Recipe - Feta, Chicken and Spinach Pasta


Serves 4
It works out around 9 Weightwatcher Propoints

This makes a great mid-week meal as it's simple to make and takes around 25 minutes. You don't want to be slaving around in the kitchen when you come home from work after all. The men in my life complained this wasn't enough so i'd suggest you pop some garlic bread in for them if they're not following Weightwatchers!

Ingredients:
160g Wholewheat pasta
120g of low fat feta cheese
Fry lite
200g baby spinach
250g of baby plum tomatoes
4 chicken breasts
2 crushed garlic cloves or two tsp of easy garlic

001. Pop the pasta in a large saucepan filled with boiling water and cook according to the instructions on the packet. Remember to keep stirring so it doesn't stick to the pan.

002. Chop the chicken into bite size chunks and fry in a wok sprayed with fry lite. Cook for around 20-25 minutes.

003. At around the 10 minute mark, chop the tomatoes in half and chuck in the wok and carry on stirring. Eventually the tomatoes will disintegrate and form a sauce. Pop in the garlic and give it a good stir.

004. About 3 minutes before the chicken is cooked, put in the spinach and stir until it's wilted. Once it's wilted pop in 3/4 of the feta cheese.

005. Drain the pasta and mix the rest of the ingredients and serve equally into four bowls. Sprinkle the remaining feta evenly over the pasta.

Once again do tweet me and let me know if you've made it. I loved seeing Elinor's version of this Spanish-style chicken dish!
9 Comments

Recipe - Healthy Spanish style chicken with rice


Serves four
If you're following Weightwatchers this will be 13 propoints. If you get rid of the rice it will take it down to 9 propoints.

Ingredients:
3 peppers in whatever colours you prefer, sliced
1 onion, diced
1 bag of green beans, trimmed
6 large tomatoes, halved
75ml of red wine
125ml of chicken stock
4 cloves of garlic (I use easy garlic so 4 tsps for this!)
1-2 tsps of Paprika or however much you prefer!
Fry Lite oil
1 pack of chicken chunks
160g of brown rice

001: Pop the peppers, onions, garlic, and green beans in a roasting tray. Sprinkle with the paprika and spray with 3-4 squirts of fry lite evenly. Pop in the oven for 20 minutes at gas mark 6/200 degrees/ 180 degrees at a fan oven.

002: Pop the brown rice in a saucepan filled with boiling water and leave to cook for around 30 minutes. Keep stirring it to ensure it doesn't stick to the bottom!

003. Spray a frying pan with fry lite and brown the chicken for around 5-6 minutes.

004. Take the roasting dish out of the oven and pop the chicken in along with the red wine and hot chicken stock. Give it a good swoosh around and pop back in the oven for around 30-40 minutes. Keep an eye on it as you don't want the chicken to go dry.

005. Once cooked divide evenly between 4 bowls and tuck in!

I'm back on the Weightwatchers/healthy eating wagon now as I've been indugling far too much for about the last 4 months. Enough is enough! If you have any healthy recipes you could share i'd be very appreciative!

I'd love to know if you try this!
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Recipe - Weightwatchers Quorn and Aubergine Lasagne

You know when you have a meal and you don't want it to end? This was one of those times! To be honest it was a bit of a make shift dinner as i'd left the mince i'd bought at lunch in the fridge at work. Ultimate schoolboy error. Vegetable Moussaka was out of the window and it was time to improvise with what I already had at home.  I only have an instagram picture so it's a little blurry. Sorry guys but I had a few requests and I don't know when i'll make it again!

I've been trying to be vegetarian during the week in a bid to become healthier and hit my five a day. It also helps you get to eat more on Weightwatchers! If you have any tasty vegetarian recipes, link me in the comments please!

To serve one you will need:
88g of quorn pieces
1/2 an aubergine
1/2 an onion
1 teaspoon of easy garlic
2 tablespoons of half fat creme fraiche
2 dried lasange sheets
1 carton of chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese
Few squirts of fry light

It comes to 10 propoints. To help make it lower you can always use less creme fraiche, less pasta sheets and less cheese

001. Chop all the veg and thrown it into a wok with the quorn pieces and garlic. Make sure you give the wok a few squirts of fry light so it doesn't stick. Fry for around 4-5 minutes and chuck in half of the chopped tomatoes. Cook for a further three minutes until you're happy with the softness of the veg.

002. I only used 1 and a half sheets of lasange sheets as my pot wasn't big enough so you may need to break them up before you start to layer. Start with a dollop of mixture at the bottom, then the lasange sheet, then another dollop and the final sheet.

003. Pour on the rest of the chopped tomatoes. You can use tomato passata if you prefer a smoother texture. Pop on the creme fraiche and try to smooth it around as evenly as possible. Sprinkle on the parmesan cheese.

004. Pop in the oven for around 40 minutes at around 180 degrees. I use a fan assisted oven so your cooking times may be different to mine. Keep checking it throughout to make sure it doesn't burn. I served mine with roasted pepper and tomatoes but to be honest you don't need to add anything to it as it's amazingly filling. I had a food baby once i'd finished!

Let me know if you make it!
13 Comments

Survive Easter with Weightwatchers Hot Cross Buns - Recipe

Easter can strike the fear of God into any Weightwatcher. All that chocolate, cake and roast dinners is enough to make anyone go mental. Sometimes it can be hard to resist everything. However I found a cracking Hot Cross Bun recipe in this months magazine meaning you don't have to miss out. They taste just like the real thing!
You'll need:
450g of Bread Flour
1 tsp of salt
1 7g sachet of yeast
1 tsp Mixed spice
1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
50g of currants
150ml of lukewarm skimmed milk (reserve 1tbsp for brushing)
25g of low fat melted spread
50g of caster sugar (reserve 2 tsp for the glaze)
1 egg

For the crosses:
2 tbsp of plain flour
1tsp of caster sugar

Makes 12
5 Propoints each

































001: Place the shifted flour, salt, spices, yeast and currants in a bowl and mix well.
002: In a seperate bowl, combine the milk with 75lm of lukewarm water and add the egg, spread and sugar. Make sure you beat well. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees/ gass mark 6 or 180 degrees on a fan assisted oven.































003: Take the dough out and knead it on a chopping board. I did this for around 5-6 minutes but it's entirely up to you.
004: Make 12 even balls of dough and mark a cross with a knife.


























005: Make the paste mixture for the crosses. Place in a piping bag and make an even cross. If I did these again i'd use a larger nozzle as the crosses were not thick enough for me! Brush them with milk before popping in the oven.
006: Cook in the oven for around 15-20 minutes until they have risen and are a golden brown colour. As soon as you take them out make the glaze with 4 tbsp of boiling hot water and the reserved sugar.

Serve them hot with some low fat spread. Don't forget to add the extra propoint. Let me know if you make them!

12 Comments

Easy Peasy Weightwatchers pizza recipe

My all time favourite food is pizza. I can happily eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sadly it's not very weightwatcher's friendly. This is a great alternative and you can have whatever topping you like. I much prefer to load up on vegetables - Butternut Squash is my new favourite ingredient.




What you'll need:
1 pack of Weightwatchers tortillas depending on how many people you're feeding.
Allsorted vegetables - I used butternut squash, peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes.
30 grams of grated mozzarella
1 tablespoon of tomato puree

One pizza is 7 propoints.






















001: Throw all the  chopped vegetables into a roasted tray. You can add some fry light if you want but in my experience the juice from the tomatoes is more than enough. Roast them for aroun 15-20 minutes.
























002: While the vegetables are roasting, measure out a tablespoon of tomato puree. Spead it around the tortilla to the edges.
 



003: Spread the vegetables in which ever order you prefer.
 






















004: Sprinkle the cheese on and stick in the oven at 200 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Make sure you keep an eye on it as it may take shorter because the oven's already been on for the roasted vegetables!





























Ta-da! Serve with a side of salad to make for a more filling dinner. I just have it on it's own for lunch.  It's much more exciting than a boring sandwich. Let me know what combos you try!

15 Comments

Eating out on Weightwatchers



If you're anything like me eating out will be the highlight of your week. If I had the money - and didn't mind getting to 30 stone - i'd eat out every night. Many people dread being asked out for dinner as they feel it's hard to be in control of their food if in a restaurant. Don't fear as you'll still be able to enjoy a meal with friends if you're on weightwatchers by following a few simple tips.


001. Stick to diet soft drinks. Wine might be a perfect choice to drink alongside any meal but it's not very kind to your head the next day. I always have diet coke if i'm out for dinner during the week as it still feels like you're treating yourself and it's only 0 propoints. You might as well use the propoints you'll waste on wine to feed your hungry belly in my opinion.

002. Never go out for dinner absolutely starving if you can help it. This will cause  you to over order. Half the time you won't actually need all the food you order but if you're anything like me  you'll eat EVERYTHING. I  hate wasting food when i'm out for dinner - someone say squeaky bum - so i'll scoff everything down until I feel sick. Not the best thing if you're trying to lose weight.

003. This book can be a god send. While it doesn't have every single food establishment listed it gives it a good shot. Have a little flick through it and plan what you're going to eat so you can leave enough points to cover it. Nothing worse than coming home and realising you've eaten a 28 propoint dinner by accident....


004. Use your common sense when ordering. Tomato based sauces tend to be so much better than creamy ones. Cheese although it likes to lure you in is actually the devil when it comes to weight loss. If you desperately want a dessert, why not ask your dining partner if they want to go halves.

005. Finally get your backside moving. Build up your activity points the day before your meal so you can order a starter without feeling guilty. Sometimes life's too short to not throw caution to the wind.
9 Comments

I like to move it move it

Part of the reason I participate in Weightwatchers is so once in a while I can induldge in a meal like the above. Those chili cheese fries are making me dribble. I know I can't eat like this everyday as I truly will get to the size of a house. But with the tools that Weightwatchers have equipped me with, I can stuff my face and still mantain my weight or maybe even lose a cheeky pound. You really don't have to give up your meals out as long as you're prepared to keep moving.

Here are just a few tips that I use in everyday life when I know i'm having a over-indulgent day - lets face it life would be very boring if these didn't exist! The extra 49 points prove to be a god send but sometimes they just aren't enough!

001: This was very kindly gifted to me by Weightwatchers and it's became my new favourite thing I wear it religiously and love to see the activity points building up. It really does make you more conscious to get your feet moving. It may sound silly but I always make sure I go to the toilet on the top floor at work as I have to climb two sets of stairs. It doesn'ty seem like much but it helps the numbers tick by. When I was in Berlin last week I clocked up 14 activity points!! I didn't feel to guilty about that shortbread!

002: These last few weeks my boyfriend and I have decided to go walking after dinner. It really does help your dinner go down and it's quite a nice time to put the world to rights. We only really pop out for half an hour but usually I earn about 3-4 activity points which always come in handy. I always find walking doesn't really feel like exercise and it's so easy to get carried away and walk for miles. Always good when you're trying to lose weight!

003: As many of you know I work in London so I like to make the most out of my lunch hour and have a wander around. I'm only a 10 minute or so walk from Covent Garden so I tend to head here. There's so much  to explore that I visit a different part each day. It's always a great way to exercise - see a theme here? Once again it's a fantastic way of building up activity points.



Last week I ate out several times in Berlin and scoffed that huge burger and still managed to mantain my weight. All because I decided to move more and sit less. Just think how much weight I could lose if I managed to control my eating habits at the weekend?! I'm on it like a car bonnet. Wish me luck as i'm hoping for my first loss since the beginning of December!

If you're on Weightwatchers, how do you earn your activity points?
5 Comments

A day in the life of a weightwatcher

Although I supppose Weightwatcher is technically a diet, it's also a lifestyle choice. You learn to pick healthy options but that doesn't mean you can't have the odd naughty treat once in a while! This is a typical day's food for me:

Honey cheerios - 4 propoints
During the week I tend to buy one box of cereal and keep it at work. It's far to early to stuff my face when I get up!
 
Fruit - 0 proppoints
Does anyone else seem to get mid morning munchies around 11am? I think because I sit at a desk all day I constantly think about food - doesn't help that I sit next to the kitchen! I try to eat at least two portions of fruit a day.


Tomato and feta omlette - 7 propoints
I've gone off sandwiches recently and prefer something a little more filling. I don't like to waste more than 8 propoints on lunch as I like a few chocolate treats towards the end of the day. This filled a lovely little hole.
Chocolate minroll and Caramel wafer - 4 propoints
Everyone who works in the office knows that chocoate is very much a necessity! Around 3pm I tend to need a bit of a sugar fix and these do the the jobs quite nicely.
Quorn chilli burritto and rocket - 8 propints
For just 8 propoints this was such a filling dinner! I'll be eating quorn more often as it's so low in points meaning you can have much more. Always a good thing in my book!
All this food adds up to 23 propoints. I'm allowed 26 points a day but like to keep a couple left over incase I fancy a little treat after dinner. Light babybels are currently my favourite - they're only a point!
13 Comments

Weightwatcher's friendly breakfast - recipe

WeightWatchersWorks


It may be cliche but breakfast really is the most important part of the day. It can help kickstart your metabolism for the day as well as stop that dreaded mid-morning snacking. I read somewhere that you should try to eat within 45 minutes of waking up. My normal breakfast routine consists of a boring bowl of cereal when I get to work. It's the easiest thing I can manage after that hour commute into the city. But when it comes to the weekend I like to get a bit more adventurous with my morning routine. As I usually like to have a bit of a lay in so I tend to have a a larger breakfast. A brunch if you like. Here's one of my favourite recipes. The great thing is it's very quick to make - great if you have a rumbling tummy!

Feta and tomato omlette with a propoints value of 7
Two eggs
8 cherry tomatoes
Season black pepper to your taste
Three sprays of fry lite
40 grams of Feta Cheese 


1. Chop the tomatoes in half


2. Crack the eggs into a jug and whisk. Season with as much black pepper as you want. Crumble the cheese into the jug.

3. Crumble the feta into the jug and mix in. Spray the fry lite into a frying pan and pour the egg mixture into the saucepan
4. Position the tomatoes as you like.

5. Cook for around 4-5 minutes and the pop under the grill until the top is starting to brown. Doesn't it look yummy?!

2 Comments

Weekly Weightwatchers round up #1

I thought i'd start doing a weekly round up of how i've found weightwatchers, food i've eaten and my progress on the plan. This also ties in with the second weekly challenge where we had to plan our meals for the week.

This week has been disappointing to be honest. I've been relatively good all week - i've had a few hiccups but nothing that I would class as "binge eating" and falling completely off the wagon. I may have gone over my points allowance a few days but this has only been by a point or two. Trust me i've been consuming a hell of a lot less calories than I did during the month of December. That's why I thought I was destined to either stay the same or lose a lb or two. Alas it wasn't to be and I actually put on a lb! I feel so disheartened and really don't know why this has happened. I'm bracing myself for a gain next week as well as I have my birthday, my nan's birthday and a trip to the Ivy all the content with. I really wanted to be 5lbs lighter for Berlin on 1st Feburary but this doesn't look like it's going to happen. Let's hope I can do some damage control by being extra good on the days i'm at home.

Right i've eaten a host of delicious dinners this week thanks to my mum - life's so much easier when she follows the plan too. They're all from Weightwatchers cookbooks and if you fancy a recipe just let me know and i'll put together a post!

Monday:
Sweet and Sour Pork with brown rice - 11 propoints




























Tuesday:
Spring chicken risotto with pesto bread - 14 propoints




























Wednesday:
Courgette, Pepper and Spinach pasta - 10 propoints





























Thursday:
Pan Fried cod with rice - 10 Propoints




























Friday:
My phone battery died so I didn't get a picture of this!

My favourite from the week has to be the Risotto. You got such a big portion and it was very filling. I've got a soft spot for Italian dishes.  Plus chicken is my favourite meat however boring that may be!
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Weightwatchers Challenge #1 - Sort your fridge

As you know I was very excitedly asked to become a Weightwatchers ambassador and as part of my role i'll be taking on weekly challenges. The first challenge asked us to sort out our fridges and remove the temptation of left over food by putting it out of sight. We were also asked to create a recipe using the leftovers. I must say I was very proud of this one as it was so tasty! On New Years Day we had roasted gammon and my mum rather overestimated how much we needed so we were left with over half a joint. With this in mind I decided to rustle up a tortilla.

This will feed around four for lunch or light dinner. You can have half each for a more filling dinner with some salad on the side. It's around 22 propoints for the whole dish. The sheer amount of vegetables help to make it very filling! I used these vegetables as they were in the fridge. It only takes around 20 minutes or so to cook so you don't  have to spend the whole night cooking! Ideal for a mid week dinner.

You'll need:
1 onion
1 leek
100g of gammon
4 eggs
Pepper to season
4 tablespoons of milk
1 Courgette
3 sprays of Fry Lite

001. Spray the Fry Lite into a large frying pan and saute the onion for around 3 minutes or until it starts to go golden brown.

002. Crack the eggs into a jug along with the milk and as much pepper as you want. Give it a good whisk and leave it to one side.

003. Add the leeks and cook them for around 3-4 minutes.

004. I cut the courgettes into smaller slices so they cooked quicker but it's up to you. Add them to the frying pan and cook for about 3-4 minutes again.

005. Add the sliced gammon and warm through. Remember to keep stirring so it's even.

006. Place the egg mixture into the frying pan. Leave until the bottom feels a bit solid. It's doesn't matter if the mixture isn't cooked on top.

007. Put the frying pan under the grill. Just keep it under there until the mixture cooks on top and it starts to go brown. Make sure you keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn!

008: Ta da! Look how yummy it looks! I put a teaspoon of low fat cream cheese on mine to make it a bit more exciting. Jut remember to add the extra propoint value.

Let me know  if you make it! You'll be able to see how I sorted my fridge on Instagram later on in the week.

If you're thinking of giving Weightwatchers a whirl you can look into joining here. It's well worth the investment! You can't put a price on being healthy.
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