Happy New Year

 I'll be back again good and proper on Friday, January 1st, 2021.

Until then, as much as ever you can, have a Happy New Year.  xx

Tuesday, 29-12-20-

 Good morning.

Yesterday's photos.

I really didn't fancy the planned breakfast so didn't have it - instead, I feasted on easy peelers and a lovely, ripe pear.  I have bags of fruit to use so that's good.

This was lunch, all poshed up by serving on a big plate and looking considerably more than it really was.  Very tasty though; I like coronation chicken (or turkey)

I did have the planned snack and it was just the ticket.   I'm well glad I planned it in although I must get out of the snacky habit again soon.

Dinner was a tasty layer bake.  It looks like a right plateful but about three quarters of it is speed veg.  It went down a treat!

I layered cooked potato, onion, chopped turkey, sliced mushroom and red pepper and tomato, with a bit of salt and pepper, then laid over some bacon medallions, finishing off with more cooked sliced potato.  I spooned over a bit of turkey stock and sprayed some oil before baking it, covered in foil, at around 180C for half an hour.  Then I sprinkled over some grated cheddar and gave it another twenty minutes, uncovered, while the vegetables cooked.

Today's plans:

B:  mince pie wheats, yogurt and fruit

Just what it says.

SW:  one healthy extra B

L:  leek, carrot and lentil soup; fruit

I made this a couple of weeks ago and the leek really made it tasty.  All I do it bung in the chopped veg with some chicken stock and a bit of seasoning/garlic granules and some sort of spice, usually Cajun spice.  I boil it up and blend it down and, if it's very thick, will add some quark to it, maybe, or a dash of milk.

SW:  the basic recipe is speed, free and protein.  If I add milk, it can be part of an A.

D:  Turkey, veg and tomato cheesy pasta bake, sprouts; yogurt

Pretty much the same as any old pasta bake really, but using turkey.  I'll bake it in the oven with grated cheese while the sprouts are cooking.  I can use butter to start off the onion etc as I'm pretty low in syns today.

I know I'm eating loads of sprouts but a) they are lovely and b) I have plenty to use up!

SW:  Three syns for half a tbsp butter and most of my two healthy extras on grated cheddar plus half a syn for dessert

Body Magic:  Goodness knows.  I've been really bad at this over the last few weeks .  It's jolly cold outside and I am singularly disinclined to go out, both because of the cold and also because of being in tier four and the Covid 19 variant which is spreading rapidly in this corner of the country.

Summary:  two As and one B, three and a half syns

Monday, 28-12-20

 Good morning!  
I feel so much better this morning , despite crashing a bit yesterday evening.  Not to worry, it happens and if I've learnt anything it is that bad habits are harder to lose than good ones, particularly where food is concerned!
I've been decidedly un-frugal this morning and chucked out some unhelpful rubbish food.  Not loads, but enough to trip me up.  All the stuff I want to keep is now in the freezer, pretty much, down to some little pots of stilton, one A choice per pot - it'll do for soup or sauce.
I've been searching around for turkey leftover recipes, as you can probably tell from the meals I am planning!  It's fun.

Here's yesterday's meal photos:

Porridge to the right and some fruit to the left - a plum, grapes and an easy peeler so that's two speedy fruits and one free.

A nice, simple, un-fancy breakfast to start addressing the imbalance of the past few days.

The festive toastie went down a real treat although I'd have liked a bit more cranberry sauce.  It wasn't syns, it was because it's all used up now.  I have another pot in the freezer but will be saving that in case we manage a whole family Christmas in the summer - you never know . . .

Dinner was a bit gloomy looking in comparison to breakfast and lunch but it was delicious.  I will look out for that katsu curry paste again in Morrisons because, for the syns, it was well worth it.

I'm no gastronomic expert and, undoubtedly, it isn't going to be an 'authentic' product, but it was nice!

Just a shame about the nibbles and drinks afterwards!

Today's plans.

B:  bacon, egg, tomatoes and mushroom

A good old SW friendly cooked breakfast.  Lovely
SW:  free, protein and speed

L:  coronation turkey rice and salad; fruit

I have a recipe for coronation chicken/turkey that works with SW and involves the usual mayo, quark, mango chutney, etc, using apple instead of dried apricots, although I have some frozen apricot slices in the freezer so might use them instead.  There's some rice left over from last night so I will use that as a base and pile the mixture on top.  I have plenty of salad to use.
SW:  one and a half syns for mango chutney, one syn for light mayo and I think that's it.

D:  turkey, bacon and potato layer bake, sprouts, broccoli; yogurt
Basically, the idea of this is that you layer slices of par-cooked potato with onion, bacon and shredded turkey, tomato, finishing off with potato, add some good stock, seasoning and grated cheese, baking, covered, until everything is fully cooked and then giving it ten minutes or so to brown the cheese.  Actually, I think I won't add the cheese until I do the last bit.
SW:  up to two healthy extra As for cheese and I think that's about it.

Snack:  if yesterday is anything to go by, I might get peckish between lunch and tea so, while I don't usually do snacks, I'm planning one in today, just in case.  A turkey and salad sandwich or roll.
SW:  one healthy extra B for bread, two syns for two tsps of half fat butter.  The rest is free.

Summary:  up to two As and one B plus about five syns.

Sunday, 27-12-20

 Good morning.
After three day's of self indulgence (and they were lovely), I'm back on the wagon again as from this morning.  Even if I didn't want to, my rather fuzzy head would be pushing me in that direction.

I've managed to farm off most of the edible naughties onto Beth and Alex and the alcohol will go back to where I store it irritatingly far from the house.  I have a lot of soft drinks left over but, as they are all of the sugar free type, they will be a positive help.

(I'm staying with the festive dividers until the end of the month)

Here's my plans for today:

B:  porridge, fresh fruit.
Just plain porridge with some sort of skinny syrup to sweeten and I have a mixture of fruit that needs using up in the next week.
SW:  one healthy extra B for the oats and half a healthy extra A for some milk

L:  turkey, cranberry and brie toasties with a simple salad; fruit
What it says really.  I know I have already had a B choice but I'm having two As and two Bs today.  OK, I know that brie is not a healthy extra but I am flexible enough to call it so!  So there.  Nine syns-worth, if I need that much, as a healthy extra is around 120 calories/six syns.
SW:  one and a half healthy extra As (sort of) for around forty five grams of brie, one healthy extra B for the bread,  three syns for two tbsp cranberry sauce (might be less, won't be more) plus a few syns for mayo, if I have some.

D:  Christmas curry; yogurt
I have a jar of katsu curry paste, one syn per level tbsp so I shall assume three tbsp with a nice lot of turkey and veg plus some rice.  I won't be doing the usual katsu thing of frying in breadcrumbs though
SW:  up to three syns for the paste, half a syn for the yogurt

Body magic:  I was going to take a walk but the weather outside is horrible so I will stay in the warm, bustle around getting things sorted out and generally burn off a few calories by being a bit active

Summary:  two As and two Bs plus up to ten syns

It's OK to have two As and Bs on maintenance although I am totally sure that I am out of my three-pounds-either-side-of-target weight.  I'm not worried though.  I'll be up for a few weeks and then I will be within target range again.  I am relaxed about that.

How did Christmas go for you? 

Saturday, Boxing Day, 26-12-20

 Good morning!  
How was your Christmas day.  I'm hoping it was a lovely as mine.  In one respect it was different to usual, what with limited numbers and a family chat on Zoom instead, but in many ways it was just the same and I enjoyed it.

I did say I'd be back on the SW plan on Boxing Day but I'm going to defer this just one more day.  To be honest, there are things to use up, finish off, etc, and I'm not throwing away any more than I can possibly help.
Then, I might just take things really carefully for a few days rather than going back to full on syns/healthy extras/etc.
So - there will be detailed meal plans tomorrow and then ongoing again.

Just one photo.  It looks enormous, doesn't it, but Christmas dinner is largely pretty healthy with lean meat and loads of veg.  And it was lovely!

Happy Boxing Day, everyone.  

Wednesday, 23-12-20

 Good morning, everyone!

Just to say that I'm closing this blog down just for a few days over Christmas.  The next few days will be neither particularly frugal, nor Slimming World friendly so there's really no point.

I will be here again on Saturday, back on plan and with, undoubtedly, some poundage to deal with.

Here's to leftovers recipes!  Chink!

Thank you so much to all of you, my lovely readers, for staying with me, encouraging me, giving me strength when I can't find mine and generally keeping me going.

All my love to you, wishing you a very . . .

. . .  packed with scrummy food and as much fun as these strange times allow.

Also, whatever the new year brings to us, I wish you health, safety and happiness and plenty of deliciously healthy meals!

Tuesday, 22-12-20

 Good morning.

Instead of making the usual omelette, I decided to turn it into an egg wrap, adding 30g cheddar to go with the smoked salmon and mushroom.  It sounds an odd mix but it was really nice.  The cheese was a healthy extra A.

So nice to have another roast dinner.  Perfect on a cold, wet, dismal day like yesterday.

I didn't take a photo of the curry but it was nicer and I'm glad I have another portion for this evening.

Today's plans:

B:  mince pie wheats, yogurt and fruit

SW:  one healthy extra B, protein and speed

L:  roast beef pate, melba toast, salad; fruit

I zizzed together quark, a bit of mayo, two laughing cow blue lights, some horseradish and the leftover beef bits to make rather a tasty meat paste.

SW:  one healthy extra B (another one!), four syns for the meat paste and the salad ad fruit are speed.

D:  chicken curry, rice; yogurt

The chicken curry is left over from yesterday and I am having rice with it this time.

SW:  I'm calling it four syns for the curry (plus protein, free veg and speed), the rice is free and it's half a syn for dessert

Body Magic.  Nothing organised today.

Summary:  two healthy extra Bs, and eight and a half syns

Monday, 21-12-20

 Good morning everyone.
Yesterday, the meals went OK until the evening when, again, it all went a bit topsy turvey but, honestly, I am not the least bit concerned.

There's just the one photo, that of breakfast.  Not totally gingerbread pancakes as I didn't have any gingerbread yogurt but delicious all the same.  The splodge of yogurt on the top has really spoilt the photo but never mind.

Lunch was also lovely but, as I had guests (my support bubble), I didn't take any photos.

Today's plans involve using up leftovers, bits and bobs from the fridge.

B:  omelette with mushroom, smoked salmon, tomatoes on the side
SW:  free, speed and protein

L:  beef, leftover veg; fruit

I have a good portion of slow roast beef plus some leftover veg (carrots, broccoli and sprouts) so that's what I will have for lunch, reheated.
SW:  two syns for some gravy and one for some horseradish

D:  chicken and veg curry, pitta, kvarg

I have some dear little 165ml cans of coconut milk, six syns for the whole amount, so I'm going to make a nice chicken curry, maybe something a bit korma-ish, and enough for two portions.  The wonderful Slimming Eats site has a delicious sounding recipe for coconut chicken and sweet potato curry to which I can add any other veg I fancy.  I will use a pitta instead of rice and a naan.

If I make it this morning, the flavours will have time to develop well.
SW:  three syns for the curry (I'm pretty sure all the other ingredients are protein, speed or free) and one healthy extra B plus half a syn for dessert

Body Magic:  A walk, if the rain stops.  If not, I'll do something online.  

Summary:  one healthy extra B and six and a half syns

Sunday, 20-12-20

 Good morning.  

Yesterday's photos:

A very satisfying breakfast!

A lunch that tasted special.

I found two mini rolls in the freezer that made one B choice and it looked so much more than one bigger roll.

And it was filling - I didn't have my fruit until later on.

It was all going so well - and then came the news of a change of Christmas rules and a new tier four for the South East and I'm ashamed to admit that I totally lost it!  My old habit of comfort over-eating has more or less gone but yesterday evening I didn't even try to fight it.
Back on track today but I doubt I will lose anything this week now.  

Today's plans.

B:  gingerbread pancakes with fruit and skinny syrup

I haven't made these for a week or so - time to catch up
SW:  one healthy extra B for 40g wholemeal flour.  I believe the rest is free as I will slacken the batter with water, if necessary.

L:  a good old roast dinner.  Beef, Yorkshires, roasties and lots of lovely veg; fruit

I got one of those 'roasting beef' joints in Aldi, one that needs to be cooked long and slow for best results.  Fortunately, Alex and I both like our roast beef done slowly.

I found a recipe on the lovely Slimming Eats site for one syn Yorkshires so I shall give them a go, adding a few syns for oil instead of the spray variety.
SW:  hopefully one syn for each yorkshire, some of my healthy extra A for ditto, up to four syns for oil (probably less), and one and a half syns for a level tbsp horseradish.

D:  There will be leftover roast beef so perhaps I can have it with salad or something.  I will have a think - any suggestions?
SW:  not sure but I'll do my best to make it low syn.

Body Magic:  A walk, I think, weather permitting.

Summary:  can't say until I have decided what dinner to have,

Saturday, 19-12-20

 Good morning.
It's a very odd thing but using the Christmas china seems to lift quite ordinary food into a 'treat'.  It's a strategy I must remember - to shift the 'Christmas treat' focus from the food to something else.  Right now, it is a big help.

I remembered to take photos yesterday.

Citrus flavoured yogurt, nutty muesli and an orange - and it was delicious.

Lunch was the chicken paste and I decided to have toast, not ryvita, spending an extra three syns in the process.
I used little bits and pieces of chicken from when I was stripping the chicken carcass, 40g dairylea light (half a healthy extra A), two tbsp super light mayo (one syn) and some lime juice, garlic granules, mustard powder and bacon flavouring.

It's great to use up the last little bits so deliciously.

 

For dinner, I was a little piggy and had two pieces of salmon (and it was lovely) and I swapped the planned peas for some salad because it needs using up, plus some balsamic vinegar.
And then I had kvarg instead of the sorbet because it was raining and I didn't want to go to the shed to get it . . .

. .  . which is precisely why I have put all the Christmas goodies out there.

Today's plans.

B:  a good old cooked breakfast - bacon, egg, sausage, tomato and mushroom

The sausage will be the Linda McCartney ones which I really rather like.

SW:  free - speed and protein

L:  smoked salmon roll, salad; fruit

I'm working hard to use as much of the mixed salad as I possibly can before it goes off.  It's lasting out surprisingly well!  I'll layer each half of the roll with Philly light, cucumber, lettuce and smoked salmon with a slice of lemon on top.  It will look a lot more like that!  :-)

SW:  one healthy extra B for the roll, two and a half syns for 35g philadelphia light and the rest is free/speed/protein

D:  meat balls in tomato sauce with a pile of assorted veg; yogurt

The meatballs in sauce are from the freezer.  I have loads of veg at the moment so I think I will have a feast with them - they need sorting out anyway so I can see what I need to use up and what I need to get.  I'll grate 30g cheese to sprinkle over the meatballs.

SW:  one healthy extra A for the cheese, the meatballs and sauce are three syns and the dessert is half a syn.  The veg is all speed/free.

Body magic:  nothing specific today

Summary:  two healthy extra As (including milk for cuppas), one B and six syns

Friday, 18-12-20

 Good morning, everyone.
I'm thrilled to announce that I lost < trumpet fanfare >  FOUR POUNDS at weigh in.  That puts me back into my happy (don't have to pay) zone and it's the first time I have approached Christmas from a positive direction for as long as I can remember.

It rather reinforces my view that last week's gain was something specific, perhaps water retention for some reason or other

This week I'm going to remain on plan until the evening of Christmas Eve.  Now I am back in my zone again, I can have four healthy extras (if I want) but I'm continuing to keep the syns low.
And then, on Boxing Day, it's straight back on plan again.  I can offload naughty leftovers on to the family to take home with them.  Not because I feel I have to but because I really want to.  There should be plenty of helpful leftovers - turkey, veg, roasties, etc, to make lots of delicious meals.  I do like having leftovers to play with.

I didn't take any photos yesterday so straight on to today's plans.  I'm continuing to go into more detail because I found it really did help over the past week.  

B:  yogurt and muesli; fruit

I took a trip to Aldi and made sure it really was the right thing this time.  Really Nutty Muesli.  I notice they also have Very Berry Muesli (I think that's what it's called) which I must look up on the SW site because it looked lovely through the packet window.
I'll flavour the natural yogurt with some skinny syrup and sprinkle the muesli over; it's delicious that way.

SW:  one healthy extra B for 40g muesli, protein and speed for the rest

L:  chicken paste, either toast or ryvita, tomatoes; fruit

I'll make the paste by zizzing up some chicken bits with some dairylea light and seasonings and, probably, adding a bit of superlight mayo because it's nice.

SW:  one healthy extra A (might be less), one B, the chicken is protein, the tomatoes and fruit are speed and a maximum of one syn for the mayo

D:  salmon, peas and pommes parmentier; fruity sorbet

Self explanatory really.  The potato is really just mini roasties which the actifry will deal with, while the dessert is what I made a few weeks ago, split into portions and froze.  

SW:  the salmon is protein, the potato and peas are free, two syns for one tsp oil and two syns, I think, for the dessert - it's written on the bag anyway.  If I have mayo, it will be one syns-worth.

Body magic:  plenty of housework and moving stuff about plus some ironing.  That will keep me moving today.

Summary:  one healthy extra A, two Bs and up to six syns

Thursday, 17-12-20

 Good morning.  Zoom meeting this evening so weigh day.  Fingers crossed, please.  I have to have my results in this morning so will weigh just before midday.  It was suggested that I could have weighed yesterday at around five thirty which is the usual time but a day early.  I might do that next week.

Yesterday's photos.

A very nice breakfast and more filling that you would imagine.

I've realised that what I bought wasn't really nutty muesli, it was really nutty granola which is how an A choice and it quite high on the syns.  Darn it!  I'll go back to Aldi at some point, early morning, to see if I can find the muesli.
That's why there's precious little in the yogurt - but it IS delicious and a little went a long way.

I wasn't particularly hungry at lunch time so didn't have anything.  Later on I had three babybel lights for one healthy extra A choice instead.

When I rootled in the freezer, the first fish that came to hand was this smoked basa so that's what I had.  The vegetable rice turned out really flavoursome.

I had some leftover rice.  Just plain, boiled basmati rice.

I chopped up a bit of onion, a bit of pepper and some mushroom stalks and got some peas and sweetcorn from the freezer.  I softened the veg in some spray oil, added the rice and warmed it up, then stirred in some bacon flavoured 'spice' which I discovered a couple of months ago and is really tasty.
A simple way of jazzing up leftovers.

By the way - small plate, not huge amount of fish!

My plans for today are:

B:  fruit and yogurt
I rather like this breakfast.  It's more filling than it sounds.  
SW:  speed, free and protein

L:  scrambled eggs on toast; fruit
I've planned this but I have an appointment with the dentist in the afternoon so might not feel like it (pre-visit nerves).  We will see.
SW:  one healthy extra B and two syns for one tsp butter.  If I have some grated cheese on top, that will be an A choice

D:  steak, cheesy chips, peas or salad; kvarg; small bottle of wine
My usual well done/bad luck dinner after SW meeting apart from the wine - I just fancy a little bottle today - one of those not quite miniatures.. The chips will be done in the actifry, using spray oil.
On reflection, steak might be a bit silly although it is usually very tender.  I'll see what my dentist says and might sub the steak for some more fish in which case I will also hold the wine.
SW:  one healthy extra A and nine and a half syns

Body Magic:  step and balance exercises

Summary:  two healthy extra As, one B and eleven and a half syns (less if I don't have the wine)

Wednesday, 16-12-20

 Good morning. 
This week is going so well.  I'll be really fed up if I don't have a loss on Thursday but if I have learnt anything, it is that you just can't tell!

Yesterday's food photos.

Breakfast was delicious.  I really must treat myself to proper nice bacon a bit more often - the difference is amazing!

Lunch was a ham salad and I indulged in a little bag of frazzles to go with it - I had the syns so it was OK.

Dinner was so tasty.

I had lots of bits of chicken from the Sunday roast.  I fried some onions in butter (synned!), then added some roasted red pepper from a jar and some mushrooms.  When that was all soft, I added some fresh chicken stock from the boiled up carcass that had been in the slow cooked for nearly twenty four hours and thickened it with a small amount of thickening granules (two syns), some garlic granules, a pinch of mustard powder and some seasoning and added the dairylea light cheese.
I had plain basmati rice and some sprouts from my dad's garden and it was all so good.

Today's meal plans:

B:  natural yogurt, fruit, muesli

I'll flavour the yogurt with syrup of some kind, add some chopped fruit and sprinkle over 40g Aldi really nutty muesli which is really nice.
SW:  one healthy extra B, protein, speed and free

L:  tomato and sweet pepper soup; fruit

Left over from Monday.
SW:  free/speed

D:  salmon or trout, vegetable rice, mushrooms; yogurt or kvarg

I have rice leftover from yesterday so I'll mix that up with some chopped veg - onion, pepper, mushroom, peas and sweetcorn.  I'll indulge myself by cooking the mushrooms in one tsp (two syns) of butter and I might mix in 30g grated cheese as well

SW:  one healthy extra A, two syns for butter and half a syn for dessert plus speed and proetin

Body Magic:  an hour of personal training.

Summary:  one healthy extra A, one B and two and a half syns

Tuesday, 15-12-20

 Good morning.

Yesterday's meals:
I didn't have any breakfast in the end.  By the time I'd got over the dentist, it was so close to lunch that it was hardly worth it.

Lunch made up for it though - in flavour anyway.  I think I've now used up the last of this year's passata which is a shame but I've certainly enjoyed it.  This soup has chicken stock, passata, three roasted red peppers from a jar, onion, carrot, garlic granules, just a hint of cajun spice, tomato puree and salt.  Alex and I had some and there's a portion left for another time.

This is the fruit I had afterwards - lovely!

And  in the evening, a jolly good roast dinner Speed, protein and free with one and a half syns for oil and three for the sugar in the cranberry sauce.

I finished off with a Mullerlight.

Today's plans:

B:  bacon and baked beans
The beans are leftovers and the bacon is Very Nice Bacon so this should be lovely!
Breakfast has to be earlier today as I'm playing Santa this morning.
SW:  free

L:  ham salad; fruit
Very simple
SW:  protein, speed and free

D:  chicken, pepper and mushroom in a cheesy sauce, rice, sprouts; yogurt
I have a chicken to use up so today I will strip all the meat off and then pop the carcass into the slow cooker.
SW:  one healthy extra A for cheese wedges for the sauce, two syns for oil (or maybe butter) and half a syn for dessert.  The chicken is protein, the onion, mushroom and sprouts are all speed and the rice is free.

Body Magic:  a walk

Summary:  one healthy extra A and two and a half syns

Monday, 14-12-20

 Good morning.  Yesterday went really well.
I have young adult grandson staying for a few days but he's quite happy to go along with whatever I cook, just more of it.  I'm happy about that.

Here's yesterday's photos.

Fruit makes for a very colourful breakfast, doesn't it?

Lunch was gorgeous.  The Higgidy quiche was really delicious and I shall be buying more, if I can find them, next week when I do my Christmas shop.  A great shame it is a 'limited edition' for Christmas only.  It's Higgidy brie and winter spiced chutney quiche, if you're interested

As for the evening meal, please just imagine wholemeal toast, baked beans and some grated cheese on top, OK?  I stuck to plan all day; this week is going well so my fingers are crossed.

Sunday, 13-12-20

 Good morning!   This week of being extra strict with myself is going well (so far, fingers crossed).    I probably went to the top of my syns yesterday as I did some baking.  I had half (honestly) a cinnamon shortbread biscuit and  the smallest bit of biscotti (the end bit) to taste but was very, very chuffed that it didn't trigger anything.  I won't say I wasn't tempted but I didn't give in.  Victory!

Even today, when I thought I would have to go off plan, it's all worked out.  I'm really pleased.

Yesterday's photos:

A classic breakfast and absolutely delicious!  It's funny how the simpler things taste so good.

This was lovely too - I ought to indulge in smoked salmon a bit more often.

I think smoked salmon needs to go on my Christmas week list!

As on Friday, this was nice.  Really simple and easy to make too with the bonus of it mostly being leftovers that needed using up.  Win win.

Today's plans:

B:  apple, pear and easy peeler; natural yogurt
A very light breakfast should help to minimise the damage
SW free.  The fruit will be speed.

L:  brie and winter spiced chutney quiche, chips, salad; fruit
A couple of days ago, I thought this wasn't  on the SW food bank but it is now - someone must have added it.  So I can stay on plan today although the syns will be high.  The calories won't though as it's 246 cals per portion and as it is for a meal, not for snacks, the actual calories should be no higher than usual.
SW:  twelve syns for the quiche, two syns for oil for the actifty chips (it will likely be less that that really but, to be safe, I'll count it as two  Salad is speed/free, as is the fruit.

D:  cheesy beans on toast; natural yogurt
Nice and simple, filling but syn free.  I will use part of one healthy extra A for cheese spread instead of spread on the toast and the other A on 30g grated cheddar.
SW:  two healthy extra As (I'll spend the rest on milk in cuppas) and one B.  Beans are free and yogurt is protein.

Body Magic:  None today

Summary:  two healthy extra As and one B plus fourteen syns

Saturday, 12-12-20

 Morning, everyone.

Yesterday's meal photos.

Breakfast.  The fruit was from a bag of mixed fruit - papaya, pineapple and mango - and, for once, it was all nice and soft, no hard bits.
I thought I'd include the planning file in the photo - it really ought to be called a food diary but decades of teaching have had their effect and it's a planning file!

Sixty g of cheese definitely makes a better toastie than thirty!

I enjoyed this lunch very much.

Dinner was a lot nicer than I thought it was going to be.  I've not had 100% positive results from Slimming World at Iceland's meals so I really wasn't sure about this hoisin sauce.  It was OK though.

I have sauce left over, plus stir fry veg and protein rice so I think I will have much the same again tomorrow but with chicken instead of pork.

Today's meal plans:

B:  boiled eggs, one slice toast and marmite; apple
SW:  half a healthy extra B for the bread, the eggs are protein, half a syn for half tsp light spread, the marmite is free and the apple speed

L:  smoked salmon on ryvita, babybel lights, salad; fruit
The ryvita is one of the kinds where you can have four for a B so I'm having two to make up my B choice for the day
SW:  half a healthy extra B, one healthy extra A for the babybels, one syn for a tsp spread, the smoked salmon is protein and the salad and fruit will be speed

D:  chicken stir fry with hoisin sauce and protein rice; yogurt
This will be just the same as yesterday, using what I didn't need yesterday.
SW:  The chicken is protein, the stir fry veg is speed and free, halt a tbsp oil is three syns, the protein rice is one syn and the sauce is free.  The dessert is half a syn

Body magic:  Not sure yet.

Summary:  One healthy extra A and one B plus five syns.

Recipe: leek, carrot and red lentil soup

 

Leek, carrot and red lentil soup

Ingredients for one good portion.
one leek, washed and shopped - mine was ready trimmed and not too stout
one medium sized carrot, washed, topped and tailed and chopped
one and a half tbsp red lentils
around 300mls of good chicken stock
garlic and onion granules, Cajun spice, salt and pepper to taste.  The spice gives a bit of a kick so be careful
a splash of milk to slacken, if needed

Method.
Put everything into a pan, bring to a boil, cover and simmer until everything is soft.
Blend until the consistency you want.  I like mine smooth.
If it's too thick, add a splash of milk.
Reheat until just under boiling and serve.

The leek and carrot are speed, the lentils are protein, the stock and seasonings are free and the milk can be from a healthy extra or measure it and syn it.

A note about the stock.
Obviously the better the stock, the tastier the soup.  I used home made stock made by boiling up a chicken carcass, straining and then reducing down to around two thirds.  However, any stock would do, including a vegetable stock if you want to make it vegetarian.

I always boil roast chicken carcasses now and then freeze the stock in about 150ml amounts.  It's so easy, makes the very best of the chicken and the resulting stock is lovely, even without anything else.  You can add to the flavour by boiling the carcass in onion, carrot, etc, plus herbs but I tend to just do it plain.  If you let it cool and then chill it, you can scrape any residual fat off the top.

Friday, 11-12-20

 Morning!
Weigh in at the SW meeting last night and, after a really 'good' week, I was expecting a couple of pounds off and I felt lighter and slimmer.  

However, to my frustration and, I have to admit, anger, I had gained a pound.  I have absolutely no idea why and can only think it's just One of Those Things.  I was cross and felt pretty discouraged but I've woken up with fresh determination, helped by the arrival of the new Pinch of Nom book I had pre-ordered several months ago.

So it's back to the drawing board and my fingers are crossed for this coming week.  But grrrrrrr . . . (or less polite equivalent!)

Yesterday's food photos:

Breakfast of plain Greek yogurt, sweetened with skinny syrup and topped with fresh kiwi and peach slices and cherries from the freezer.

Lunch was leek, carrot and lentil soup and it was delicious.

I used one trimmer leek, quite a thin one, chopped, some carrot and one and a half tbsp of red lentils plus some proper chicken stock made previously by boiling up a roast chicken carcass and seasoned with a bit of Cajun spice, onion and garlic granules, salt and pepper.  I boiled it all up and blended it all down, adding a splash of milk to slacken it a bit.

I came home from the meeting feeling so disgruntled that I totally forget to photograph dinner, so sorry.  It was steak and chips and again I cooked the steak when the chips started in the actifry and then let it rest in a just warm oven and it was lovely and tender.

I'm going to be planning this week's food so carefully, not a smidgeon will pass my lips without it being recorded in advance!  (more grrrr)

Today's food plans:

B:  gingerbread yogurt with fruit
Like yesterday but with different flavours.  I have a good selection of frozen fruit so I can make it interesting.
SW:  half a syn for the Mullerlight yogurt, any additional syrup is free and the fruit will be free/speed

L:  cheese and onion toastie, tomatoes; pear and apple
Using both my As should make for a nice, satisfyingly cheesy toastie
SW:  two healthy extra As for cheese, one B for the bread.  The onion will be softened in fry light so free/speed and the tomatoes are speed too

D:  a sort of Chinese fakeaway - stirfry pork and veg in hoisin sauce; kvarg or yogurt
I have a nice, lean bit of pork fillet, a carton of fresh stir fry veg and a pot of SW hoisin sauce from Iceland which has been in the freezer for a while now so it is time I used it - fingers crossed I like it..  If (big if) I have rice, it will be the protein kind which might cost me one syn but is around 18 calories as opposed to the real kind at between 150 and 200 calories.
SW:  the pork is protein, the veg free and mostly speed, the sauce is free, I will use three syns-worth of toasted sesame oil, the protein rice is one syn and the dessert is half a syn

Body Magic:  step and balance

Summary:  two healthy extra As, one B and five syns

(grrrrrrr . . . )