"I wish I was at the beach, too" Smoothie

One of my least favorite things in the world is to be cold. I hate it. I usually cope with the winter weather of the Northeast well enough through December and January because I find peace, beauty, and romance in the early snowfalls around the holidays. I also appreciate the giddiness that sledding and playing in the snow creates for my children so I tolerate it. February comes and I still try to be a good sport about the freezing cold winds and (what feel like) daily snow squalls. 

By this point in the season, I'm really just done. I'm done with wearing eight layers every time I leave the house. I'm done with closed windows and stuffy air. I'm done with coming up with indoor activities for the kids. I'm ready to get outside, see some sunshine, and warm up already!

Clearly many of my friends and family feel the same way because they are all taking tropical beach vacations to escape the deep freeze. My colleague is soaking up the sun in Hawaii, my parents are cruising around Mexico, and my in-laws are on a plane to Aruba as I type. I could be jealous of them all (OK, I secretly am...), or I can dig deep and find a way to bring some beach-y comfort to the eternal winter wonderland that is Upstate NY. 

So, that's what I did. 

Each morning this week I've been sipping one of these delicious pina colada like smoothies and pretending really hard that I've got sand between my toes, sun shining on my face, and gentle waves creating a musical backdrop for my morning.

Disadvantage to this approach? Reality hits pretty hard the second I walk out the door. Advantage? A few more months to get bathing suit ready. Speaking of bathing suits, did I mention this delicious and filling smoothie adds up to just 4 Weight Watchers points plus?? Not a bad way to start your morning...

The Recipe

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree. No need to add ice or anything extra, it will have a perfect consistency from the frozen pineapple. I have been using a very low power, but completely adequate Hamilton Beach single serve blender that is perfect for on the go.

Enjoy!

Weight Watchers and Real Food

For the record, I was awake for 10 whole minutes today before a kid woke up. I didn't even move, I just laid there listening to the silence. Somehow, the older one still sensed that I was awake. She shuffled into the room and I pulled back the covers for her without saying anything. Miraculously, she snuggled between daddy and I and WENT BACK TO SLEEP.

I enjoyed the snuggle for a few minutes before slipping out of bed to try for that forbidden peaceful cup of coffee again. Just as I was adding the milk I heard the baby yelling out for a "baba". She's 15 months old so I really need to wean her off of it...but today is not that day. Giving her a bottle bought me ten whole minutes of quiet. Sweet, blissful quiet with nothing to do other than sip my HOT coffee and read Pinterest. When she finished the bottle we just snuggled and were silly together for a half hour while everyone else slept. These are the moments we just don't get enough of. Today is going to be a good day.

Low natural lighting in the kitchen made these shots a little fuzzy, but I love them anyway

I thought I'd take a few minutes this morning to share some advice about following Weight Watchers and sticking to an unprocessed, real food diet. A little over a year ago I joined WW for the first time. As I had an exclusively breastfeeding newborn I was allotted 46 points plus per day. I have to be honest, between the diet and breastfeeding I was dropping weight like crazy even eating oreos and Dunkin Donuts wake-up wraps on a daily basis. I went from post-baby weight to pre-baby weight in about a month and from post-baby weight to my lowest adult weight since I was in college in less than 6 months.

Then, the seasons started to change and the stress of selling a house, building a house, the holidays, and moving set in. I wasn't get fresh food from the Farmer's Market. My Weight Watchers subscription was cancelled. I was not going to the gym. The baby was nursing less. I was eating more processed foods. Nearly every successfully lost pound crept back on.

A year after my initial success I decided to start back up again. As I no longer have gads of points each day I need to focus a lot more on choosing "good" foods. Foods that are high in nutrients, satisfying, and that I "feel good" about eating. Here are my tips on combining a typical lower point (26) Weight Watcher's plan with real food ideas:

1. Real the labels! A trap a lot people following WW fall into is buying everything low fat or fat free because the point calculation is lower. This is a horrible idea. To save yourself a few points you will be filling your body with chemicals, additives, and fillers. You can find *some* reduced fat products that are only made with real ingredients (most dairy products), but you need to be extremely discerning and real your labels.
2. Plan ahead. If you have kids, or a job, or both you need to have your meals planned out or you will find yourself struggling to stay on the plan. Check back later this week for some easy meal plans to get through the week days.
3. Always have fruits and veggies on hand. Making healthy foods available will make you much more likely to eat them. For busy times of the day, having your produce prepped ahead of time is key - cut melon, rinsed grapes, easy to peel clementines, bananas, rinsed salad greens, sliced peppers, celery sticks, cherry tomatoes. For calmer times I find having a fruit I need to "work on" for a snack makes it more satisfying - grapefruit, cherries, kiwi.
4. Care about the food, not the diet. If you spend your time thinking about how safe and whole the foods you are eating are instead of calculating points on all the foods you know you shouldn't have, you will naturally make good choices! If you read the ingredient label on that box of Cheez-its you won't care that you can get away with 1/2 a serving for 3 points. You'll realize there are so many things in there that you don't want in your body it will be easy to chose a tablespoon of fresh ground almond butter and banana slices instead.
5. Splurge for real. Instead of planning myself a mini splurge every day (one cookie, a handful of chocolate chips, etc) which just ended up reintroducing all the "bad stuff" back into my system I plan one real splurge on a high quality item - a good piece of dark chocolate (not Hershey kisses), a handmade baked good (not Dunkin Donuts), a chunk of good full fat cheese (never eat the fat free stuff!), a few slices of good quality bacon (not turkey bacon), etc. 

Happy Sunday and Happy Eating!

Baked Pancake Bites (WW friendly)

Weekends are not the same once you have kids. You don't get to sleep in. You don't get to wake up and gaze lovingly at your partner thinking about how great life is. You don't get to have a peaceful cup of coffee while you catch up on the news. You don't get to take a long, hot shower.

Nope, none of that. The reality of weekends with kids looks like this: You roll over at 6:15 and gaze at the clock amazed that no one has woken you up yet with nightmares, coughing fits, or vomit. You contemplate if you should stay in bed and try to catch a few more precious minutes of sleep or sneak out to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. Before the 30 seconds it would take for your groggy brain to make that decision passes you hear..."Mommy? Mommy? Mooooooommy?!" You reluctantly get up and drag her into bed with you. You cling to the unrealistic hope that she might go back to sleep. After ten rounds of, "Is it morning yet?" You admit defeat and concede that it is indeed morning. Still fooling yourself, you think it might be possible to get up with kid number one and have a cup of coffee before kid number two wakes up. Just as the Keurig drips the last drop into your cup you hear it. Kid two is up because kid one is filling her crib with pillows to make a "fort"...

This scenario is pretty much what my house looks like every Saturday morning...sleepy parents trying (unsuccessfully) to match the insane enthusiasm of a preschooler and toddler excited at the prospect of a full two days at home with mommy and daddy. After playing along with whatever crazy scheme the nearly five year old comes up with for about thirty minutes it is inevitable that the following phrase will be uttered, "Mommy, I'm hungry!"

Anyone who routinely cooks for children knows that this is a dangerous time. Eggs might have been awesome yesterday, but today they will carpet the floor. The a
ct of pouring a bowl of Joe-Os might bring cheers whereas an hour long effort on stuffed French toast might be met with groans and wails of, "That's disgusting!" 

Today, I took a chance. My husband and older daughter have been into Nutella recently so I offered to make Nutella pancakes. They accepted the concept. The challenge was on.

Baked Pancake Bites with Nutella

As I usually do when I'm looking to try something new, I did a quick google search. I turned up this recipe for pancake balls and Nutella. I tweaked it and got to work. I had my doubts as the batter was very thin, but I persevered through the rest of the steps. 

As they were baking our kitchen was filled with a lovely sweet, spicy aroma. My daughter was enticed into the kitchen and started circling the oven waiting for them to come out. I held my breath as I popped them out of the pan and placed them on the table. To my surprise and delight everyone in the house loved them! My daughter even finished the leftovers for a snack later in the day and asked for more. I will definitely be making these again soon.

Added bonus, I played with the original recipe to make it healthier and these worked out to a very reasonable 1 point plus per muffin. I ate 5 mini muffins and a heaping serving of fruit salad for a very satisfying breakfast.

Ingredients

1 cup whole milk

1 egg

1 tbsp coconut oil, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup all purpose, unbleached flour

2 tbsp baking powder

2 tbsp raw sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp nutella

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 and use cooking spray (or paper liners) to coat wells of a 24 mini muffin tin.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine milk, egg, coconut oil, and vanilla extract until well blended.
3. Whisk together all dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and blend very well (The batter will be thin!).
5. Pour the batter into the muffin wells (I poured the batter from a large measuring cup to make this step easier). You might have a little excess batter
6. Put the Nutella into a small ziploc baggie and snip the corner. Drizzle a small ribbon of chocolate into each muffin.
7. Bake for 12-15 minutes. 
8. Let cool slightly and enjoy!

*May be served with maple syrup for dipping, but totally unnecessary!

**Try these out with different fillings - jam, banana slices, fresh berries, bacon, sausage, etc!

Baked Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal To Go

I spent a large portion of last year really focusing in on nutrition and trying to figure out the best things for my family to be eating. I lost a lot of weight in the first half of the year and was feeling pretty good about all of the fresh, local foods we were eating. Then, we got an offer on our house and my whole world turned upside down.

We only had a month to get our entire house packed and to find a place to live. I was also planning bear's first birthday party which is always extremely time consuming for me. In addition, we were going to Disney World and had to pack and plan for that. Somehow we made it through, but then we came home and we were living in a tiny apartment. We had to make all the arrangements and preparations for Christmas in our limited space. Finally we made our second move into my parent's house between Christmas and the New Year.

After the house sold all of the stress and craziness was just too much. I wanted to stick with everything I had been working towards, but was just so overwhelmed. I started hitting up drive-thrus again, we ordered takeout multiple times per week, and I was constantly making unhealthy food choices for myself at work. And (not surprising) I started to feel horrible. Mentally, I was disappointed in myself. Physically, my body was feeling uncomfortable - stomachaches, acid reflux, gastritis (probably an ulcer too), skin breakouts, and a generalized feeling of heaviness. 

Now that we are moved and settled (for at least the next 5 months anyway) I'm really motivated to get back on the wagon. I've rejoined Weight Watchers. I'm making a plan to get back to the gym at least three days per week. I'm feeling really optimistic and excited to go forward. 

All that said, It's very easy for me to let my mommy obligations get in the way of a healthier, happier lifestyle for myself. I know I need to have a plan or I won't succeed. The first part of this plan for me is not having to think about breakfast. Each week I am going to make something over the weekend that has me set for success each morning. Something easy that doesn't require any fussing over. Which brings me to my first recipe share of the New Year...

Baked Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal To Go

Based on the recipe for baked oatmeal found here

Yields: 12 muffins at 4 points plus each

2 eggs

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup melted butter

1 apple, grated

1 1/4 cup 1% milk

3 cups rolled oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup fresh cranberries

1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree

1. Preheat oven to 375 and grease muffin tin with non-stick spray.
2. Mix first 7 ingredients together with a mixer.
3. Add last four ingredients and mix by hand until well blended. The mixture will be very loose and wet still. Allow to rest in the mixing bowl for at least 30 minutes.
4. Divide evenly between muffin wells and bake for 25-30 minutes until set.
5. Can eat hot or freeze* for later use. Store at room temperature for 3 days, in the fridge for 7 days, or in the freezer for one month.

They are delicious at room temp, but I prefer to re-warm them in the oven at 350 for five minutes when I have time.
*If frozen, reheat by setting oven to 350, wrapping muffin in foil and baking for 5 minutes. Turn off oven and leave muffin in for 10 minutes longer.

Banana Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting

After reading one of my healthy weight watchers recipes and then checking my facebook and seeing a photo of the extremely unhealthy cupcakes I made for my husband's birthday, my cousin challenged me to create a delicious cupcake that was low in points. I was going to wait until the weekend so that I had more time to play around with ingredients, but I was eager to get started and came up with this recipe this morning. It's obviously not the Coffee Heath Crunch Cupcake (recipe coming soon!) seen below, but I take it as a big compliment that my picky three year old who usually licks the frosting off cupcakes and throws the rest away ate the whole thing!

Banana Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting (3 points plus)
Recipe makes 24 cupcakes

Banana Cupcakes (serving size one cupcake, 2 points plus)
2 cups all-purpose unbleached white flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp butter, softened
1/3 cup plain, nonfat Greek yogurt
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup fat free egg substitute (equivalent of 3 eggs)
2 tbsp fat free milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 ripe bananas, mashed

1. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
2. Blend butter and yogurt in the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment for 2 minutes.
3. Add sugar to the bowl and beat until well blended.
4. Beat in eggs 1/4 cup at a time, mixing until incorporated. 
5. Add in milk and vanilla.
6. Stir in half of the flour mixture, then the bananas.
7. Finally, add the last of the flour mixture and stir until just incorporated.
8. Divide evenly into 24 cupcakes liners, fill each approximately 2/3.
9. Bake for 18-22 minutes until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Nutella Frosting (serving size ~1 tbsp, 1 point plus)

4 tbsp butter, softened

2 tbsp nutella

3/4 cup confectioner's sugar

1-2 tsp fat free milk

1. Using hand mixer, beat butter and nutella together until smooth.
2. Add confectioner's sugar 1/4 cup at a time beating until fully incorporated after each addition.
3. Finally, add milk by 1/2tsp until desired consistency is reached (I used the full 2 tsp).

*After I took my photos I saw one of the heath cupcakes I made for my husband and quickly calculated the points and realized you can top each cupcake with 1 tsp crushed heath without increasing the points value!*

The cupcake that started it all...

Beef and Sweet Potato Stew

I purchased some all natural/grass-fed/antibiotic-free beef when I was at the grocery store this weekend with the intention of cooking Beef, Potato, and Quinoa soup from Skinnytaste. My day ended up getting too busy with the girls and I didn't get it on the stove cooking early enough. I needed to use the beef, so I decided to improvise. My husband doesn't like plain old beef stew (the obvious choice), so this is what I came up with instead.

Beef and Sweet Potato Stew (3 points plus)
Serves 6 with a serving size of a heaping 1/2 cup

2 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup scallions (white and green parts)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 lb beef for stewing, cut into small bite sized pieces
1 cup beef broth
1 large sweet potato, diced

1. Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. 
2. Add scallions and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add cilantro and diced tomatoes and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
4. Mix beef and cumin into the pan and simmer for 5 minutes until meat is no longer pink.
5. Remove pan from heat and pour beef mixture into crockpot.
6. Stir in sweet potatoes and beef broth.
7. Cook on high for 4 hours

I served this over white rice (3 points plus) and topped with fresh salsa. Instead, you could skip the rice and eat a full cup of the stew for the same point value.

Fruit and Oatmeal Cookies

 

 

I've mentioned before that I am always looking for recipes to use up leftover bananas so when Gina over at Skinnytaste posted her recipe for 3 ingredient Healthy Cookies I knew I would be trying them out soon. I was all set to make them per her recipe, but then I realized I had an over-ripe mango in the fruit bowl as well. Hmmm...could pureed mango work the same way as the bananas? I figured the worst that could happen would be that I would have to throw it away. I also decided to add some cranberries and chocolate chips for good measure.

 

Fruit and Oatmeal Cookies (1 point plus per cookie)

2 mashed medium sized bananas

1/2 cup pureed mango

1 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup dried cranberries

2 tbsp mini chocolate chips

 

Put all the ingredients in a bowl

Mix everything together

Measure level tablespoons of "dough" and place on a cookie sheet.

 

Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. I know this is a random number, but I got 19 cookies from my batch. If you get 19-20 cookies the points are 1 per cookie. If you get 16-18 cookies out of your batch the points increase to 2 per cookie.

 

 



These cookies will keep in an air-tight container for a few days, but are best when eaten within 24 hours. These are healthy and hearty enough to eat with a cup of yogurt and some orange slices for a yummy, filling breakfast

 

Avocado Egg Salad for One

I really am not the type of person to toot my own horn, but I've been having a lot of success with Weight Watchers and want to celebrate it! My daughter will be 4 months old on Tuesday and since the day I gave birth I've lost 38lbs - 26 of that was "baby weight" and the other 12 are baggage I've been holding on to for way too long.

I can not understate how much easier losing the weight was because of breast-feeding. For the math savvy moms out there, each ounce of breast-milk is 20 calories and the average 3 month old drinks between 20-30 ounces per day which means 400-600 calories literally pour out of you on a daily basis!

Of course, the other part of losing the weight was following a reasonable diet. After hearing much praise for WW from some family members, I decided to join about 3 weeks after the baby was born. In the beginning I was too exhausted to spend time playing with recipe builder and figuring out points for meals myself, so I relied heavily on recipes from skinnytaste and laaloosh to get me through. Now that we are in more of a routine, I've been starting to play around a bit more and am adapting my own favorite recipes into WW friendly meals. Here is my super yummy version of egg salad that makes just enough for one hearty sized portion...

Avocado Egg Salad (3 points plus)

1 hard boiled egg, diced
1 oz avocado, mashed
1 tsp light mayonnaise
1 oz plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1 tsp dijon mustard (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
*This is delicious and creamy without the mustard, but has a nice little kick with it added. *

Mix everything together in a bowl until smooth. Simple as that!

When I was a little girl my mom always made me egg salad sandwiches on a lightly toasted English muffin and I loved it. By serving it this way my lunch came to a total of 6 points (3 for the salad, 3 for the English muffin). Fresh sides included red and yellow bell pepper strips and granny smith apple slices.

Recipe Makeover - Panera Mediterranean Veggie

My favorite lunch from Panera Bread is easily the Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich. You can read all about it by following the link, but in short it's a tomato basil bread topped with hummus, feta, red peppers and other assorted fresh veggies. At 15 WW points, I won't be indulging anytime soon. Instead, I created this low point mock-up at home. Although a bit messy to eat, it was super tasty and totally satisfied my craving.

Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich Makeover (6 points plus)

To make it you need:

• 1 Thomas bagel thin (Sundried Tomato and Basil flavor)
• 2 tbsp hummus (I used Trader Joe's Three Layer Hummus)
• 1 oz roasted red peppers packed in water
• lettuce, any variety
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 zucchini sliced into strips
• 3 oz mushrooms sliced
• 1/2 onion sliced thick
• 1 oz fat free feta cheese

Directions:

1. Warm oil in a frying pan over medium heat. 
2. Add all fresh veggies and cook for 5 minutes until slightly softened.
3. Add balsamic vinegar, reduce heat to low, and cook until veggies are done (how "done" is a personal preference) and then cool.
4. Spread 1 tbsp of hummus on each half of the bagel thin.
5. Layer lettuce, cooled vegetables, red peppers, and feta.
6. Enjoy!

WW Silver Dollar Fruity Pancakes

This morning the bug asked for pancakes. This is a meal I have been avoiding since starting Weight Watchers, but I decided it was time to work out a recipe we could all live with rather than deny her a favorite weekend treat. Here's what I came up with...

Silver Dollar Fruity Pancakes - makes 5 servings

3 points+ per serving, each serving = 7 pancakes

Ingredients

3/4 cup of skim milk

2 tbsp white vinegar

1/2 cup unbleached white flour

1/2 whole wheat white flour

1 tbsp white sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 egg

1 tbsp light butter, melted (I used Balade from Trader Joe's)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Assorted thinly sliced fruits (bananas, peaches, apples, etc) or berries

Directions

1. Add vinegar to milk and allow to sit for at least 5 minutes so that the milk "sours" (gives the effect of buttermilk in the recipe)
2. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine
3. Combine all wet ingredients in the measuring cup with the milk and whisk to combine
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated
5. Drop level tablespoons of batter on a hot griddle or pan that has been coated with cooking spray
6. Add fruit to each pancake as it cooks
7. Flip each pancake after ~2 minutes and cook an additional 1-2 minutes on the other side
8. Enjoy with maple syrup (extra points) or more fresh fruit

Dry Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

Yummy Batter

Frozen Raspberries, Frozen blueberries, & Banana Slices

On the Griddle

Breakfast is Served!
(only 6 pancakes are shown, but a serving is 7 - I couldn't help eating one fresh off the pan)

WW Buffalo Chicken Quesadilla

I joined Weight Watchers 8 weeks ago right before the holidays to keep myself from gorging and putting myself in a daily "I-just-had-a-baby-and-am-nursing-so-it's-still-OK-to-eat-whatever-I-want" food coma. Following the plan I've lost a little over 10 pounds and, as of today, have finally reached a weight that puts me back in my pre-med school and residency weight range! Here is one of the recipes I created during my journey so far...

Buffalo Chicken Quesadilla with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw (8pts+)
Follow Gina's recipes over at Skinnytaste to make a crockpot full of the spicy, tender, buffalo chicken-y goodness and homemade blue cheese dressing you need for this recipe. You'll have enough shredded buffalo chicken and dressing for this and a few other meals.

Ingredients
1/2 cup shredded buffalo chicken (3pts+)
2 Trader Joe's (or other) low-carb whole wheat tortilla shells (3pts+)
1 oz shredded 2% sharp cheddar (1pt+)
2 TBSP homemade blue cheese (1pt+)
1 cup broccoli slaw (0pt+)

Directions

1. The Trader Joe's tortillas are a bit softer and more pliable than a regular flour tortilla, so I like to crisp them up a bit by just toasting each side on a hot pan or griddle for minute or so before proceeding.
2. Place a pre-toasted tortilla in a hot pan, top with 1/2 the cheddar, all of the chicken, the other 1/2 of the cheddar, and the second tortilla shell.
3. Cook each side for approximately 2 minutes or until cheese is melted
4. Cool the quesadilla while you make the broccoli slaw by mixing the raw slaw mix with the blue cheese dressing
5. Cut the quesadilla into 6 wedges
6. Serve - I like to use the slaw like a salsa on top of the quesadilla wedges.

WW Roasted Cauliflower

During my weekly meal planning this past weekend I pinned a recipe for Roasted Cauliflower (3pts+) from Skinnytaste that I thought would pair well with the Vegetable Turkey Meatloaf (5pts+) from LaaLoosh that has become a favorite in our house. I'm not sure if the head of cauliflower I bought was just smaller than Gina from Skinnytaste used, but a whole 1/4 of olive oil seemed like too much when I was looked at the bowl of florets I had trimmed up, so I ended up modifying the ingredients. I decreased the olive oil and increased the lemon and then roasted it with the garlic, salt, and pepper. Being my usual starving self, I grabbed a piece to taste as I was about to top with the cheese and decided it was tasty enough without it! With these adjustments I was able to lower the points and increase the portion size (who wouldn't want that?!).

We had already devoured more than half of this yumminess before I remembered to snap a photo, oops!

Roasted Lemon Garlic Cauliflower (4 servings, 2pts+ per serving)

Ingredients

• 1 medium-large head of cauliflower
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Fresh grated pepper and sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Chop head of cauliflower into small florets. Rinse and pat dry.
3. Toss florets in a large bowl with all other ingredients to coat.
4. Spread cauliflower out on a lined baking sheet or in a shallow dish.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, turning florets every 5-10 minutes so they cook evenly.

WW "Wake-Up Wraps"

Before deciding to "go healthy" my quick go-to breakfast when I was running late or rounding at the hospital became the Dunkin Donuts Wake-up Wrap. Although not terrible in terms of points (5 for egg and cheese and 6 for bacon,egg, and cheese), it is full of processed ingredients. Right now I have an excess of daily WW points because I am exclusively breast-feeding baby bear, but the day will come when I need to trim my points. Once I decided to start making my own, I make extras and store them in the fridge to eat for the next 2 days. They heat up in the oven at 350 in about 5 minutes.

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Breakfast Wraps

At the top right - 7 point plus wrap for the bug
On the bottom left - 3 point plus wrap for me

Highest 7 point wrap is made of the following:

• Mission flour tortilla soft taco size (3)
• One Whole Scrambled Egg (2)
• One slice Oscar Meyer Low Sodium Turkey Bacon (1)
• Half an ounce of 2% milk sharp shredded cheddar (1)

Lowest 3 point wrap is made of the following:

• Trader Joe's Low-Carb Whole Wheat tortilla shell (1)
• 3 tablespoons Trader Joe's Cage Free Liquid Egg Whites (0)
• One slice Oscar Meyer Low Sodium Turkey Bacon (1)
• Half an ounce of 2% milk sharp shredded cheddar (1)

Depending on which ingredients you have available there are a variety of options. Another great option would be to forgo the bacon and scramble the egg with some veggies (mushroom, spinach, onion, etc).

A Whole New Year

Happy New Year!

I will be adding a post to complete our Elf on the Shelf 12 days to Christmas countdown, but I wanted to give a few thoughts on entering the new year first. Overall, I have to say that 2012 really turned out to be a good year. The biggest downs we experienced were some scary brushes with cancer for family members. Although my mother-in-law's scary diagnosis came in the late winter, that was quickly turned around when she was able to have a curative surgery, avoid any further therapies, and has been followed up with a clean bill of health at each doctor visit. Less fortunate was my half brother's wife who was diagnosed with cancer over the summer and is still undergoing her treatments - I am hopeful that 2013 will bring her recovery. Despite those downs, 2012 brought a year of remission for my husband's cousin in her battle with cancer and marriage to her long term boyfriend, new family ties with my half brother and his family that we have been estranged from for years, success in our careers for both my husband and I, new babies to ourselves and many other family and friends, and a beautiful wedding (and pre-wedding celebrations) for my little sister.

I'm hoping to get 2013 going on the right foot by declaring January a month of organization and routine for our family! Using my obsession with Pinterest, I've dug up or created the following plans for us:

• I'm determined that "30 is my year" and am going to get myself healthy and in the best shape possible before my 31st birthday! I joined Weight Watchers after having my baby bear (and am already below pre-pregnancy weight!) and have a Pinterest board dedicated to saving my WW friendly recipes
• I'm keeping meals organized by using a Pinterest board titled "This Week" to reference all the recipes I plan to make and to make shopping lists and shopping trips much easier to organize 
• In addition to trying to make it to the gym 3 times a week, I am starting the 30 day Ab Challenge
• Finally, I am going to try and get our house ready to be put on the market by following the 21 Day Organization Challenge

I'll try to stay up to date with how things are going in case anyone else wants to play along:-)