So this recipe’s portion of my blog will be closed here shortly. I have found and created a new blog for my weight loss from the weightwatchen website. the link can be found on my personal blog so you can continue to read what is going down (hopefully the scale!).
a set back
I know they come…sometimes at our own bidding and sometimes unexpected. But I knew this one was coming. With every bite, every guilty indulgence. I knew that the pounds would go up. And sure enough, I stepped on the scale and it was up about two pounds. I don’t know what happened….oh yes I do…..my self control evaporated. While we had a good time on Valentines Day….the day actually lasted about four days. And I consumed chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate. Rationalizing the whole time that this would be the last bit. Yeah right. Four days later, I am cleaning my conscience along with the cupboard. I am getting rid of everything that tempts me. I DO have one bag of baking chocolate on hand just in case I need to bake something for something….yeah, it’s a cop-out, but I don’t get tempted by the baking chocolate at all. I also kept my hundred calorie snacks and ice cream (which is pre-packaged at 100 calories so I can’t cheat myself). But that is IT. No more. No more candy, cookies, chocolate, chips etc….we are D-O-N-E. If we would like something like that, then the 100 calorie packs will suffice. I WILL make this work. I am SO tired of being overweight. I am tired of my kids thinking that it is ok….cause mom’s fat so it MUST be ok. I WILL choose healthier snacks. I WILL make healthier dinners. I WILL control portions—for everyone if need be. I WILL become manic about this. I am done being fat and unhealthy. I want to run with my kids and not be out of breath…or if I am it’s because we are having fun…NOT because I am so fat I can’t keep up. I want more enjoyment out of my life and I know that part of my inhibitions are the fat cells covering the real me. I will find myself. I am making a promise, right now, I will start losing the fat that is suffocating the real me.
I changed the oat bar recipe
Don’t get me wrong, the original recipe tasted fine…but it was a little mushy. I wanted a firmer bar. I also wanted to create a good base and then leave the toppings open to personal preference. So, here is my base recipe.
1/2 cup each: honey, applesauce, and brown sugar lightly packed
Put these three into a sauce pan on low heat and mix occasionally until well blended.
In another bowl combine these:
5 cups of oatmeal
1/2 tsp of baking soda
Pour the wet mixture over the oat mixture and add 2 tsp of vanilla then mix well.
Pour into an 8×8 greased pan and smush down really well-I put a baggie over my hand and went to town!
Bake for 20 minutes at 350.
Let cool completely before cutting and removing from pan.
This recipe has 2078 calories. Cutting it into 16 servings (which is a pretty good size) gives you 130 calories each.
You can add chocolate chips to the top, nuts, raisens, or whatever strikes your fancy. But remember to add the calories if you count them!
I am going to try substituting some flour for the oatmeal, or another type of healthy grain and see how it comes out….I’ll let you know!
A Recipe of My Own!!
Yep….you read it right….I CREATED a recipe! I am pretty happy with myself. Now, don’t get me wrong…I put stuff together for dinner all the time… but baking has alsways required a recipe for me to do. But, I have created an oatmeal bar recipe right here in my very own kitchen!! Here is what I did:
Melt 2TBS of butter in a saucepan.
Add 1/4 a cup of honey
Add 1/2 cup of applesauce (unsweetened)
Add 1/2 cup of brown sugar lightly packed
While that is heating together on the stove, put these in a large mixing bowl:
4 1/4 cup of oats
3/4 cup of raisens
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp vanilla extract
oil an 8×8 pan or line with foil and lightly oil.
Mix the stuff in your saucepan with the oat mixture and stir well. Pat it into the prepared pan. (I smushed it down pretty well with my spatula). Then bake it for 20 minutes at 350. Let it cool before you cut it and cool it completely before you take it out of the pan. If you don’t it will fall apart.
There you go! Homemade oatmeal raisen bars! This whole recipe has a grand total of 2443 calories. If you cut them into 16 pieces, you would have 16 servings at 153 calories each.
I am sure you can add whatever you like instead of/along with the raisens….nuts or whatever. You could even spruce it up with chocolate chips and marshmellows (just make sure you add the calories if that concerns you) I even thought about melting 1/2 cup of PB in the saucepan!!
I think that’s pretty good for a healthy snack. Pair it with an apple and its a great healthy afternoon snack….and as for the kids…Annalea loves them! And apples too…so there you go!
Pizza Bites
So here is what you will need: wonton wrappers, pizza sauce (i used leftover spaghetti sauce), mozzarella cheese, pepperoni or your favorite veggies.
Place one wonton wrapper down and put a dab of sauce, then layer cheese and toppings. Don’t go clear to the edge tho…you have to seal the wontons. Dip your finger into a bowl of water and wet the edge of the bottom wrapper and then place another wrapper on top. Seal the edges like you do a pie crust edge (with a fork). Heat some olive oil in a pan and then pan fry them until they are crispy and lightly browned. Voila! Homemade pizza bites!
These are really good…and MUCH healthier than the ones from the freezer aisle. If you use turkey pepperoni instead of regular then these turn out to be a pretty healthy snack. Or rather lunch! Add a salad and it can replace those high calorie pizza’s and the kids LOVE eating them. You can even skip the sauce on the inside and give them a dipping sauce instead!
We went a little crazy this weekend…..waaaaaaay off the diet plan! We had pizza on Friday, along with popcorn and m&m’s. Then brownie mix on Sat….and then dessert on Sunday with dinner…..grrrrrr….I was afraid to step on the scale today….but SURPRISE!!! I still lost a half a pound! Go figure….I guess working out really helps offset weight gain when you overeat!!
So this week I will be a little bit more in control. Not so much junk! I am going to get those hundred calorie snack bags of candy so I can eat some but not go overboard! It’s much easier to eat healthier w/ hubby is here….odd huh?
Well, I hope you try these…they really were quite yummy! More to come so stay tuned!
recipe gone awry
So I tried my hand at making some cinnamon rolls…..and they STINK! I don’t know…maybe it’s the recipe, maybe it’s me….but man oh man did they suck. sigh….
