Weight Watchers Wednesday

I decided that I would start a new feature on my blog: Weight Watchers Wednesday.

Every Wednesday, I will update you on my progress, pass along any helpful tips I have (if I have any) and post a favorite recipe and its points value.

I weighed myself on Monday, a week after starting Weight Watchers, and I had lost 4 pounds. A good start.

I can only reasonably expect the loss to be 1-2 pounds per week moving forward, but the first week loss is always a nice confidence boost.

This week’s recipe is one of my favorite. My long-time readers have surely seen me mention it before.

Slow Cooker Red Beans and Barley

• 1 cup uncooked barley — rinsed (use long-cooking variety; not quick barley)
• 1 small red onion — finely chopped
• 1 large stalk celery — chopped
• 1 medium garlic clove(s) — minced
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes — crushed, or more to taste
• 15 oz canned kidney beans — drained and rinsed
• 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
• 2 piece bay leaf
• 3 cups fat-free vegetable or chicken broth
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt

Place all ingredients in order listed in a 5-quart slow cooker. Do not stir.

Cover and cook at low setting of slow cooker for 7 hours. Stir and serve. Yields about 1 1/3 cup per serving.

Makes 6 servings.
Points: 4

Suggestions: Use fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, if available, to give this recipe a robust smoky taste.

I add 1 Tbsp chili powder and 2 tsp cumin to give it a Tex-Mex flair, then pair it with…

Corn Bread

• 1 cup uncooked cornmeal, yellow
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp table salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 14 3/4 oz cream-style corn, canned
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 large egg white(s)
• 2 tsp corn oil

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat an 8-inch square cake pan with cooking spray.

Combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a large bowl. Mix well with a fork, then make a well in the center; set aside.

Combine creamed corn, buttermilk, egg whites and oil in a medium bowl; mix until blended. Fold mixture into dry ingredients; mix until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Allow to cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool completely before cutting into 8 squares.

Points: 3

Points permitting, the Red Beans and Barley is also great with turkey kielbasa.