Saturday, 29-02-20

Good morning!
I'm afraid that Slimming World didn't get a look in yesterday!
My hope of a healthy element to the lunch was quickly dashed and after the prosecco I didn't really care!
It was a fairly classic 'afternoon tea' with tea or coffee, little sandwiches (lovely fillings including my favourite, smoked salmon) and rather a lot of cakes and scones with jam and cream and oooohhhh, it was all lovely!
It was interesting that, after quite a time with very little sugar apart from fruit and a bit of sweetener, I could really feel it buzzing around in my head and, thinking about it, that might be the reason I didn't sleep well overnight, despite being absolutely shattered.

When I got home, I had some salmon and some SW style chips because it was easy and 'settling'!  I'd like to say that it is back to normal today but I will be going to Dad's and we're eating out, so I must make a really determined effort.

(it's the last time I'm using this divider; I have a new one for March)

Today's food.
B:  I will wait until I get to Dad's and have fruit and yogurt
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink

L:  Not sure because I don't know what Dad has in but it will be something like beans on toast
SW:  that would be one heB

D:  At the Millstream and I'll probably go for their health kick salad which I've had before and it's really nice.  I might have chicken added to it, I'll see how hungry I feel.  And diet pepsi!!
SW:  no idea but it's won't break the calorie bank, of that I am sure.

S:  none

There's no point doing a summary as I won't be on SW plan but I will do my best to keep it healthy and the eating window will be around 8:16 as usual. 
I can't tell myself 'one day won't hurt' because yesterday was that 'one day' so there's a strong motivation to be back on track if not on SW plan.

Friday, 28-02-20

Good morning!

Yesterday's breakfast was just lovely.  I know it bends the SW rules considerably but I don't care and have posted about it separately.

Lunch and dinner were also good.  I had very few potatoes left for chips, especially for two, so I cut them extra fine and they came out so crunchy and delicious I must make them like that again.
As a serial slimmer, I have this ingrained 'chunky chips are best' thing because of the fat content but done the SW way, any fat is measured  so it makes no difference.  No complaints from me!

Today's food is a bit of a mystery.  I'm off on a spa day with a group of Lindsey's clients to a not-too-far-away place near Colchester.
https://www.fivelakes.co.uk/spa-leisure-club/spa/

We're arriving at half nine and leaving at some point in the afternoon.  There's a pool, various gym resources, a lovely golf course that's good for walks and various 'treatments' (I'm having a facial which is included on the price).
The food is problemmatic.  We're having 'pastries' on arrival (so I hope to goodness there's some nice fruits available) and we're having a lunch which I have no idea about.  Being a spa, there should be some healthy stuff, surely?

The only meal I have total control over is dinner and I think I will have chicken or something - I could do what I did the other day and batter out the chicken, dust it in a spice mix (probably cajun spice) and spray fry it.   And maybe I'll continue to spoil myself with a fresh fruit salad with yogurt for afters.

Totally not SW today but I'll be back on it tomorrow!  Promise.

Recipe: sweet pancakes (NOT SW compliant but . . .)

. . . but they work with SW if you think laterally and don't mind bending the rules.

The basis and rationale for this is . . .

• oat pancakes are very tasty but they're not the same
• a healthy extra of bread is 60g wholemeal bread
• 60g wholemeal bread contains between 35 and 40 g wholemeal flour (I know this from my breadmaking)
• 35g wholemeal flour is 120 calories
• therefore, one can (and ought to be able to) use 35g wholemeal flour as a healthy extra B

HOWEVER . . . it's fair to say that that I doubt Slimming World would accept this argument so, while I am happy to call a 35g batch of  wholemeal pancakes a healthy extra B, if you're being totally SW centred, you'd have to syn this - and that would be around six syns.
Don't sub white flour, that would in no way be a healthy extra B!

With that in mind . . .

Ingredients:
35g wholemeal/wholewheat plain or strong flour
one egg
100g milk or yogurt*
bit of vanilla essence
maybe a bit of sweetener - optional
splash of water - optional
spray oil

*I used my cholesterol lowering yogurt drink because I have it anyway but I didn't try milk.  I'm guessing it would work fine though.

Method:
put the flour, egg and yogurt into a bowl and whisk together until smooth (doesn't take long at all)  Add the vanilla and any sweetener, mix in, cover and pop in the fridge until needed.

Get out the batter and, if it seems a bit thick, add just a little splash of water (be careful - not too much) or milk.
Spray a non stick pan, heat on high-ish and when it's ready add a portion of batter, swirling it round to spread it out.
Cook in the usual way, then turn out onto a plate or rack, respray the pan and add the next portion of batter.

Of the size I make (not too big but not mini ones), I got seven pancakes which, for me, is two portions.  Even better!  I have wrapped three of them (the larger three) and popped them in the freezer for another time.
I had the others rolled with fruit and yogurt inside, topped with more yogurt, more fruit with a drizzle of agave nectar over the top.  Lovely!

The facts per portion:
one healthy extra B (unofficially) or three syns
a quarter of a healthy extra A if you use milk, nothing if you use natural yogurt
plus syns, if necessary, for toppings

There are two ways to go with this.  One is to add a bit of baking powder and see if this mixture will also make nice, fluffy American pancakes.  The other is to omit the sweetness, add a bit of savoury (cheese, maybe?) or keep them neutral and use in savoury dishes.
I'll let you know in due time.

P.S.  don't tell anyone, but I licked the plate clean, they were that good!

Thursday, 27-02-20

Good morning!
Yesterday turned out really well.  The oat pancakes were tasty, second day spicy food is always better than first day and I also enjoyed the savoury rice.  All very satisfactory - but no photos, sorry.

Today's plans:
B:  pancakes with fruit and yogurt
I know I had pancakes yesterday but I wanted to try something.
When I first started SW, I had a chat to my consultant about wholemeal/wholewheat flour as I made my own bread and we decided that 35-40g wholewheat flour would be the equivalent of a healthy extra B.  Yes, a bit of a fiddle in that flour is not considered a healthy extra but it's all about the fibre and if 60g of wholemeal bread is a heB, then I reckon so should 35/40g of just the flour, bread being more or less 2/3 flour and the rest other ingredients, mostly water.  I've just  checked the calories and  35g seems just about right.  It's not Slimming World, strictly speaking, but it should be a workable equivalent - for me, anyway.
This is a very long way round to say I shall try making some pancakes with wholewheat flour and see how it goes.  35g flour, one egg and one mini yogurt drink (may as well, seeing as I have it anyway!) plus some vanilla and some sweetener.  If that works (a big if, I know), I might have a go at a neutral or even savoury batter.
SW:  one heB for the flour, two syns for the mini yogurt drink and one and a half syns for agave nectar.  Also, I've realised that I'm out of natural yogurt for the topping so I will have a Mullerlight for half a syn

L:  chicken saag, fruit
From the freezer, this is the leftovers from an Aldi ready meal so I've now crossed it off the list.
SW:  free

D:  sausage, chips and veg
I think it's time I had a more 'conventional' meal and, as Beth is dining with me, she can have a veggie burger while I have two skinny sausages and we can both have chips and veg, of which I have plenty!
SW:  one syn for the sausages and one for oil for the chips (I'm sharing them with Beth)

S:  easy peelers

BM:  I'm feeling quite weary after a very intensive training session yesterday so will stick to the stretching and balance exercises.  I might also take a walk to Morrisons for some bits and bobs, including a yogurt top up!

Summary:
one heB - ooops
six syns
nothing too expensive today - fingers crossed the pancake idea works, lunch is leftovers and dinner won't be too bad either
an eating window of 8:16

Wednesday, 26-02-20

Good morning

Well, yesterday didn't turn out as erxpected at all

I got a text from a friend asking if we could go out to lunch instead of Thursday as planned.  I was delaying breakfast until after SW group so I just didn't have anything until lunch when I had a smaller plate superfoods salad which was delicious, a lot nicer than the worthy name might indicate!
For dinner I had the chiken tikka pasta bake because I'd already got the chicken out.  It was very, very nice but, as often with these SW recipes, the single portion I made was huge.  I ate half and will have the other half for lunch today.

That meant no pancakes but never mind, I shall have them for breakfast today instead.

Today's plans:
B:  pancakes with fruit and yogurt and a drizzle of agave nectar.
I'll make the pancakes with Quaker-style oats, egg and milk but I will also add my mini yogurt to the mix so it won't need all that much milk.  The recipe makes enough for three with three eggs so it'll be easy to cut it down to one.
SW:  Almost one heB (oats), some milk which won't be anywhere enough for even half a heA so probably half to one syn and two syns for the mini drink (which, for newer readers, I have as part of my battle to fight the high cholesterol!) and one and a half syns for the nectar

Just about all the above copied and pasted from yesterday's post!

L:  chicken tikka pasta bake, fruit
Leftovers of yesterday's dinner which I can heartily recommend.
SW:  free

D:  savoury rice (from the freezer) with cheese on top; yogurt
If I feel the rice is a little short on protein (I can't remember off the top of my head, I will add some turkey rashers which are free and flavoursome.

SW:  one heA for the cheese

S:  easy peelers

BM:  personal training with Lindsey

Summary:
one and a half heAs and one heB
four and a half syns
nice and frugal with leftovers and pre-home-made freezer food
an eating window of between eleven and seven - 8:16

Tuesday, 25-02-20

Good morning.

The jambabaya I had yesterday was really very nice indeed, very tasty.  You could quite happily add other vegetables to it and next time, I will.  The only thing was that I would add the chopped spring onions earlier so they softened.  I suppose the idea was to add a different texture but, if so, it didn't go properly and next time I won't do it again.  Maybe some fresh parsley would be nice (or coriander, if you like it - I don't) or just don't garnish it at all.
Anyway, it was good! 

Get the magazine - it's a March/April edition so will be in the shops for some time to come and there's some good recipes in it.

Today's plans:
B:  what else but pancakes with fruit and yogurt and a drizzle of agarve nectar.
I'll make the pancakes with Quaker-style oats, egg and milk but I will also add my mini yogurt to the mix so it won't be all that much milk.  The recipe makes enough for three with three eggs so it'll be easy to cut it down to one.
SW:  Almost one heB (oats), some milk which won't be anywhere enough for even half a heA so probably half to one syn and two syns for the mini drink (which, for newer readers, I have as part of my battle to fight the high cholesterol!)

L:  small jacket potato with cheese and mayo, salad; apple
Originally I was going to use up a mixed bean chilli from the freezer but I reckon after pancakes, I won't be that hungry so, as I have some pretty small potatoes, I will bake one instead.
SW:  one heA for the grated cheese and two syns for some super light mayo.

D:  chicken tikka pasta bake; yogurt
Fusion food at its best (I hope).  This is from the SW magazine, p 52, and I'll let you know.  I might add cheese to the top as I find it hard to get my head around pasta bake without cheese!
SW:  if I have cheese, that's my other heA

S:  easy peelers

Body Magic:  a walk, balance exercises, maybe some salsacise too

Summary:

• one or two heAs and one heB
• five syns max
• a pretty frugal day, the most expensive bit being the chicken and I get that from Aldi as their happy chicken is much better value than Morrisons happy chicken
• the usual - or what has become the usual - 8:16 eating window

What are your healthy and/or SW plans for today?

Monday, 24-02-20

Good morning!

Yesterday's food was OK but there's only one photo to show because neither the lunch or dinner photos looked anything but a right mess!

Breakfast was tasty and would have been tastier for a good dollop of brown sauce.  I couldn't be bothered to go back into the kitchen for some though - how's that for lazy!

Omelette and beans is always tasty and lunches once contained chopped bacon and red pepper which worked well.

Today's meal plans:
B:  fruit and yogurt, mini yogurt drink
Nothing too heavy this morning but I find it quite filling, all the same
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink

L:  a chicken thigh and some spicy baked beans; fruit
Both from the freezer, the beans (home made) being on the use up list so I can cross that off.  I'll jazz up the chicken in some way, either with citrus or spice, batter it out and spray fry it quickly.
SW:  free

D:  jambalaya (from the SW magazine, p42); yogurt
I am absolutely sure this is in no way authentic American Deep South but it looks tasty enough so I'll give it a whirl.  It's an all in one with chicken, prawns (frozen ones, not the raw peeled king prawns the recipe asks for), a sausage and assorted veg while the spices are paprika and cayenne.  However, one of the many JD spice mixes I ordered is a jambalaya spice so I'm going to use a quarter of that instead for a more complex seasoning.  It also asks for long grain rice but I will use some 'posh' rice from a pouch as I'm trying to stay off the simple white carbs as much as I can.
Basically, it is a savoury rice with a specific spice seasoning.
SW:  half a syn for the sausage (Aldi, skinny) and I might also use a bit of real oil for three syns

S:  fruit, if any

Body Magic:  a walk, weather permitting.  If not it will be indoor exercise.
I ought to say that what I record here is the blocked and planned stuff but actually I do a fair bit more at odd spare moments through the day.  For instance, I have some quick balance things that Lindsey showed me and I often do them while I'm in the kitchen, maybe waiting for a pot to come up to heat, etc, and I often skip or jump from room to room rather than walk (when there's no-one there to see!).  There's lots of ways to keep more active that don't actually take up any extra time.

Summary:

• looking through, there's no healthy extras, ooops - I might have some grated cheese on the spicy beans at lunchtime
• five and a half syns
• I have chicken thighs frozen in twos but only want to use one for lunch so the other one will go into the dinner recipe - a little less than required but that's OK.  As for the rest of the spice mix, if the recipe is OK, I will take it to Dad's at the weekend and make it again, with the third portion going in his freezer for another day
• it's the usual eating window - 8:16

Sunday, 23-02-20

Good morning!
Yesterday's food wasn't anything lavish or special but it was jolly nice all the same.

Breakfast was ham and beans (small plate so not as much as it perhaps looks).

Lunch was mixed bean chilli.

Dinner was salmon, broccoli and cheesy not-chips (not chip shaped, anyway)

Today's planning:

B:  bacon and sausage muffin; mini yogurt drink
I was originally going to have either two bacon medallions or two skinny sausages in the muffin but have compromised with one of each instead!  I might have some sliced tomato in the muffin as well; I was going to add egg but three eggs is a bit much (see lunch).
SW:  one heB for the wholewheat muffin, two syns for the yogurt and half a syn for one sausage

L:  omelette and baked beans, fruit
I have baked beans to finish off and didn't want more bready stuff so will go for an omelette instead.  I will use two eggs, 30g finely grated cheddar and the chives in the garden can now be picked so I'll include a bit.  Also some pepper and  mini pinch of salt (the cheese contains salt).  I can be done on the hobbut I prefer to use the little omelette maker I got from Aldi.
SW:  I can definitely 'afford' some cheese in the omelette for one heA

D:  chicken curry, chick pea dahl; yogurt
The curry is from the freezer* and the dahl is a packet
SW:  this should all be SW free

S:  hopefully, none, as it seems to be quite a filling menu!

BM:  a Leslie Sansone walk, balance exercises, maybe a real walk as well although the weather forecast isn't encouraging

Summary:
one heA and one heB
two and a half syns - quite low today
a moderately economical day today - but I'm using up things from the freezer which always makes me feel good
the eating window is between eleven and seven, 8:16, which seems to have settled pretty much into a normal pattern for me now

*  I braved the cold, risked frostbite and had a look at what I have recently frozen.  People say SW is expensive and yes, it can be, but doesn't have to be and I find that their recipe portions are very large.  Fair enough, they have to work for everyone, after all, but just because you CAN eat a lot, it doesn't mean you MUST eat a lot. I'm now finding that I can more happily say 'I've had enough' and freeze the rest for another time, make up a recipe for two (halved from four) and freeze one portion or even make three portions out of it and freeze two.  It all helps with the cash!
Maybe I need to rootle deeper into the chilly depths as I know there are more things out of sight and out of mind.  That's the biggest problem with a chest freezer.

So, for the record, this is the recently frozen stuff to use up.  Can you tell I love tomatoes?

• mixed bean chilli
• chicken saag
• spicy tomato and chorizo soup
• spicy tomato and veg sauce
• chicken curry x 2
• spicy baked beans x 3
• mushy pea soup
• savoury rice
• tomato soup x 2

Saturday, 22-02-20

Good morning.

 Yesterday's breakfast.  The pancakes, being oat pancakes (made with quaker oats rather than blended whole oats), had to be cooked differently and took rather longer than conventional ones, but it was well worth it.  I finely chopped some strawberries and mixed them with greek yogurt before layering up pancakes and strawberry yogurt and topping with one tbsp of agave nectar for one and a half syns.
Absolutely gorgeous!  It's not as huge as it looks, by the way - small plate and helpful camera angle!

I didn't have breakfast until quite late because of feeling yuck so cut the meals down to two and will have the chilli today.

Dinner was also very tasty.  I just put a couple of slices of ham in a small dish, topped it with the spicy tomato and veg sauce from the freezer and topped it with 40g grated cheddar.  There's loads of speed veg on that plate.

On to today's plans:
B:  beans and ham; mini yogurt drink
This finishes off the ham and very tasty it has been too.
SW:  two syns for the mini yogurt drink

L:  mixed bean chilli, grated cheese; fruit
This is what I thawed yesterday but didn't have it so, to avoid waste, it's on the menu today.  It's pretty filling too.
SW:  two syns for some oil and one heA

D:  salmon, broccoli and cheesy chips; fruit
I'll do the salmon by placing on some foil, squirting over some lemon juice, black pepper and dried dill before wrapping it and steaming it over the broccoli in my 'on the hob' steamer.  I love my steamer and use it loads.  I saw it in Aldi for a fiver a couple of decades ago and I almost didn't buy it but I'm so glad I did.  It's a decent sized saucepan with two steamer tops and a lid.   
The chips will be done the SW way in the actifry with a little extra oil as usual and I'm adding cheese for my other heA
SW:  two syns for one tsp oil and one heA for cheese

S:  fruit

Body Magic:  a walk (weather permitting) and balance exercise, maybe salsacise too to make up for being so lazy yesterday!

Summary:
two heAs.  No Bs planned but there's plenty of fibre in the chilli
six syns
medium frugal; the salmon was on special, the ham needs finishing off and the chilli is from the freezer
eating window between eleven and seven; 8:16

Friday, 21-02-20

Good morning.

Today's food plans are:
B:  pancakes, fruit and natural yogurt, yogurt drink
More or less the same mix as the oat waffles.
SW:  one heB and two syns

L:  mixed bean chilli; fruit
From the freezer and I'll probably have a dollop of yogurt on it too.
SW:  two syns

D:  gammon ham topped with a spicy tomato sauce and some cheese (a sort of hunter's chicken - hunter's ham!), cauliflower and perhaps a few parsnip chips; yogurt
I found a YS cauliflower yesterday - too good not to grab!
SW:  One or two heAs for grated cheese and, if I have the parsnips chips, it will be one syn for half a tsp of oil (that's all you need for a small quantity)

S:  none

Body Magic:  feeling a bit rough today so am taking it really easy.

Summary
two heAs and one B
five syns
lots of stuff from the freezer plus YS and 'use-up' food - nice and economical
I'm not feeling up to eating at the moment so I guess a restricted window won't be a problem and I'll see how it actually goes

What are your healthy plans for today - do comment and cheer me up.  :-)

Thursday, 20-02-20

Good morning.

I have just one photo from yesterday and that's lunch.

I used all sorts of odds and ends to make a mixed bean chilli and it was ever so tasty.  It's hard to make a chilli for one person - I mean one portion - and the pan load I made was enough for three.  That's one for lunch and two in the freezer and I am going to have to plan my meals around freezer food for a number of days next week because it's all building up.
I used one tbsp oil so that's two syns per portion.  The dollop on top is 0% yogurt, not soured cream.

Today's plans.

Today is not so easily organised.  As it's half term, I am off to my old SW group this evening, starting at seven which puts the clappers on the restricted eating. 
Oh, well, remember 'it's a tool, not a rule'.

B:  fruit and yogurt, mini yogurt drink
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink.

L:  tuna and red pepper omelette, salad, fruit
I just rather fancy this today.  I'm using up the contents of a jar of red pepper in brine so I won't have to pre-cook anything, just seven minutes or so in the omelette maker and Bob's your uncle!
SW:  it should be free

D:  not sure right now but it will be one of those freezer meals, cooked in the past and frozen as leftovers.  I'll get it out this afternoon so it will be thawed by the time I get back home from group and I can reheat it quickly in the microwave.
SW:  it won't be many syns but I will probably have some grated cheese on it for my heA

S:  none - it's weighday

BM:  a brisk walk

Summary:
up to two heAs
up to five syns
it will be frugal - leftovers, bits and bobs and not a lot of meat
no restricted eating today - I will miss it

It's a disorganised day today, sadly, and the summary reflects this.  Because I'm weighing in the evening, I feel like I have to be careful all day long and there's this naughty little voice inside me telling me I can go to Morrisons after group and 'treat' myself.  However, I realise that this 'treat' isn't really a treat, the anticipation is way, way better than the thing itself and that I will feel much worse afterwards if I do, so I won't!
I infinitely prefer having my official weigh in in the morning!

What I will do is plan something really tastry tomorrow evening!  That can be my treat - some sort of fakeaway.

Wednesday, 19-02-20

Good morning!
I had a very nice time helping out at Group yesterday morning.  It wasn't as busy as usual, maybe because it was half term and, being a day time group, the children would be at home when usually they are at school.  We had a few youngsters but not as many as expected.  I stayed for the whole meeting as Jennifer invited me to and I always find something helpful in the second half (I sound like an advert, don't I?).

I am definitely making that Tom Kerridge plum sauce again.  It was delicious.  I used a couple of chicken thighs and a real variety of veg (onion, red pepper, mushroom, broccoli, courgette, carrot and bean sprouts), all carefully shredded, sliced or spiralised in the best stir-fry way and stir fried in half a tbsp oil which was quite enough.  I had some wholemeal noodles so used them and, of course, the plum sauce and it was absolutely delicious; it also turned the whole dish a lovely purple colour due to the plums!   And the lot was pretty much SW free.
(I found a bag of beansprouts for 50p in M&S which seems very good value.  I'll pop the rest in the freezer for another time)

As things heal, it is so nice to be eating things with a bit more texture again!

Today's plans:
B:  ham, egg, tomatoes; mini yogurt drink
I have this very lean ham to use up plus quite a lot of tomatoes so this seems an ideal breakfast.  The egg is just because I love ham and eggs!
SW:  two syns for the yogurt

L:  mixed bean chilli; fruit 

This is from the latest SW magazine, page 59.  It's really just one of those chuck it all in together ideas involving tomatoes (I have passata and fresh tomatoes to use up so that works well), cajun spice, mixed beans (the recipe says a can but I have some frozen) plus red pepper and spinach.  I think I have a bit of spinach but if I don't, it won't hurt to just leave it out.  I'll probably add extra veg - onion or leek, mushrooms, maybe, and some of those beansprouts too.  Anyway, it will end up as a jolly tasty spicy mixture that should fill me up until dinner.
SW:  free unless I use some olive oil which I probably will.  My skin has been a lot better since I started using a measured amount of real oil now and again.  In that case, it will be three syns

D:  potato crusted cheese and asparagus quiche, side salad or veg; yogurt
Like I made the other day but with a different filling.  There was a pack of asparagus in the raffle last week and it really needs using up.
SW:  one and a half heAs and half a syn for the yogurt

S:  easy peelers

BM:  some balance work and, probably, a youtube walk with Ms Sansone

Summary:
one and a half heAs; no Bs but with all that veg and beans, I hardly think fibre will be an issue today!
five and a half syns
is all sounds quite lavishbut won't be costly really, especially as some of the veg was raffle-free
an 8:16 day - start after eleven and finish by seven

And I will try to take some photos today!  I keep forgetting.

Tuesday, 18-02-20

Good morning

It's half term this week so no pottery on Thursday evening and I would normally go to the Thursday evening group, that being my original group and I haven't seen my old mates there since before Christmas, I think, or maybe just after.  However, being on the social team, I don't want to let Jennifer down for today so we had a chat and I am going this morning to help out only and then on Thursday evening to be weighed and stay, catching up with friends.  That's a good compromise and means I don't let anyone down.

Regarding yesterday's food, I subbed the rest of the smoked salmon dip for the soup so have that for today while the second portion will go in the freezer for another time.
No photos, but dinner turned out to be surprisingly tasty.  Rather than smoked cod (too far down the freezer to dig out quickly) I used up a couple of bits of haddock.  Haddock doesn't half shrink when you oven bake it, hence me cooking  two bits.  I boiled the parsnips and then blended it with 45g gruyere to make a really tasty, cheesy 'creamed' veg and I lay the fish on top with sprouts on the side.  It looked bland but was far from it.  Such a simple meal but I will do it again!

As a couple of people have mentioned, the restricted eating is suiting me very well and, if breakfast isn't until eleven, I'm often not really ready to have any lunch at two.  Some say they end up consolidating breakfast and lunch and ending up with two more substantial meals instead of three with a light snack around four or five.  Well, we will see - it's always an option, isn't it?

Today's still mushy meals will be:
B:  scrambled egg and smoked salmon; mini yogurt drink
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink

L:  ham and mushy pea soup, wholemeal roll for dunking; yogurt
Looking forward to it very much.
SW:  half a heA for milk to dilute/slacken the soup and one heB for the roll

D: chicken and veg stirfry in plum sauce with pasta; fruit or yogurt
It's time I sampled that plum sauce and, as things are healing up nicely inside my mouth, I reckon some chicken wouldn't go amiss.  It's not hard enough to cause any damage, but firmer than fish.  I will stir fry some chicken and veg, add the plum sauce which is sweet and savoury and punchy, and have it with pasta or maybe noodles, if I can find any in the cupboard.
SW:  all the food is free/speed, the plum sauce is negligible and I might spend three syns on some oil, seeing as I'm not synning much today at all

S:  yogurt, maybe, or banana

BM:  I'm hoping to go into town after group and will we walking around, probably quite briskly, as it's none too warm at the moment.

Summary:
half a heA and one B
five syns
breakfast sounds lavish but really one uses very little smoked salmon in scrambled egg so it's cheaper than it sounds and I will use chicken thighs for the stirfry
the eating window will be between ten thirty-ish and seven - 8.5/15.5

Monday, 17-02-20

Good morning.
Yesterday's food went better than expected.  Chewing is difficult, as is negotiating food in a denture filled mouth so the whole process is very slow, no chance of bolting anything, and I get that 'satisfied' feeling before I've finished.  Another helpful strategy!

Today's mushy and soft menu plans are:

B:  scrambled eggs and baked beans, mini yogurt drink
Beth came round yesterday and had beans on toast so there's a portion of beans left over for today.  I might poach or 'fry' the eggs instead, depending on how I feel when I get to breakfast
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink.

L:  ham and mushy pea soup; yogurt
A bit of a cheat, this one, in a way.  I had the ham stock from boiling up the gammon ham yesterday.  I added a little bit of onion, carrot and celery amd then a can of mushy peas which was part of the Slimmer of the Week hamper a couple of weeks ago.  I boiled it all up with a bit of seasoning: salt - be careful with salt when using ham stock - pepper and a bay leaf which I removed before blending.
When the vegetables were cooked, I blended it all smooth and then added some finely shredded ham for a bit of extra taste.  It's been in the fridge so should have developed some extra flavour
SW:  half a syn for the yogurt and half a heA for milk I will use to dilute the soup which has cooled to very thick indeed!  Nice

D:  smoked cod with cheesy parsnips and sprouts; banana ice cream
I will bake the smoked cod wrapped in foil.  I will boil the parsnips before mashing with 30g cheddar and a bit of cajun spice and slightly overcook the sprouts.
The banana ice cream will be just some frozen chopped banana that I have in the freezer, whizzed to smooth and I might add some agave nectar for taste
SW:  one and a half heAs  and one and a half syns for 1 tbsp agave nectar

S:  maybe a yogurt or something, if I have to and I have a small amount of the smoked salmon dip left over from yesterday that I don't really want to freeze

BM:  a nice walk, I hope, as the weather is supposed to really pick up today.

Summary:

• two heAs
• four syns
• apart from the cod, really frugal and I like using the ham stock.  No waste!
• the eating window will be eleven to seven as usual; 8:16

Sunday, 16-02-20

Good morning.
Well, the teeth are out and I am under strict instructions not to eat anything chewy, crunchy or hard for several days.  I changed yesterday's evening plan to salmon, just salmon, and it was OK.

Are you watching Tom Kerridge's Lose Weight and Get Fit? Last week there was a delicious looking recipe for Chinese style chicken pancakes and I thought the plum sauce looked pretty amazing so had a go yesterday and yes, it is good although I would say be careful with any added
salt. Soy sauce is already pretty salty.
Here's the link to the recipe.


Image borrowed from BBC Good Food










I have plans to use some with shredded chicken and the obligatory shredded spring onions and cucumber on lettuce leaves rather than Chinese pancakes.
It makes quite a lot so, not being all that sure how long it lasts, I will freeze the rest in small pots.
As far as SW values are concerned, there's no way I am synning the plums and the only ingredient that carries any syns is the teaspoon of soft brown sugar, one syn the lot so negligible for a single portion.

Today's meals have to be very soft, says Dr Clough the dentist:
B:  porridge with mashed fruit (blueberries and strawberries) and yogurt drink
SW:  half a heA, one heB and two syns

L:  smoked salmon pate, lettuce leaves (hopefully); banana
I made the 'pate' with smoked samon, cottage cheese and some super light philly plus lemon juice, black pepper and some dill.  It's very soft, almost a dip really and will be nice spooned onto lettuce.
SW:  I'm calling the philly a healthy extra A although officially it isn't really.

D: pasta with shredded ham in a spicy tomato sauce; yogurt and frozen fruit 'ice cream'
The sauce is in the freezer and the pasta will be cooked to death.  I had a small-ish gammon ham that needed either cooking or freezing so it's boiling on the hob right now and, being proper gammon, not pre-formed or anything like that, it will shred really well so should be OK.  It's unsmoked so the stock should be great for ham and lentil or ham and pea soup (or both!).
I didn't have the yogurt ice yesterday so I will make it for this evening instead, if I fancy it.
SW:  half a syn for the yogurt and no way am I synning the fruit, just because it's blended

S:  I'm not feeling snacky right now so I'm making the most of it.

BM:  I might go for a walk, if the weather permits.

Summary
two heAs and one B
around three syns
I honestly can't call this a frugal day, can I, but it's not shockingly expensive either
back to the restricted eating today; hopefully eleven to seven so 8:16

Saturday, 15-02-20

Good morning!
Well, I still have me teef!  The denture thingy didn't fit as perfectly as he wanted so he took another impression and I'm going back this morning for the extractions.  Third time lucky (or unlucky) maybe.

I'd got myself all worked up and when I arrived back home, I could feel things building up and those little internal demons (I'm sure you know what I mean) were shouting things like 'crisps, bread, butter, cheese, peanuts, wine . . . '.  Eeeek.

So I replanned my meals.  I will have the soup today and I will have the chicken saag today too although I will have to chuck the rice out for the birds, I think.
I went to Morrisons, bypassed all the usual naughty stuff and instead got a tub of ice cream, salted caramel ice cream.  It said the calories (280) so I knew it would be fourteen syns, just inside the limit, but I also knew I hadn't had the cheese on my beans for breakfast (six syns saved), nor had I had any lunch, so I made a decision and bought it.

And, you know, I really enjoyed it.  A guilt free treat and it did the trick.  Then I had steak and chips for dinner and enjoyed every mouthful.  The steak wasn't frugal, I know, but it was bavette steak so nowhere near as expensive as sirloin or rump.

It was nice, having a guilt free treat and, while it wasn't part of yesterday's planning, it was definitely still within sensible calories.  I've proved to myself that I don't have to go bonkers when things are stressful; I can manage it.  For me, that's a biggie!

Today's plans:
B:  porridge, fruit and yogurt drink
I will have this earlier than usual as the dental appt is at ten and I need to eat before I go.
SW:  one heB, half a heA and two syns

L:  tomato and chorizo soup, yogurt or a banana
SW:  one syn for the soup

D:  chicken saag, probably pasta; might make some home made yogurt ice with frozen fruit
To make the ice, you just blend a pot of flavoured yogurt with some frozen fruit.  The fruit freezes the yogurt so you can either have it quite runny or pop it in the freezer for half an hour to firm up a bit.  SW calls it a tweak and says you have to syn the fruit.  I don't!
I'm planning more of a dessert than usual in case I'm feeling miserable and want to pamper myself a little bit.  If I don't or can't be bothered, I can just have the yogurt poured over the fruit instead!
SW:  half a syn for the yogurt

S:  easy peelers, grapes (a spoil me treat for the weekend)

BM:  I managed to fit in a short walk yesterday but today, if possible, it will be indoors exercise.  Lindsey has sent me some balance exercises to do as my balance isn't great.

Summary:
a bit low on healthy extras, just half an A and one B
three and a half syns - well, that should pay back yesterday's little indulgence (not that SW does that but - you know . . .)
leftovers, frugal ingredients, home made freezer meals - nice and economical!
the window will be bigger today, between nine and seven - 10:14 
Back to normal tomorrow, fingers crossed.

Friday, 14-02-20

Morning!
Yesterday's eating went really well and my strategy of having my lunch just before I went to the afternoon tea do worked a treat.  There were some beautiful home made cakes on the table but I didn't even want a piece.  I had been dreading savouries as I find them much harder to resist but it was just cakes, to my great relief.
It was with great satoisfaction that I coloured in the 'stayed on plan' bit of my colour chart for yesterday.  As it builds up, it really is an encouraging thing and, childish as it may be, I'm glad I started it.

The potato based quiche that I had for lunch was really tasty.  What you do is grate some potato, run it under the tap, dry it thoroughly and then season with salt and pepper before spraying a quiche dish with frylight, pressing the grated potato into the bottom of the dish, spraying again and popping in the oven for around 20 mins.
The top is just beaten egg and grated cheese and I added onion and garlic granules and some finely chopped mushrooms (but you could add anything quiche-y really) and putting it back in the oven for twenty minutes or so.  I thoroughly enjoyed demolishing the two mini quiches that I made!

Today is perhaps a bit problemmatic as it is teeth out day.  I'm planning meals but it might not work out that way.

B:  cheesy beans on toast, mini yogurt drink
This is the same as yesterday and it's the other half of the can of beans I opened.
SW:  one, heA for the cheese, one heB for the toast and two syns for the yogurt drink

L:  tomato and chorizo soup, yogurt
I'll have this after the dentist so I may or I may not, it depends.  I'll get a portion out of the freezer anyway and if I don't have it today it will still be good for tomorrow
SW:  one syn for the soup and half a syn for the yogurt

D:  chicken saag and rice; maybe fruit
Another leftover from yesterday.  These SlimWell meals (Aldi) are, like the SW ones, a very good portion, enough for two helpings for me.  The only issue I have is that the sauces seem to be a bit thin but a good dollop of tomato puree sorts that out for added flavour.  It's not a 'biting' meal so I should be able to eat it (carefully), fingers crossed.  I'll have posh rice again with it.
SW:  one syn for the rice - although I might make it pasta instead, thinking about it.  Fusion food used to be very fashionable, didn't it?

S:  I'm not planning any!

Body Magic:  none planned but I'm well up on exercise for the week so no problems.

Summary:
one heA and one heB
three and a half syns
it's all leftovers or pre-mades from the freezer so nice and economical today
The eating window will be sort of between ten thirty and seven so 8.5:15.5

Thursday, 13-02-20

Good morning.

Doesn't food look tastier in the sunshine?  This was as delicious as it looked too - cheesy bacon and mushroom omelette witha very simple salad on the side.

Dinner was great too.  It was really a basic tomato-ey spicy mix with pork, but you could use chicken, pulses, lean beef, ham - they'd all work.
I cooked the sweet potato fries for too long so the actifry paddle mangled them a bit but they tasted good anyway.
The cheese was a mix of cheddar and gruyere because I had little ends of both to use up.  It shows how habits have changed.  In the past, all little bits would have gone straight in my mouth rather than in a recipe.




Body magic was a bit of a killer (in a nice way).
I walked down to a friends, walked back up, went the other way and round Morrisons before walking back with a heavy bag.  Combined with personal training, that made two hours of it.

I slept well!!

Today's plans:
B:  beans on toast; mini yogurt drink
Perfect for a rainy winter morning - apart from having to do the freezer dash in the rain!
SW:  one heB for toast and two syns

L:  potato based quiche and salad.
This was the other entry on Tuesday and I liked it very much indeed so am giving it a go.  Basically you grate some potato, season it and press it into a quiche dish to bake for a while before adding the usual quiche type things - egg, cheese and some veg and cooking for longer.  Eggs are such great value!
SW:  the cheese will be one heA (or more) and one syn for any mayo

D:  I was going to make something from the magazine but time is very tight today so I will get something out of the freezer.  I have an Aldi ready meal, chicken saag, to try and I have a little bit of 'posh' rice to use up as well so that will work fine.
SW:  I gather the ready meal is SW free although that's approximate as SW refuse to release official syn values for the Aldi Slimwise ready meals and the rice will be one syn max.

S:  easy peelers

Body Magic:  a walk and lots of bits and bobs at odd times during the day.  Lindsey gives her 'clients' lots of little exercises you can do while waiting for the pot to boil, doinging the ironing, have a minute spare, etc, that just keep one active.  I prefer these to a longer slot of gym type stuff and, added up, they amount to a pretty decent time too.

Summary:

• one (or a bit more) heA and one heB
• four syns
• the ready meal is half the price of the SW ones so I call that being frugal.  I don't do ready meals much, as you know, but sometimes they are a godsend and the rest is all very economical.
• the eating window will be between ten and six today - 8:16

Wednesday, 12-02-20

Good morning!

Well, it was quite a Group yesterday.
I have lost another nice chunk of the November/December gain, which is an ongoing relief as clothes are fitting more comfortably again and I am almost back into the healthy BMI banding again..
I won the raffle and came home with a bag of goodies, all SW friendly.
Best of all, my meatballs in spicy sauce won the competition.

As part of the February Free Food Festival, SW is running a competition and that's partly what yesterday's taster session was all about.  You have to write out the recipe with certain information on an entry form and, at the taster, everyone tries all the entries and then votes.
To be fair, there were just two entries (but more tasters, it's just that not everyone wanted to develop their own recipe).
My recipe now goes forward into the national competition - so no chance but it's really nice, all the same.
I now have a special sticker and certificate (SW are big on stickers and certificates) and a 'limited edition' tea towel (!!!!!) that says 'my dinner's a winner'.
Even better, there was enough left to make one portion for me so I had that last night instead of the chicken escalope which can wait for another day/week.

I can't escape my teaching past.  Another two people came up to claim acquaintance through school/being a parent.  It's actually really nice to know so many people, albeit very slightly.

I thought I was going to have to make a slight confession but it does fit into yesterday's plan.  One of the raffle things was a box of Alpen Bars.  Two of them make a heB.  They're really nice so yesterday I didn't have the roll for a heB,  I - er - had two heBs-worth plus three syns.  In other words I ate the lot - but it has worked OK and at least they are out of temptation's way now.
And I enjoyed them very much!

Today's plans:
B:  mixed fruit salad with yogurt; mini yogurt drink
Thanks to yesterday's raffle, I have a load of fruit to eat, hence the fruit salad.
SW:  if I have some agave syrup on the yogurt that will be one and a half syns and the yogurt drink will be two syns.  Or I might just pour the yogurt drink over the fruit salad and save me a few syns.

L:  bacon and mushroom cheese omelette with a side salad; apple
I will probably make this in a pan as adding bacon and cheese to the mix will make it too much for one part of the omelette maker but not enough for both sides.
SW:  one heA for the cheese (30g) and maybe one syn for some light mayo

D: paprika pork topped sweet potato nachos (SW magazine, p23); yogurt
This is from the new magazine and it looks so good.  I'll let you know.
I mnight have a side salad too; I'll see how much it makes.
SW:  one heA for another 30g cheese - more than the recipe says but I like cheese!

S:  easy peelers

Body Magic:  an hour with Lindsey.

Summary:
two heAs
five syns maximum
reasonably frugal, especially with the raffle foods
eating times are a bit problemmatic today as I'm off to a friends in the morning and then on to PT and I don't want to do an hour of training having fasted from the day before.  Maybe I will be able to snatch the fruit salad between the two - I'll see how it works out anyway.

Tuesday, 11-02-20

Good morning!
It's SW Group this morning and a taster session.  I've made my meatballs in a spicy sauce and I fear the sauce may be a bit too spicy for some but never mind, I like a bit of ooomph!  I'll reheat it just before setting out and pop it in my big vacuum flask so it will stay hot.  I'm kind of hoping there will be enough left over to make a meal another time.

Yesterday went OK.  I stuck to plan and the salmon, in particular, was tasty with sprouts and tender stem broccoli.  I must get some more sprouts after group - they're really nice at the moment.

Today's plans:
B:  taster at group.  I have no idea what people will bring so can't plan for it, but it's fair to assume none of it will be 'terrible' in terms of syns or healthy extras.
SW:  two syns for my usual yogurt drink

L:  tomato and chorizo soup, apple
Made last week and frozen, it will need thinning out with some milk.
SW  half a heA (the milk) and one syn

D:  chicken couscous escalope, roasted med veg, spicy tomato sauce
All I will do is batter out the chicken until it is pretty flat, egg and couscous crumb it, spay it and bake it in the oven alongside the roasted veg - onion, red pepper, courgette and aubergine mixed with some garlic granules.  The sauce is the sauce I made yesterday for the taster - I knew I would like it so I made double quantities.  They're chilling in the fridge right now so I will use one and freeze the rest.  I can add chicken, mince, beans, whatever to it to make a different dish.
SW:  three syns for half a tbsp oil for roasting the veg (not in the actifry because I will have the oven on anyway).  The couscous is officially a tweak but I don't pay much attention to tweaks really, as you know.

S:  easy peelers

BM:  a walk and Lindsey's 15

Summary:
half a heA at the moment.  I've held back because often healthy extras are used in taster dishes.  I may add a wholemeal roll to have with the soup at lunch time and perhaps some cheese to mix with the couscous
six syns
the chicken is expensive because I buy 'happy chicken' which is more than the usual stuff.  It's a non-compromise and I'm happy to pay the extra although it's not that bad in Aldi really
The actual tasting won't start until after ten so the window will be ten to seven - 9:15

Monday, 10-02-20

Good morning.
Beth very wisely decided not to come over yesterday - a good decision seeing how much the weather deteriorated - so my meals reverted to normal times.

Today's plans are:
B:  cooked breakfast - bacon, egg and tomatoes; yogurt drink
SW:  two syns for the yogurt drink.  I use the ones I get from Aldi and, as luck would have it, they are not only the best value, they are also the lowest in syns.  Good old Aldi!

L:  spicy meatballs; fruit
It's a taster at group tomorrow morning and I've decided to make my meatballs in a spicy sauce.  Of course, I have to try them beforehand, don't I?
SW:  around 2 syns and one heA for some grated cheese on top.

D:  salmon, sprouts, broccoli; yogurt

S:  easy peelers

Body magic: a walk (weather permitting), balance ball, maybe a salsacise session as I haven't done that for a while.

Summary:
one heA - ooops
four syns
Fairly inexpensive.  Even the salmon was on special
the usual eating window of eleven to seven - 8:6

Sunday, 09-02-20

Good morning.

Breakfast was really lovely.  The syrup looking stuff is one tbsp agave nectar which I have just discovered.  It looks like I need to be careful with how I use it but a little now and again won't hurt and it adds a very natural tasting sweetness.
One tbsp goes a long way and is one and a half syns.

Leftovers and salad for lunch and very tasty it was too.

And then good old steak and chips for dinner.

All in all, a very enjoyable day's eating!
Couldn't have had it without my front teeth!

Today's plans are . . .
B:  mushroom omelette and tomatoes
SW:  free

L:  chunky steak, roasties and veg; fruit
Dinner at lunch time today as Beth is round.  The steak will be half a can of M&S chunky steak in gravy.  It's very nice and very lean, so lean that it is SW free.  Also, I have several cans in the cupboard!
SW:  two syns for some oil for the roasties

D:  Chubby Cubs' dirty rice, salad; yogurt
The rice is from the freezer because when I made it before, it was a huge portion.  As I seem to remember, it was nice, maybe not as nice as my own way of making it but still enjoyable.  I might add some turkey rashers to it for a bit of extra flavour.
SW:  one syn for the dirty rice, one heA for some grated cheese to sprinkle over and one syn for some mayo on the salad.

S:  fruit

BM:  something indoors as the weather is foul.

Summary:
not great on the healthy extras today, just one heA but never mind
four syns
using some leftovers from the freezer and the canned steak will last two days
I am unsure about timings today as dinner has to be at the 'normal' time but will try to make it at last ten to seven.

I've had a good read through the new SW magazine and there are some very likely looking recipes to try, planned in for the coming week.  I'm looking forward to that.

Saturday, 08-02-10

Good morning!
Well, after all my whinging yesterday, I still have what's left of the teeth safely in my jaw.  More about that over on t'other blog - no point boring everyone twice!  :-)

So I had to replan the meals.  For lunch I finished off some sausage meatballs that I'd made as an experiment and they were one and a half syns and then, feeling rather frayed around the edges, nibbled at some cheese but that was no problem as they became my heAs

Later on, I had a ready meal for dinner.  When I was at Aldi I bought a smoky BBQ chicken thing because I fancied trying it and knew it was two and a half syns total, plating it with some wholewheat pasta spirals.  It was OK although I think I could make better, the sauce was a bit thin so I thickened it with some tomato puree which improved it.
Unusually for a ready meal, it was a big portion and I couldn't eat the lot so that's today's lunch sorted out.

I had planned a huge breakfast but when it came to it, I didn't fancy so much so I just had bacon and egg on a toasted waffle.

Normally, I espond to stress by junk eating and all day I really, really wanted some crisps, etc, but I managed to hold off and now I am so pleased about that.  The not eating after seven rule definitely worked. 

That was yesterday.   The weekend needs replanning as it was all soft and mushy things and I'm really glad I stocked up with fruit and veg when I went to Aldi yesterday morning

B:  Oat waffles with fruit and yogurt, mini yogurt
These waffles always feel like a treat and they feel 'right' at the weekend.
SW:  one heB and two syns

L:  what's left of yesterday's dinner plus a nice bowl of salad
SW:  one syn for the leftovers and one for some light mayo on the salad

D:  steak, chips, mushroom and peppercorn sauce and salad; yogurt
Have you noticed - I really do like salad, even through the winter months!
I was going to make an onion and peppercorn sauce but I see there's a bit left of the horseradish dressing I made so I will use that up instead,
The chips will be done the SW way with the actifry
SW:  two syns for one tsp oil for the chips and one for the dressing

S:  easy peelers

Body Magic:  depending on the weather, the garden needs a bit of work and I have several of LIndsey's 15s I want to do so that will be fine.  I'm just finishing week 5 of the eight weeks for the platinum Body Magic award so three to go!!

Summary:

• no heAs and one B (see below) - not great so I might nibble some cheese as a snack at some point of grate some over the salads
• around four syns
• steak is never cheap but I go more frugal by buying bavette steak, a cheaper cut that is nonetheless packed with flavour and cooks as easily as the more costly cuts.  Morrisons often have them on special and today's steak cost £1.75, a good price for steak in anyone's book.  The rest of the day is based on leftovers and/or inexpensive ingredients.
• the restricted eating window now feels comfortably embedded in my lifestyle and, as usual, will be between eleven and seven - 8:16.  I have no idea if it's doing what the sites claim it does but it prevents evening nibbles completely most of the time so that makes it a Good Thing!

Explanation of heA and heB
I gather that using the terms heA and heB is rather confusing so here's an explanation.  :-)

Healthy extras (he) are those weighed/measured items that provide certain essential nutrients (says Slimming World).

As relate to calcium and Bs relate to fibre

There's a whole list of choices in both categories in the hand book.

One heA can be milk (e.g. 250 mls semi-skimmed), cheese (according to what cheese it is), non dairy equivalents, etc.

HeBs include wholemeal bread, pitta, wraps, etc on nuts, dried fruit, and so on.

It can be easy to overdo the healthy extras so that's where the kitchen scales become my best friend.  Any extra should be synned.

I reverted to the abbreviated version instead of typing out the whole thing each time because it got boring but if you'd like me to type it out in full from now on, please say in the comments and I will.  :-)

Friday, 07-02-20

Good morning.

Yesterday's food went really well.  As expected, Val had produced a delicious lunch that worked with the food plan and I really enjoyed working my way through a ham salad while we shared a wholemeal roll between us.  I even got my walk!

Today is going to be odd and perhaps rather difficult.  Over lunch time I will be at the dentist having two teeth out.
The history is that I had a bridge at the front as I knocked one of my canines out as a child.  The bridge remained fine but the teeth either side, which had been ground down for the bridge to attach to, broke before Christmas so I am having implants instead and today it's the first step - getting rid of the stumps.
At best, I will just eat carefully over the weekend.  At worst, I probably won't fancy much at all.

So, today's plans
B:  a good cooked breakfast to tide me over - bacon, sausage, egg, potato waffle, mushrooms and tomatoes plus the mini yogurt and I will enjoy it very much!
SW:  two syns for the waffle and two syns for the yogurt drink

L:  nothing

D:  not sure.  I might cook some salmon as that's pretty soft and I might have some blended soup.  I have both in the freezer.  Or I could make risotto.  Lots of options, in fact!  I will probably have yogurt as there's no chewing involved.
SW:  most likely free

S:  none

Body Magic:  I will have a walk in the morning - it will take my mind off things apart from anything else

Back to normal soon!

Thursday, 06-02-20

Good morning.
I got the new SW magazine on Tuesday at club - apart from anything else, it's £1 cheaper bought that way - and there are some really good looking recipes in it this month.  Next week, I will start giving some of them a go.

I didn't take any photos but the soup in particular was absolutely gorgeous, thanks for the recipe, Turi.  The chorizo makes such a difference to what is basically a SW Heinz lookalike tomato soup.  After a long bout of exercise, it filled the gaps wonderfully well.

I'm in the middle of five weeks towards the eight weeks of Body Magic (exercise) I need to get my platinum BM award.  I'll have it by the end of February!

Today's meal plans:
B:  porridge, fruit and mini yogurt drink
A friend suggested I add the yogurt drink to the porridge (or overnight oats, etc) instead of using milk so I thought I'd give it a go.
SW:  one heB and two syns

L:  out
I'm going round to my friend, Val's for lunch.  She knows I do SW so it won't be terribly naughty!

D:  one pot cheeseburger pasta; salad; yogurt
This is from the freezer as the recipe made way too much last week (or the week before, I forget now)
SW:  one syn for the pasta dish, one heAs-worth of grated cheese on top and maybe one syns-worth of mayo on the salad

S:  easy peelers

Body Magic:  It depends on whether Val and I go out or stay in.  If we go out, we'll be walking around for a while.  However, after yesterday's two and a half hours at the allotment plus an hour of personal training, I won't worry about whether I can do anything specific today.

Summary:
it's hard to say as lunch is an unknown quantity at the moment but as it stands . . .
one heA and one heB
four syns
sensibly frugal and using up leftovers
I will need to have breakfast at ten because of then driving to Val's but dinner will also have to be early because of pottery this evening so it should still be a 8:16 window