I’m still taking comments/votes on whether people are interested in continuing to see my food journals here. Right now the vote is in favor of continuing.
I wanted to share a new food find. I heard about this product a couple of weeks ago at my Weight Watchers meeting, but finally just got around to buying it to try. It’s called Pulled Chicken Breast in Smoky BBQ sauce and is available at Trader Joe’s.
Being a Tennessee girl, I love me some barbecue, so I’m always a bit leery about trying things like this. Most pre-made barbecue products are just so wrong on so many levels, in my opinion. That having been said, I was pleasantly surprised by this one. The sauce definitely had a nice smoky flavor to it, decent taste, and the nutritional stats on it were pretty nice as well, with the exception of the sodium.
Per serving (~5 oz):
140 calories
1g fat (0g sat or trans fat)
1g fiber
18g protein
680mg sodium
I don’t think it’s something that I would necessarily buy on a regular basis, but it’s not a bad choice if you are craving some BBQ and don’t have time to make it yourself. If you’re interested in trying this product, you can find it at your local Trader Joe’s in the refrigerator section near the lunch meats, bacon, etc.
I also wanted to share about the very tasty dinner I had last night, but first a bit of a back story. Given the long hours I work, I tend to rely far too heavily on convenience foods. Even though I make somewhat healthy choices as far as calories & fat go, I still know that it’s not as good for me as eating freshly prepared meals from whole ingredients. I’ve set a baby steps goal for myself to prepare dinner at least twice this week from fresh ingredients. This was my result last night:
I started off by cooking the mushrooms. I heated 1 tsp. of olive oil in a pan and then added a bit of minced garlic. After letting the garlic flavor the oil a bit, I added in my mushrooms (combination of white and cremini). Since I was using so little added fat, I basically stirred them constantly to keep them from sticking to the pan. I’ve used this method for quite some time and they always come out delicious and so much healthier than the typical sautéed mushrooms swimming in butter and/or oil.
Once the mushrooms were done, I cooked the fish. I seasoned it with a bit of freshly ground sea salt and black pepper. I cooked it in the same pan that I used for the mushrooms, so I didn’t use any additional oil or anything. While the fish was cooking, I steamed the summer squash. Just before the fish was finished, I added a nice squeeze of fresh lemon juice which goes nicely not only with fish, but also with the freshly ground black pepper.
I was absolutely amazed that I was able to prepare this fresh meal in about the same amount of time it takes me to prepare a convenience meal. The fish and squash were both done in just a matter of minutes. I think from the time I started to cook until the meal was on the table was probably no more than 15 minutes at most. If I can come up with some more meal ideas like this that are so delicious and quick to prepare, I could definitely see moving more and more away from the convenience foods.
I’ll leave you now with my food journals for Sunday and Monday. Have a great day! 
Sunday, June 20:
Breakfast:
Nonfat iced coffee – 2
Large banana – 2
Lunch:
Hot dog on a light bun – 4
Baked Scoops – 3
Eating Right red pepper hummus – 1
Pickle spears – 0.5
Dinner:
Trader Joe’s pulled chicken breast – 3
Baked potato with sour cream & bacon bits – 5.5
Tapioca – 3.5
Snack:
Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bars – 5
Total Points: 33
Exercise: None
WPA Balance: 35
AP Balance: 0
Liquids: 72 oz
Monday, June 21:
Breakfast:
Nonfat iced coffee – 2
Fresh strawberries – 1 (1 F)
Lunch:
Beef brisket with BBQ sauce – 11.5 (but worth every point!)
Summer squash – 0 (1/2 V)
Zucchini – 0 (1/2 V)
Baby carrots – 0 (1/2 V)
Asparagus – 0 (1/4 V)
Onions – 0 (1/4 V)
1 tsp. olive oil – 1
Snack:
Popchips – 2
Dinner:
Barramundi – 3
Sautéed mushrooms – 1 (2 V)
Summer squash – 0 (2 V)
Pudding – 2.5
Snack:
Nonfat milk – 3.5
Z-bars – 5
Total Points: 32.5
Fruit & Vegetable Servings: 7
Exercise: 15 mins walking – 1 AP
WPA Balance: 35
AP Balance: 1
Liquids: 80 oz
Until next time ….
{ 1 comment }
I say keep ‘em coming, so another vote for your continued posting of food logs.
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