Pizza Pasta Casserole

I have a confession to make. Today was the first day that I have been on plan in almost a week. I still tracked almost everything that I've eaten, but my weekly points were gone a long time ago. I don't know why I've been eating the way I have been. I didn't just fall off the wagon, I jumped! But I feel better today. I feel a little more in control. Maybe I've clawed my way back up onto the wagon. I didn't weigh-in today because I knew I wouldn't be happy with the scale. I actually hid the scale Sunday evening. I didn't want to have it in a convenient location where I could easily weigh myself. I'm hoping that I can stay on plan from here on out. I really want to make my goal before we leave for the cruise and it's very quickly approaching!

Dinner tonight was another new recipe. I found it on Pinterest. Pinterest is the best thing ever! I love how it helps me to organize all of my different wish lists. You'd be surprised by what you can find on there! If you haven't visted Pinterest yet, what are you waiting for?! This casserole was so good! Meaty, pasta, cheesy goodness topped with some turkey pepperoni! What's not to like? Here's the recipe:

PIZZA PASTA CASSEROLE
Servings: 8
Points+: 12

1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper
3 cloves garlic
1 t. italian seasoning
16 oz. rotini pasta
3 14-oz. jars pizza sauce
8 oz. part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
22 pieces turkey pepperoni

Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, brown ground beef in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, pepper, garlic and italian seasoning and cook until vegetables are tender. Stir in pizza sauce. Once pasta has cooked, add to skillet and stir until mixed well. Pour mixture into a 2 1/2 qt. baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Stir in half of cheese. Sprinkle remaing cheese on top and place pepperoni on top of cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

EXERCISE
It was a beautiful day here today. Not too hot and not too cold. I decided since it's supposed to cool off a little bit tomorrow, I would emjoy the day and take a walk. I got to walk the Zen trail at the office this morning. I hadn't done it for a while and it felt really good. This evening, I did JM 6 Week 6 Pack - Level 2. This is still a hard video for me to do. She can be pretty harsh sometimes! But let me tell you, after it's over, I never regret doing it.

I'm so excited to meet Hannah Curlee tomorrow from Season 11 of the Biggest Loser! I will post pics on FB and let you know what I learn.

So long for today...

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

I hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed Easter. I certainly did! It was a beautiful day here and I got to spend the whole day with many family members. I really do feel very blessed after a day like today. We had our traditional Easter dinner of baked ham, sweet potatoes and hash brown casserole. For dessert, we had pumpkin roll. Everything was so delicious! I decided to make some cheesecake stuffed strawberries for everyone to eat. I made the for the Super Bowl and everyone said how good they were, so I decided to try them again. They are so good and really not that hard to make. The most time consuming part is coring the strawberries. Sorry the pictures aren't the best. I didn't have the Rebel with me today. Here's the recipe:

CHEESECAKE STUFFED STRAWBERRIES
Servings: 6
Points+: 5

1 lb strawberries, cored
1 8-oz. pkg. 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
1 8-oz. container Cool Whip Free, thawed
1/2 c. Splenda
1 t. vanilla
2 sheets low fat graham crackers, crushed

Remove some of the filling of strawberries to create a good sized space to fill.

Combine remaing ingredients, except graham cracker crumbs, and beat with mixer until smooth. Pipe filling into strawberries. Chill about an hour to allow filling to set up. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs over top of filled strawberries.

EXERCISE
Well, I set out for a run this afternoon, but shortly into it, turned around to go back. I just wasn't feeling it today. I kept thinking about everything that I needed to be working on and my heart just wasn't in it. So I went back and made the strawberries. I did to my yoga tonight. I did JM Yoga Meltdown - Level 1. You all know how I love my yoga on Sunday evenings! I'm planning to order Bob Harper's yoga workout tomorrow and hope to try it out later this week. I will let you know what I think of it.

So long for today...

Vanilla Pudding Cookies & Cream Cookies

Wow. The weather did a complete turn around from yesterday. It didn't make it much past 60 today. I had no desire to try to plant something today. Maybe tomorrow, who knows. We did get some shopping done and I think we finally have everything that we'll need for the cruise. Eventually, you have to get to the point, that if you don't have it packed and with you on the trip, you'll buy it after you leave. I think we're pretty much there. Well, except for being packed. I don't like to do that too soon because then I end up running out of clothes to wear that aren't already packed!

I made the lighter fettuccine alfredo for dinner tonight. I didn't care much for it. So I had to come up with something else to share with you on the blog. I got these in an e-mail from one of the blogs that I follow and thought they sounded pretty good. I made a couple of tweeks to the recipe. Oh my, are they good! They have so many different flavors and textures going on at once. I think I will be fighting with myself not to eat them until they're gone! Here's the recipe:

VANILLA PUDDING COOKIES AND CREAM COOKIES
adapted from Plain Chicken
Servings: 55
Points+: 3

2 1/4 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1 pkg. instant sugar free vanilla pudding mix
1 pkg. 100 calorie Oreo thin crisps
2 large eggs
2 t. vanilla extract
1 c. quick cooking oatmeal
5.55 oz. Hershey's Cookies & Cream candy bars

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Whisk flour, baking soda and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.

Cream the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer, scraping sides of bowl often. Mix in the pudding & Oreo thin crisps. Add the vanilla and eggs; beat until eggs are mixed in.

Add the flour mixture to the batter and stir until it is almost fully mixed in. Add oatmeal and continue stirring until flour disappears. Stir in candy bar.

Drop batter by tablespoons, spacing about 2 ½ inches apart, onto parchment lined cookie sheets. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until edges are lightly brown. Transfer to cooling rack and cool completely.

EXERCISE
It was chilly all day. Since I didn't dress warm enough when we left the house this morning, I was cold most of the day. After we got home, I had no desire to go out into the cold for a run. I really think that it warmed up a bit and I finally went for a 3 mile run after dinner. It felt pretty good. I'm keeping my pace to right around 9 minutes. Today's run was a little better than that. The knee is still holding up, although, I really need to start icing it after my workouts. It's supposed to be warmer tomorrow, so maybe I'll go for another run. We'll have to wait and see!

So long for today...

Chiles Rellenos Casserole

Is everyone ready for the Easter Bunny? I think we have finally finished buying everything for Addison for Easter. It seems like everytime we go to the store, we find something else for her. Must be rough to be such a spoiled 2 year old! We went to see Addison at the park for her school's Easter egg hunt. I think most of the kids had a great time. Addison didn't want to go in the grass because she didn't want to get her feet wet. Can't really say I blame her!

I'm so glad that I don't have to go to work tomorrow. I'm ready for my three day weekend! I think we might get a little bit of shopping done tomorrow morning, then come home and plant something. Apparently, in the South, you are supposed to plant flowers or your garden on Good Friday. Who am I to fight tradition. Just have to figure out what we will be planting.

Dinner tonight was from my Cooking Light cookbook. This was a really good casserole. I think it could use a little more veggies. Next time, I will only use one can of the green chiles, but other than that, it was really good. Here's the recipe:

CHILES RELLENOS CASSEROLE
adapted from Cooking Light
Servings: 8
Points+: 6

1 lb. extra lean ground turkey
1 c. chopped onion
1 3/4 t. ground cumin
1 1/2 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1 (16 oz) can FF refried beans
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles, drained
1 c. 2% colby cheese, shredded
1 c. frozen whole kernel corn, thawed and drained
1/3 c. flour
1/4 t. salt
1 1/3 c. FF milk
1/8 t. hot sauce (optional)
1 c. egg substitute

Cook turkey and onion in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Combine chicken mixture, cumin, and next 5 ingredients in a bowl. Stir well, and set aside.

Arrange half of green chiles in an 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Spoon mounds of meat & bean mixture onto chiles, and spread gently, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edge of dish; top with corn. Arrange remaining chiles over corn; top with remaining cheese. Set aside.

Combine flour and salt in a bowl; gradually add milk and hot sauce, stirring with a wire whisk until blended. Stir in eggs and egg whites; pour over casserole. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until set; let stand 5 minutes.

EXERCISE
I'm still trying to figure out what my exercise will be tonight. I did get to walk to the park and back earlier today, but I didn't work hard enough to really earn any activity points. I'm torn between JM Yoga Meltdown and one of my circuit workouts. We'll have to wait and see.

So long for today...

Penne with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic & White Beans

Whew! What a day! I had an all day meeting in Myrtle Beach today. I guess you don't realize how conditioned you are to doing your job until you change things up and do something else for a day. I traveled almost 2 hours up there, sat in meetings all day, then traveled 2 hours back. Boy am I tired!

Dinner tonight was a recipe that I've had for years now. I don't remember where I got it. It's very simple and very good. The most time consuming part is roasting the garlic and tomatoes. Roasted garlic is so aromatic and sweet. It definitely adds something special to this dinner. Here's the recipe:

PENNE W/ ROASTED TOMATOES, GARLIC & WHITE BEANS
Servings: 4
Points+: 7

3 large tomatoes, cut into wedges
4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1(15 ounce) can cannellini beans
1/2 pound penne pasta
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
1 T. olive oil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Slice each tomato into 8 wedges and discard the seeds. Put the tomato wedges and garlic into a 9 by 13-inch roasting pan. Spray with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkle with salt and a few turns of pepper. Roast in the oven, uncovered, for 40 minutes.

Drain the beans into a large colander in the sink. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain the pasta into the colander containing the beans, so the hot pasta water will warm the beans. Return drained pasta and beans to the pasta pot.

When the tomatoes are done, pick out the garlic cloves, squeeze the garlic out of the skin into a small bowl and mash with a fork. Pour the roasted tomatoes into the pasta pot, add the garlic, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the basil and additional salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to combine. Serve topped with the Parmesan.

EXERCISE:
I decided to go back to the very beginning tonight. Because as Frauline says, it's a very good place to start! Ha! I did JM 30 Day Shred - Level 1 tonight. The only difference is that I upped my weights. Instead of the 3 lb dumbells that I usually use, I tried it with 5 lbs tonight. My arms got tired on a couple of the exercises, but I worked through it and finished with the 5 lbs. Give me a few days and I'm hoping that I won't get so tired! I'm so glad my workout is over for the evening! Now I can prep dinner and head to bed.

So long for today...

Beef & Broccoli

Wow! There is a ton of sodium in teriyaki sauce. This dinner was very good, in spite of all the sodium. Next time, I will make this with homemade teriyaki sauce. And I will definitely be making this again. TC made more than one comment about how good this was. At one point, he even said that this tasted as good as what you would get in a restaurant. What a great compliment! Here's the recipe:

BEEF & BROCCOLI
Servings: 4
Points+: 6

1 lb. london broil, thinly sliced, against the grain
1 lb. broccoli florets, steamed
1 T. cornstarch
1 T. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1/2 lb. baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
1/3 c. teriyaki sauce

In medium bowl, combine cornstarch, olive oil, garlic, ginger, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Add beef and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes or over night.

Heat medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes. Remove mushrooms from skillet.

Increase heat to high. Add beef to skillet; stir-fry 2-3 minutes. Add broccoli, mushrooms and teriyaki sauce. heat through. Serve over bed of rice.

EXERCISE
Since, I didn't too too much exercise yesterday, I wanted to really get my heart rate up tonight, but without making muscles sore. I hate having to deal with lactic acid in my muscles on my weigh-in day. Since tomorrow is weigh-in, I needed to be careful tonight. So, I did JM Metabolism Boosting workout. This is always a good one to get my heart rate up!

I really hope this workout makes a difference. Last week, I was 1.2 lbs away from goal. I hope the sodium in the teriyaki sauce doesn't kill my weigh-in for tomorrow. Oh, that reminds me, I need to go drink another glass of water.

So long for today...

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

So, I didn't get to post yesterday. I had every intention of posting this last night. I even sat down in front of the computer to post it...but then I didn't. It was too late and I really needed to get to bed. So I might be doing two posts today. We'll see.

We went to a cookout at my in-laws house yesterday. My mother-in-law requested that I make this salad. It's always nice when I make something that people specifically ask for again. Makes me feel like I did a good job! It's good to know that I make things that people like and want to eat again! This salad is a very old family recipe. I grew up eating it. It's so good, too! I know that 7 pts+ might be a lot for something like this, but the pieces are pretty good size, and it is totally worth it! Here's the recipe:

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL SALAD
Servings: 12
Points+: 7

2 cups crushed pretzels
3/4 c. light butter, melted
3 T. Splenda

1 (8 oz.) package ff cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. Splenda
1 (8 oz.) container fat free frozen whipped topping, thawed

2 (3 oz.) packages sugar free strawberry flavored gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 (16 oz.) pkg. fresh strawberries, crushed or 1(10 ounce) pkg. frozen strawberries, crushed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Stir together crushed pretzels, melted butter and 3 tablespoons Splenda; mix well and press mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until set. Set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl cream together cream cheese, sugar and remaining Splenda. Fold in whipped topping. Spread mixture onto cooled crust.

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Stir in strawberries and place in refrigerator to gel up a bit, about 20 - 30 minutes. When mixture has thickened a bit, pour over cream cheese layer and spread out. Refrigerate until set.

EXERCISE
Since I ran 6.2 miles on Saturday, I figured that I could take Sunday off from running. I would like to get another run in before this coming weekend, but since I had already run so much, I wanted to give my body a rest. But, as always, I did get some Yoga in Sunday night. It felt really good to stretch my muscles. Still trying to find another Yoga workout I like as much as Jillian's.

So long for today...