Food FindsTag Archives

Wednesday Like a River (Day 3)

Well, at least I felt like crying a river! If you can believe it, I’m still sick. I went back to my regular physician on Tuesday who gave me a couple of new prescriptions and referred me to a pulmonologist. Her office was in the same medical medical building as my regular physician, so I stopped by on my way out to book the appointment. Thankfully, they had a cancellation for this morning so they were able to get me in right away. The bad part, she let me know I have pneumonia and gave me even more prescriptions. Oh joy.

So, this is what my bathroom counter looks like right now:

For those wondering, that’s Phenergan cough syrup with Codeine (for night use), a Dulera corticosteroid inhaler (2 puffs twice per day), Prednisone (steroid), Doxycycline (antibiotic), and over-the-counter Robitussin DM (for daytime use). Sadly, I just realized when posting this that one of my inhalers isn’t in the photo. On top of all this, I also have a Ventolin rescue inhaler for use as needed. With the latest course of treatment, this makes my third round of antibiotics and my second round of Prednisone. I’ve also now “officially” (if that’s what one wants to call it) been sick for FOUR weeks. Please just shoot me now.

It totally sucks having to go back on the Prednisone because of how much it can affect one’s weight. I managed OK with it during the first round and only gained a little over a pound, so I’m hopeful that will be the case with this second round of it as well. Although, it really bites to stick faithfully to my Weight Watchers plan and still see a gain on the scale which is what happened the first time I was on the Prednisone. I have to just keep reminding myself that it’s the medication and that it would likely be MUCH worse if I weren’t staying on track.

Since I had a little time at Target while I was waiting for my prescriptions to be filled. Have I mentioned how much I love that store? Because I really do! Anyway, I wandered around for a bit and ended up picking up two new (to me) things to try.

New Food Finds

I’ve eaten both Goldfish and Larabars before, but I’ve never had either of these products. I love the idea of the mixed bag of Goldfish! This one has both the Parmesan flavor and the Pizza flavor. They are 4 PointsPlus value for a 30g serving (~55 fishies). The Larabars are 3 PointsPlus value for serving which seems really high given how tiny they are! On the upside, they are 100 calories or less per mini bar, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, vegan, kosher, and are Non-GMO.

On to the food! Here was day 3 of my tracking challenge:

Breakfast

Breakfast at Starbucks before my doctor’s appointment:

Skinny Vanilla Iced Latte – 3
Perfect Oatmeal (plain) – 3

Morning Snack

Banana – 0

Lunch

Oroweat Soft Family Honey Wheat bread – 3
Pastrami – 3
Kraft Deli Deluxe 2% American Cheese – 1
Broccoli soup – 4

Afternoon Snack

Mango – 0

Dinner

This has become a favorite dinner of mine recently!

Baked potato – 6
1/2 bag Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers Broccoli with Cheese Sauce – 2

TV Snack

I don’t normally snack when I watch TV, but I decided to give these a try tonight since I had a couple of extra Points left over for the day. Yeah, they were just as tasty as I’d imagined they would be. Pizza Goldfish ROCK!

Goldfish crackers – 3

Evening Snack

Clif Kids Chocolate Chip ZBar – 4
Fat-free milk – 2 (not pictured)

Total: 34 (Target 36)
Liquids: 88 oz

If you haven’t already entered, don’t miss out on my Chobani giveaway. Details can be found here.

BTW, has anyone noticed a theme in my food journal titles this week?

Until next time …

23 March 2011

Misc.

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Food Finds, Food Journal, Health

Tuesday Confessions

True Confessions

It’s time for the Tuesday True Confessions over at the Sisterhood. I don’t have much to confess other than the fact that I feel a bit guilty for my lack of updates the past several days. It’s actually not been by choice though. I started having pain on my right hip/lower back area on Saturday that just got progressively worse. I finally went to the doctor yesterday and found out that it’s just my sciatica that is presently in a new place. So, I now have prescriptions for Flexiril and Napralan to try and give me some relief. As a result of all the back pain, I just haven’t been on the computer nearly as much, and certainly haven’t felt up to writing blog posts.

I did pick up a couple of new fruit finds at Trader Joe’s on Friday that I wanted to share about though. Here are some pics:

Cara Cara Oranges

This is the inside of a Cara Cara naval orange. I went off to TJ’s looking for them after reading about them on Marisa’s blog. They are SO tasty! They kind of look like a ruby red grapefruit as far as color goes, but they are sweet like a clementine.

I’m not sure how well this photo actually shows off this item. This is a Kumato which is also known as a brown tomato. They supposed ripen from the inside out which makes them sweeter than a traditional tomato. I will admit they were a bit sweeter than a normal tomato, but I’m not sure they were worth the extra money. I can get the same sweetness from little grape tomatoes for quite a bit less. They were good though and were a nice way to try something new.

Ok, that’s it from me for now. I need to head off to the optometrist to get my eyes checked. Yay for new eyeglass frames! Yes, I also confess that despite the fact none of my profile pics ever show me wearing my glasses, I’m blind as a bat.

Until next time …

1 February 2011

Cooking, Misc.

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Confessions, Food Finds, Life

Thank you @TheLaughingCow!

I have been a big fan of The Laughing Cow cheese for several years now. I’ve enjoyed alternating between the three flavors of original Creamy Swiss, Garlic & Herb, and French Onion. Imagine my glee as I was shopping a few days ago and discovered this:

That’s right all of you Laughing Cow fans, there are THREE new flavors!! Let the rejoicing begin!

I immediately scooped up one of each of the new flavors which are Blue Cheese, Mozzarella Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil, and Queso Fresco & Chipotle. Just like the original, they are 35 calories per wedge which is 1 point for those on Weight Watchers.

I’ve sampled all of the news flavors over the past few days and give them a big two thumbs up, especially the Blue Cheese! I spread it on some fresh pear slices and it was great! They are just starting to show up in stores, so if you haven’t seen them yet, you probably will very soon.

Here’s my journal for Monday:

Breakfast:

Nonfat iced coffee – 1
Banana – 2

Lunch:

Chicken piccata – 4
Saffron rice – 4
Peas & carrots – 2
Tomato slices – 0

Snack:

Kashi TLC crackers – 2

Dinner:

Grilled chicken – 4
Baked sweet potato – 3
Sautéed mushrooms – 1
Fudge bar – 1

Snack:

Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bars – 5

Total Points: 32.5
Weekly Points Allowance Balance: 35
Liquids: 80 oz

Until next time ….

29 June 2010

Cooking

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Food Finds, Food Journal, Laughing Cow

Food Find & A Tasty Dinner

I’m still taking comments/votes on whether people are interested in continuing to see my food journals here. Right now the vote is in favor of continuing.

I wanted to share a new food find. I heard about this product a couple of weeks ago at my Weight Watchers meeting, but finally just got around to buying it to try. It’s called Pulled Chicken Breast in Smoky BBQ sauce and is available at Trader Joe’s.

Being a Tennessee girl, I love me some barbecue, so I’m always a bit leery about trying things like this. Most pre-made barbecue products are just so wrong on so many levels, in my opinion. That having been said, I was pleasantly surprised by this one. The sauce definitely had a nice smoky flavor to it, decent taste, and the nutritional stats on it were pretty nice as well, with the exception of the sodium.

Per serving (~5 oz):
140 calories
1g fat (0g sat or trans fat)
1g fiber
18g protein
680mg sodium

I don’t think it’s something that I would necessarily buy on a regular basis, but it’s not a bad choice if you are craving some BBQ and don’t have time to make it yourself. If you’re interested in trying this product, you can find it at your local Trader Joe’s in the refrigerator section near the lunch meats, bacon, etc.

I also wanted to share about the very tasty dinner I had last night, but first a bit of a back story. Given the long hours I work, I tend to rely far too heavily on convenience foods. Even though I make somewhat healthy choices as far as calories & fat go, I still know that it’s not as good for me as eating freshly prepared meals from whole ingredients. I’ve set a baby steps goal for myself to prepare dinner at least twice this week from fresh ingredients. This was my result last night:

I started off by cooking the mushrooms. I heated 1 tsp. of olive oil in a pan and then added a bit of minced garlic. After letting the garlic flavor the oil a bit, I added in my mushrooms (combination of white and cremini). Since I was using so little added fat, I basically stirred them constantly to keep them from sticking to the pan. I’ve used this method for quite some time and they always come out delicious and so much healthier than the typical sautéed mushrooms swimming in butter and/or oil.

Once the mushrooms were done, I cooked the fish. I seasoned it with a bit of freshly ground sea salt and black pepper. I cooked it in the same pan that I used for the mushrooms, so I didn’t use any additional oil or anything. While the fish was cooking, I steamed the summer squash. Just before the fish was finished, I added a nice squeeze of fresh lemon juice which goes nicely not only with fish, but also with the freshly ground black pepper.

I was absolutely amazed that I was able to prepare this fresh meal in about the same amount of time it takes me to prepare a convenience meal. The fish and squash were both done in just a matter of minutes. I think from the time I started to cook until the meal was on the table was probably no more than 15 minutes at most. If I can come up with some more meal ideas like this that are so delicious and quick to prepare, I could definitely see moving more and more away from the convenience foods.

I’ll leave you now with my food journals for Sunday and Monday. Have a great day!

Sunday, June 20:

Breakfast:

Nonfat iced coffee – 2
Large banana – 2

Lunch:

Hot dog on a light bun – 4
Baked Scoops – 3
Eating Right red pepper hummus – 1
Pickle spears – 0.5

Dinner:

Trader Joe’s pulled chicken breast – 3
Baked potato with sour cream & bacon bits – 5.5
Tapioca – 3.5

Snack:

Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bars – 5

Total Points: 33
Exercise: None
WPA Balance: 35
AP Balance: 0
Liquids: 72 oz

Monday, June 21:

Breakfast:

Nonfat iced coffee – 2
Fresh strawberries – 1 (1 F)

Lunch:

Beef brisket with BBQ sauce – 11.5 (but worth every point!)
Summer squash – 0 (1/2 V)
Zucchini – 0 (1/2 V)
Baby carrots – 0 (1/2 V)
Asparagus – 0 (1/4 V)
Onions – 0 (1/4 V)
1 tsp. olive oil – 1

Snack:

Popchips – 2

Dinner:

Barramundi – 3
Sautéed mushrooms – 1 (2 V)
Summer squash – 0 (2 V)
Pudding – 2.5

Snack:

Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bars – 5

Total Points: 32.5
Fruit & Vegetable Servings: 7
Exercise: 15 mins walking – 1 AP
WPA Balance: 35
AP Balance: 1
Liquids: 80 oz

Until next time ….

22 June 2010

Cooking

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BBQ, Fish, Food Finds, Food Journal, Trader Joe's

Another New Food Try

First of all, I’ll start by apologizing for the poor quality of the photo. It was taken with the webcam on my work computer. I also meant to take a photo of the actual product after cooking it, but it was so late by the time I got to eat lunch that I completely forgot.

Anyway, I tried Trader Joe’s Reduced Guilt Baked Ziti for lunch today. This is another item from the freezer section. Like the Quinoa Duo I posted about previously, this one also has an ingredient list make up entirely of words I can pronounce. Check this out: ziti, water, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, basil, salt, garlic, pepper, and rice starch.

It was a nice size portion of pasta as well. Per the label, it’s 8.5 oz. The biggest complaint I had about it was the sodium content, but it’s still not as bad as some other frozen meals out there. Given that I kept pretty much the rest of my day to whole foods, I’m still OK on the sodium front overall.

Here are the full nutritional stats for the ziti:

Calories: 320
Fat: 7g (saturated fat: 2g – trans fat: 0g)
Cholesterol: 10mg
Sodium: 590mg
Carbohydrates: 55g
Fiber: 3g
Sugars: 6g
Protein 12g

Could I make a lowfat ziti myself rather than buying frozen? Sure, I could. There are times however that you just need to grab something quick, so it’s nice to see that Trader Joe’s has so many great choices.

Here’s my food diary for today:

Breakfast:

Iced coffee made with 1 cup nonfat milk – 2
Oatmeal – 2

Lunch:

Baked ziti entree – 6
1 cup salad greens – 0
1 cup chopped veggies – 0
1 tbsp. shredded cheese – 1
2 tsp. olive oil – 2
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar – 0

Snack:

Banana – 2

Dinner:

Grilled chicken – 4
Steamed broccoli – 0
TJ’s Quinoa Duo w/Vegetable Melange – 4
Mango chunks – 2

Snack:

Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bar – 2

Total Points: 30.5
Exercise: None, still battling back issues
WPA Balance: 35
AP Balance: 0
Liquids: 80 oz

Until next time …

24 May 2010

Cooking

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Food Finds, Food Journal, Pasta, Trader Joe's

A New Look & A New Food

I decided since I’ve really been working on getting a new attitude about my weight loss journey lately that it was time for a new look around here, too. I love the new theme I found! Let me know what you think.

As long as I’m posting, I also wanted to share about a new food I found. It’s called Quinoa Duo with Vegetable Melange and I tried it last night for the first time. It’s realllly tasty!

It can be found in the freezer section at my beloved Trader Joe’s. I don’t remember how much it cost, but it wasn’t that much, if memory serves. It contains both white quinoa and red quinoa, hence the “duo” name, as well as zucchini and sweet potato for the vegetable melange. There are a few other ingredients on the list, but it’s mostly spices and such, so I won’t list them all out. The thing I liked best is that everything is a recognizable name and not some chemical. Well, actually, there was one ingredient that I didn’t recognize. Have you ever heard of Galangal? Well, I hadn’t. It turns out it’s a root that’s related to ginger.

As for preparation, it can be heated in either the microwave or a saucepan. The cooking time is about 6-7 minutes regardless of which preparation method you choose.

Here are the nutritional stats:

Serving Size: 1 cup (140g)
Servings per container: about 3
Calories: 220
Total Fat: 6g (saturated fat: 1g – trans fat: 0g)
Cholesterol: 0g
Sodium: 260mg
Total Carbohydrates: 36g
Dietary Fiber: 4g
Sugars: 3g
Protein: 6g

I really enjoyed this one. It’s definitely something I will be purchasing again. It’s nice to have a grain option that’s quick and easy to prepare that’s also a healthy choice.

Until next time …