Weight Watcher's Buttermilk "Fried" Chicken

This is very easy and VERY good!

Weight Watcher's Buttermilk "Fried" Chicken

1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. hot sauce
2 chicken breast halves, skinned
2 chicken drumsticks, skinned
2 chicken thighs, skinned
1 (5.25oz) package whole wheat Melba toast rounds, coarsely crushed
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
Cooking Spray

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag. Add chicken; seal bag and shake gently to coat chicken. Marinate in refrigerator at least 6 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

3. Combine melba toast crumbs and next 6 ingredients in a shallow dish. Remove chicken from bag and discard marinade. Sprinkle chicken with salt. Dredge chicken in crumb misture, pressing crumbs gently onto chicken to coat.

4. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat foil with cooking spray. Place chicken on prepared pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until the chicken is done.

Makes 4 servings (1 breast half OR 1 thigh and 1 drumstick)
Points value: 4
Exchanges: 1 starch, 7 very lean meat, 1/2 fat

353 calories
52.1g protein
6.4g fat
1.6g sat fat
18.1g carbs
1.6g fiber
157mg chol
3mg iron
476mg sodium
58mg calcium

Served with Smashed Red Potatoes

Bedtime for Buddy

Buddy is so good when it comes to bedtime...

"Are you guys coming?"

"I'm too tired to wait..." Thanks for humoring me while I test my picture posting skills... Danilynn

I'm coming back!

Just a quick note to say I am hoping to get this blog up and going again. I have been trying great new Weight Watchers recipes and can't wait to share them! I also want to share some of my favorites along with pictures (as soon as I figure out how to add pictures to my blog!). Stay tuned! Danilynn

What's for Dinner Pt. 2

The Italian Stew was wonderful. The vegetables were nice and tender and the herbs cooked throughout everything made it unlike anything I'd had before. I will definately make it again. The only problem I had with it was the time it took to make it. From start to finish was 1 hour and 45 minutes. It was a good Sunday meal to make since I don't have much time on weeknights to make something like this. I would like to try to make it in the crockpot sometime and see if it turns out the same. Take the time to try it, it's worth the time.

DaniLynn

What's for Dinner?

My Mom found this recipe in one of my new cookbooks. It is cooking right now and smells very good. Here is it:

Italian Sausage Stew
From: Taste of Home Dinner on a Dime

1-1/2 lbs Italian sausage links, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used Jenni-O)
3 cups water
4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 medium carrots, cut into chunks
2 celery ribs, cut into chunks
2 small onions, cut into wedges
1/4 cup Worchestershire sauce
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. each dried basil, thyme and rosemary, crushed
1 bay leaf
Salt & Pepper to taste
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 large green or sweet red pepper, cut into chunks (I used red)
1 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley, or 1 tsp. dried parsley
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. cold water

In a Dutch over over medium heat, brown sausage; drain. Add water, potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, Worchestershire sauce and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook over low heat for 1 hour or until vegetables are tender.

Add ketchup, green/red pepper and parsley; cook 12-15 minutes longer or until pepper is tender. Discard bay leaf

Combine cornstarch and cold water until smooth; stir into stew. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Yield: 6 servings.

I'll let you know how it tastes later. It's time for me to go add the rest of the ingredients and make some garlic bread to go with it! Have a great evening!

DaniLynn

Five ? Friday

1. If you had the opportunity to bungee jump, would you? Never!!!

2. Would you rather go to the movie theater or to the drive-in? I love the drive-in, but I haven't been to either in years!

3. Do you have your groceries delivered? We don't have delivery service where I live... besides what would I do with myself if I couldn't hit people with my cart!

4. Eyebrows: Do you wax, thread, pluck, or stay au naturel? I pluck the strays to keep myself from getting the dreaded uni-brow!

5. Would the people you went to high school with be surprised by your life today? Hard to say. I know I'm not where I planned to be, but I'm happy and I think that's all people will see.

And a new journey begins....

Some of you may know that I have been struggling with my weight my whole life. Add arthritis, limited mobility and food addiction and you have a deadly combination. Back when I was working (up until 1999), I was 125 pounds lighter than I am now. Since I quit working and smoking, it seems the pounds just continue to add on. I try to be as active as I can, but I'm still limited in how far I can push myself. At home, my workout might include a half mile walk or 5 minutes on the elliptical trainer, but then I'm down and in pain for 2 days. Chuck bought me a Wii and the games I asked for to go with it. Progress was still slow because of the pain. Since the weather turned warmer, the pain has eased a bit and I am able to walk more often without so much pain, but of course the rain has to come along and mess with me! Then there is the food addiction... I will do go for a long time with eating the right things and the right amounts, the I will have a dish of ice cream or a piece of cake and it's all over. That's all I want to eat! Yesterday for lunch I had some chips with dip and a bowl of ice cream... no substance, just junk... and for a snack later, I had a rice krispie treat. Sad, I know.... Don't get me wrong, I love love love fresh fruits and veggies and I could eat them all day, but nothing beats Triple Peanut Butter ice cream!

So here's where the new journey begins. We are officially members of a fitness club. We have access to all the equipment 24 hours a day. I don't intend on going to the gym at 3am, but at least I know I can go when it is convenient for me. I'm a bit scared about the unknown... the pain, the new environment, the pain.... but it's time I do this for myself. Taking the weight off would help ease the pain in my joints and keep me around to watch my nieces grow up and spend time with my family. Wish me luck on this new phase in my life!

Danilynn