Where Are My Knees?

Wild Mushroom Lasagne

2013-06-10T17:30:00.000+01:00

Confession time: I have a Food Network problem. My Freeview box is pretty much permanently tuned to Channel 48, and I could talk for hours about Nigella Lawson or Ina Garten. Any Barefoot Contessa fans in the house? I love her so much. I mean, she’s kind of awkward and her husband is a little bit creepy, but don’t you just wish she was your neighbour? Her food looks SO good. So good. If you have ever watched Barefoot Contessa, you’ll be wondering why I’m bringing her up in a diet blog. Ina Garten likes to cook with vast amounts of oil. But hey, she’s 65 and she really doesn’t look it. Maybe there is a lesson there. Gillian McKeith and Nigella Lawson are the same age, after all. I have a point though, I swear – the other day, she made this Wild Mushroom Lasagne which looked utterly heavenly, and I wondered if I could adapt it.

The original recipe (posted here, if you’re curious) has about 200g of butter and I think half a bottle of olive oil? Plus cheese and full fat milk. It’s a lot of fat, and it’s not really needed. I adapted this using my favourite Bechamel sauce substitute, Campbell’s Low Fat Mushroom Soup. Have I converted you yet?

Because much of the flavour depends on the mushrooms, I made the executive decision to leave the butter in. I know, it kind of terrified me too! But Lurpak Lighter is almost as flavourful, and 2 tablespoons only added an extra point each.

Wild Mushroom Lasagne
9 lasagne sheets – 17pp
2 cans Campbell's or Bachelor's Low Fat Mushroom Soup – 8pp
2 tablespoons Lurpak Lighter (30g) – 5pp
80g Parmesan cheese (grated) – 9pp
125g Light Mozzarella - 6PP
Fresh garlic cloves - 0PP
2 red onions - 0PP
200g Spinach - 0PP
Black pepper – 0PP
500g mushrooms – 0PP

45PP / 8PP

To reduce points - Use less cheese, use less soup, cut out the butter.

1 - Preheat the oven to 190 degrees.
2 - Separate the mushroom stems from the caps and discard the stems. Slice the caps 1/4-inch thick.
3 - Heat the butter in a large sautee pan (I used my wok). When the butter melts, a couple of garlic cloves then abotu a quarter of the mushrooms at a time. Sprinkle with salt, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender and they release some of their juices.
4 - If they become too dry, add a little water. Toss occasionally to make sure the mushrooms cook evenly. Repeat with the remaining mushrooms and set all the mushrooms aside.
5 - Thinly chop up your red onions and cook until soft. Remove from wok, mix in with your mushrooms (you could also cook them together, to be honest).
6 - Steam your spinach by placing in the wok with the lid on for a couple of minutes until it wilts.
7 – To assemble the lasagne, place 3 of your lasagne sheets in the bottom of your baking dish.
8 – Add about half a can of soup, spreading until it evenly covers the pasta sheets
9 – Add half the mushrooms, then top with a third of parmesan.
10 – Add another layer of noodles, 1/2 can of soup, 1/2 mushrooms, 1/3 parmesan
11 – Top with a final layer of noodles, a whole can of soup and the remaining parmesan.
12 - Bake the lasagne for 30 minutes, or until the top is browned and the sauce is bubbly and hot.

This was really good, but I felt like it could have been better. It was a bit... wet. Which meant that the parmesan got kind of absorbed, which was a real waste. I think cutting out the oil made the mushrooms retain water, which seeped out in baking, and it was a very saucy dish. But the mushrooms cooked in butter and garlic tasted AMAZING and so I want to make this again because I think it could be SO much better!

Next time, I would assemble it more like my Butternut Squash Lasagne:
A layer of the mushrooms/onions/spinach mixture, a layer of strong grated cheese (more substantial than Parmesan), a layer of pasta sheets, another mushroom layer, a layer of pasta sheets, a layer of mushroom sauce and then top with cheese. I will let you know what it's like!

Olive & Feta Pasta

2013-06-03T17:30:00.000+01:00

I haven’t posted a recipe in a while because I have fallen into a recipe rut. All I have cooked in the last couple of weeks is Butternut Squash Lasagne… yes, again – it’s just THAT GOOD! And Spaghetti Bolognese, which is also THAT GOOD because I put a whole lot of red wine in it.

Anyway, I had chorizo in the freezer and spinach in the fridge, and was pretty much ready to make my Creamy Chorizo Mushroom Bake again, when I realised that I was due to be away for a couple of days, the chorizo was still in the freezer and the spinach was probably going to go off if I didn’t cook it that very evening. It was quite a dilemma, I can tell you.

So, I invented something. Food inventing isn’t hard, you really just throw together lots of things that you think are nice, and chances are that if you put them all together, they will taste nice all together. It’s a bit of a secret though, so don’t let that on if you ever invent any food, and everyone will be SUPER impressed. Unless you mess it up. DON’T MESS IT UP. Anyway, I bought a block of feta, a jar of olives and a tub of Philadelphia and threw this together. It was bloomin’ tasty. You should make it! Unless you don’t like feta or olives, in which case, definitely don’t.

These pictures are a bit rubbish because I was chatting to my housemate and forgot to take any until I was almost done. Ooops.

Olive & Feta Pasta300g Pasta – 29pp
200g Tub of Philadelphia Light – 8pp
200g block of Feta – 15pp
1 jar of green or black olives (in brine, drained) – 3pp
1 jar of roasted peppers (in brine, drained) or a raw pepper or both – 0PP
Handful of mushrooms – 0PP
2 leeks – 0PP
200g Spinach – 0PP
Garlic – 0PP
= 55PP / 9PP per person (6 portions)
To reduce points - Try and stretch the sauce to more portions, use less feta.

1. Cook your pasta as per the package instructions
2. Chop up your raw veg (leeks, mushrooms, pepper) and fry in a big frying pan or a wok with either FryLight or a splash of water until soft
3. Add the olives and spinach and cook for 5 minutes until the spinach starts to wilt
4. Chop your feta into small cubes then put half of them in the pan. Stir well so everything is slightly coated in the feta and it’s pretty much dissolved. Yum.
5. Add the Philadelphia and stir it until it resembles a sauce. The vegetables should have given off a bit of water so you shouldn’t need milk to dilute it.
6. When the pasta is done, add to the pan and stir until everything is well combined and the sauce coats the pasta well.
7. Add the second half of your feta and stir well for a couple of minutes until everything is warm through but the last lot of feta is still in little blocks.
8. Serve!

This is so tasty. Adding the feta in two halves means that the sauce itself is very feta-y, but then you get little lumps of feta in with it too. SO MUCH FETA. It’s quite a salty dish with the olives and the feta, but it’s not overbearing. As always you can add as much or as little veg as you want. I made this initially using 40g of pasta per portion but it wasn’t quite filling enough so I have upped it to 50g a portion which is included in the recipe above. Because the dish is pretty saucy, it stretches quite far, which is awesome. You could even add more portions of pasta, but then I think you might go a bit far.

Monthly Summary: May

2013-06-03T11:14:00.001+01:00

Hi everyone! How was your May?

Sarah V - May hasn't been the best month for me weight loss wise. The bank holidays threw me off track and I ate terribly! That said, I didn't actually gain any weight this month. I'm currently 4lbs down from the last monthly summary (based on hopping on my mum's scales yesterday!) but am still not QUITE at my two stone which is really frustrating! I've been at 'nearly' two stone for weeks now. I only have 1.5lbs to go though so I'm getting there and I do feel like I can see it on my stomach. This last week I have been tracking more carefully and have been cooking more again, and I have set myself a goal of losing a stone by my birthday which is 2 months away. June has the potential to be calorific (weddings and festivals!) so I really need to focus on being super good where I can and not going totally off the rails at special occasions. Half a stone by July 1st? Let's do it.

Gemma - May has been very good to me. I've been taking part in Gym for the Win since midway through the month and it's really made a difference for me. I'm feeling much more fit after just three weeks at the gym and I've really enjoyed having some time to myself in the evenings. I've lost about 5lbs this month and I've really not lost anything this year apart from my Christmas gain. I've also re-joined Weight Watchers classes after finding that online only subscription really wasn't working for me. It took me a while to find the right class but I now go on Saturday morning which is perfect for me. I can go a little mad on Saturday night and then have a whole week to make up for it before weigh in again.I hope I can keep up my new gym routine and Saturday morning class for the rest of the year and finally get to my -100lbs goal.

Sarah - I haven't been on track for the whole of May and as a result have gained over half a stone. We lived on take outs and grabbed snacks in the week following the move and in the two weeks after whilst we were spending every second decorating. I then went on holiday where I over indulged which is what holidays are for. Everything is now out of the way and I have a clear month to get back on track and going to start The Harcombe Diet over. I found it easy to stick to as it curbs my cravings which are usually my downfall. Low carbing also gives me so much more energy and no sugar slumps. You have to be 100% committed and plan in order to follow it so give me a kick if you see any naughties on my instagram feed!! I'm going to aim for 7lbs this month too, lets go Sarah V!

Rosie - I went on holiday in the second week of May - the couple of weeks prior I was very focussed, running almost every day, using MyFitnessPal to track calories and nutritional content and banning sugar and eating out. Nothing like the thought of being in a bikini to keep you on point! I must admit that since I returned I've been back in the three pound zone - at the moment I'm fluctuating between three different weights almost weekly - the good news is that I've not been heavier than the top weight this year, the bad news is I can't seem to get lower than the lowest weight no matter what I do, and I'd still like to lose a few lbs off it. I'm off to France for almost the whole of June so I am envisaging lots of cheese and wine but I'll also be taking my running gear to try and counteract all the amazing French food!

LowLow - Ad Gal

2013-05-30T09:00:00.000+01:00

What is it with food ads aimed at women? Why do they bombard us with clichés? Why do they presume that all women have a negative relationship with food? LowLow have had enough and it's their mission to support and encourage women everywhere to have a healthy relationship with food.

The company have released a seriously funny parody advert which takes aim at the three female stereotypes, Smug Gal, Ditzy Gal and Muffin Gal, usually portrayed in diet food advertising. You know the ones; they’re usually dancing around in a red swimsuit, struggling to zip up their jeans or pretending to enjoy eating a dry rice cake. Take a look:

What do you think? I had certainly had a good chuckle.

LowLow don’t believe that anyone should have to sacrifice feeling good for looking good so all of their products contain at least 33% less fat than regular cheese which fits in naturally with a healthy and balanced lifestyle. I'm already a big fan of their cheese slices (just 1 ProPoint each!) and use them in toasties every week but I wanted to try their cheddar spread in a recipe and see if I could get that cheesy taste but for less points. I headed to their facebook page for inspiration and found some great recpies, I decided to try the following:

Spring Vegetable Risotto with LowLow
Serves 4

What you’ll need:

125g LowLow Mature Cheddar Spread
300g risotto rice
200g spears of asparagus, spears trimmed at an angle
250g small (frozen) peas
2 tbsp olive oil / low cal spray
1 large shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1.5l vegetable stock (hot)
3 spring onions, finely chopped
20g fresh chives, finely snipped

I used half the amount of cheese, peas and oil and added peppers and carrots to bulk the meal out and it came in at just 9 ProPoints on the Weight Watchers plan. So tasty and the cheese made it feel very indulgent. I wouldn't scrimp as much on the cheese next time and add an extra 4 ProPoints worth to the whole lot which would take the total per portion up to 10 ProPoints.

What to do:

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy based saucepan. Add the shallots and garlic and sauté for 3-5 mins until they are soft. Remove and set aside. Stir in the rice so it becomes coated with oil.

2. Pour in half of the stock and stir. Cook stirring regularly until the stock is absorbed. Then pour in half the remaining stock. Repeat this process until the stock is used up and the rice is tender all the way through.

3. Stir in the LowLow Mature Cheddar Spread, asparagus, peas and spring onions. Cook for a further 3 or 4 mins until the vegetables are heated through but are not too soft. Serve immediately and sprinkle with chives.

If you want to try making this risotto yourself then leave a comment (with a contact email address) below letting us know what you think about the advert and one winner will be chosen at random (8pm,20.6.13) to recieve some LowLow vouchers. Simple!

P.S. you can also follow us on twitter and bloglovin

What I Ate Wednesday: (A Day In The Life of Weight Watchers by Gemma) #8

2013-05-29T12:44:00.004+01:00

Breakfast

2 Weetabix - 3 ProPoints

Artificial sweetener - 0 ProPoints

Skimmed milk - 3 ProPoints (some for my tea later on)

Banana and a handful of blueberries - 0 ProPoints

Lunch

Weight Watchers Bagel - 4 points

ASDA Lighter cream cheese - 1 point

Smoked Salmon - 2 points

Frazzles - 3 points

Weight Watcher yogurt - 1 ProPoint

Afternoon snack

Pineapple - O ProPoints

Nature Valley bar - 5 ProPoints

Dinner
Irish Beef Stew - 6 ProPoints + extra 1 point of potato (recipe here)

Evening treat
Asda crumpet and low sugar jam - 3 ProPoints

32/32 ProPoints

You can see all my other food diary posts here and head to Peas & Crayons for hundreds of food diary posts as part of #WIAW

P.S. you can also follow us on twitter and bloglovin

What I Ate Wednesday: (A Day In The Life of Weight Watchers by Gemma) #7

2013-05-22T11:09:00.001+01:00

I'm always really surprised when I do these kinds of posts about the amount I get to eat on the Weight Watchers plan. I'm eating more protein at the moment because I've started to work out most evenings at the gym so I'm trying to fit in more eggs, cheese, chicken, bean and beef. This is what I ate on a typical working day:

Breakfast
Weight Watchers Sausages - 3 ProPoints
Egg - 2 Pro Points
Flora Light - 1 ProPoint
Weight Watchers bread - 1 ProPoint
Banana - O ProPoints

Break time snack

Skimmed milk for tea (x3 cups) - 1 ProPoint
Bar - 2 ProPoints

Lunch
Weight Watchers Bagel - 4 points

ASDA Lighter cream cheese - 1 point

Smoked Salmon - 2 points

Orange - 0 points

Monster Munch - 3 points

Dinner

M&S Steak and Sauce - 6 ProPoints

M&S wedges - 4 ProPoints

Roasted Peppers and onions, tender stem broccoli - O ProPoints
FryLight - 1 ProPoint

Evening snack
Muller Light Greek style lemon yogurt 1ProPoint

Total -32/32 ProPoints

You can see all my other food diary posts here.

P.S. you can also follow us on twitter and bloglovin

Reward a runner

2013-05-19T18:08:00.000+01:00

Recently, M&M Direct got in touch with Where Are My Knees about their 'Reward a Runner' campaign. The campaign has actually closed now, but they were hosting it on their Facebook page and getting people to nominate marathon runners they knew that deserved some new running gear. With all the marathons going on around the country, as well as the countless 5ks and 10ks, I think it was a great idea and it was nice to see the people who push themselves to achieve amazing things in their running (and often raising money for charity whilst they're at it) getting some recognition.

In case you're not familiar with M&M Direct, they sell branded menswear and womenswear at bargainous prices and they also have a great Sports Shop section. Personally I don't like to spend masses of money on sportswear but I do need something to wear whilst running that's going to keep me comfortable and isn't going to fall apart after a few washes, so M&M Direct are perfect for me.

M&M Direct kindly offered to send me a £50 voucher to get myself some new running gear and help celebrate marathon running season. Personally I'm not running any marathons this year (I only started running last year and am still building my stamina) but I am running the National Lottery Anniversary Run in July - five miles around Olympic Park and into the Olympic Stadium. I'm currently running about 3-5 times a week to try and keep my fitness up, so new gear was most welcome!

I took these photos pre-runs this weekend so please excuse my make-up-less face!

My first pick was these Brooks Running Tights* (£9.99). I won't wear shorts until it really warms up so these are perfect for my morning runs. My top is non-branded and my trainers are Saucony (in case you were wondering!)

For slightly warmer days I picked up these Elle Capri Pants* (£16.99). On Saturday it was a bit warmer so I went out in my Nike Drifit vest.

The final thing I got was a Shock Absorber Sports Bra* (£14.99) I will spare you the trauma of showing you a photo of me wearing it but what I will say is that it's an amazing bargain - it's one of the newer designs that can sell for in excess of £30 so £14.99 is a great price. No excuses for not having a good-quality, supportive sports bra when they're that cheap!

Of course the final addition to your running gear wardrobe is a good set of trainers and they have a great footwear range that's also worth checking out. Where do you buy your gym gear? Do you hunt for bargains or do you tend to buy more expensive sportswear?

Butternut Squash & Feta Lasagne

2013-05-03T17:00:00.000+01:00

I had this plan last weekend to make a big lasagne, as I had extra lean mince in the freezer to use up. So I went to Lidl to get ingredients, whereby I remembered that I had forgotten to get said mince out of the freezer. So... vegetarian lasagne it is!

I found various recipes online (there's even an old one on this blog!) and sort of combined them all to create some kind of SUPER LASAGNE. It was pretty hard to mess up, to be honest, because all the ingredients are really tasty by themselves, so together they are AWESOME. This was so tasty, and because butternut squash is the basis and it's crazy filling, it was ridiculously low in points. Unbelievably, if you did all the things I've listed below to reduce points, you could get it down to 5PP a portion. It's a bit impossible, really.

Serves 4 to 6, depending on how hungry you are. It's pretty filling though!

Butternut Squash & Feta Lasagne

8 x Dry Lasagne sheets - 15pp

125g Lidl Light Mozzarella - 5pp

200g Feta Cheese - 15pp

1 x can Campbell's Mushroom Soup - 4pp

15g Parmesan Cheese - 2pp

1 x Butternut squash

200g Spinach

2 x Leeks

1 x Pepper

4 x Portobello Mushrooms

4 x Garlic Cloves

Rosemary

=41PP / 7PP per portion

To reduce points - Use less lasagne, or less cheese. You wouldn't miss 2 of the lasagne sheets (having 6 rather than 8), half the feta, or the parmesan. But it's nicer with them all, obviously.

1 - Peel and chop up the butternut squash.
2 - This is harder than it sounds! If you can get a pre-cut butternut squash, do. Chopping butternut squash is the worst. It's easier to cut if it's cooked first, which is what I did, but it was also kind of a bugger to peel that way. In short, butternut squash is difficult. But so tasty!
3 - Put the chopped butternut squash in a roasting tin and spray liberally with FryLight. Sprinkle with dried rosemary, salt and pepper and chuck some crushed garlic on, too. Roast in a 200c oven for about 25mins.
4 - Whilst the butternut squash is cooking, prepare everything else.
5 - Wash your leeks, mushrooms and pepper and chop them up into nice chunky chunks. Dry-fry in a frying pan or wok with the rest of the crushed garlic cloves until softened - 10 mins or so should do it.
6 - Remove the vegetables from the pan and put in your spinach. Cook with the lid on for about 5 minutes until it wilts.
7 - When your squash is done, you're ready to assemble. Make sure to leave the oven on as you'll need it to cook the lasagne! You can assemble your lasagne any way you want, but this is how I did it:
8 - Put about half of it into the bottom of your lasagne dish and over that, put about half of the leek/mushroom/pepper mixture.
9 - Lay 3 or 4 lasagne sheets over that and then put all the spinach over them, making sure they are evenly spread and more or less cover the surface of the lasagne sheets.
10 - Over the spinach spoon the remainder of the vegetable mix, then the remainder of the squash.

11 - Chop up your feta and sprinkle the lot over the top of your squash.
12 - Cover with 3 or 4 lasagne sheets.
13 - Over them spoon the can of mushroom soup and make sure the lasagne sheets are all covered.
NB: You can use any white sauce here. Mushroom soup is really easy and low fat, and I love the flavour. If you use something different just account for it in your points.
14 - Tear up your mozzarella and sprinkle over the lasagne sheets, then sprinkle the parmesan over that.
15 - Pop your pan in the oven - heavy, ain't it - and cook for 20-30 mins at 200c.
16 - Get it out, serve it quickly, eat it all up. I've eaten it four days running this week and I'm not even remotely sick of it because it's AWESOME.
17 - NB: This freezes really well.

EDIT: I made this again for the second time and I changed a few things:
1 - Used 6 lasagne sheets instead of 8. This cut it to 6PP a portion and it was just as filling. And I didn't have to compromise on cheese! Also it made it easier to cut into 6 as I had dividers!
2 - I found a great tip online to cut butternut squash easily. Pop it on a microwavable plate, pierce it a few times all over and microwave for 3 minutes. It will be much easier to peel and cut after this - genius! It meant I could chop it all up before roasting it.
3 - I roasted the squash in the lasagne pan rather than an oven tray. Saves washing up!
4 - I added a little water to the bottom of the lasagne pan after adding the first layer of veg. Just enough to give a thin covering - half a glass, maybe quarter of a glass? This was just to ensure it wasn't dry and it really wasn't.
5 - I shared it! I gave a portion to Sha and she (and her other half) loved it. Hooray!

If you want to make this or any of my recipes and have any questions, the quickest way to get a response is to tweet me @essbeevee :)

P.S. you can also follow us on twitter and bloglovin

Gym For The Win?

2013-05-01T15:56:00.003+01:00

Hi there everyone,

First off, apologies for my silence recently; I've been in the shed, practicing my fighting.

I kid, of course - I've actually been eating Pic 'n' Mix and playing video games, because apparently I'm 12 years old. I don't even have a shed - although I have started going to Boxercise.

Anyway. I've been working on something super-secret with my pals at MoneySupermarket.com over the last few weeks, and today I want to present to you my secret project - click the great big banner below and read all about it!

Exciting, huh?

If you couldn't be bothered clicking on the picture of the nice lady doing the side raises above, then I'll explain what we're doing below:

Basically, we're offering bloggers the opportunity to try out their local gym for a whole month for free, in order to see whether or not they'd be interested in keeping it up after the thirty days are over - and to write about their experiences!

I feel pretty strongly about this - as some of you may know, I spend more time at the gym than I do at home now, but less than a year ago I didn't see the point in spending £30 or more every month - so far as I was concerned, I could do all my keep fit on my bike - but if I were to have a change in circumstance my gym membership would be the last thing to go, even after things like sweets.

And I LOVE sweets.

If you want to get involved, then click the image above or simply email competitions@moneysupermarket.com - it's dead easy, and the window to sign up lasts all the way through May.

Feel free to share this with any other blogger pals you might have - from experience the gym is a lot more fun if you have someone you know to keep you motivated and to call you names if you try and give up - just ask my friend Owain. The first 200 people are guaranteed to get their month's membership paid for - so don't delay!

Monthly Summary: April

2013-04-28T18:00:00.000+01:00

You might have noticed a distinct lack of Sunday Summaries lately. To be honest, we're all busy people and sometimes we find it hard to update every week, particularly if we're out and about on a Sunday. So we've decided to switch to monthly, not weekly updates. We'll still be posting regularly on here of course, and if you ever want to know specifically how we are doing, just give us a shout on Twitter!

We've got lots of stuff coming up in May which we hope you'll like, but if there's anything you'd like to see more or, give us a shout in the comments. We're also always looking for bloggers to guest post their personal stories about diet, exercise and health and whatnot, so get in touch!

Sarah V - April has been a great month for me. I've lost over a stone and a half now and hit my 10% target at Weight Watchers. In the last week or two, I've suddenly noticed the change in my body - clothes are fitting better and I can really see how much smaller my waist and my pot belly have become. I feel a lot better in myself, and am so much more active - I find myself planning ways to incorporate extra walking into my routine which I would never have done a few months ago. In May, I want to get to two stone. I'm 5.5lbs off it at the moment which sounds fairly obtainable, so I'm going to step up the exercise so that I can get there by the time June starts. I still have more I want to lose, but I do really feel like I'm getting there which is a fantastic feeling.

Gem -I really struggled to get back on track once I started full time work and switched to online only Weight Watchers. I found a class that fitted in with my work schedule but I hated it and really didn't want to go back but I didn't give up. I found a local class on a Saturday morning with a brand new leader and all new members. It feels like we are all starting the plan together and everyone is super supportive there. I had my first weigh in back this week and I lost 3lbs. I'm so happy and feel like I can finally work towards my -100lbs goal. I'm currently 5 stone 4lbs down from my start weight and I'm aiming to be -6 stone by the end of June. I have a trip to Amsterdam and London in the way but it's a realistic goal.

Rosie - I've missed a few Sunday Summaries not only because I've been busy but also because I've been conscious of not having anything to share. In December last year I shared that I'd hit my 10 week pledge target and managed to beat it by getting down to 127 lbs. Now, five months later, I am.... 129 lbs. I'm not worried about having put a couple of pounds on but I have felt that having not lost any weight for a few months means I don't really have anything to contribute to Where Are My Knees. I hope that that's wrong however, because although I've plateaued and struggled to go beyond the weight loss I saw at the end of last year, I've also maintained. And for the first time in a long, long time, I have moments where I look in the mirror and feel happy with my weight. I hope that what I can bring to Where Are My Knees from now on is reflections on how to maintain weight after a loss, healthy eating tips (because I have completely changed my eating habits) and more on exercise, particularly running. I've got back into running again over the last couple of weeks and it's an amazing feeling - being able to run 10ks at the weekends makes me really happy and feels like such an achievement. This month I'm going to Greece in the second week and my goal to feel happy and confident in a bikini. That would be a phenomenal gain for me.

Sarah - I have given up at this moment in time :( I just cannot focus on weight loss with all the house stress going on around me. I had no idea it would be so stressful and all consuming. I don't even want to tell you the kind of crap I have been eating my body weight in. Rather embarrassing that I haven't managed to get to the point where I can control my food intake regardless of what is going on around me. Since my last update I have managed to gain 7lbs. Yep you read that right, a whole half stone. Knowing how hard this was to lose and how easily I have gained it really annoys me and come two weeks when I finally move into my new home I am going to kick it's ass and get back on track. I will be going back on The Harcombe Diet as the clean eating/low carbing plan really suited me and I found it relatively easy to stick to. I did dabble with the 5:2 plan earlier this week but after one day on 500 calories know it's not the plan for me. There is no way I can cope with feeling so weak and dizzy and ending up with a massive headache twice a week, just isn't worth it.

How's April been for you?

Four Cheese Gnocchi Bake

2013-04-26T18:00:00.000+01:00

Three of the four cheeses

Over Easter, I slipped on Weight Watchers a bit. I went out for a few meals, I missed my meeting (as it was on the bank holiday Monday) and generally slacked. After being in the habit of being good, I reset myself slightly and getting back into the WW mindset was kind of hard. Somehow I managed to get away with it and stayed the same after Easter, but I knew I needed to do something to snap myself back to being on-plan.

What really helped me when I started WW was to make lots of new recipes – I love trying new things and it was actually a good way of learning the basic rules of the plan quite quickly. Sharing them on here is a good way of forcing myself to keep things fresh, rather than going back to the same recipes again and again. I do repeat them, but I’ll always try something new at least every fortnight.

This recipe is actually perfect for when you’re feeling a bit fed up with following a diet plan, because it’s rich and luxurious and downright naughty. It has four different types of cheese in it! FOUR! I got this off the WW app, but then doctored it a bit to make it more exciting. The original recipe has more gnocchi, but I find gnocchi really filling so I cut it down (also it's 400g in a pack). It also does not have the low fat cheese on top, but if I can find a way to shoehorn more cheese into a recipe, you’d better believe I will do it. You are looking at the girl who adds cheese to reheated lasagne. Hey – as long as you point it, it’s fine!

Four Cheese Gnocchi Bake

400 g Broccoli, raw, broken into small florets

1/2 pack of Mushrooms

3 cloves Garlic

2 Leeks

200 g Cheese, soft, low fat 8pp

100 ml Milk, Semi Skimmed 1pp

50 g Cheese, Stilton, chopped 6pp

1 g Black pepper

400 g Gnocchi, Fresh 16pp

20 g Cheese, Parmesan 2pp

100g Low Fat Cheese - 8PP

= 41PP / 10PP per person

To reduce points: You do not need all this cheese. Of course you do not need all this cheese. But do you want all this cheese? I bet you do.

Top tip: To avoid having lots of different types of cheese in the fridge to 'use up' (uh oh), go to the cheese counter and ask the nice man to give you a small quantity of cheese.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C
2. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add the broccoli and cook for 4-5 minutes until just tender. Lift the broccoli from the saucepan with a draining spoon into a colander, saving the water in the saucepan.
3. Meanwhile, fry the mushrooms and leeks in a non-stick pan or wok with FryLight or a little water and the garlic cloves (crushed).
4. Stir in the soft cheese and add the milk. Stir until both are combined and smooth.
5. Add the Stilton and stir through - it should melt pretty quickly as it's only a small amount. Season the sauce with black pepper and any other spices you fancy.
6. Cook the gnocchi in the same water as the broccoli, according to pack instructions. Drain well.
5. Mix the gnocchi and broccoli with the cheese mixture and transfer to an ovenproof dish. Scatter the Parmesan cheese and low fat cheese over the surface and bake for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden.

Nutribox Review

2013-04-22T17:30:00.000+01:00

I’m always looking for healthy things to snack on at my desk when the 3pm munchies kick in and so I was pleased to be sent a NutriBox to review – a bit more exciting than just fruit which is what I normally have!

The box comes through the post and you can get it delivered to work, and every box contains a different selection of gluten-free healthy treats. In my box were:

Choc-Free fruit & nut mix

Tropical mix

Hot cross bun mix

Apple & Pear Braw Bar

Miss Wallflower Candy Raw Food Cookies

Pulsin Energy Bomb

Cashew & Pecan Bounce Bar

Probiot Dark chocolate Ombar

Cranberry & Mandarin dark chocolate Ombar

There’s a huge selection of snacks in the box and I actually ended up sharing it with my team at work. I loved the fruit and nut mixes but actually had to avoid some of the snacks because they were surprisingly high in Weight Watchers points.

Now, obviously there are different kinds of healthy eating and you often can’t combine two diets together and expect results. Some healthy eating plans recommend snacking on nuts and houmous, others tell you to avoid them because of the fat content. I think this is the same situation, the NutriBox is great if you are trying to make healthier choices all round, but if you are part of a set diet plan it may not be for you. The same would also probably apply for similar snack boxes though.

So overall, I think the box is great with a huge selection of products but is not really suitable for someone on Weight Watchers but if you have a gluten allergy and are struggling to find snacks you can eat, this is a great bet.

The NutriBox costs from £9.71 per box and you can find out more info here.

Melting Middle Pork & Apple burgers

2013-04-19T18:00:00.000+01:00

Sorry, my WW recipes have slipped over the past couple of weeks. I had a huge backlog when I started posting them so scheduled loads and it took me by surprise when they ran out! I'm back now, promise. With loads more!

Anyway, I've been really fancying two things since starting Weight Watchers - chips, and burgers. Not necessarily together, but definitely both. The thing is that when I'm eating out, I know that neither option is going to be WW-friendly and it's rare for me to have either at home. In the end though, that was how I gave in - I found out a few weeks ago that the fresh chips from M&S are just 4PP per 1/2 pack. They were SO tasty and completely satisfied my craving for PROPER chips! But this post isn't about the chips, it's about the burger.

It's a Saturday night tradition now for my best friend Sha and I to experiment with a Weight Watchers recipe (whilst gossiping in front of the telly, of course). We found this pork burger recipe on the Weight Watchers website here, but ended up changing it into something entirely different - including adding a melting cheese centre for only 1 extra propoint!

This recipe makes 4 servings - we actually only made 3 burgers with the ingredients as there were only 3 of us there. But they were HUGE, as you can see. We didn't even need a side course!

Melting Middle Pork & Apple burgers

500g Extra Lean Pork Mince (5% fat), raw - 19PP

1 tbsp Sweet Chilli Sauce - 1PP

1 egg - 2PP

4 Ciabatta Rolls - 24PP

4 Babybel Light - 4PP

120g Low Fat Cheese - 8PP

4 tbsp Caramelised Onion Chutney - 4PP

4 tsp Mayonnaise - 4PP

1 tsp Mixed Herbs - 0PP

1 tsp Cumin - 0PP

1/2 Onion - 0PP

1 Cooking Apple - 0PP

Salt & Pepper to season - 0PP

Salad, to serve

= 42PP (11PP per Serving - 14PP if you make 3)

To reduce points: Use lower PP bread or miss out the bread, leave out the mayo or onion chutney, don't have cheese on top.

1 - Finely chop or grate the onion and cooking apple into a large bowl
2 - Add the minced pork, egg, cumin, herbs, sweet chilli and salt & pepper, and mix together (using your hands is the most effective way, messy!). Use plenty of seasoning - you can't test these obviously until they are cooked, but as they are quite thick they risk being under salt so be relatively liberal.
3 - Split the mince mixture equally into 4.
4 - Unwrap the Babybels and shape each portion of the mince mixture into a burger around each Babybel
5 - Oven cook the burgers on a baking tray at 190c for about 30 minutes or until you're satisfied they're done. Warning - they're quite oozy, so you might not want to use a flat baking tray!
6 - Add 30g of low fat cheese to the top of each burger and pop back in the oven until melted.
7 - Serve in your Ciabatta rolls with the mayo, caramelised onion and salad. SO TASTY.

Babybel in the middle of burgers was genius! It holds together really well, but still melts in the middle. We really enjoyed these, but we feel like we could fine tune them and improve them in the future. I've also found a recipe for 0PP caramelised onion chutney so am definitely going to cook up a batch of that soon! I also think these would be amazing with apple sauce. Watch this space for more burger attempts!

Weight Loss Update: Sarah V

2013-04-18T17:30:00.000+01:00

I wanted to share these two photos with you as to be honest I am really pleased with myself! I hit my second major target at Weight Watchers this week and got my 10% keyring, which means I have lost 10% of my starting bodyweight, yay! I've lost over a stone and a half now since January, and while I would love it to be faster, it's been steadily coming off which suits me.

I tend to wear dresses most of the time and a lot of the stretchier ones have stayed fitting me throughout my weight gain and loss so it's sometimes hard to actually SEE the weight loss. All I've really noticed in myself is that my watch is looser, but there are still some clothes that don't fit me yet. I went back through my personal blog on the hunt for a 'Before' picture. I thought this pic was okay at the time but I can really see the difference now, especially in my face.

It's not just a numbers game though - I am eating a lot better, far less processed food plus I have more energy and just generally feel better in myself. As much as it's easy to focus on the scales going down I have been trying to make better choices and think about this as a lifestyle change, not as a diet.

I'd like to lose at least another stone but I'm taking each day as it comes. Focusing on making yummy, healthy food and trying to be active where I can is helping me slip into good habits, and for the first time in a long time, I feel like I can keep them up.

Review - Nakd Bars

2013-04-18T17:00:00.000+01:00

When I started doing 'clean eating' last year, one of the major things I immediately missed was my treat of a sweet snack in the afternoon. No more Fudge bars, no more bags of Haribo and no more biscuits from the tin in the staff room. On the plus side, I wasn't falling asleep at my desk at 4pm. On the down side, my stomach would growl mid-afternoon and my cup of tea started feeling a little bit lonely.

I have always been hugely jealous of people who love fruit. My boyfriend Tom would choose a fruit salad over any dessert on the menu and I have friends who will savour every bite of their afternoon apple and find it infinitely more satisfying than a chocolate digestive. Personally, I am a sugar fiend. And not eating all of those processed treats that were the foundation of my afternoons (and, my waistline, prior to starting clean eating) was tough. At that time I was getting guidance from my personal trainer, Charis, who directed me towards Nakd bars. Luckily they are not a suspicious sounding nightspot but instead they are a snack bar made from all natural ingredients like fruit and nuts, and they're also wheat, dairy and gluten free. Most excitingly they come in a range of amazing flavours, like Ginger Breat below, also Cocoa Orange, Rhubarb and Custard, Cashew Cookie and Apple Pie amongst others. They feel like such a treat and are absolutely delicious - they really stave off my sugary snack craving.

pack of 18 nakd bars* - £13.99

Nakd bars are available in supermarkets in packs or individually, or you can buy them in bulk at Natural Balance Foods. The pack of 18 bars of Ginger Bread above costs £13.99, which is a bit of a bargain if you consider that they're about 75p individually. Natural Balance Foods is a great website if you're looking to pick up healthy snacks and they also sell a range of Protein Bars as well as the Nakd bars.

I love all of the flavours of Nakd bars but the Ginger Bread is amazing, it really tastes like Gingerbread cake and has a really Christmassy feel, probably due to the ginger, cloves and cinnamon. Its other ingredients are dates, almonds and pecans and that's it - no added sugar and nothing artificial.

I believe that the Nakd bars vary in terms of their ProPoints if you're on Weight Watchers. The Banana Bread flavour is 2pp, Cocoa Mint is 3pp and Cocoa Orange is 4pp. I think that for people on Slimming World they vary between 7-11.5 syns because of the natural fruit sugars. So they might still be viewed as a treat depending on what diet you're following, but you can take comfort in knowing you're not putting anything artificial or processed into your body. Have you tried Nakd bars?

Popchips Healthy Snacking Tips and giveaway

2013-04-08T10:49:00.000+01:00

Never fried and never baked, popchips are popped just like popcorn. They have all the flavour but half the fat of fried crisps and less than 100 calories per serving. Sounds good right? Where Are My Knees have one case of 24 mixed flavours to give away.

The Where Are My Knees team have tried them (our favourites are the barbeque and thai sweet chilli) and they make a super tasty and guilt free snack. The Popchips pledge is: 'no fake colours, no fake flavours, no preservatives, no fluorescent orange fingertips, and no wiping your greasy chip hand on your jeans' so swapping your regular bag of crisps for a bag of popchips would be a smart move.

Consultant Nutritionist & Registered Dietitian, Azmina Govindji RD MBDA has the following snacking advice:

Regular meals and healthy snacks help you to stay energised and avoid binge eating.
A cup of hot soup or diet hot choc works wonders - great, filling comfort food!
When you’re on the go, make sure you have lower fat treats in the car or in your bag. Planning ahead can reduce those unhealthy impulse buys. Pack some popchips, a packet of nuts and raisins or some dried fruit the night before…
A colourful array of fruits and veggies gives you essential nutrients that help your energy levels and immune system.
Sometimes you’re not hungry but just need something to crunch. Keep a snack attack box in your fridge – e.g. carrot sticks, olives, cucumber sticks, cherry tomatoes, radishes, pickled onions.

Alternatively, try distracting yourself by doing something completely different like making a phone call or going for a walk – taking your mind off food will help to curb your craving.

Snack Swaps

Instead of	Choose	Why?
Regular crisps	popchips	Neither baked nor fried! Choosing popchips makes sure you’re getting around half the fat.
Regular hot chocolate with cream	Diet hot choc made with skimmed milk, sprinkle on a little cocoa powder	Skimmed milk is 0% fat yet in a hot drink it still adds creaminess, colour and flavour. Using a diet choc powder helps you cut down on sugar too.
Chocolate bar	Jaffa cakes	Jaffa cakes are lighter than regular chocolate.
Sugar-rich breakfast cereal	Bowl of porridge made with semi skimmed milk and dash of honey	Oats can help reduce your blood cholesterol and a little honey is likely to give you far less sugar than many breakfast cereals.

If you want to win the case of Popchips just leave a comment with your contact details below. For an extra entry you can follow @WhereAreMyKnees on twitter and let us know that you have done this in a comment on this post. The giveaway will end on the 18th of April at 9pm.

Shock Absorber Ultimate Gym Bra Review

2013-03-28T10:04:00.001Z

Shock Absorber recently, kindly sent me their new Gym Bra to review, but before I get stuck into how I put it through its paces, I'm going to backtrack a little. So...

Why wear a sports bra?

I think we would all agree that a good sports bra is an indispensable addition to a woman's gym gear collection. Just as it's recognised that a good pair of trainers are important for comfort and avoiding injury, so it should be that a good sports bra provides the same for women doing any form of exercise. Did you know that unsupported breasts move up to 12cm during exercise (up and down, and side to side). Are you all visualising that female runner in your neighbourhood, or at your gym class who really needs to wear a more supportive bra? Shock Absorber themselves have even done their own research and found that their sports bras reduce 'breast bounce' by up to 78%, which is twice as much as a normal bra. I guess the real clincher for women everywhere is that not wearing a sports bra can cause ligament damage and tissue damage that can cause sagging (and can't be reversed). No thanks!

Okay, so why Shock Absorber?

A while ago, I tricked myself into thinking that I could buy a 'cheap' sports bra, and that it would do the same thing. I couldn't face the thought of shelling out £30 on a sports bra and so bought one for about £7 from a high street sports shop. My gym is one of those ones that caters for the egotistical (okay, those who want to improve their 'technique', yeah yeah...) and has huge floor length mirrors and I was pretty horrified by what I saw when jogging on the treadmill. Not generally (well, kind of) but specifically in the chest area. There was a whole lot of movement, and a whole lot of discomfort. For someone aiming to do lots more running on the treadmill and the road, this is just not practical. So the Shock Absorber bra came at a great time for me. They really are the crème de la crème of sports bras - high quality, well-made and with lots of little details that aid comfort and support. Cheap sports bras really are a false economy - I'm afraid this is one item in your gym kit that you're going to have to spend a little money on.

Shock Absorber Ultimate Gym Bra, £35*

Ultimate Gym Bra review

Okay, so let's look at the Shock Absorber Ultimate Gym Bra itself. New to their Spring/Summer range and available on House of Fraser for £35, it's designed for the gym go-er but built with all types of sports activity in mind. It comes in sizes 32A - 38H, and features thoughtful little additions like a seam free inner lining for comfort, a padded hook and eye section for if you're doing mat work, padded and non-slip straps and even a hook for your headphones. The back section has two openings which I must admit befuddled me when trying to get it on for its first wear. The first thing I want to express about this bra is that it is not a lightweight, slip on, 'almost like you're not wearing it' kind of sports bra. It is the 'tank' of sports bras. It is heavy duty. Those boobs are not moving a millimetre. I worked out that the trick to getting it on is to do up the top bit, yank it over your head and then do up the hook and eye section. When on, it feels very solid. I was slightly worried when I first had it on that it was going to be supportive to the point of discomfort - it really does hold you in place and I wondered what that would be like when running. Luckily I had nothing to worry about.

I took the bra out for a run to give it a road test. After a few seconds of running my concerns that it would be, almost too supportive ebbed away. It held me in place but didn't hurt or rub and when I took it off post-run there was no discomfort or marks (I'd been concerned that a heavy-duty sports bra of this nature would leave marks or rubbing, but it definitely didn't). Since then this has been my 'go to' sports bra - it is comfortable, supportive and the colour and style looks great under a vest or running top which isn't always a deciding factor but is nice nonetheless.

I would have no reservations in recommending this bra - it is well-worth its price tag and a great investment. Just take note that what you're buying is not a lightweight, 'slip it on' type bra - it is built for support, and, trust me, support it will.

Creamy Chorizo, Mushroom & Spinach Pasta Bake

2013-03-27T18:00:00.000Z

So the other week I made my Spaghetti Bolognese for the third or fourth time, and it was just... meh. Usually it is CRAZY yummy and I spend the whole time totally over the moon that this giant tasty plate is only 8PP! Ah! But I don't know what I did, it wasn't as good. So I was like, 'OKAY. I am not going to be able to live on Spaghetti Bolognese until payday. WHAT CAN I MAKE THAT IS AWESOME.'

So I invented this! It was just going to be a pasta thing but then I turned it into a bake because that makes it totally acceptable to add lots of cheese. And this has LOADS OF CHEESE. I haven't mentioned that I like cheese, have I?

Creamy Chorizo, Mushroom & SpinachPasta Bake

200g Raw Chorizo Sausages - 13PP

(based on 1/2 pack of Sainsburys Chorizo Chipolata Sausages - I froze the rest)

1 Can Bachelors or Campbells Low Fat Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup - 4PP

115ml milk (or less) - 1PP

1 tbsp Pesto Sauce - 2PP

200g Pasta - 19PP

150g Low Fat Cheese - 12PP

200g Spinach - 0PP

6 x Mushrooms - 0PP

1 x Onion - 0PP

1 x Pepper - 0PP

2 cloves garlic - 0PP

=48PP / 12PP per portion

To reduce points: use less cheese, uese less chorizo, cut out the pesto

1 - Put your pasta on to cook as per the packet instructions and preheat the oven to 200c.
2 - Chop up your chorizo (I use scissors) and fry it either dry, with a couple of spritzes of FryLight or with a splash of water.
3 - You can use cooked chorizo here, I just much prefer cooking it raw (also I had the second half of the pack from last week to use up) because all the juices ooze out and give all your veg a yummy flavour.
4 - Chop up your veg (onions, mushrooms, pepper) and when the chorizo is cooked, add to your pan along with your garlic.
5 - Leave the veg to soften for 10 minutes or so (with a lid on if you have one) and then add your spinach. Leave it for a few minutes with the lid on to wilt. It will look like a RIDICULOUS amount at first but you'll be shocked at how much it reduces!
6 - Stir the pesto into the pan to coat all the vegetables and the chorizo
7 - Add the can of soup and some milk (I tend to just add a splash rather than measuring it) and then stir it all up so it combines and forms a smooth sauce
8 - Taste it and decide if you want to add any more seasoning - I added more garlic, a bit of salt and pepper and some rosemary, thyme and oregano.
9 - When cooked, drain the pasta and add to the sauce, stirring all together.
10 - Transfer the pasta mixture to a large ovenproof tray and then add the cheese over the top.
11 - Pop in the oven for about 15 minutes.
12 - When done, divide into 4 portions and eat one of them aaaall up. YUM.

Eggscellent Easter Treats

2013-03-26T11:00:00.000Z

Easter is only a few days away not but try not to worry too much. You might be tempted to fall off the wagon, over indulge and feel guilty after but you can easily avoid this. The Weight Watchers plan is really flexible and you can treat yourself to a whole egg if you like by saving up your weekly budget of 49 points.

I normally tell friends and family who usually give me chocolate that I would prefer something else or nothing at all. I'm 25 now and can go and get my own Easter egg if I really want one, seems silly that I still get them every year. If I do still end up receiving an unexpected Easter egg I share it with everyone or use the online calculator to work out the ProPoints values of a chocolate egg and break it up into portions that fit in to my daily budget. This year I'm going to buy myself one of the £1 Cadbury eggs and eat it over the Bank Holiday as a treat but only if I have enough weekly points left.

If you wanted to have a go at making something yourself then try these tasty looking Mini Chocolate Easter Cheesecakes over on the Weight Watchers site for just 4 ProPoints each.

If you want to indulge this weekend then here is a little guide to tempting treats:

Food	ProPoints values
Cadbury Giant Creme Egg 532g	44
1 Lindt Gold Bunny (200g)	30
Green And Black's Dark Chocolate Thick Shell Egg 180g	28
Milky bar barn 160g - 9 points for whole egg + 15 points for the cow	24
1 Smarties Easter Egg (111g) - (38g tube of Smarties included has an extra ProPoints value of 5)	16
Cadbury Egg 'N' Spoon Double Chocolate 136g	6
1 Cadbury Mini Eggs (45g ctube)	6
1 Cadbury Creme Egg (40g)	5
1 Co-operative Healthier Choice Hot Cross Bun (60g)	4
1 slice Warburtons Hot Cross Bun Loaf (35g)	3
1 Weight Watchers Chewy Honeycomb Crunch Bar	2
Before you eat anything this Easter… ask yourself if it’s worth the ProPoints values. Whatever you do, keep tracking Tracking makes you more aware of what you’re eating.

Sunday Summary 91

2013-03-23T19:06:00.000Z

The WAMK girls all together last weekend!

Sarah V - I missed my Monday weigh in due to a nasty cold but since I last checked in, I've lost another 2lbs taking my total weight loss to 17.5lbs since 7th January. After the cakefest of last weekend with the other WAMK girls (which was amazing!) I've had a pretty healthy week, so I'm hoping that loss has gone up a bit more by my weigh in tomorrow! I am only 3lbs from my 10% and it would be amazing to do it before Easter - fingers crossed!

Gemma - After a weekend of cake at Norbury Manor and not being able to get out and do as much running as I would like due to the weather I'm really happy with a 1lb loss this week. I've got something on most evenings this week so I'm going to try and walk on my lunch break and fit in the 30 Day Shred before I go to bed to counteract all the nights out and events I'm going to. I'm going try and make senisible choices when I eat out and limit my alcohol intake on the weekend. Chicken salads and a couple of vodka and diet cokes shouldn't send me too far off plan.

Chorizo Tomato Pasta

2013-03-20T18:00:00.000Z

This is one of my favourite dinners and I've been meaning to ProPoint it up to see if I can do it WW style. It turns out I can, and the only major change I've made is reducing the pasta portions and not adding any oil other than FryLight. I've also only used half a pack of chorizo - but if you wanted to make it extra meaty, using the whole packet would only add an extra 3PP per person. It's super fast to throw together and is really rich and comforting.

I really recommend using raw chorizo sausages, rather than the pre-cooked stuff - it means all the sauces will ooze out into the pan and will give everything an extra amazing flavour. Now, of course you can mix this up with the vegetables and the seasoning, but this is exactly how I always do it and it always comes out really tasty. I actually cannot express enough how much I love this dish! It's amazing.

I always think of this as a 'payday dinner' because chorizo isn't an everyday ingredient in my house - it's not that cheap! I quite often make this with the gnarly posh mushrooms from Tesco. They make it extra amazing, as do shiitake ones! But normal mushrooms work too. I just think, if a yummy dinner is worth doing, it's worth doing PROPERLY.

Makes 4 servings:

Chorizo Tomato Pasta
200g Raw Chorizo Sausages - 13PP
(based on 1/2 pack of Sainsburys Chorizo Chipolata Sausages - I froze the rest)
1 glass Red wine - 3PP
30 x Black Olives - 3PP
260g Pasta - 24PP
4 sprays Frylight - 0PP
1 carton Passata - 0PP
6 x Mushrooms - 0PP
1 x Onion - 0PP
1 x Red Pepper - 0PP
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar - 0PP
2 tbsp Artificial Sweetener - 0PP
2 tsp Smoked Paprika - 0PP
1 clove garlic - 0PP
1 small chilli - 0PP
43PP (11PP per serving)

To reduce points - Cut down on the chorizo, leave out the wine or olives, use smaller pasta portions.

1 - Boil the pasta as per the package instructions.
2 - Chop up the chorizo and fry in a non-stick pan or wok with a few sprays of Frylight.
3 - When cooked, throw in the chopped onion, mushrooms and pepper and let them cook through (pop the lid on to speed it up if you like).
4 - When the vegetables have all softened, pour in the carton of passata along with the red wine.
5 - Chop up your olives, or leave them whole, and add them to the pan.
6 - Now add your seasoning - this combination is pretty foolproof and will create a lovely, rich sauce. Stir in 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar, along with 2 tbsp artificial sweetener (you can also use normal sugar, but it's not 0PP like sweetener is).

7 - Add a clove of garlic and one small red chilli (I actually just use half a teaspoon of the 'So Lazy' jars) along with 2 tsp of smoked paprika.
8 - Stir it all in and turn up the heat a bit to let it all bubble away. Give it about 10 minutes to bubble and the sauce should reduce massively and go lovely and thick.
9 - When you're happy with it, drain the pasta and stir it into the sauce. And that's it! IT'S SO TASTY. I could quite happily eat this every day for a week. And probably will. YUM.

Tasty Tortilla Pizzas

2013-03-13T18:00:00.001Z

One of the reasons that Weight Watchers is really working for me is that I'm doing it with my best friend. So she's right there with me when temptation strikes, and we've been spending our Saturday nights experimenting with Weight Watchers recipes, rather than our old habit of drinking our body weight in red wine and eating lots of unhealthy nibbles.

The other week we decided to have a tortilla pizza party, which is nowhere near as lame as it sounds even though it was totally just us having the party and no one else. This is such a good way to have a really tasty dinner - WITH CHEESE - but it's low point!

We made two pizzas and had half of each, and ended up using 11PP each. You could use whatever you wanted as toppings, but here's what we did:

Olive & Pepper Pizza

1 Weight Watchers Tortilla - 3PP

1/2 Pot Tesco Fresh Salsa - 0PP

10 x Green Olives, in Brine - 1PP

50g Low Fat Cheese - 4PP

1/2 Dry Roasted Red Pepper - 0PP

=8PP

1 - Place the tortilla onto an oven proof tin, either non-stick or foil covered. The tortillas can stick in the middle so I highly recommend using foil.
2 - Cover the tortilla in salsa as your tomatoey pizza base.
3 - Add your toppings - we'd pre-roasted the peppers, so added them, some sliced olives and then sprinkle cheese over the top.
4 - Cook under the grill for about 10 minutes, or until browning at the sides. Check constantly to ensure it doesn't burn and then eat immediately!

Feta, Caramelised Onion & Bacon Pizza

1 Weight Watchers Tortilla - 3PP

2 tbsp caramelised onion chutney - 2PP

3 bacon medallions - 2PP

50g Feta cheese - 4PP

1/2 Dry Roasted Red Pepper - 0PP

25g Low Fat Cheese - 2PP

=13PP

1 - Place the tortilla on an oven proof tin as before
2 - Cover the tortilla in caramelised onion (this is your base instead of tomato sauce)
3 - Add toppings - we'd pre-roasted the peppers and pre-fried the bacon so just popped it all off and sprinkled the cheese over the top. Eat immediately, again!
4 - Cook under the grill for about 10 minutes, or until browning at the sides. Check constantly to ensure it doesn't burn and then eat immediately!

To reduce points - use less cheese, use more free foods as toppings

As we had half of each pizza apiece, it worked out at 11PP each. Served along with 0PP butternut squash wedges, it was SUCH a tasty dinner. Also, so cheesy! Yum. I want to make a Hawaiian next...

Sunday Summary 90

2013-03-10T21:10:00.002Z

Hey! Another week done and dusted, how have you gotten on?

Sarah - I am happy to say I've lost 2lbs this week bringing my total lost to 17lbs in 10 or so weeks, a little miracle for me! It was standing at -3lbs yesterday but the super slutty brownies I baked yesterday robbed me of that other 1lb. They were bloody good though!

Sarah V - At my weigh in on Monday I'd lost another 1lb taking my total loss to 15 1/2lbs since January 7th. My WW buddy Sha did her 10% this week too! I've got about 5lbs to go. :) This week a few people have commented on the fact that I look slimmer, and I've tried on a couple of dresses that didn't fit me a month ago and they now do - hooray! I had a very boozy night on Sunday but I think food-wise I've stayed just about on track. I am always quite nervous about using my 49 weekly points but I need to get over it, treats are allowed!

Gemma - I lost 1lb this week and I was super strict all week but was a little too busy to fit a lot of exercise in so I'm hoping for a bit more of a loss next time. I just ordered my first pair of trainers since the ones I had for PE in school so I'm aiming to get out for a few runs a week and extra long walks with my dog. I had an American style breakfast today as a bit of a hangover cure, need to learn to say no. Maple syrup is not Weight Watchers friendly!

Rosie - This week has been a tough week for me 'life wise' with a lot of long days at work, a couple of days away from home and quite a lot of stress which has meant it has been a less than perfect week in terms of diet, with next to no exercise. It made me realise that the key for weight loss for me is preparation as being all over the place this week meant eating out and grabbing things from the cupboard that weren't great choices and not scheduling in swims and gym time meant my exercising massively slipped. I actually still managed to lose a lb which makes me feel more motivated to have a perfect week this week as if I can lose a lb when I'm just making good choices 80% of the time it shows what could happen if I'm disciplined and stay on track. I'm still not at what I was before Christmas so I really need to focus and work hard over the next few weeks so I can see results.

Next Sunday the four WAMK girls will be away together (with some other lovely girlies!) So we will try and update you all on our progress before we leave on the Saturday :)

Out To Lunch

2013-03-07T12:03:00.002Z

You’re more likely to eat lunch away from home than any other meal. I generally take food to work with me about three days a week and meet friends or colleagues for lunch one day and treat myself to a Costa Coffee lunch on a Friday.

According to my pension report I wont be able to retire until 2052 (so depressing!) and the thought of taking a boring sandwich and yogurt in to work every day for all those years fills me with dread. My colleagues think I'm insane when I'm popping left over Chinese food or stew in the microwave but I find eating a varied and exciting lunch really helps to keep me on track. Also, I live in Wales which means it's cold and rains a lot so I like a hot lunch rather than a salad or sandwich in the winter.

At the beginning of the week I take loads of fruit to work with me so I'm only weighed down for one day and I tend to snack on this while I wait for my lunch to heat up which helps to curb my appetite. I always have a cuppa soup and coffee sachet in my handbag just in case I'm running late for work one day and don't have time to prepare anything in the morning.

If I'm meeting friends for lunch in town I pick up something from the M&S Count on Us range which has all the ProPoints on the back, very handy if you don't have you're eating out guide with you of if you haven't planned ahead. Most sandwiches in the range are around 7 ProPoints and they have some lovely desserts for about 3 ProPoints if you fancy a treat. The Weight Watchers range is also very convenient, you know exactly what points values the foods are and all the major supermarkets stock them. I find the Weight Watchers App super handy on my lunch break. With the ProPoints values of thousands of foods at my fingertips, it’s easy to choose a healthy and filling lunch, or to decide if I enough room in your budget for one of those ‘Oh, go on then’ moments. I'm currently always thinking 'Do I have enough points for a Creme Egg?' on a Friday afternoon.

I also use my lunch break to try and squeeze in a bit of activity. My lunch break is the only time I get to myself all day. Instead of checking my emails and twitter on my break I try and get out for a walk, even if it's just popping to the shop to get the newspaper. You could walk or even drive to a nearby park with a colleague and spend 15 minutes briskly walking. Making it a weekly lunchtime commitment would be a great idea.

Need some inspiration for your packed lunch? Check out these five lovely and light lunch ideas.

Low Fat Lasagne

2013-03-06T18:00:00.000Z

So, here's a not very well kept secret: lasagne is basically Spaghetti Bolognese, served differently. So, I didn't use a set recipe for this, instead I used knowledge from previous recipes (the soup is my sister's addition) and the bolognese recipe as a base.

This is a slightly decadent version but it still only comes out at 11PP per person, and the portion sizes were OBSCENE. After my first portion, I divided the remaining 3/4 into five portions. It's huge. It's really tasty, too - I always pack my tomato based sauces full of seasoning, I like them rich and full of flavour and so adding a cheeky glass of red wine into this means it really doesn't taste like a low fat meal!

Lasagne

Ingredients
6 x Fresh Lasagne Sheets = 11PP
4 sprays Frylight - 0PP
500g Extra Lean (5% fat) Beef Mince - 16PP
1 Stock Cube (Veg, Beef or Chicken) made with 200ml hot water - 1PP
1 carton Passata - 0PP
1 can chopped Tomatoes - 0PP
1 can low fat Mushroom soup = 4PP
100g low fat cheese = 7PP
1 tbsp Sweet Chilli Sauce = 1PP
Glass of Red = 3PP
=43PP (11PP per serving based on 4 portions, 7PP based on 6 portions)

Whatever vegetables you like! I used:
1 large Onion, chopped
1/2 large Courgette, chopped
1 red & 1 yellow Pepper, chopped
7 mushrooms, chopped
3 sticks celery, chopped
=0PP

Seasoning - again, go nuts! I used:
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp smoked Paprika
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp artificial sweetener
Pinch of oregano, rosemary, basil
1/2 tsp chilli
Salt & Pepper
=0PP
To reduce points - bulk out with more vegetables, use Quorn mince (12PP for 500g), cut out the red wine or sweet chilli sauce, or use less cheese

Make the tomato sauce as you would Bolognese, which I'll go over again:
1 - Use a large saucepan or a wok and spray with FryLight, then add the mince and cook over a high heat. Don’t stir immediately, as you want the meat to really brown on the base, so give it a few moments – then turn to sear and brown on all sides.
2 - Add everything else and cook for 30 minutes with the lid on to enable the vegetables to soften.
3 - Add any further seasoning you fancy, stir it all up and then leave for 5-10 minutes with the lid off to bubble away and to reduce down. It might look sloppy but it will reduce a lot if you leave it to bubble, so just let it do its thing and it'll go lovely and thick.

Assemble your lasagne:
1 - Using a large, rectangular oven-proof dish and spoon about half of the tomato meat sauce onto the bottom, completely covering it.
2 - Layer 3 of the lasagne sheets over the top.
3 - Spoon the other half of the tomato meat sauce over the sheets, completely covering them.
4 - Layer another 3 lasagne sheets over the top.
5 - Spoon the can of mushroom soup (undiluted) over the lasagne sheets, completely covering them
6 - Sprinkle cheese on top.
7 - Place in the oven at 180c for 30-35 minutes.

Yum! The best bit was, when eating the leftovers I had a few nights where I had a couple of points left over, sooo... extra cheese it is! Hooray!

When I make this again, I plan to cut it into 6 portions but am tempted to increase the cheese and the soup. If I doubled both it would still only be 9PP... definitely the way forward!