56. Tootley Toot!

Tootley toot!  That's me blowing my own horn.  I think after all of  the years since menopause struck I have finally figured out, (thank you Weight Watchers) how much and what I can eat and drink and still have a great time.  A house full of company or a few days away from home used to strike fear in my heart.  No more, my friends.  A bit of planning and some forethought and learning to savor each bite, yes, even desert...just not the whole thing and I can go anywhere anytime and have a great time!  Knowing that is so empowering!

I was a bit heavier in high school than most of my girl friends, not so much as to give me a complex, but still heavier.  When I married Bob and we started a family, I lost 15 pounds with my first pregnancy.  I was compulsive about eating healthy and the result was a 7 pound pregnancy and a 7 lb. 6 oz. baby.  I kept that weight off through my second pregnancy and for many successive years after with equal success.  I loved saying, "I weigh less than I did in high school."  Then as if just menopause at 43 wasn't enough with hot flashes and sudden urges to pull my skin off over my head and jump off a bridge, all hell broke loose and I shot up to 178 pounds (I can't believe I revealed that!)  I tried lots of diets with varied success even though I knew that Weight Watchers worked the best, I just couldn't make myself go to the meetings and pay the money each week.

Now I know the truth about myself...I have to pay someone to weigh me!  I have to look someone in the eye, even though they are never anything but supportive; I still have to "face the music," so to speak.  My goal is to reach the weight that I weighed the longest and that falls into Weight Watcher's guidelines of between 125 and 142.  I choose 138.  Then as long as I stay within 2 pounds when I weigh in once a month, the program is free.  Imagine a program that rewards you with free Weight Watchers for life for being successful.  That reward and goal is what keeps me learning about myself.  You can live without smoking, you can live without drinking...you can't live without eating!

I love to cook and we love to eat.  I have always said that I read cookbooks like others read novels.  That is true and WOW do I love the Cooking Channel!  When a recipe sounds good, I try to see if I can make it with lower points.  Sometimes it already has a great low point!  Sometimes they are a resounding flop, but usually they are good and once in a while they are just Fabulous!  I have always liked polenta and grits.  My mom loved fried cornmeal mush.  She would cook the cornmeal and cool it on a dinner plate and then refrigerate it over night.  The next morning she would slice it and cook it in a small amount of oil until it was crisp.  Then it was to the plate and cover it with maple syrup!  I have to admit I do like it that way, but I have found a GREAT way to make polenta Weight Watchers friendly.  Bob and I both love it! 

Cornmeal is only 2 points for 1 cup cooked.  Polenta is the same.  That is a very, very healthy portion of polenta, grits or cornmeal mush!  This is one way to really jazz it up!  Potatoes, rice and pasta can get a little boring after a while and this recipe will really perk things up for you!

Polenta with Pazazz!

1 cup polenta or cornmeal   (polenta is more coarsely ground)
3 cups chicken stock or water or any combination of the two
1 ear of fresh corn or 1 cup of frozen corn kernels
1 diced onion
as much Tabasco either red or green as you like
diced green chilies to taste (optional, well I guess it is all optional except for the polenta and water)
a dash of salt and pepper
1 T of oil and 1 T of butter (browns things beautifully, thank you, Rachael Ray!)

In a sauce pan bring the stock/water to a boil and then add the polenta/cornmeal slowly, stirring

constantly.  The mixture will begin to thicken quickly.  When it is thick to your liking, take off the heat and set aside.  Cut the corn from the cob.  (put a small bowl upside down inside a larger bowl...rest the end of the cob on the bottom of the small bowl.  When you cut the corn from the cob the large bowl will catch all the corn and keep it from flying all over the counter.  Also from RR.)

In a small skillet heat oil and butter, add the fresh or frozen corn and allow to brown while you dice an onion.  Then you can add the onion to the corn and cook until transparent.  Add the onion/corn mixture to the polenta/cornmeal and stir.  Salt, pepper and Tabasco to taste and you can add part of a small can of diced Ortega chilies, if you like.  

Serve hot as a side dish.  Spread left overs on a plate and refrigerate.  Come morning slice off a slab and crisp it up in a skillet sprayed with butter flavored Pam or the real thing, if you like, and fry an egg over-easy to plop on top.  Well then, Ya'll can eat like a Queen and all for only about 4 points! 

Nothing about Weight Watchers needs to be boring you just have to be brave and try something new.
Boredom is the enemy, my friends. 

You certainly don't have to be watching your weight to enjoy this fabulous southern dish.  Paula Deen would agree, although, she would add about a cube of butter and two cups of grated cheddar cheese!  Believe me you don't need it.  But let's not tell Paula.  It can be our secret!