Week of January 11 to 17, 2009

Week of January 11 to 17, 2009

HOW ABOUT THOSE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES!!!!!!!

Last Week: Okay, now that we reviewed the 7 steps of the K.I.S.S. principle, let’s complete our challenge to focus on 2 of the steps this week! Do them for ALL seven days, kids. I don’t usually issue a 7-day, every day, challenge, but we’re working on developing habits, so we have to keep repeating the behaviors over and over again. You CAN do it!

This Week: Learning the fine art of getting satisfied and staying satisfied will be explored. 24 points worth of Twinkies won’t keep you satisfied for more than 10 minutes, people, so stop trying to make that work for you!

What’s New: On Saturday, January 24, the WW Center in Mechanicsburg will be hosting Kathy Wickert from the Camp Hill Giant Cooking School as she prepares some low point Super Bowl foods. Wear your team’s colors, and come out to sample some foods that won’t break your points bank—recipes will be provided, too! Email me at mawwleader@yahoo.com if you want to sign up. Guaranteed we’ll have lots of fun (and, should the Eagles win this Sunday and make it to the Super Bowl, you’ll see me in rare form!!!).

WAHOO and Congratulations to…
• Major Milestones: Dorrie, Kathy, Janet, and Tom from Thursday PM Gateway; Whitney from Delta Dental
• 10% award: Cheryl from Thursday PM Gateway

Greg’s Joke of the Week: What did the Giants fan say to the Cowboys fan? Nothing…he just passed him a tissue to wipe his tears…

Recipes: Here are some yummy recipes that you can serve at your Super Bowl party…

Sweet Onion Kielbasa
From the National Honey Board

1 lb. low fat turkey kielbasa sausage
1 small onion, chopped
2 T. light whipped butter (don’t use soft spread—it’s mostly water and will evaporate)
12-oz. can light beer
1/3 c. honey
2 or 3 T. spicy, brown or Dijon mustard
Pepper and/or chili powder (or favorite spices), to taste

Slice kielbasa into 1-inch medallions. Saut� onion in butter until onions are transparent. In a large skillet, bring ½ can of beer to a slow boil and add kielbasa. Cook until the beer is reduced by half, then add the remaining ½ can of beer. Add honey and mustard, and spices to taste. Let simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce reaches a thick, honey-like consistency. Onions may be mixed into the finished sauce, or added to top as garnish. Makes four to six appetizer servings.

Guacamole With Lots of Lime
Makes 3 Cups (2-tablespoons per serving: 45 calories, 1 protein, 3 gm carbohydrates, 4 gm fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 gm saturated fat, 96 mg sodium, 2 gm dietary fiber)

3 ripe avocados, halved, pitted and peeled
Finely grated zest from 2 limes
2 T. freshly squeezed lime juice
6 scallions (white part only) finely chopped
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
2 T. minced jalapeno chili pepper, or to taste
1/4 c. finely chopped cilantro, or to taste
Salt to taste

Coarsely chop the avocado. Place it in a large bowl and add the lime zest, lime juice, scallions, garlic and jalapeno. Using a fork or a wooden spoon, mash to the desired consistency. Add cilantro and salt to taste and mix gently. Serve immediately.

Lime Spiked Black Bean Dip
From Cooking Light magazine
Makes 5 Cups (serving size is 2 Tbs@ Calories: 19, Fat: 0.1g , Protein: 1.2g, Carbohydrate: 3.9g,
Fiber: 1.3g

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Place beans in a food processor, and pulse until almost smooth. Combine the beans, carrot, and the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring until well blended. Let stand 30 minutes. Serve with baked tortilla chips.

Ultra Decadent Chocolate Chip Brownies
From Cooking Light magazine
Makes 2 dozen (1 brownie = 175 calories, 3.3 g fat, o.4 fiber)

1 1/4 cups applesauce
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate minichips
1/2 cup vanilla-flavored baking chips (such as Ghirardelli)
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°. Spoon applesauce into a fine sieve over a bowl; let stand 15 minutes. Discard liquid. Scrape drained applesauce into a large bowl. Add the sugar, vanilla, eggs, and egg whites; stir well. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour, cocoa, and salt, stirring well with a whisk. Add to applesauce mixture; stir just until moist. Fold in chips. Spoon the batter into a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray, and bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

FRITO PIE - Thank you Jean from Kansas and WW Leader Zig
Serves 8 - 4 points each Total points per pie is 32 points

1 lb. 93% lean ground beef
1/2 cup chopped green chilies
1 cup chunky salsa
1/8 tsp. cumin
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
3/4 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese
1 cup crushed corn chips (1 1/2 oz)

Brown beef, onion, chilies. Drain. Add remaining ingredients except chips. Heat through. Spoon into 10" pie plate and top with crushed chips. Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes; let cool 10 minutes

Weight Watchers Layered Fruit Salad recipe
Thanks again to WW leader Zig
Makes 6 servings, 4 pts each

2 medium bananas, sliced
2 cups pineapple chunks
2 medium oranges, peeled and sectioned
2 kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced
1 cup red seedless grapes
1 pint strawberries, sliced
1 medium grapefruit, peeled and sectioned
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon, rind of
1 cinnamon stick

In a medium saucepan, combine the orange juice and zest, lemon juice and rind, brown sugar and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Layer the fruit in a glass serving bowl. Remove the cinnamon stick from the sauce; pour the sauce over the fruit. Cover and chill for several hours before serving.

BLACK BEAN ‘N’ PUMPKIN CHILI
From Taste of Home magazine; thanks for sharing with us, Donna!
1 cup = 3 points (10 servings)

1 medium onion, chopped
2 15 oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 medium yellow pepper chopped
1 can solid packed pumpkin (15 oz)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
½ cups cubed turkey or chicken
2 tsp. olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
3 cups chicken broth
2 tsp. Dried parsley
2 tsp. chili powder
1 ½ tsp. Dried oregano
1 ½ tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. Salt

In a large skillet, sauté onion, yellow pepper and garlic in olive oil until tender. Transfer to a 5 qt. slow cooker. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours or until heated through.

Franks’s REDHOT Buffalo Chicken Dip
Makes 4 cups, total pts value of 31

1 pkg (8 oz) low fat cream cheese, softened
2 cans (9.72 oz each) chunk chicken breast, drained
½ C redhot sauce
½ C low fat blue cheese salad dressing
1/2 C low fat crumbled blue cheese
Assorted veggies

Stir cream cheese in deep baking dish until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes until hot and bubbling. Stir. Serve with veggies (if you serve crackers, don’t forget to account for the points!).


Thought for the Week: You may hate the Philadelphia Eagles, you may love the Philadelphia Eagles, or you may be indifferent to the Philadelphia Eagles. HOWEVER, we can ALL learn a lesson from their experiences of this season—NEVER STOP BELIEVING! If, 6 weeks ago, they had given up on themselves like a lot of other people had, they’d be done right now. Their bags would be packed and unpacked, and they’d be watching the NFC Championship game this coming Sunday at home, wishing they were there. But guess what?? They WILL be there! Despite the odds and despite a poor first-half-of-the-season performance, they dug deep down, fought harder, ignored the negative comments, focused on what they ultimately wanted to do, and did the work; most importantly, they NEVER STOPPED BELIEVING THAT THEY WERE CAPABLE OF WINNING. So, when things aren’t going your way, when you’re not giving it your all, when people start telling you that you’ll never get to your goal, reach deep down, set a goal, keep your eyes on the prize, and JUST DO IT!! Block out the naysayers, and internalize on your inner drive, power, energy, and motivation, and show everyone what you’re REALLY made of! By the way, do you know what Andy Reid has the team chant in the locker room? Yep, you guessed it: “On three…one, two, three…BELIEVE!” Have a GREAT week!