Yummy Foods

Last night as I was driving home from work I got a surprise invite to sushi for dinner. It's 100% impossible for me to turn down sushi especially when it's being paid for by my wonderful mother. So anyway, we went to a little local spot near our house where the sushi chef knows us all by name. That's always the best way to go. No menus anywhere in sight. We hardly have to say a word before our guy starts preparing a huge plate of sashimi for us. The fish was fresh and delicious. I know we had some Toro (tuna belly,) Yellowtail, Octopus, and then a few others that I didn't know the names of but was instructed to eat without asking any questions. Everything was great. This really isn't the type of place where you'd order any fancy schmancy rolls. You're not gonna get a gigantic dynamite roll where the rice and heavy mayo sauce outweigh any actual fish. I did at one point request just a simple spicy tuna roll and he reluctantly made it for me. It was also quite delicious. 

Anyway the point of that whole sushi story was to explain the reason why when I weighed myself this morning and was up another .5 lbs I didn't panic. As I've mentioned before I always always always retain water after eating lots of sodium aka sushi. So in conclusion - no big deal. Ready to have a good day!

Breakfast: Starbucks Spinach, Roasted Tomato, Feta, and Egg Wrap

** My little sister works at Starbucks and she brings homes stuff from there all the time. Not all locations have this one but I highly highly recommend it when you can find it. It's a great low cal, on the go, breakfast choice. Only 240 calories - 5 WW pts. And very yummy.

Lunch: Rum Jungle Acai Bowl

** I haven't had one of these in a long time and I totally forgot how great it is. Acai was all the rage a little while ago. It's high in antioxidants and supposed to have all kinds of health benefits. The bowl is made with: acai berry smoothie, mixed berries, banana, granola, and topped with a little bit of honey. I've been trying to look up the nutrition info for these bowls but I couldn't really find anything exact. From what I read my guess is the bowl has around 400-500 calories. Seems a little bit high but for a full meal that is still really good for you I think it's fine. You shouldn't really compare this to fro yo but for some reason I kind of feel like I need to. You eat it out of a cup and it's cold and covered in toppings. And delicious. It's higher in calories but it can totally be eaten as a meal whereas fro yo - eh not so much. Anyway it's super good and I'm glad I rediscovered it. 

Oh and for my local San Diegoans... I think Rum Jungle is probs the best spot for an Acai Bowl. They have 2 locations - one in PB and one in Sorrento Valley. Aside from the bowls they make great smoothies, sandwiches, wraps, salads, etc. Definitely check it out! CLICK HERE for their menu and location info.

Well so far that's been it for me today. After writing this long winded post I am pretty much starving. The 2 Chalupa meal from Taco Bell is screaming my name but I'm going to resist and find something healthy - or at least healthier than Taco Bell - to have for dinner. 

I Heart Trader Joe's

Light Yoplait Yogurt w/Lowfat Granola

Corn w/Lowfat Cheese
Bush's Baked Beans - Vegetarian
** I know these last 2 sound kind of strange. Sometimes I just really like eating canned food. It's quick and easy and I think it's delicious. Although not all agree so I'll just leave it at that.

Thai Shrimp Gyozas, Prig Khing Green Beans, and Brown Rice
** This was a delicious and healthy Trader Joe's dinner. If there is anyone left in the world who does not shop at Trader Joe's yet, stop what you are doing right now and go. I am a huge fan of this store. For some reason I think a few people group this store in with Whole Foods and assume it's just as pricey - but you couldn't be more wrong. Trader Joe's is some of the most affordable grocery shopping you can do. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE WHOLE FOODS but I can't quite afford it at the moment so I wont get into that right now.
Ok so back to TJ's. I would highly suggest that you start off by taking a stroll down the frozen foods aisle. It is nothing like the frozen foods you would find at a grocery store. It is SO much better. The food tastes better, is better for you, and is definitely cheaper. I just can't say enough.
The Thai Shrimp Gyozas and the Green Beans both came from TJ's frozen foods. I am obsessed with these gyoza's. I have been buying them for years. They come in veggie too. Super low in calories and WW Pts. This was my first time buying the green beans and as expected they were delicious as well. And then obvi the brown rice.. nothing special to report there.
Trader Joe's is always my go-to when whenever I throw a party, dinner party, etc. They have lots of dips and things like that. They've also got a lot of little hour d'oeuvres (that is weird word to spell) in the frozen section. Everything there is just so quick and easy to make you really can't go wrong.
A quick warning about TJ's though... If you buy any fresh produce or fruit there eat it right away. It will go bad quickly. I'm not sure what they do differently than regular grocery stores but I just know it's pretty much always the case. So don't buy more than you need.
Last thing and then I'm done. Don't leave the store without buying yourself at least 2 (or 6) bottles of Charles Shaw wine aka "Two Buck Chuck." No joke - it costs $1.99. It's not the best wine you'll ever have in your life but knowing that you only paid $1.99 for it makes it taste a whole lot better.

Oh yeah that reminds me... I did have some wine with dinner too. Maybe half a bottle or so?

Uh-oh. Sounds like somebody's got a case of the Mondays

Since it's Monday I feel like I should have some sort of goals set for the week. I think I'd like to focus on getting to the gym this week as well as continuing to eat at home as much as possible. Maybe I should even say that I'm gonna try to not spend any money on food this week at all. Like no grocery shopping or anything. That'll be tough. Maybe impossible?

9:30am: Yoplait Light Yogurt & Low Fat Granola
** This is a really nice, really light breakfast. Comes out to 5 WW pts. I'm pretty picky about yogurt because I absolutely hate when there are pieces of fruit in it. So far Fiber One and Yoplait Light Thick and Creamy are my top two picks.

1:00pm: Leftover Lo Mein
** I decided it was best to save money by not throwing away my leftovers. Plus I went to the gym today so I figured that made it ok.

2:30pm: Skinny Cow Ice Cream Sandwich

4:00pm: Think Thin Bar
** This is a really good high protein energy type bar. It tastes like a candy bar and is actually good for you. All the flavors are delicious but my favorite is anything chocolate or peanut butter. I think it's got around 240 calories or so which makes for a pretty good small meal.
(Yes Sophy this came from your house. Can we consider it my payment for running your errands?)

5:00pm: Quite a few handfuls of Oriental Trail Mix
** This was not in my plan. I was stopping by my cute little local market, which I love even though it's over priced, for some milk. I couldn't help myself when I saw the trail mix because I just love it so so much. So, of course, as soon as I got home I just sat around and snacked on it. It's spicy and delicious. Yum.
(I guess my plan for not spending any money on food this week is shot. Oh well that didn't sound like much fun anyway.)

7:30pm: Amy's Organic Chunky Tomato Soup
** Yum Yum Yum Yum! I was so impressed with this soup. It's low sodium which usually means I'd have to add salt to it (which would kind of defeat the purpose of the low sodium thing.) Anyway, it did not need salt at all. It was very satisfying and only 5 WW Pts for the entire can. It has chunks of tomatoes in it which I think makes it so much better than regular tomato soup. I added some chopped up basil leaves and just a few shakes of low fat Parmesan cheese.
You can find Amy's soups in most grocery stores along with the other canned soups.

Now I must give credit where credit is due. I have always looked around online for good diet and food websites. There are a lot of great ones out there - especially if you're on Weight Watchers. About 4 years ago I stumbled upon a site that quickly moved to the top of my list of favorites and has kept that spot ever since. www.hungry-girl.com is a website and online newsletter which I subscribe to and rave about to anyone who will listen. It's as if the creator, Lisa Lillien, made this site just for me! She sends out daily emails with great tips and tricks for girls like me who love to eat.
A lot of the products and recipes that I use and love have come from Hungry Girl. She also has a great cookbook that is full of recipes as well as a ton of other fun tidbits about dieting and such. I would definitely recommend signing up for the emails as well as getting the book. The emails are free and the book is very reasonably priced. And she's got another book coming out very soon - April I think.
One more honorable mention and I'll be done for the day. For anyone out there on Weight Watchers a really good site to keep bookmarked is www.dwlz.com. Her name is Dottie and from the looks of the site she's been on WW since before I was born. But she's got almost everything covered when it comes to points. When I'm on WW I check this site all the time for restaurant points. She updates it often and has A LOT of restaurants on there. This is a very good resource for anyone who's counting.


Well it's time for me to switch my focus over to the highly anticipated season finale of The Bachelor. Aaaahhh who will he choose?

Thanks for reading! See ya soon. =)

Eating In

Since I went to the grocery store yesterday and obvi purchased way more than I was supposed to, the goal for today is to eat all meals at home. With no job and almost nothing to do but job search, there really is no reason this should be a problem. Especially since I have a ridiculous amount of leftovers from last night. Like a lot.

8:30am: Egg Beaters Omelette w/Jalapenos & Reduced Fat Feta and a Persian Cucumber
** Delicious but somewhat small breakfast. I'll probably have some yogurt soon. A little tip for anyone watching their sodium intake... I almost always use Morton Lite Salt instead of real salt. It's got like 50% less sodium (or something close to that) than regular salt. Totally tastes the same and no one ever notices the difference when I use it in recipes. Very low pt meal. 2-3 pts.

1:00pm: Turkey & Pickle Sandwich; Israeli Salad
** I am stuffed. Such a good lunch. My sandwich was made with my low cal Sara Lee Bread, Light Miracle Whip, Dijonnaise mustard, oven roasted turkey, and a pickle.
My version of an Israeli Salad consists of: cherry tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, fat free feta. Dressing: EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil - yes I watch Rachael Ray. I'm unemployed leave me alone.) So... EVOO, rice vinegar, lemon juice, and a splash of balsamic. Season with salt & pep.
Very satisfied. May even hold off eating again until dinner. Although I would love something sweet. After a salty meal like that I almost always want something sweet. Like maybe a WW or Skinny Cow ice cream treat. Mmmmmm....

3:00pm: WW 2pt Chocolate Cookie Dough Ice Cream
Thank God for portion control packaging. Otherwise I'd sit here and eat a whole carton of this.

6:00pm: Light String Cheese and Leftover Asparagus & Red Pepper (from last night's dinner)
** I was starving. I can definitely say that knowing I'd have to put whatever I ate in the journal stopped me from doing anything terrible. Like having 3 string cheeses instead of just 1. So... yay me!

7:00pm: Leftover Cheese Rotini from last night
** Still good tonight. I added a little bit of garlic pasta sauce to it just to switch things up. I forgot to mention last night that the pasta I used to make this recipe is Fiber Gourmet pasta. This is by far the best high fiber light pasta I have ever tried. Only 2 pts per serving and definitely tastes just as good as the real thing. So far I have not been able to find this in stores anywhere so I order it online. It is definitely worth the extra effort of ordering online. If you're placing an order make sure to also get their Mac & Cheese. It's so so so good and totally diet friendly. www.fibergourmet.com

8:00pm: Fiber One Yogurt
**Good for breakfast, snack, dessert... whenever!

Mission for the day accomplished. No money spent on food and overall a good day of eating.

Also - if anyone wants any of the recipes for the foods I'm eating or questions about where to find anything please let me know! I love being able to help people out when it comes to eating healthy. Or just eating in general.

Thanks for reading! See you soon.

PS... Another added benefit I have discovered from doing this is that once I post for the day it pretty much stops me from any late night snacking. Cause I mean if I eat after I post then when would I write about it? And if I don't write about it then I'd be lying! =)