French Onion Soup

2 medium onion(s), thinly sliced
4 tbsp dry sherry, or nonalcoholic wine
4 cup(s) fat-free beef broth
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
4 slice(s) French bread
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese, such as Parmigiano-Reggiano

Preheat oven to 350ºF. In a large saucepan, combine onions and sherry; sauté until onions are tender, about 6 minutes.Add broth and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, toast bread in oven until golden brown.

Place one piece of toast into each of four bowls. Divide soup among bowls and top each with 1/2 tablespoon of grated cheese. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

3 points per 1 1/2 cup serving. Makes 4 servings

 

Fresh Shiny New Year

Ahhhhh. Fresh new year. Fresh shiny new year in which we can do all sorts of good things. All sorts of things right.

This is the year!

The year I will:

Eat healthier and stop poisoning my body with crap.

I will look at healthy eating positively. I am fixing what damage I’ve done over the past 49 years. By the time I turn 50 (in about a month and a half) I will already be on the road to recovery. On the road to feeling more awake and alive than I have in a long time.

To those of you who posted before and those of you who can post (the Baker’s Dozen) I think I was able to update your statusii from “Contributor” to “Author” hopefully allowing you to post an entry without my having to approve it. Give it a try. If it still doesn’t post pronto, leave me a comment and I’ll approve it and see if I can figure something else out.

I’m on a 45 weight loss journey this year. 10 pounds at a time. Here’s to a healthier year for all of us, whether you have just 10 pounds to loose or 10 million!

Resolutions

It’s almost time to start over…

Crap.

I know. Good attitude. But hey, at least I’m honest.

Weight Watchers

So I got fed up with the no lose and started WW on-line last Wednesday.  So far so good.  I will weigh in tomorrow and have Monday be the day of reckoning!  Anyhow I have been looking around for good recipes with low points and found this beef stew recipe!  I have not tried it yet, since its been 90 degrees for the last few days, but will as soon as the weather cools a bit. 

• 1 Tbs. whole wheat flour
• 1/8 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
• pinch of ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 lb. top round steak, cut into 1″ cubes (recently, I’ve used top sirloin…its so tender in practically melts in your mouth!)
• 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 8 oz. button mushrooms, halved (I usually use more)
• 1 onion, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 Tbs. minced garlic
• 1 tsp. dried thyme (I usually use less)
• 2 cans (14 oz. each) fat-free beef broth
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces (I use halved baby carrots)
• 1 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1″ cubes

In a medium resealable plastic bag, combine the flour, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Add the beef and shake the bag until all the cubes are coated. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Set a large nonstick soup pot over medium-high heat until it is hot enough for a spritz of water to sizzle on it. Add the oil. Add the reserved beef cubes to the pot in a single layer. Cook for about 1 minute per side, or until browned. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the mushrooms, onion, garlic, and thyme. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the onion is tender, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon and scraping any browned bits from the pan bottom.

Add the broth and carrots. Increase the heat to high. When the broth comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low so the mixture simmers gently. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.

Add the potatoes. Cook for another 45 minutes, or until the beef is fork tender. Season with additional salt and pepper. Serve your beef stew immediately.

Serves: 4  (HUGE servings)  WWP: 5

A slow start

I did finally get my bracelet from Kathy, which of course means that NOW I can finally start dieting to lose these 10 pounds.  Unfortunately I have actually gained 5 since signing up here, so I got that bracelet in the nick of time.  Stupid Halloween.

I was going to post a picture of the pretty bracelet here, but it turns out that while I am authorized to post, I am not authorized to upload pictures!  I guess that’s a good thing, in case I was planning to tempt you with chocolate or something.

Anyway, let the losing begin anew, and I will put the pretty bracelet on my Summer Fever website.

Weaning and Weight

So. That Happened.

I somehow managed to add another 7 pounds during my week of weaning off of the anti-depressant, Cymbalta. I knew what I was doing with my weight whenever I was eating ravenously. I just figured I was a mental mess and couldn’t deal with the stress of watching what I ate.

It was kind of scary. I’ve never eaten that way before. Not even when pregnant.

I am down to the fat pants until I drop these pounds again. I’d force myself to wear the too tight pants but then that would just depress me more, so I’ll just stick to the fat pants.

How you doin’?

Bracelets Coming Back

Dang. I’m getting bracelets returned to me from the post office. Seems I have to add more postage for hand-cancelled letters. Sorry about that. I’ll resend those that come back.

Soup!

It’s brrrrrrr weather here in upstate NY, so Sunday afternoon I made “Roasted Sweet Potato and Apple Soup” from Real Simple magazine (October 2008). I froze half and we had the other half last night, with corn muffins and a little Waldorf salad. Lightish, but yummyish. If you need “stuff” in your soup, this isn’t for you, but what’s nice is that it tastes creamy without any cream at all. Easy, too!

3 pounds sweet potatoes

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 celery stalk, sliced

1 apple, peeled and thinly sliced

Kosher salt and black pepper

1. Heat oven to 400ºF. Prick the potatoes with a fork, place on a baking sheet, and roast until tender, 40-45 minutes. (Mine took a lot longer than this.)
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, and apple and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 10-12 minutes.
3. Halve the potatoes, scoop out the flesh, and add to the saucepan. Add 6 cups water, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook until heated through, 8-10 minutes.
4. Puree the soup in the saucepan using a handheld immersion blender. Add water, if necessary, to reach the desired consistency.

Stay warm!!

Contributors

Hey Lena – Lex – Annie – Sheila – Liz and Sallie:

Because you have wordpress account, I’ve been able to add you as contributors to this blog. Will you see if you can figure out how to sign in and add something? Let me know if it doesn’t work.

As for the rest of you, sign up at wordpress and let me know that you have (give me the e-mail add you used) so I can add you as contributors, also.

Thanks.

The Bracelets are Made

I don’t know about you people but I am still losing and gaining the same 3 pounds this week. It’s the bracelets. We need the bracelets!

Which, by the way, are done but need to be shipped. That’d be me who has to do the shipping. Me, the procrastinator. This is my lofty goal for this weekend. Get your bracelets in the mail!

Dixie Vegetable Soup

4 cups water

2 medium carrots-diced

2 medium onions-diced

1/4 head broccoli – steams and tops

1 1/2 Tbsp. San J Organic Soy Sauce

3 Tbsp. Real Peanut Butter (in your dairy case)

Put water in medium saucepan. Add onions, carrots and broccoli stems. Bring to boil and simmer for 30 minutes, or until vegetable are soft. Add soy sauce and peanut butter and cook for 5 minutes. Add broccoli tops and simmer for 3 minutes.

Serve with crusty bread.

Don’t Kill the Messenger

My Dixie Vegetable Soup is simmering on the stove right now. (recipe later) Broccoli and carrots and leeks and organic peanut butter and organic soy sauce. Lordy, I’m a healthy person.

At this time of the day.

Had you followed me earlier, say about lunch time, you’d have busted me working on a Pumpkin Spice malt from Culvers.

I couldn’t help myself. It was the Numbnumbs. They took me out to lunch and forced me to order it because they said it went well with my cheddar butter burger.

Oh. I didn’t mention the Butter Burger did I.

Lookie over there! I ate no sugar yesterday!

And I lost almost 2 pounds since last week’s weigh in!

Hmmm. This could be why I keep gaining and losing the same 3 pounds.  But man, it was a Pumpkin spice malt!

Don’t shoot me. I am only the messenger. Oh, and the victim. And the person who shot myself in the fat.

Blog of Inspiry

For inspiration check out The Diet Naked Blog.

Make good choices today, my friends. Don’t let the Numbnumbs win!

Smooth Talk

I’ve made 8 bracelets today. I meant to get them all done but I took a nap instead. Besides, I can’t find my little tube of jewelry glue and I can’t send these out with adding a bit of glue to the knot.

Soon, my friends. Soon. Hang in there.

I have been losing and gaining the same 3 pounds since we’ve started. Time to get serious. As of Monday, October Tomorrow (what day is it?) I’m going sugar free. I tell you, my friends, this is the thing I need to do. I’ll eat fruit but I will not eat tabled sugared or high fructose corn syruped junk.

So it’s probably a good thing I polished off the rest of the peanut butter cup ice cream. Won’t have that speaking to me mid-afternoon or after dinner. If only I could get the pears to talk to me as smoothly as the ice cream does.

Karyl’s “Famous” Chili

From the cookbook of Blue Sleepy
(Makes 8 Servings)

2 Tbsp canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 to 3 jalapeño peppers, seeded and chopped*
1 lb extra-lean ground beef or ground turkey
¼ cup chili powder
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 28oz can whole tomatoes with liquid
1 16oz can kidney or pinto beans, drained
Salt and pepper

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, jalapeños, and ground meat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 6 minutes.

Stir in the chili powder, cumin, and oregano and cook for a minute, until the seasonings are aromatic. Add the tomatoes, breaking them up with a wooden spoon, along with drained beans.

Bring the chili to a boil; reduce the heat. Then simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chili is thick and the flavors are blended.

Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve.

*I have actually never made it with the jalapenos, and it’s still delicious

The Numb-Numbs

Just wanted to check in and find out how everybody’s weekend eating was going? Have the Numb-Numbs taken over (you know, those things in your head that allow you to eat without thinking about what you’re eating?)

My Numb-Numbs are under control. Unfortunately, the later it gets in the day, the more powerful the Numb-Numbs are. I must make plans to fight off the Numb-Numbs. Especially as how I’ll be making a pan of apple crisp tonight. I know, it is foolish to fight against the Numb-Numbs when you have one of their enemy in your camp.

Yes, I have not had enough protein today and therefore write weird entries about pretend people in my head who force me to eat without thinking.

Manhattan Clam Chowder

From the Cookbook of Hot Dog: Deeje:

(makes two sensible servings, or one Deeje-is-really-hungry serving)

4 bacon slices, chopped (I skip this, myself, but mr. d. swears there’s a “hole” in the flavor without it)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, diced
2-3 stalks celery, depending on how much you like celery, diced
2 cups diced potatoes (usually two will do fine)
2 bottles clam juice
1 can (15 oz? 16 oz? you know, the smaller one) diced tomatoes
2-3 cans clams, depending on the can size and how much you like clams*
handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped

*unless you can get fresh clams regularly, you lucky bastard, in which it’d be about 3 dozen

* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Cook bacon, if you’re adding it, in a 2 or 3 quart saucepan until nicely browned. Add onion, pepper and celery and saute about five minutes over medium-low heat until softened.

Stir in potatoes, clam juice and tomatoes – with the tomato juice – and simmer covered for 10 minutes.

If you’re using canned clams, add them and simmer about 5 more minutes.

If you’re using fresh clams, it’ll take more like 10 minutes, because you’ll simmer until clams are open wide (toss any that haven’t opened after 10 minutes). Remove most of the clam shells, detach the clams and return them to the chowder.

Stir in the chopped parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste. mr. d. likes to add several dashes of hot sauce to his bowl as well.

Cioppino

From the Cookbook of Hot Dog: Deeje

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, sliced thin
1 onion, chopped
3 large shallots, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
5 cups fish stock
1 bay leaf
2 cans clams (or a pound of fresh if I can get them)
1 pound mussels, scrubbed, de-bearded*
1 pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 1/2 pounds firm-fleshed fish (I use cod or salmon) cut into 2-inch chunks

* I often skip the mussels because they can be hard to find, and toss in a can of oysters instead. People nearer the coasts will likely be horrified.

Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion, shallots, and salt and sauté until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic and 3/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, and sauté 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste. Add tomatoes with their juices, wine, fish stock and bay leaf. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the flavors blend, about 30 minutes.

Add the seafood to the cooking liquid. Simmer gently until the fish and shrimp are just cooked through. Add salt and more pepper flakes as desired, to taste.

Eat with crusty bread until you’re half sick from the wonderfulness of it.

Pumpkin Soup

from the cookbook of Hot Dog: Deeje

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan.
Add 8 oz sliced mushrooms and 1/2 cup chopped onion and cook until tender.
Stir in 2 tablespoons flour. Gradually add 3 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.
Stir in 2 cups cooked pumpkin, 1/2-teaspoon salt, 1/4-teaspoon pepper, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg*, and 1 tablespoon honey.
Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in 12 oz can of evaporated milk and cook, stirring constantly, until heated.

* I always grate fresh nutmeg with a microplane grater, and in recipes like this, it makes all the difference in the world!

Writing in Cursive is for Sissies

I was having this perfectly good healthy eating day. Following my plan for food that I’d set in the morning. And then, without thinking (sort of) I picked up a box of Crunch N Munch and proceeded to eat alot of it.

What is it with the In Shock eating. Because, really, that’s what it feel like. Like I’ve gone in shock and I’m just staring out while shoveling crap into my mouth. Somebody slap my hands. Better yet, slap me in the face. I am in shock and I need to be slapped out of it.

It’s not Nom Nom Nom. It’s more like Numb Numb Numb.

No more Numb Eating for me!

Hey? Speaking of Crap, has anyone caught the show on BBC America called You Are What You Eat? Those whacky whacky Brits! The host/nutritionist has the show’s guests take a good look at what they’re eating. And then they have them go through a colonic, flush out their poo, and make them look at it. Seriously. Yesterday there was a couple with tupperware containers on their laps with their poo. Thankfully it was blurred for television viewing audience. Tell me, how in the hell could those people sit their with tupperware containers of poo on their laps, without gagging?

Oh hey, maybe that’s a great weight loss diet. Poo in your tupperware and carry it around with you. That would make me stop eating.

I know that Dr. Oz has got Oprah looking at her poo. Seeing if she can write the letter C or the letter S. Apparently these are good signs of healthy poos.

I will not rest until I can spell Seasons Greetings in poo on my lawn, in time for the holidays. Printed, not cursive. Much more diffult.

Gonna Buy Me a Dog

Today’s healthy fuel for me starts with an apple and cheese slices. A six inch ham & turkey with all the veggies sandwich from Subway for lunch. Soup with grilled cheese for dinner. I’ve got pumpkin seeds and a healthy nut & fruit mix for snacks. Get thee behind me, KFC!

And for exercise? My Personal Trainer, Stella, will take me for another speed-walk. Heck, we walked so fast last night that she had to lay down mid-walk to rest. Silly dog. She’s the pase-setter. The bonus to last night’s walk? My friend Buzz came with me. Do you have a friend you haven’t talked to for a bit and could use a walk as a way to catch up and get your heart pumping?

It’s hard to find the time to exercise, but it’s possible to do it. Parking at the back of parking lots. Cleaning your house until you’re sweating. Walking up stairs. Walking around the block. Dancing around the living room. A person doesn’t have to go from zero to 60 minutes to reap the benefits. Baby steps.

I know that in the past I’ve spent month after month going to the gym, even working out with a trainer (who just about killed me!) It seems I was either laying on the couch or working out for an hour, 4 times a week. I want something inbetween. Which is the best reason to buy a big old doggy. A person is forced to take the dog out for walks. If a person does right by the dog.

Go on. Rescue a dog. You know you want to!

Soup’s On

I don’t know. Maybe I shouldn’t tell you this. But I’m going to anyway. That’s how I am. We had KFC for dinner.

I ate one and 1/2 pieces. With skin.

The reason I tell you this is because even though I ate something that would make any Weight Watcher weep, having used up their flex points for the week in just one meal, this won’t stop me from losing weight.

Oh sure, I won’t lose it faster than if I had had a boneless/skinless chicken breast grilled, but this is the dinner I bought for the family and it took me no time to make it and no fuss to clean up after cooking. And I’m not eating anything else with it.

Healthy? No.

Am I perfect? No. I know. You are disappointed. You thought I was. I’m sorry.

Can I still lose weight? You betcha. (That was me being a Minnesotan, I was not mocking Sarah Palin)

I just can’t do this every night and lose weight.  I just can’t do this every night and be healthy.

It was a long, unexpected work day and I had no supper plans and a son who had night class. So on the fly home, I made a conscientious decision to pick up the KFC. Now because I know I might have to work more extensive hours the next couple of weeks, I need to come up with a just in case game plan. Tomorrow? If I’m working late, I’ll swing through Subway and pick up a healthy sandwich. If I’m not working late, I’ll swing through the grocery store and pick up fixings for homemade soup.

Which, my friends, is a great tip for anyone who wants to lose weight: Eat Soup. Tasty, broth-based soups. Soup is filling and can be incredibly healthy. My god, I’m hankering for my peanut butter/broccoli/leek soup right now! (For real! It’s fantastic! And a great way to get peanut butter taste without lots of peanut butter!) And somewhere around here I have the Weight Watchers Taco Dump Soup which is really delicious (and fiber-filled!)

Now here’s your chance to share. If you have tasty soups, that don’t have to be broth-based, and please – don’t go searching lite soups that taste like watery cardboard. We want good food, right? Right! Anyway–e-mail me your tasty soup recipes and I’ll post them and put them in a Recipes Category.

Look at how motivated we’re all feeling! Let’s keep it up!

If any of you would like me to post a guest entry – let me know, okay.

p.s. my e-mail address is kathy at kitschinart dot com or kathy at kenbuddha dot net

Planning Your Fuel

I think a good way to start a new 10 pound weight loss is to spend a little time each morning figuring out what you’re going to eat today. And then trying not to stray too much from your pre-planned choices.

That reminds me – I need to get to the grocery store for some vegetables. I’m fresh out of fresh vegetables.

Keep this in mind when figuring out what you’re going to eat today – your food is your fuel. What you put in your body will support what you get out of your body. Which is why I need to focus on the good stuff because my body  has been craving a whole of napping recently. And it has nothing to do with the change in the weather and everything to do with the sugars I’ve been eating.

I need to eat less sugar. What about you?

What are you going to do that’s good fuel for your body today?

A special thank you to the Baker’s Dozen who signed on for motivation. You don’t have to be a Baker’s Dozen to be a part of the 10 Pound Blog. I’m now looking for members of the Package of Hot Dogs group. 10 members. If you want to be a Package of Hot Dogs (Closed to the Baker’s Dozen!) go over to www.kitschinart.com and use the Conact button at the bottom of the site. The first 10 will be linked over at the side. Which means, give me your blog link, if you have one. If not, you can still be a Hot Dog! Just tell me the name you want me to put on the sidebar so your package knows what to call you!

Let’s have fun losing 10 pounds!

Here We Go

Oh dear. A spanking brand new blog. The first entry must always be prolific.  And yet, it is left to me to write it. I like to write. But I am not one to be prolific.

12 people signed up today for the Motivational Bracelet Giveaway. And i get one, too. 13 of us. A Baker’s Dozen. I hope to add a page with a bio on all of us. If the 12 want to be spotlighted. If not, so be it. That’s what the whole 10 pound blog is about. No pressures. Losing 10 pounds. Staying at 10 pounds and moving on when you’re ready to go for the next 10. A whole lot easier looking at 10 pounds of weight loss than the many pounds some of us have to lose. That just makes me sad. I refuse to give up red velvet cake and salad dressing until I’m at the ultimate weight loss goal of mine (30? 40? pounds)

I’m tired of having to be obsessive about what I eat when I’m diet-focused. I’m tired of feeling like a failure when I get on the scale once a week (which is a lie, I get on the scale every day and I do believe this is what keeps me in check) I don’t need to lose 1 or 2 pounds a week. I don’t need to follow a certain program. I just need to keep my eating in check and lose 10 pounds. That’s it. If I want to move on from there. I will. If I can’t, I’ll do my best to maintain until I’m in the mindset to lose another 10. No matter how long it takes to be ready. It’s all good.

Join if, if you’d like. I’ll add you to the blog friends if you’d like. Just leave a comment and let me know. Also know that there may be more motivational bracelet and other giveaways later on down the road.