Hey where is everybody?? I never start the thread. Hope you all had a nice weekend. Saturday was a complete wash out here, with severe rain and flooding in some areas. We actaully lost power for several hours. Sunday was much nicer. Hopefully no more rain this week.

I had a busy weekend; it was the closing week for "The Odd Couple." We had fantastic audiences on Saturday and Sunday--lots of laughs. My sister drove over to see it and she enjoyed it. She was shocked by my blonde hair, but she liked it. DH and I played a little golf--it wasn't too hot out. The rest of the weekend was very hot--90's.

Eating-wise, I had done really well last week and then I went to the cast party on Sunday--I ate way too much. It was a pot luck and I wanted to sample everything. I brought a low-point shrimp dip which was fine, but it was everything else I ate.

Pam, you've had a wet summer, haven't you?

lala, congrats on your weight loss--that's great. I hope I can say the same next month during my WI.

Hello to the rest of the lifers!

Hi everyone,

It rained here too, we must have had over an inch on Sunday. It was a bit defective according to the dog as he melts.

Did mostly indoor stuff -- cleaned out the basement, got rid of lots of grad school gack and a bunch of textbooks -- biochemistry anyone? Also shredded 1994-1998 bills and found $6400 in savings bonds that I had misplaced. Nice find, eh? Better put those in the safe deposit box.

I also came to the realization that its time to talk to a financial planner as it seems that other than putting away for retirement via TIAA-CREF, property, and into IRA's, I'm not really saving any money... So, maybe someone needs to make me do it. I don't think I'll be eating catfood, but I wouldn't mind retiring at say 55 instead of 75.

I also filled out my www.flylady.net control journal I bought last year. It was great. I need to add some of my own stuff, but I am soo happy that its done.

I ate too much too. We went out Friday and Saturday nights and had friends over last night. I was okay at home, but I did have some peach cobbler with ice cream, at least I worked out both days.

Lisa-- sounds like your play was a success! What is next?

Pam --we needed the rain. I'm not sure you did!

I hope Melissa is well and Susan is enjoying her holiday! Two weeks from today I'll be in Jumieges enjoying an crumbling abbey and enjoying Norman history.

lala

Boy, did we have a storm yesterday evening; lots of lightning. I fell asleep watching the Olympics. Today I have low-point crockpot lasagne cooking. It will be nice to get home and have dinner ready.

lala, Congrats on finding the bonds. That was a surprise. I hear you about the retirement stuff. I had such plans to retire at 60, but it doesn't look like that will happen. I'm not saving as much as I'd like to. I'm taking a break from shows for a little while. I've been in some sort of production since January, so I need a breather. I heard that a local group is doing Sound of Music, one of my favorites, so I might get involved in that. I've played Mother Abbess before.

Hello, Melissa, Susan and Pam

Lisa -- I love the sound of music!

Rainy here again. The dog is not pleased as he melts when water is added. My lawn is loving it as are the slugs. I started playing around with the core plan. I think it works well for me and I made a greek eggplant moussaka thing for dinner tonight to try it out.

I have to say that I'll be using my flexies on things like real cheese. There is no way DP will eat low fat cheese. We are blessed with an abundance of veggies right now so I'm skimming the WW recipes to figure out how to use them.

I think I have convinced DP that a crock pot is not evil. I am going to borrow a friends and try a few things. The idea of making something in the am and not rushing home to make dinner is appealing. Then again, she's only home Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights for the forseeable future, so I think its moot for the fall.

Hope everyone else is dandy. I have a white paper to budget for today and two proposals to start!

yikes.

lala

Good afternoon! It's been crazy here--the students have arrived and yesterday flew by. I swear it felt more like 2 days rolled into one! Anyway, I survived and today was a little quieter.

The weather here has taken and made a 360...it's warm & humid and the forecasters are saying it'll be our longest spell of heat all summer! Tomorrow's high is supposed to be 86 and the rest of the week is looking the same. No rain for a bit but there'll be a chance of t'storms with the humidity.

I haven't really had the opportunity to get a full week of the core program under my belt but have gotten 5 days in a row a week ago. It was tough trying to do things with the family around. The new Turnaround cookbook has some great recipes in it that I'm itching to try. I'm going to give core a full attempt this week since I don't have anything major looming in terms of picnics, weddings, etc. It takes planning just like the fast track.

Lala I'm finally getting some ripe tomatoes from the garden and I'm ecstatic--I LOVE fresh tomatoes! Like you, I'll be using my points allowance on cheese & light bread for my sandwiches. I gotta get some core snacks together.

Pam: Thanks for getting the thread up and running this week! Hopefully the rain hasn't returned and that you'll get some nice weather too!

Lisa: I love having dinner ready to go when I get home from work. Tonight we're grilling hamburgers and I'm going to throw something else together to go with it. Maybe some grilled zucchini and a couscous salad.

Catch up with everyone more tomorrow.

Mmmm, fresh veggies. I think sauteed zucchini and yellow squash would be great. Eggplant moussaka sounds good. Could you post the recipe?

I love my crock pot. I make all sorts of things in it.

I'm on a proposal, too. They're so much fun, aren't they??

argh i'm starving. I already had half of a luna bar (2 pts) of my flexies and eyeing the second half....

no core foods short of carrots at work...

grrr.

Eggplant and Greek Chicken casserole

Core Recipe
Servings | 6
Preparation Time | 25 min
Cooking Time | 75 min
Level of Difficulty | Difficult

main meals | We put a spin on moussaka with this mouth-watering casserole. Chicken replaces lamb or beef, and a zesty tomato sauce is used instead of Béchamel. You won’t miss all that fat for a second!


Ingredients

2 serving olive oil cooking spray (5 one-second sprays per serving)
2 medium eggplant(s), peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
3/4 tsp table salt
1 pound uncooked ground chicken breast
1 cup onion(s), sliced
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
2 Tbsp parsley, fresh, chopped
1/3 tsp dried parsley
1/3 tsp chives, dried
1/3 tsp dried tarragon
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
28 oz canned diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp canned tomato paste
3/4 cup Kraft Non-Fat Grated Cheese Topping, or other brand


Instructions


Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat an 9 X 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.


Lay eggplant slices on paper towels and cover top with 3/4 teaspoon of salt. Let stand 20 minutes to draw moisture out.


Meanwhile, coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until browned, breaking up meat as it cooks, about 5 minutes. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is soft, about 3 minutes more. Add fresh parsley, dried herbs, cinnamon, nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper, and stir to coat. Cook 1 minute, until herbs and spices are fragrant. (Note: You can replace the dried parsley, dried chives and dried tarragon with 1 teaspoon total of 'fines herbes,' if desired.)


Add tomatoes and tomato paste and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside.


Coat surface of same skillet with cooking spray (off heat) and set pan over medium-high heat. Wipe salt from eggplant slices with paper towel and add eggplant to hot skillet. Cook, until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side.


Arrange half of eggplant slices in bottom of prepared baking pan, slightly overlapping pieces to cover entire surface of pan. Top eggplant with chicken mixture and then top chicken with 1/4 cup of grated topping. Top with remaining eggplant slices and remaining grated topping.


Bake until top is golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 45 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, slice into 6 pieces and serve.


lalala's notes: I used turkey breast meat, its what I had. I also added a few sliced mushrooms that were in need of cooking. I also didn't add the tomato paste, just added a bit of water to the remaining tomato sauce in can. I think I used trader joe's organic tomatoes in sauce. I ended up having to cut the tomatoes into pieces with my kitchen shears as they were whole tomatoes.

I could not deign myself or my tallest half to eat "3/4 cup Kraft Non-Fat Grated Cheese Topping, or other brand " so, we used real parmesan. Points be damned, I have principles and taste buds! Besides, she wouldn't eat anything that is that processed .

Thanks, lala. That looks great.

Hi everyone,

I am pooped. However, we have a proposal to get out today, so I better get cracking.

I am still not understanding this core thing.. Has anyone read through the whole thing?

Rainy here, thunderstorms tonight, cat and dog are not impressed and I fear for my tomatoes. I hope they don't get blight.

more later,

lala

Hi everyone! It's hazy, hot, humid here--85 balmy degrees and tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer. Ugh! I shouldn't really complain because the heat will ripen all those tomatoes that are sitting in my garden

Lala, I have read the program info on Core (we've had it since March). Basically you eat until you feel satisfied (not stuffed)/comfortable. It's okay to eat smaller meals/snacks throughout the day. That's the hard part--getting into the thinking that it's okay to snack if you need to. The foods that are not on the core list you take from your weekly points allowance (like the cheese). I'm still marking things down so I can have a "visual" of what I'm eating. I'm going out shopping this evening to have core friendly foods at home. I have to admit, ladies, that I have not followed the program for a full week prior to it's debut on Sunday. I am, however, committed to following it this week. Stay tuned!

Hi Ladies,

Beautiful weather here this week, finally feels like summer. Yesterday I took the day off from work to go to high school orientation with my daughter. Later we helped her brother move into his apartment. Just a really busy day.

Lala I developed a real liking for moussaka when I went to Greece a few years ago. I will definitely try your recipe. I am not too adventurous with the crock pot. Mostly I use it for stew or spaghetti sauce and meatballs. I really have to make some time to read through the info on the Core program.

Lisa sounds like you had quite a storm. I've been watching the Olympics too just about every night. Seems like between the Olympics and DH's beloved Red Sox that's really all we've been watching. So..I guess you decided to go blonde!!

Melissa thanks for the summary of the Core program. I really have to get with it and read up on it. You're weather sounds similar to ours, makes getting outside for walks difficult..too hot!!

Hope Susan is enjoying her vacation. Well, time to finish up here and go home. Have a nice night..talk to you tomorrow!!

Hiya Ladies,

Its blustery out there and I'm ready to pack it in for the day.

Must get geared up to go out to dinner tonight with DP's college friend at new restaurant in N'hood. Its one of those places with big and small plates. Got a good review and the food looks pretty healthy.

Wish me luck.

Pam and Melissa -- can you send me 5 degrees. Its chilly here.

Lisa -- I am out of the loop, you guys are having more severe weather. I wish you luck.

Okay, gotta skeedadle.

see you all tomorrow with another "core" update.

lala

Good morning!

Well, I managed 1 full day on core and today marks the start of day 2. Lala I found a great recipe on the web yesterday for a creamy banana couscous for breakfast--I made it this morning and it was very tasty! I'm not much of a banana fan (they have a habit of having conversations with me later in the day) but this was really good and simple!

Here's the recipe:

1/4 cup uncooked couscous (I used whole wheat because I had it)
1/2 cup fat-free evaporated milk
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp SPLENDA
1 small banana chopped

Place all ingredients in a microwaveable container and loosely cover. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Remove, stir and microwave for 30 seconds more. NOTE: keep an eye on this because mine boiled over and it's not fun to clean the microwave! I also added a dash of salt.

The couscous was tasty and it's very filling--I'll let you know if it holds me till lunch time.

Pam: Sounds like things are really busy for you. DS #1 started classes yesterday. Today begins a crazy period for me--I'm working 4 of the next 5 days at WW.

Lisa: Hope the weather settles down soon for you! It's been balmy here; today it's overcast and humid.

Lala: The moussaka recipe looks good--I'm going to have to give it a try. DH loves eggplant and I've always wanted to try making moussaka. How did your dinner go?