WW Week 1 and Fridge Friday the Fourteenth

Oh what a week!  Weight Watchers unveiled its new plan in meetings on Sunday and online on Monday.  The website was flooded on Monday and hard to use, but they’ve basically recalibrated the whole program.

Some people like it.  Some people hate it.  At this point I’m just trying to learn how to do it!  So that’s why I am calling this week 1.   Also because the last time I weighed in was in October.

I gained 1 lb. during that time so really, I’m going to call it a success and a good time to restart.

Want to see what’s in the fridge?

Much, much less stuff than last time!  The Thanksgiving leftovers are gone.

Curt bought eggnog (blech) – it’s in the black carton next to the water pitcher.  Thankfully he will drink it and I don’t have to have any of it!

Top shelf:  tamale filling!  We’re doing a large clean out the freezer, and there was a hunk of Mexican-spiced pulled pork in the bottom.  I roasted chunks of butternut squash that were rubbed with olive oil and chipotle powder for about 40 minutes at 350F until they were nice and soft.

Tomorrow, I’ll mix up some mole sauce and throw the whole thing into some tamales.  Yum.

Oh – Top Chef!  The premiere was AWESOME but I’m disappointed that Blais kind of looks like a cheater.  Still rooting for him for now.  Sad about Elia but it seemed like she didn’t understand why the dish was bad the lsat time and didn’t change it that much.  Plus serving raw fish when your stated intention was to serve a cooked fish entree is not good.

I think Stephen is next to go.  He does not have the line chops of most of these people and it is going to come back and bite him.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Weight Watchers, off the wagon and Fridge Friday week twelve

I haven’t been to a WW meeting in three weeks.  I’m not entirely sure what I’m going to do from here on out about it.

But, in an effort to get back to some sort of regular posting schedule, take a look at what’s in my fridge today:

That large lump disturbing the top shelf of the fridge is a 19 lb. turkey.  THANKSGIVING IS ALMOST HERE YO.

Also, what is actually here:

Holy crap, there is a toddler in our house.  Peter and Erika and their lovely son Dylan are visiting from Massachusetts!

And he’s stealing the condiments.  D’oh.

Happy Friday!

Weight watchers week nine and fridge Friday the eleventh

I was down 1.4 lbs today!  This is a hot miracle given the sheer quantity of crazy food I ate on Saturday night.  Not to mention the wine.

We won’t mention the wine.  Anyway.  I’m pleased.  I’m not thrilled with how slowly it’s working but – holy crap, if I can lose 1.4 lbs a week for the rest of the year that would be 14 lbs less than I weigh now.  Which would be GREAT.  I need to keep that in mind.

Blah blah blah.  Watch me shrink right her on the intertubes!

Want to see what’s in my fridge?

Waaaaaay too much stuff.  Things to make spanikopita and risotto and mapo tofu and DEAR GOD I have so much stuff to cook!

Chicken soup for Krutz’s soul!  We’re going down to KC on Saturday and Mike – we’re bringing soup.  And enchiladas and spaghetti.

Happy (almost) Friday!

Weight watchers week eight and fridge Friday the tenth

First up:  the contest expires on Friday the 15th of October at midnight.  This is it, people – your last chance to beat out Breana for the rolling tailgate cooler!  Leave a comment on this post to enter.

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I lost 1.2 lbs this week!  I am down… 2 lbs in eight weeks.  Ok, so I am not the biggest loser.  But better down than up, right?  And I have had some very, very difficult weeks.

Still slogging along.  Back to the gym this week, which has sucked (as expected) and also been kind of great (not expected).   I’m sleeping better at least!

What’s in my fridge today?

The usual hot sauce farm, leftovers, giant container of mayo, and boxed chicken stock.

Buried in the produce drawer:

Last zucchini standing.  We’re going to turn it into Thai curry tomorrow.

Coming soon – green tomato jam, canning pie filling, and lobsters!  Happy Friday everyone.

Weight watchers week seven and fridge Friday the ninth

WW was not good.  I’ve not really been watching what I eat, and I twisted my ankle at the Emerging Terrain dinner (serving tables outdoors on a rough surface = not good).  My ankle is still Not Right so I haven’t been working out either.

Maybe I can bike this weekend?  Hm.

I was up 1.2 again and now I am only down half a pound from seven weeks ago, which I suppose is better than potentially up several pounds but still.

Want to see what’s in my fridge?

Lots of stuff.  Of particular interest:

Goose fat!  I’m going to turn it into pie crust.  Maybe THAT is why I am not losing any weight…

Also, to the left: leftover Tuscan baked chicken and beans, which was really, really good and which made phenomenal leftovers too.

Also, spicy mixed pickle – Curt is obsessed.

Happy Friday!  There will be pie soon.  Oh yes, there will be.

WW week five and Fridge Friday week eight

Last week was… not a good week.  I don’t want to turn this into my personal therapy blog, because this is supposed to be about food.

But.  Curt’s grandfather’s funeral.  My friend Mike has cancer.  I have lots and lots of work stress, and because of it I have insomnia which does not help with any of it.  I am up 1.2 lbs. in two weeks (I didn’t do an official weigh-in last week) because I was eating my feelings all week and most of last week.  It turns out that my feelings taste mostly like s’mores and Nutella.

So.  But this is a new week – that’s the good thing about WW, every week you start over.

Want to see what’s in my kitchen?

This is what fifteen pounds of canning tomatoes look like.  They will become sauce Friday night because I am just that much of a party animal.

The three containers on the shelf to the left are full of chicken saag leftovers.  It was so, so good.

Then we have:

Pears from the co-op!  What should I do with them?  There are three pounds.

And some chicken parts/guts, on the top shelf in the fridge photo.  These will be turned into stock.

Happy almost Friday!

Weight watchers week four and Fridge Friday number seven

This was a bad week for Weight Watchers – expected, but still bad.  I didn’t follow the plan and I was rewarded with a good-sized gain.  So.

My one victory was that I wasn’t dishonest about it – I tracked all of it.  The s’mores, the sweet & salty cupcake, the sushi… I may have eaten too much but I didn’t lie to myself about it.  Small victories.

What’s in my fridge today:

I know what you’re saying:  that is not the inside of a fridge.  Those are pumpkins.  And you, you are very perceptive – those are, in fact, pumpkins.

And that is the orange blob on the top shelf – a gallon bag of roasted pumpkin.  I honestly think that’s going to get frozen instead of used right away.  But for the moment, we did make these:

Roasted pumpkin seeds!  Yummy.

We also have these for the weekend:

Figs!  It’s fig season – eeeEEEeee.

Happy almost Friday!  May this week go away and never come back.

WW, week three and Fridge Friday the sixth

Last Thursday, we drove to Minneapolis with enough food to sink a small ship so I skipped both my Weight Watchers weigh-in and doing a Fridge Friday post.

Today, I was down 4.2 lbs. from my last weigh-in two weeks ago!  Whoot!  Although I must say I was not really expecting that after our decadent weekend, including that amazing dinner at Piccolo.

But hey – I’ll take it.

I have to say, I am a little uncomfortable admitting all in public-like that I am actively trying to lose weight.  It seems kind of… un-foodie. I just finished reading Born Round again, and I’m trying to remember some of the things he talks about near the end of the book – like that the quality of the whatever is the important thing, not the quantity.  I have a difficult time turning down foods I don’t even really LIKE that much.  I’m learning to say “no” to things I don’t want to eat, and to make choices that are smart and not just led by the fact that there is a donut in front of my face.

I seem to have been born with this boundless, endless appetite – and learning the difference between physically full and psychologically satisfied is really, really, really hard.  But I’m trying.

Anyway.  My, I do go on, don’t I?  Want to see the inside of my fridge?

It’s hard to see the item of note this week – but you can kind of see my hot sauce hoarding problem along the right side of the photo.

This is what’s in the glass dish on the top shelf:

Pork jowls!  Nothing like handwritten packages with ominous labels about “special products.”  I’m going to render these and then we’re going to make rillettes again.

WW, week 1 and Fridge Friday, finally the fifth post

So I had kind of a disappointing weigh in this week – I was up (less than a pound, but still).  I need to really, really watch it on the weekends, I think.

Last Saturday we made some food and went to the roller derby.  We had a lot of fun, but I think I didn’t track very accurately.  Anyway, I am disappointed but I’m not giving up.

Fridge Friday!  I have TOTALLY SUCKED at keeping up with posting.  The weeks have been going so fast, I have been working so much, blah blah blah blah.  I am the Mayor of Excusesville about this blog.

Anyway.  But lo, you have not been abandoned and you shall see pictures of the inside of my fridge again!

I can feel the excitement.

Things of note:  the bag of green-ness on the bottom shelf is Anaheim peppers that will be turned into green chile sauce.

The large-ish container with the black lid on the shelf with the salsa is hummus.  Mmmm, hummus.

The case (yes, case) of Hershey’s bars are for a baking project.

There won’t be much of a recipe this week – we have a tasting tomorrow for my brother-in-law and his fiance’s upcoming wedding, and I have a lot to do this weekend for a catering job Labor Day weekend.

So I think our Fridge Friday feature is going to be… da dum.  Cucumbers dipped in hummus.  That’s all I can manage right now.

Confession time

I have been keeping a secret.  Not from everyone – but from this blog.

You see, I am kind of chubby.  So I joined Weight Watchers.

I promise to keep cooking – I’m not going to start subsisting on diet shakes and frozen meals, and that’s not really what Weight Watchers is about anyway.  It’s more about learning to make good choices and learning to live your life in a healthy way.

Anyway.  I felt weird not telling you (both of my loyal readers…).

This post does an excellent job of talking about a first week on Weight Watchers.  And Debbie has lots and lots of posts with her story and tons of recipes – her success is a huge inspiration to me.

Anyway.  Come along on this journey with me, won’t you?