17th January 2011

I want to sing like the birds sing, not worrying about who hears or what they think. Rumi

Well I had a productive morning yesterday, cooked four things, which means I’ve got a full freezer again. I did grey peas and bacon, Weight Watchers don’t have grey peas on their food list but I weigh them as if they were a pulse such as chick peas which are 9 pp for 100g, or 41pp for a pound when dried before soaking or cooking. So mine with the bacon and I added a couple of onions fried with the bacon beforehand work out at 12 pp a portion. I christened my new slow cooker (£15 from Sainsbury’s) by concocting a Moroccan veggie dish with chick peas and butternut squash which is only 5pp a serving, I started off by frying 2 onions in a pump of oil from my Weight Watchers spray, and added 4tsp of Schwartz Moroccan spice mix, and about 100ml of water. Then put this into the slow cooker with, a butternut squash (peeled & diced into small cubes), tin of chopped tomatoes, 1 diced orange pepper, tsp ginger puree, 2 garlic cloves diced, can chick peas drained, 2tbsp honey & 2tbsps raisins.

I also made a delicious curried carrot soup which will cost me zero points a bowl as I only used a spray from my oil spray, 1 chopped onion, 1 tablespoon curry powder 1kg (2¼ lb) chopped carrots, 1 litre (1¾ pints) vegetable stock, 500ml (17 fl oz) water, or as needed.

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté onion until tender and translucent. Stir in the curry powder. Add the chopped carrots and stir until the carrots are well coated. Pour in the vegetable stock, and simmer until the carrots are soft, about 20 minutes. Transfer soup to a blender, and purée until smooth (or use a hand held blender). Pour back into the pot, and thin with water to your preferred consistency.

In front of my is my Weight Watchers Track, and I’m just about to plan my day, breakfast is going to be bran flakes haven’t had them for a week or two, 30g = 3pp, I’m using the online tracker to find the points but I like to have it hand written for me to carry in my handbag so I can see at a glance. Lunch = curried carrot soup (0pp), dinner = grey peas (12pp), 1pint skimmed milk for cereal and drinks. This leaves me 9pp for anything else I fancy along the way. I need to pop to Asda this morning for fruit and some salad. Yeah this week I mean business; I’m on a proper diet. It isn’t until you start writing it down that you realise how quickly those 29pp can disappear if not budgeted well - bit like the money in your purse I suppose!

I’ve managed to lose a pound this week so I’m pleased, but I’d like to have a really focused week to get my energy back and feel healthy and lose another pound next week.

So if you do one thing this year…

“Have three alcohol-free days a week”, says Dr Nick Sheron, consultant hepatologist at Southampton University: “Also, have three alcohol-free weeks, spread throughout the year. This dramatically reduces all alcohol-associated health risks by giving your liver a chance to rest while testing your dependency.”

Having just typed today’s ‘one thing this year’ suggestion I’ve decided to make this week my alcohol rest, I finished the last bottle of wine from Christmas last night so the house is bare therefore I’ll take that as a sign ;-) I think we have family coming to stay this weekend so I’ll need to have my wits about me to cope!