Yeah, yeah yeah….I said it. Low Carb. I am all about balance in life, but unfortunately due to circumstances out of my control I must now watch my carbs because of some health issues.
So that has set me on a new path of cooking. Not entirely new, mind you as lower carb seems to fit lower points when making up a recipe.
I can do without bread during a meal, and to tell the truth I haven’t eaten bread with a meal in years. Yes, I’ve had a sandwich here and there but for just “extra” that doesn’t happen.
I do love my sweets though, and this low carb doesn’t jive with it. I knew I was going to have to come up with some stuff that was healthy but played gave my sweet tooth a fix to be able to cope with this new way of life.
Enter Aldi Sweet Crepini’s.
I made these berry crepes and let me tell you – they are delicious! Super WW friendly at 3 points too!
Ingredients:
4 Crepini 1 Cup Frozen Mini Blueberries (or regular, I just like using mini’s for this) 1 Cup Diced Strawberries 1/2 Cup Stevia Confectioner’s Sugar 1/4 Teaspoon Chinese Five Spice 1/2 Package Crystal Light (yes, it’s all I had – don’t hate!)
Sugar-Free Cool Whip to garnish. I used 4 Tablespoons each on mine which is 2 points blue. The Crepe is 1 point and the berry’s are free!
Hot damn I can finally eat brussel sprouts! Now on to the ten page story of my life with brussel sprouts and then we’ll get to the recipe.
Just kidding. The story is brussel sprouts are nasty and I have now finally found a way that I like them. Yay!
Ingredients:
14 oz Brussel Sprouts 1/2 tsp Salt 1/2 tsp garlic and pepper spice blend (found in most grocery stores, or you can use garlic powder and pepper) 1 tsp olive oil 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Method of Preparation:
Cut brussel sprouts in half, removing the stem if present. Place in a bowl of warm water for 15 minutes. Drain and pat dry the brussel sprouts.
Pre heat your air fryer to 400. It usually only take a couple of minutes, but I like my basket smoking hot when I put my sprouts in.
Place dried sprouts either into a bowl or a zip top bag. I prefer using the ziplock bags – it just seems like you can mix everything up better with them. add salt, garlic and pepper, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Stir well, or shake shake shake it up in your zip top bag.
Something magical happens when you become a part of an online community. You even get to be an inspiration to some, and I think that might be the best part of all. Being that person that shows someone “hey, this can be done,” is wonderful.
There’s another side to this coin, and I’ve talked about it a bit, but not as much as I should. You can be that person where people point and say, “I knew it wouldn’t last.”
I haven’t gained all my weight back. I haven’t even gained half of it back, but I am in danger of inching that way if I don’t slow my roll. Why is this all coming up now? Well I went the one place you can’t hide – video.
Pictures are easy to choose – look for the right angle, right position of the head. I miss the days when I didn’t worry about things like that. Really, we shouldn’t worry about things like that anyway. We are who we are, right?
Easier said then done. I put off doing this video until I lost 20 pounds. Like five times I put this video off.
I will be the first to admit that in the not to distant past I might have snickered when I saw someone from high school had gained weight. Now in my defense that was usually only when the person was an A-Hole back then.
Hello all you lovely people out there! I just wanted to give a quick update to my situation and let you know how everything is going.
Well, I can’t say it’s been the best. I’ve suffered some major healthy issues this last year, and to say it’s been a struggle is the understatement of the year. Hopefully we are on the right course now to getting me back to normal, or as close to normal as someone like me can be 🙂
Also, I published the 3rd book in my Snow Globe Cafe series! Fans of the series wanted an Emery/Alec book and here you have it! All three books are available for Kindle or paperback. You can find the series here.
I’m hoping to post more recipes soon! As you know I don’t post until I’ve made them 3 times with good results. I have a couple on deck that need one more try and up they’ll go! I can’t wait to share them with you!
I believe I’ve said before on here how getting and maintaining your goal weight does more than just improve your health and your self confidence.
All of a sudden you start realizing things you might have thought were impossible are now not do daunting. You kind of get your excuses taken away, and after a year of maintaining I wrote my first novel. Then I wrote my second novel. My third novel is at the editor right now. It’s amazing what can happen when you take the impossible away.
So now they have a new program that’s super cool. You write in “episodes”. I think for people that may not think they have time to read a book this is perfect!
My story on Vella is called Lucky Me. I have four episodes up right now, and you can read them all for free 🙂
The first three are free to read, and after that you use tokens. The good thing is Vella is giving everyone 200 tokens to start!
If you do check out my story, please leave a like (click the thumbs up at the end) after each episode and follow my story. It would really be helping me a lot!
Thanks again for all your support. I wouldn’t be anywhere near who I am today without all of you!
If you want to go to a fast food place and get a sandwich, it’s going to cost you. Most chicken sandwiches are between 11-20 some odd points! That’s crazy!
I’ve made a version that seems just as decadent but comes in at 7 green points. I’m not sure if the chicken would still totally count for blue, but those of you on blue know!
So I found these Tyson air fried chicken breasts:
4 smartpoints
These are only 4 points! I also cook them in the air fryer – 7 minutes each side, and I throw the bun in for the last minute to toast it as well. If you don’t have an air fryer the package has directions for the oven. I don’t know if they’ll be as crispy as they get with the air fryer, but I’m sure they’ll still be good!
Speaking of the bun:
This bun is only 2 points and is really decent! Of course there are better buns out there, but this one is a great sub and very point friendly!
I put light mayo on mine to which can range from 1 to 2 points, depending on how generous I want to be. Usually I go with one serving for one point, and a tab bit of mustard which is free.
So there you go! I end up with a delicious 7 point sandwich that according to my opinion is just as good as those huge point options from the fast food restaurants!
Like my blog? My first and second novels have been released! It’s set in a small, holiday obsessed town, and if you love Hallmark movies you’ll love this book series!
The first book in the series is called Going Home. Becca, our heroine, returns home after a 25 year absence to reclaim a sentimental family heirloom. She hopes to go in and out unnoticed, especially by the man she’s loved since she was eight years old.
The odds are stacked against Becca, small towns being what they are. Her 25 year old secret is about to be exposed, and she just might get a second chance at love.
Confession time. I hate zucchini noodles, or zoodles as they are called sometimes. People raved about them replacing pasta and every time I tried to make them it was a slimy disappointment. Then I learned the secret to zoodles. Never, ever, under any circumstances do you cook them. You make the sauce and then cover the cold, raw zoodles in it, warming them with the heat from your sauce.
I can’t believe I haven’t posted this “recipe” before. It is simply what I eat every morning – like every single morning. I find it to be really filling and just plain delicious. I can make up five of them on Sunday night and I am good to go all week for work. This works for me because I find I’m not even a little hungry all morning, and it holds me well until lunch.
I usually get all my ingredients from Costco, but they are available everywhere! Recipe on page 2!
The holidays are rapidly approaching, which usually means a rapid decline in my healthy eating habits and bank account. The #Charcuterie Board made entirely from Aldi products is not only economical, it also has many healthy options and is totally delicious!
There are a ton of things you can do with these boards, and Aldi has really upped their game. This is not the Aldi my Mom went to get canned goods once a month!
What I love about these is it’s very easy to be inclusive to everyone that may have diet restrictions or are just trying to eat better. There are also options for people that are saying “It’s the holidays! Screw it!”
Here is how my wonderful niece from The Cookie Bake Shop put one together with only Aldi ingredients!
Mini Naan bread cut into quarters, some brie cheese, cheddar stuffed olives, blueberries and strawberries.
Pretzel Slims, Live G Free Multiseed crackers and butternut squash crackers (my favorites) pack a punch points wise if you follow WW. Most are around 20 crackers for 3 points.
Red Grapes, black olives, Happy Farms cheese wedges, truffle cheddar cheese, Irish cheddar cheese, and Honey artisan cheddar.
Garlic Hummus, almonds round out the charcuterie. Not pictured is the prosciutto, as my little nephews decided it was delicious 🙂 That’s the beauty of these boards, there was plenty left to fill in the holes with the leftovers, and you can refill it at least a couple of times in a night!
My favorite style of board can be found here, but you can use anything to make one of these. Use your imagination and creativity and people will be wowed! It really is easy so give it a try this holiday season!
Be sure to follow my blog for healthy holiday ideas all season long! Would you all like to see a sweet charcuterie board?
Like my blog? My first and second novels have been released! It’s set in a small, holiday obsessed town, and if you love Hallmark movies you’ll love this book series!
The first book in the series is called Going Home. Becca, our heroine, returns home after a 25 year absence to reclaim a sentimental family heirloom. She hopes to go in and out unnoticed, especially by the man she’s loved since she was eight years old.
The odds are stacked against Becca, small towns being what they are. Her 25 year old secret is about to be exposed, and she just might get a second chance at love.
Have you ever tasted a hug? I have! This Beef Barley Soup is as comforting as one. Warm, rich and delicious it hits just the right spot as we head into colder temperatures. It doesn’t get any easier than this recipe!
I have directions for both the stBeegove top and instant pot/ninja foodi.
Ingredients:
2 tsp vegetable oil 1 1/2 pound top round steak (cut into one inch cubes, sprinkled with salt) 1 1/2 cups diced carrots 1 cup diced celery 7 cups beef broth (I prefer Better than Bullion) 1/4 cup minced garlic 1/2 cup minced onion 1/4 tsp ground thyme 1/4 tsp black ground pepper 3/4 cup quick cooking barley (not cooked)
Like my blog? My first and second novels have been released! It’s set in a small, holiday obsessed town, and if you love Hallmark movies you’ll love this book series!
The first book in the series is called Going Home. Becca, our heroine, returns home after a 25 year absence to reclaim a sentimental family heirloom. She hopes to go in and out unnoticed, especially by the man she’s loved since she was eight years old.
The odds are stacked against Becca, small towns being what they are. Her 25 year old secret is about to be exposed, and she just might get a second chance at love.
My 30 Point Life 