Classic Macaroni Salad

Thursday, I took the WW advise and made their Classic Macaroni Salad. It was one of the easiest things I have made, and was tasty!
8 oz uncooked macaroni, elbow
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste (for cooking pasta)
1/2 cup reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 cup celery, chopped
1/3 cup red onion(s), finely chopped
2 Tbsp parsley, fresh, chopped
1/4 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or to taste
Cook macaroni in salted water according to package directions; drain and transfer to a large bowl.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard and garlic powder; stir mixture into cooked macaroni. Fold in celery, onion and parsley; season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm or chilled. Yields about 2/3 cup per serving

It was so tasty that I took it to the bar for my friends to enjoy, and had it as a side dish with these cheese burgers I made last night. (I'll talk about those in a sec.) I have to admit even Daniel (my 15 year old stepson) ate it all up. :)

Now, the cheeseburgers I made, were FANTASTIC. I took 1 pound of 4% fat ground beef and mixed in 1.5 tablespoons of Gorgonzola cheese. I formed them into patties and put it on our george foreman grill for 7 minutes, threw them on sarah lee whole grain white buns with red onion and Dijon mustard. The total for that was a 6.5 points. 2 for the bun 3.5 for the patty, and 1 for the cheese! Very tasty and filling. ( I forgot to take pictures of it though. ) :(

I made the baked ziti last night, and I have to say it tasted wonderful! The only problem is that my dish was to small for it all, (but that was probably because I was out of ziti and used penne instead.)and so it made the pieces looked really small. Thinking about it now too, it was a little dry, but when we had it for leftovers we warmed up a little pasta sauce to go with it, and it was perfect! It was enough to fill you up easily, but since I need to see a full plate in front of me, it was a little sad. It tasted REALLY good though!
Also keep in mind this recipe serves 8.... and it's 5 points a serving.

• 12 oz uncooked ziti
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
• 1/3 pound raw lean ground beef
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
• 1 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350°F.

• Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and set aside.
  
  
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat; add garlic and sauté 2 minutes. Add beef and cook until browned, breaking up meat with a spoon as it cooks, about 3 to 5 minutes; drain off any fat and set pan back over medium heat.
  
  
• Add oregano, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper; stir to coat beef. Cook until herbs become fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
  
  
• Spoon a small amount of beef-tomato mixture into bottom of a 4-quart casserole dish (just enough to cover surface); top with half of cooked ziti. Next, layer with half of remaining beef-tomato sauce and half of mozzarella cheese. Layer with remaining ziti and then top with remaining beef-tomato sauce; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake until cheese is golden and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Slice into 8 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.

Lunch time filled with oils.....

One of my favorite foods of all time is grilled cheese sandwiches. When I first joined I thought that I was never going to be able to eat them again, until I discovered some secrets. I use sarah lee delightful bread and fat free kraft singles. Then instead of using butter, I put a tsp of olive oil in the pan. I use one piece of bread to spread it around and then grill it up. It comes out wonderfully crispy and its a great way to get in one of your oils in! Paired with a salad or filled with tomatoes, or in this case spinach, you can get some veggies and dairy in too! This meal with the salad dressing and a tsp of oil on my salad as well comes to a grand total of 5 points!

It's time to finally do something!

So, I have been going back and forth on Weight Watchers for quite some time now. I have always had an easy time getting back on plan after falling off, until now. When I was doing well I lost 15 pounds fairly quickly, and I started to feel very good. Unfortunately the stresses of being a student, working and planning my wedding got to me and I have now gained 12 of those pounds back. :( After doing a bit of thinking, and talking with Natalie about her food blog, (http://www.lifeisafeast.com/)I thought this could be a good way to share the good WW food tips and meals I find along the way! Hopefully this will help me stay focused and get to my goal weight of 140! (I'm at 162 right now.) I guess we will see how this goes......

Here are a few little tricks of the trade I learned on my last stint on plan!

Top 5 snacks
1. Veggie with dip (fat free sour cream/ hidden valley ranch packet)
2. Lays Light potato chips
3. Light Popcorn (you can add olive oil and garlic powder too!)
4. 100 Calorie Packs (baked Cheeto's are my fav!)
5. Celery dipped in salsa and fat free cream cheese (great if you need more veggies and are looking for a little crunch!)

Thats all I have for now, but I am trying baked ziti tonight, and I'll let you know how it goes!