oh yes.. 1.6 pounds baby!

that's right.. 1.6 pound loss at last thursday's weigh in. i actually wasn't that excited at the time, but i'm pretty stoked about it right now.

although.. since then i've been pretty lazy with the cooking. i made pepperoni pizza soup on thursday, then had happy hour for dinner on friday (LOVE THAT! lol), saturday it was soup again (WW 0 point soup though) with my famous grilled cheese, and sunday i splurged on fish and chips since we were in napa and i REALLY wanted to try taylor's refresher. (yeah.. TRY not to drool at that menu).

well, i tracked everything and although i'm NEGATIVE in points for the week, i'm determined to get some APs in and eat well for the rest of the week. i had a bomb salad at work tonight that i threw together.. and i'll probably make soup again today for dinner (what can i say? i'm in a soup-y mood). i'm LOVING this cold weather though!

i didn't make these together, but here's my 2 recipes so far this week:

pepperoni pizza soup (5-6 points per serving.. the recipe builder didn't have the barilla plus pasta, so i don't know for sure):
2 1/2 cups tomato bisque soup (i used tj's)
handful of chopped fresh basil (i like mine really basil-y)
1 Tbsp dried basil
2 cups water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni (i used barilla plus)
2 green onions, sliced
2 teaspoons dried oregano, plus more for broiling
1/3 cup diced turkey pepperoni
1/2 cup grated low-fat cheese (i like tj's reduced fat 3 cheese blend)
4 teaspoons grated fresh parmesan

put the tomato soup, basil, water, and garlic into a large pot and bring it to a boil over high heat. When it is boiling, add the macaroni, green onions, oregano, and pepperoni and stir well. when the macaroni is cooked, about 6 to 8 minutes, pour the soup into oven safe bowls. sprinkle each bowl with equal amounts of cheeses. sprinkle on some oregano and put under the broiler until the cheese is bubbling and lightly browned, about 3 to 5 minutes.
we've also had the soup in bread bowls, but so much of the bread goes to waste i serve it on the side now (although this week i omitted even that to save calories).

jen's famous grilled cheese (okay.. so it's only famous with kris.. but i think it's pretty darned good!)
2 slices sturdy sourdough bread (i.e. the preliced kind, not fresh from the bakery)
2 tsp brummel & brown spread (it's a really low calorie butter substitute)
2 tsp grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheese blend (once again, i used tj's)
non-stick cooking spray

heat a skillet over medium-high heat. spread butter on one side of each slice of bread. sprinkle 1 tsp of the parmesan cheese on each slice, press gently to stick. spray top of cheese with non-stick spray to help it stick. lay one piece of bread, parmesan side down, in heated skillet sprayed with non-stick spray (it should sizzle). top bread with 1/2 cup shredded cheese and the other piece of bread (parmesan-side facing up). after about 3-4 minutes, carefully turn sandwich over. the parmesan cheese should now be a golden-brown crust. grill for another 3-4 minutes and remove from pan. serve immediately, as the crust gets soggy after sitting. enjoy!

i don't know the nutrition info for this one, as i never eat a whole one. i usually cut of an edge and give the rest to kris. it's not super healthy, but it's as healthified as i could make it!

YAY FOR GRILLED CHEESE, SOUP, AND COLD WEATHER!! WOOHOO!

it's bakeriffic!

wedding favor cookies...

but this past week i've been doing lots of baking OTHER than sugar cookies.. and the fruits of my labor have been deeeeeeeeelicious!

check it out:

monkey bread! i know this is super popular, but personally i had never made it before, so i gave it a shot. soooo easy. and delicious! check out the recipe here.

the only thing i did differently was bake it in a bundt pan rather than a tube pan. i made one version with the nuts and raisins, and another without. they were both amazing! YUM!

the best chocolate chip cookies ever!!!

i usually default to my mrs. field's cookie book for her 'blue ribbon chocolate chip cookies' but i got this recipe in the mail and it turned out SO good! plus, i like that the recipe makes 6 cookies rather than 20 or more like a normal recipe does. you can always double it if you'd like!

5 oz all-purpose flour (about 1C plus 2T)

1/2 t baking soda

1/4 t salt

1/3 C granulated sugar

1/3 packed brown sugar

1/4 C butter, softened

1 t vanilla extract

2 large egg whites

1/4 C semisweet chocolate chips

1. weigh/lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. combine flour, soda and salt in a small bowl, whisk together.

2. place sugars and butter in large bowl; beat with mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. add vanilla and egg whites; beat well. add flour mixture; beat at low speed until well blended. stir in chocolate chips. cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.

3. preheat oven to 350 degrees

4. divide dough into 6 equal portions; place dough portions on baking sheet (either coated with cooking spray or lined with a silpat) 2 inches apart. bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. cool on a wire rack.

small loss.. good week!

so yeah, at last week's weight in.. i only lost 0.8.. which is better than nothing, but i was still disappointed. the soup i made for dinner the night before had a lot of sodium in it though.. so that could have had something to do with it.

anywho, it's been an okay week, filled with some really good food! i had my brother's surprise bday party.. and fortunately (for me) they served mexican food, which i don't like. so i had a carne asada taco and a little rice. but i drank my weight it vodka so that made up for it... lol. i haven't used my WPA on anything else this week though.. so i'm feeling okay about it.

the soup last week was friggin incredible.. i could eat it every day:
2 boxes of low-sodium ff chicken broth
1 tbsp ground ginger*
1 tbsp crushed garlic*
3/4 cup low-sodium shoyu (soy sauce)
2 packages of soba noodles
1 cup chopped shitaki mushrooms
2 cups chopped bok choy
10 aidell's teriyaki chicken meatballs
or block of chopped firm lite tofu (veg)
3 stems green onion (chopped), for garnish

bring broth, ginger, garlic and shoyu to a boil. add remaining ingredients and cook until mushrooms are done. garnish with green onions and serve!

it made about 4 servings of 4-6 points each, depending on how many meatballs you served yourself. mmm.. drool. i want some now.

yesterday i had a kick-ass steakhouse salad.
i cooked a lean filet mignon on the stovetop until medium rare. let it sit for about 5 minutes, then slice thinly. in a large salad bowl, toss together mixed greens, 1/2 cup reduced fat blue cheese, 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes, 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced and some newman's own light balsamic vinaigrette to taste (they make a spray balsamic as well that's pretty good). top each serving of salad with some slices of steak. yumm. so decadent.. and it came out to approx. 6-8 points depending on how many slice of steak you have. i served hungry girl's onion rings on the side, but neither kris or i were big fans.. i guess i'll be using my fiber one cereal for something else from now on.

then today i made one of my dinner standards.. but it had been so long i forgot how delicious it is!! it's a smoked cheese and canadian bacon frittata with only a few minor adjustments to the recipe.. check it out i just used reduced fat smoked gouda instead of the cheddar, and some thick-cut ham i had on hand instead of the bacon. yumm.. and the best part - the portions are HUGE for 4 points each!

now that my stomach is grumbling.. off to bed!