Crockpot Meatloaf

Points Plus+ 4 Per Serving

Ingredients:

24 ounces extra lean ground turkey or beef
1 cup finely chopped onion
4 slices reduced-calorie white bread,
torn into small pieces
2 teaspoons prepared yellow mustard
1 tablespoon pourable Splenda or Sugar Twin
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1 cup (one 8-ounce can) Hunt's Tomato Sauce

Directions:

Spray crockpot with butter-flavored cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine meat, onion, bread pieces, mustard, and 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Mix well to combine. Form into a large ball. Place in prepared crockpot. Stir Splenda and parsley flakes into remaining 1/2 cup tomato sauce and spoon mixture evenly over meat loaf. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours. Divide into 8 servings. When serving, evenly spoon sauce over top.

Makes 8 Equal Servings

Mini Cherry Cheescakes

Points Plus+3

¾ cup graham cracker crumbs

2 Tbsp light butter, melted

8 oz light cream cheese

3 Tbsp lemon juice

2 large egg whites

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup sugar ( I used Splenda)

¾ cup light fruit pie filling, cherry

Preheat oven to 375 and place 12 cupcake liners in cupcake pan.

In a small bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and melted butter; mix well. Spoon 1 tablespoon of crumb mixture into bottom of each liner and press down gently; refrigerate until ready to use.

In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add lemon juice, egg whites, vanilla extract, and sugar. Beat until smooth.

Spoon cream cheese mixture evenly into muffin liners; bake until set, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Top each cheesecake with 1 tablespoon of cherry pie filling. Yields one cheesecake per serving.

Crescent Sloppy Joes

Serves 8

Points Plus+ 4

½ lb very lean beef

½ cup onion, chopped

1/3 cup ketchup

1 tsp mustard

¾ tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

8 oz reduced fat crescent rolls

1 whole egg, slightly beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large saucepan, cook beef and onion until beef is no longer pink. Add ketchup, mustard, salt and black pepper. Mix well. Separate rolls into four rectangles; firmly press perforations to seal. Roll each rectangle into a 8x4 rectangle. Cut each in half crosswise to form eight squares. Place about two tablespoons of beef mixture on center of each square, fold dough over filling forming triangle. Press edges with a fork to seal. Cut small holes on top. Brush each triangle with beaten egg. Bake for 12 minutes or until brown on top.

Recipe: Skillet Chicken Parmesan

Skillet Chicken Parmesan

1/3 C Breadcrumbs

1/3 C Grated Parmesan Cheese

½ tsp Dried Oregano

¼ tsp Garlic Salt

1 Large Egg

4 Bonless Skinless Chicken Breasts (about 1 pound)

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

¾ C Marinara Sauce

¾ C Shredded Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese

In a shallow bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, oregano and garlic salt. In another shallow bowl, beat the egg until frothy.

Wrap the chicken breasts in plastic wrap and place on a cutting board. Gently pound each breast with a mallet to an even thickness (about ½ inch). Dip each breast into the beaten egg to coat and then roll in the breadcrumb mixture.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, or until the chicken is well browned and just cooked through.

Spoon the marinara sauce evenly on top of the chicken, and sprinkle mozzarella on top. Cover the pan, reduce heat to low, and cook for 3 more minutes until the cheese melts.

Serves 4

Source: Diabetes & You Magazine

Recipe: Quicker Than Take Out Orange Chicken

Quicker Than Take Out Orange Chicken
Points Plus+ 8

Sauce:

½ C Water

1/3 C Light Orange Juice

½ C Splenda Granulated Sweetener

2 Tbsp Brown Sugar

3 Tbsp Rice Vinegar

2 Tbsp Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce

3 Tbsp Lemon Juice

¼ tsp Ground Ginger

1/8 tsp Red Pepper Flakes

2 Tbsp Cornstarch

Chicken:

1 ¼ Pounds Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, Chopped

1 Large Egg, Beaten

¼ Cup All Purpose Flour

2 Tbsp Canola Oil

1 Small Red Pepper, Chopped

1 Small Onion, Chopped

*To make the sauce, in a medium saucepan, whisk together the first nine ingredients (water through pepper flakes). Place the pan over medium-high heat and bring to a slow simmer.

*In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons of water and the cornstarch to create a slurry and whisk into the sauce. Bring the sauce to a low boil and cook for 1 minute or until the sauce thickens and clears. Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer.

*Roll the chicken pieces in the egg and toss with flour to coat. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add half of the chicken and cook 4-5 minutes or until well browned on all sides and chicken is cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a bowl and cover. Heat the remaining oil and cook the remaining chicken pieces. Add the chicken to the bowl and set aside.

*Add the red pepper and onion to the pan and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until slightly softened. Add the chicken to the pan and then the orange sauce. Stir to coat and serve.

Serves 4

Source:Diabetes and You

Notes: This dish was so delicious, I don’t think I will want take out Chinese again! We LOVED it!!!

Weight In Wednesday

Its that time of the week again, time to hop on the scale and see what kind of progress I've made in the past week. Something was different today, than the past several weeks  months.. I  wasn't dreading the results I would see! I've been struggling on an emotional level with this whole weight loss thing, but decided that I am in control and I'm not going to let it control me anymore! Since changing my way of thinking, the other needed changes will soon follow.

Previous Weight 210.5
Current Weight 208.0

Loss this week 2.5
Total Loss 4

Weight Loss Prescription---

After being in a rut for several months, I have delved into reading weight loss and fitness magazines to aid in keeping me from crawling back into said rut.  I will be posting what I am reading/learning, in hopes someone else can also get something from it.

The prescription for weight loss has been said to be: eat less, exercise more and get enough sleep.. Making a habit of not getting all the zzz's you need at night could cause you to end up toting around extra pounds. Sleep levels are associated with other unhealthy habits, such as lack of physical activity. Lack of sleep can also decrease hormone levels that hepl regulate your feeling of satiety or fullness, and can increase the hormome that stimulates appetite. Some studies have also found that people who lacked in sleep, also had lower levels of glucose tolerance and higher levels of stress hormones. If you are sleeping less than six hours a night you are at risk for obesity.

While the amount of sleep one needs varies from person to person, the average adult requires 7 to 9 hours of slumber per night.

After reading this article, I think I have found a huge factor in this game of losing weight.  Making sleep a higher priority is a must.  If you are struggling to lose weight  try hitting the sack a little bit earlier, it just may be the missing link in your equation.