!

Peanut Butter Apples:



1 apple, peeled and cored, cut into slices
4 tbsp PB2
2 tbsp water

It's that simple. Mix your PB2 with the water, smear it on the apples, and enjoy! 4 tbsp of PB2 counts as a dairy/protein serving and it's actually quite a lot of peanut butter. Since we only get 1 tsp as a fat serving, it was really nice to have gobs of it on my apple slices! PB2 doesn't quite have the rich flavour of real peanut butter, but with less than a quarter of the calories and fat, this is a swap you aren't going to regret making. I order mine from www.netrition.com and I'm going to have to get more since my husband wanted to share my snack!

So go ahead- get creative with your add ins. What do you like to use for your dairy/protein servings?

Disclosure: This post was written by me and was not edited by anyone. The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own and have not been influenced in any way. Nutrisystem Canada is providing their food and program to me free of charge for my weekly updates. I was not compensated for writing this post.

Hungry Days and Not-So-Hungry Days

For those of you just starting out on the program, you might look at my title and wonder how it's possible to have not-so-hungry days when you eyeball the portion sizes on Nutrisystem. I remember my first look at the Blueberry Muffin and sadly resigned myself to being hungry since I would normally have had one or two of them as a snack!

You will find that you adjust to the new serving sizes because your body really doesn't need anywhere near the amount of food that we tend to consume. But, of course, there will be some days you are hungrier than others. I tend to find that a hungry day means that my metabolism is speeding up and that I'm likelier to see a big drop on the scale that week. That helps keep me motivated to stick to my program and not go off plan just because I'm hungry. I use a free food like sugarfree Jello, or indulge in some unlimited veggies like cucumber slices or celery sticks and that really helps.

One of the big reasons that I think Nutrisystem is a superior program to Jenny Craig (besides the cost!) is that I can adjust my meals much more easily to suit myself on hungry days and not-so-hungry days. It's my choice what add-ins to use each meal, so I can choose something bulky if I'm hungry or something light if I don't really feel like eating.

For example, today I woke up hungry! For breakfast, I enjoyed this:



Blueberry pancakes with fresh blueberries baked in, a drizzle of sugarfree maple syrup, and a huge omelette made with Egg Beaters, diced ham, and green onions. It was a lot of food and incredibly filling! (Yes, my pancakes got a little overcooked while I was chopping the ham, but they still tasted great!) I also had a little extra bowl of blueberries to snack on since they didn't all fit in my pancake batter. Now, if I hadn't been hungry, I could have had a smaller breakfast that also fits perfectly into plan, like the Cinnamon Bun Bar with a glass of milk and 3 dried prunes. That would fulfill the same breakfast requirements but with a lot less bulk for the days I really don't feel like eating. I really love the flexibility in the program so that I can listen to my body's needs.

Playing with the add-ins is also where we can really get creative. I love that the lunch Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes can be everything from Cream of Potato Soup to Clam Chowder to Crab Cakes to Potato Salad. Even with only one entree, it can still be fun to decide what's for lunch! I don't see myself getting bored of the shelf stable food for a long time- and it's already been more than a year!

It's great to have choice- one of the things I love best about this program is not feeling like I have to eat grilled chicken and salad every day to lose weight. Instead, I can still eat food I love and "cook" as much or as little as I want. Win win (or as I see it- win lose)!

Disclosure: This post was written by me and was not edited by anyone. The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own and have not been influenced in any way. Nutrisystem Canada is providing their food and program to me free of charge for my weekly updates. I was not compensated for writing this post.

Non Scale Victory!

I was planning to share some more recipes with you today, but first I need you to help me celebrate a very exciting moment today.

I had a pair of jeans sitting in my closet from 2006- haven't worn them since. They're low rise and the smallest pants I own. Last night I threw in a load of laundry but somehow my usual black jeans failed to get in the washer and I couldn't wear them again without washing them because they were covered with my son's dinner from last night. We had plans to go out to dinner for a mystery shop, so I had to find something to wear!

I now weigh less than I have in longer than I remember, however my body has changed after having a baby, so I've been afraid to try on these pants. I didn't really have any other options today, though! So I decided to pull them out- I told myself the worst that could happen would be that I'd need to exercise harder.

And you know what's coming- THEY FIT! And comfortably so- it's not like I was struggling to zip them up. I am just over the moon. I can't wait until these "skinny" jeans become my fat jeans!

I've got some more great appetizers for your Super Bowl party- enjoy (in moderation)!

Dairy/Protein Ideas:



Cheesy Mozzerella Sticks:

2 light mozzerella string cheese sticks (50 calories each), cut in half
1 tbsp Egg Beaters
1 tbsp seasoned breadcrumbs

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Dip the cheese stick pieces into the Egg Beaters and then into the breadcrumbs. Bake for ten minutes or until they are cheesy and gooey. Serve immediately with salsa or your favourite FF dipping sauce.

These are AWESOME and taste exactly like the real thing! I highly recommend trying them for an afternoon snack. Count them as a dairy/protein and a free food.


Here's an appetizer platter I made at a recent party- it's not all Nutrisystem friendly but it's definitely lower calorie than the "original" versions.



You can see my Jalapeno Poppers at the bottom of the platter... next look at two of my favourites: Breaded Chicken Fingers and Faux Fried Shrimp.

Breaded Chicken Fingers & Faux Fried Shrimp:

1 pkg Nutrisystem Grilled Chicken Breast (or your own chicken breast, cut into strips)
large cocktail shrimp, tails on
Egg Beaters
seasoned bread crumbs

The Nutrisystem Grilled Chicken Breast really isn't a great choice for this recipe because the chicken flakes easily with a fork and is difficult to cut into strips- I'd recommend using your own. I didn't specify quantities otherwise because it depends how many people you want to serve.

Just like with the cheese sticks, dip the chicken strips and shrimp into the Egg Beaters and then into the breadcrumbs. Bake the chicken strips in the oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. I like the shrimp best either fried in 1 tsp olive oil per serving, or in PAM Olive Oil spray.

If you want to count this as a dairy/protein serving, you can use up to 100 calories of chicken or shrimp, and count the Egg Beaters and breadcrumbs as a free food. You can also choose to make this a dinner entree by using 3 lean protein servings (that would be 3oz of chicken or 6oz of shrimp), ~80 calories of breadcrumbs (so a thicker breading) as your low GI carb, and 2 tsp of olive oil to fry them in. You still need to add your 3 veggie servings to make it a complete dinner.

The last item really isn't great for Nutrisystem but your guests will probably enjoy it!

Pizza Rolls:

wonton wrappers
turkey pepperoni
shredded mozzerella cheese
pizza sauce
your favourite veggies, diced small

Squirt a little pizza sauce into each wrapper and add pepperoni, veggies, and cheese. Fold the wrappers tightly and tuck in the edges to make an egg roll shape. Heat olive oil in a pan- enough to cover the bottom of the pan. When the oil is hot, place the pizza rolls in a single layer in the pan. Turn when the wrapper starts to crisp up. When they are cooked on all sides, serve immediately.

Unfortunately, these really don't do well when baked or faux fried- they just don't have the same flavour and the wonton wrappers don't crisp up properly. As a result, these use too much oil to be eaten on Nutrisystem. I recommend serving these to your guests and sticking to the on plan snacks like chicken fingers and mozzerella sticks! And of course don't forget to put out a platter of fresh veggies and dip!

Healthy Dip Recipes

Yes, there is indeed such a thing! A reader sent me an email asking if I had any dip recipes that she could serve to her guests for her Super Bowl party that wouldn't be too far off plan, so I went looking for some yummy ones. Enjoy!

The quickest and easiest one I tried that I liked was simply stirring some Hidden Valley Ranch powder into FF sour cream. Depending how much powder you use, it has a nice kick and your guests will enjoy it- plus you can have it ready to serve in about 5 seconds! 2 tbsp is a free food.

My second one is a little more involved but definitely worth the effort- I got the idea from the Biggest Loser Cookbook and modified it slightly to up the protein count.


Skinny Spinach Dip:



1 10oz package of frozen chopped spinach (thawed overnight in fridge)
2/3 cup drained water chestnuts
3 green onions
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup FF sour cream
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp hot mustard
black pepper, to taste

Press the spinach into a strainer and use a spoon to squeeze as much water out as possible. Set aside. Pour the water chestnuts, green onions, and garlic into a food processor and blend. Add the spinach and pulse, and then the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl and chill for at least one hour before serving.

This dip has a zesty kick because of the water chestnuts and if you serve it in a fancy bread bowl, your guests will have no idea that it's so low in calories and fat! Serve it with whatever you want- pumpernickel bread chunks, crackers, or just plain sliced veggies. The recipe makes 22 2-tbsp servings with 15 calories, 2g carbs, trace of fat, and 2g protein. So it's your choice how you want to use it- you can have 3 tbsp as a free food, or you can have 3/4 cup as a dairy/protein serving with 12g protein. Or you can do some combination- whatever works for you. The bottom line is that it tastes great and you can definitely find a way to work it into your program if you want a yummy dip!

I'm considering how it would taste as a sandwich spread with grilled chicken and maybe some melted mozzerella. Sounds like a yummy flex lunch idea!

Another Old Favourite

When I was at the farmer's market, I found some beautiful shiitake mushrooms and I had to buy them. I just had to find a good way to prepare them! If you haven't had shiitake mushrooms before, they have a very strong, distinctive flavour that might be a bit startling if you're only used to the plain white mushrooms that are normally sold in bulk at the grocery store. I find their flavour to be rich and delicious.

I was talking to a friend about all the produce I bought and he suggested that I make mushroom soup. I love, love, love Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup. So rich and yummy! However, I don't love all the fat and sodium in each serving! I couldn't even imagine it would be possible to make a good mushroom soup Nutrisystem friendly, but I laughed and said I'd look for a recipe. Much to my surprise, I found one that is going to make me regret that it's so difficult to find shiitake mushrooms! (Fortunately you can substitute with cremini mushrooms if you can't find anything else). Believe it or not, this soup meets the stats for a dairy/protein serving and still helps you get those veggies in!

Dairy/Protein Ideas:



Lightened-Up Cream of Mushroom Soup:

1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups shiitake mushrooms or cremini mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cloves, minced
1/8 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup milk
diced chopped green onions


Heat the olive oil in a pan and saute the spices, garlic, onion, and mushroom until the liquid has disappeared (about 7 minutes). Sprinkle the flour in and stir well, and then pour in the broth and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for about ten minutes. Add the milk and stir until well blended. Serve hot and garnish with green onions. Makes 2 servings.

Wow. I was floored by how rich and flavourful this soup was! I was expecting it to be rather bland but it was amazing. My husband is a big mushroom fan and he really enjoyed it- it doesn't taste like "diet" soup at all. Actually, it tasted like a fine soup from a nice restaurant. I will definitely be making this again and again!

The nutritional stats for this recipe per serving are 111 calories, 7g of protein, 2g of fat, and 572mg of sodium. Of course, your choice of ingredients may vary the stats a little so keep that in mind! Chicken broth tends to make the protein higher than veggie broth.


Vegetable Ideas:



One thing I do miss is French fries. Unfortunately, potatoes are not a low glycemic index carb, so they do tend to be limited on the Nutrisystem program. However, there are ways to try and kick the craving!

Zucchini Fries:

1 zucchini, chopped into French fry-like pieces
1 tbsp Egg Beaters
1 tbsp breadcrumbs

Dip the zucchini spears into the Egg Beaters and then toss them in a Tupperware container with the breadcrumbs and shake until they are well coated. Bake for 20-30 min (depending how crispy you like them!) and enjoy them plain or with sauce. I like to dip them in my Big Mac sauce recipe- 2 tbsp light mayo, 1 tbsp FF 1000 Island dressing, 1 tbsp relish. Yum! These are really good on the side with the Flame Broiled Beef Patty or the Grilled Chicken Breast.

Since the amount of Egg Beaters and breadcrumbs used are negligible, just count them as a free food and enjoy your veggies!

Snack Ideas

Snacks are often the hardest thing that I have to come up with. I usually get bored and end up eating the same old string cheese or yogurt with some fruit.

When I went to the US a few weeks ago on my road trip, I stopped in a Walmart and was looking for something to eat with my lunch bar. I was pleasantly surprised to see these little kits for $2 that included whole grain crackers, turkey slices, and low fat herb and garlic cream cheese (just don't eat the mini Toblerone that comes with it!). I bought several of them and ate one a day and they were absolutely delicious! They don't sell kits like that here, but I figured I could make them myself for a tasty and filling snack.

Herbed Turkey & Cheese Crackers:


I bought Philadelphia Ultra Low Fat Herb & Garlic cream cheese and fat free turkey deli slices. You can call the cream cheese a free food or put that and the turkey together to count as a dairy/protein serving as long as it's below 100 calories (it'll definitely be more than 7g of protein). I like to use Breton Multigrain crackers with this- 3 crackers is a lot and it fits into the requirements for a carb serving. If you don't get extra carbs, you can choose a lunch or dinner that gets one and skip it then. And you still get your fruit serving with this! The dieticians do say that once in a while, you can substitute a carb serving for a fruit serving, so you can choose to do that occasionally as well as long as you don't make a habit of it.

This is more the kind of thing I'd eat for a snack before starting Nutrisystem, so I found it psychologically much more satisfying than what I've been eating lately.


Chocolate Cake (Dessert):


I tried an easy twist on the chocolate cake. I chopped up a fruit serving worth of fresh strawberries and diced the cake into little pieces and put it on top. Then I added 4 tbsp of whipped cream (free food) and it was delicious!

What was your favourite meal?

One of the dishes that contributed to my weight gain was the delicious spinach dip appetizers that are served at a variety of restaurants. Mmm... gobs of melted cheese with just enough spinach for flavour, served with nachos or deep fried pita points or some other calorie-laden concoction. I'm definitely a carb and cheese addict so this was right up my alley. I decided to try and find a way to make something similar but NS friendly. At first, it seemed almost impossible!

Cream of Broccoli Soup (Lunch):


I started by adding 2 squares of Laughing Cow Cheese light to the soup mix, and then pouring slightly less than the usual amount of hot water into the cup and covering it and letting it stand. In the meantime, I thawed 3 cubes of frozen diced spinach and microwaved them with a little garlic. When the soup was ready (it's much thicker than usual with the LC cheese and the reduced water), I stirred in the spinach and put it in the microwave. If you have a carb serving, now's the time to grab some Guiltless Gourmet Garlic & Herb pita chips and enjoy the dip with them. If not, pick up a Nutrisystem Grilled Chicken Breast and spoon some dip on top (sprinkle with a tiny bit of shredded cheese) and then heat. The rest of the dip is delicious over steamed asparagus, green beans, or broccoli. Just like the Flame Broiled Beef Patty, the Grilled Chicken Breast can be used as a protein serving in conjunction with another entree if you don't add the carb. Of course, you can always use your own serving of grilled chicken breast as long as it meets the dairy/protein requirements of 100 calories or less, 3g of fat or less, 7g of protein or more.

I really enjoyed this dip- it definitely satiated my craving for something fatty and cheesy. And believe me, when you're coming off a zero loss week, sometimes all you want to do is stuff your face, stupid as that is.


Chicken A La King (Lunch):


Sorry about the terrible picture- I must have moved the camera while I was taking it. This is a discontinued Nutrisystem lunch item that I thought was pretty good. It is chicken and noodles in a creamy sauce. It wasn't anything special but I enjoyed it and would eat it again. I have 4 left I think but I probably won't be seeking it out like other discontinued items such as the Beef Tacos and Microwave Chocolate Cake.


Mushroom Risotto (Dinner):


For the past week, I've been switching up my lunches and dinners to try and get my metabolism moving again. So this gave me a protein to use with my dinner, so I decided to have the risotto with extra cremini mushrooms as a side dish instead of an entree. I ate one of the salmon burgers I mentioned in my previous post with my dinner carb serving along with it. Boy, was I stuffed after lunch! This meal had 44 grams of protein and you really noticed it. I had a hard time coming up with words to describe the risotto. It is zesty but not spicy, and very yummy. My husband tasted it and he described it as rich, flavourful, and very satisfying. I'll be ordering it again. I think you'll have to try this one for yourself to see if you like it- it's very unique. I know what you're thinking; usually unique means bad, tactfully. But that really isn't the case here!

If you're hungry and you know it...

Occasionally I've been having trouble with being hungry again. I know it's not helping that I'm not getting enough sleep, because when I'm tired, my body has stronger urges to eat so I have enough energy to make it through the day. I also saw an article in Men's Health that said people gained 55% more weight in their abdomen when they got fewer than six hours of sleep at night. I'll really be happy when my son starts to sleep through the night! He'll do it when he's ready but I hope it will be soon.

So, to alleviate my hunger pangs, I started thinking of more creative ways to use my dairy/protein servings. I miss soups, which are usually very high in fat and sodium, so I found a way to make one of my favourites NS friendly. Nutrisystem has several Asian inspired entrees, and this would be a perfect appetizer to go along with one or just as a yummy snack during the day.


Egg Drop Soup (Powerfuel):


2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 egg
1 chopped green onion
1 tsp cornstarch blended with cold water until smooth
1 drop dark soy sauce (optional)

Heat the chicken broth until boiling on the stove, then stir in the cornstarch and allow soup to thicken. Crack your egg in a bowl and stir gently with a fork but no need to blend. Pour the egg into the broth and stir. Turn down the heat and let the soup simmer for a few minutes before pouring it into a bowl and topping with green onions. If desired, add a tiny bit of dark soy sauce- that stuff is powerful so you really don't need much! This counts as a Powerfuel plus free foods. It is packed with protein and low calorie so it will definitely curb those hunger pangs, not to mention being so quick and easy to make.

Orange Chicken Breast with Vegetables & Rice (Dinner):


The soup was delicious as an appetizer for this meal, but I wasn't really a big fan of the orange chicken. Unlike most NS rice entrees, though, there was lots of it in this meal which was nice. I just didn't really care for the sauce. It was filling and edible but not one of my favourite meals.


Fettuccine Alfredo (Lunch):


With all the other yummy lunches out there, I've been kind of avoiding the 9 fettuccine alfredos I have sitting in my cupboard. I really liked this at first but I've found so many meals I like better that this one had kind of fallen by the wayside. Today I tried a recipe I found on the NS boards to jazz it up a bit and I think I'll be eating it a little more often again! It's not very photogenic but it sure tastes good!

Beef Stroganoff:

1 pkg Fettuccine Alfredo
1 pkg Flame Broiled Beef Patty
low sodium beef broth (to fill line)
2 tbsp fat free sour cream
cremini mushrooms, chopped
onions, chopped
garlic to taste
chives to taste
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Boil the beef broth and use it instead of water to make the Fettuccine Alfredo; cover and set aside. Rehydrate the Flame Broiled Beef Patty (I used the remaining broth for this as well) and set aside. Spray a pan with PAM and fry the mushrooms, onions, and garlic until tender. Dice the Beef Patty into little pieces and add to the vegetable pan. Pour in the sour cream and stir in the chives (I use freeze dried). Add the Fettuccine Alfredo and stir until blended; allow to thicken. If desired, top with a little Parmesan cheese and enjoy.

I'll admit that I used to really love Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff. Salty, fatty, but quick and delicious. This meal doesn't have quite the same flavour as the boxed one, but it has a delicious flavour all its own. I really enjoyed it.

*sigh*

No loss this week. I'm not sleeping very well and have been stressed out with some family stuff, so I don't know if that affected things. The worst part is, I haven't even cheated! You'd think at least if I have to go through the crushing disappointment of not losing anything, that I'd have gotten to do something to enjoy it, eh?

I hope I haven't plateaued already because I still have a long way to go. I'll just have to start changing things up and getting more exercise in- I refuse to allow this to derail me.

I started off today by switching my lunch and dinners, as recommended by the Nutrisystem counselors. I am not really sure how it helps, but it doesn't hurt to try it. I've also decided to give up one of my additional carb servings daily and see if that helps.

I was at the grocery store yesterday, and I found a fantastic option for a dairy/protein, one that is definitely worth saving my extra carb serving for! I picked up a box of Compliments Balance Wild Salmon Burgers- 120 calories, 3g of fat, and a whopping 21g of protein. It is slightly over the stats for a dairy/protein (capped at 100 calories with minimum 7g of protein) but I think the additional protein more than makes up for it. So for lunch today I had my dinner entree (the Lasagna, yum!), and for dinner I am going to have the salmon burger and Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes with steamed asparagus and green beans. I'm looking forward to it!

Hopefully I can break through this quickly- it gets disheartening to work so hard and feel like it's all for nothing. Funny how the Daily Dose tends to have such appropriate things for me at just the right time... it gives me hope that other people have walked the same path and gotten caught at similar times. And if they can get through it, so can I.

A new bear!

I was hoping to earn a new bear this week, although the results were a little in doubt since last week I only lost 1.6lbs. Well, I blew it away; FOUR pounds! I had to weigh myself twice to make sure! I haven't lost four pounds since my first week on Nutrisystem! I have been doing more walking with the baby since the weather's been nice, and this is definitely encouragement to keep it up. I am really excited. And only eight pounds to my next bear!

I tried some more new things this week. I also noticed when I was going over my tags that some of the things I eat on a regular basis were never reviewed- silly me! I am going to make an effort to check that everything I like is here, and hopefully I'll start getting pictures in of the things I don't really care for as well. Not because they're bad- they're just not to my taste. I've never been a cold cereal person, for example. But that's the nice thing about Nutrisystem- there's something for everyone. And lots of chocolate- everyone loves chocolate!


Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix (Breakfast):


Mmm... why on earth did they discontinue this?? You can still frequently find it on eBay. Yes, it may be expired, but it's a mix, so I'm not too worried. It tastes just fine to me! The pancakes were delicious with sugarfree syrup. This is going to become one of my favourite breakfasts. *runs off to scour eBay for more mix*

And here they are as donuts, following the recipe in my previous post. Of course, two got eaten before I thought to take a photo! Also delicious, but more along the lines of chocolate chip cupcakes than donuts as they were less dense. Maybe a bit less liquid is needed in this version.


Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar (Dessert):


I was really hoping for something similar to the lunch Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar, which is delicious! When I opened the wrapper, it already looked different since it wasn't covered with chocolate. By itself, it was OK, but compared to the lunch bar it was just meh. Probably not something I'll order again since there are so many desserts I do like.

Greek Yogurt (Dairy/Protein Ideas):


Mmm. I read about this all the time on the NS boards but it seems that while Greek yogurt is plentiful in the US, it's pretty hard to find here in Ontario. I did finally manage to locate a Sobey's that carries the Liberte 0% brand, and I decided to give it a try. On the NS boards, people recommend stirring in a spoonful or so of Jello fat free sugar free pudding mix, so I tried it with vanilla and then put it over fresh strawberries and crumbled graham crackers for a carb serving. It was delicious! Very rich and creamy, as well as insanely high in protein so it was filling. It's not cheesecake, but it's close enough to make me happy for the time being. Speaking of which- I have ordered Jello cheesecake pudding mix to try with this!

More potatoes!

Oh my goodness, I think I need to revise my auto delivery again. I wish I'd put more than three Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes for this month because there are so many things you can do with them!

I got this recipe off the Nutrisystem website and it is amazing. I love creamy soups and this one was very satisfying and it also made a huge portion. The bowl that the soup is pictured in is not a regular soup bowl. That is actually my large pasta serving bowl! I had a hard time finishing it all and I was stuffed. My husband tasted it and he liked it so much that he asked me to make him some, too.



Creamy Potato Soup

1 pkg Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup milk
1/2 oz shredded cheese
1/2 tbsp bacon bits (optional)
If chunky soup is desired, add 1 cup steamed cauliflower mashed in a blender (but still chunky) with a tbsp of fat free sour cream and black pepper.


Add 1 cup hot water to the Potatoes, which fills the cup nearly to the brim instead of the fill line. Stir well and transfer to a large bowl. Give the potatoes a few minutes to rehydrate- this is a good time to prepare the cauliflower if you want that in your soup. Pour in 1/2 cup milk (I found I actually needed a little bit more to thin the soup to my liking), stir in cauliflower if desired, and then top with the cheese and bacon bits. Serve warm.

I looked at the nutritional stats on bacon bits and compared it to the imitation bits and to turkey bacon. 1 tbsp of real bacon bits has about 35 calories and 2.5 grams of fat, with 5 grams of protein. I am personally comfortable with a little extra fat and treating them as a partial dairy/protein serving even though they slightly exceed the program requirements- after all, we're only using half a tablespoon. If you want to adhere strictly, I suggest cooking up a slice of low fat or fat free turkey bacon and using that for your crumble or skipping it entirely if you aren't a bacon fan. You could also try fat free ham cubes or something similar.


I've also got a few other ideas to share. Last night I followed a tip I was given about the Flame Broiled Beef Patty. I must revise my opinion of it upwards yet again!

I rehydrated the patty but didn't soak it to death in that little tray so it was still fairly firm and not crumbly. Then I took my fat serving, and fried it in a pan with olive oil. Wow. It was a million times better than just eating the rehydrated patty. It tasted like a real hamburger! I had it with a serving of shredded coleslaw and Calorie Wise Kraft Coleslaw dressing. Delicious!


I've also got an idea for a dairy/protein serving. If you're like me, sometimes you get tired of the same old thing for dairy/protein. Since you have to eat three a day, it can get repetitive if you are not creative. I saw an idea on the NS website for "crustless pumpkin pie" as a dairy/protein substitute, so I had to try it.



1 can pumpkin (15 oz)
1 can evaporated fat free milk (12 oz)
¾ cup egg substitute (or 3 egg whites)
½ tsp. salt
3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup Splenda® (or sugar), or to taste

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients and beat until smooth.
3. Pour into 9” pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
4. Bake for 15 minutes.
5. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake 45 more minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Cut into sixths- one sixth equals a dairy/protein serving.


I think a shallower pan would be better as my slices came out much softer than I was expecting. Perhaps I could have baked it longer but I didn't want the top to get too dry. I also think this could use a teensy bit more pumpkin pie spice and Splenda.

I like to have this for my afternoon snack dairy/protein serving. It's like having a dessert in the middle of the day! Top it with fat free Cool Whip and enjoy.