Weekend waffles

AM loves Eggo waffles.

Every weekday morning as I'm scrambling around the kitchen in my heels, getting lunches together, making coffee, checking my blackberry, sometimes listening to a conference call and running late, AM inevitably asks me to let her cook Eggos.

We've struck a deal that she sticks with cereal or something easy during the week, and can have Eggos on the weekends. (Yet, she still asks.)

Even though I have to admit the low-fat, whole-grain Eggo waffles are somewhat tasty, I much prefer JJ's "homemade" waffles right from our waffle maker. This morning, while he slumbered away, I decided to experiment with his recipe and see if I could decrease the points value. It was a success - thanks to almond milk and applesauce supplements. I also threw some fresh blueberries into the batter, but only for my batch - everyone else crinkled their noses at that suggestion. They don't know what they're missing.

Low-points waffles

2 cups Reduced-Fat Bisquick

1 1/3 cup almond milk

1 egg

2 tablespoons natural applesauce

Splash of vanilla

Evenly divided, this batter made five waffles in our waffle maker for 5 points plus each. Topped with 1/4 cup of sugar-free syrup for 1 point plus, you're looking at an awesome breakfast for just 6 points.

AM told me they're good, but she likes her Eggos better "because Eggos are crunchy." (True, the applesauce replacement did make these waffles very soft.)

My breakfast-eater, on the other hand, was a happy boy. He ate two full waffles.

Outstanding overnight oatmeal

My mom calls my son "a breakfast eater."

Most mornings, he eats at least two breakfasts - sometimes three - and when I tell him he needs to slow down, he protests "Nana says I'm a breakfast eater."

My consolation for this overeating behavior is that JB doesn't eat much in the evenings.

But perhaps his breakfast-eating ways come from my side of the family. After all, I'm somewhat obsessed with breakfast myself.

This week's morning menu - my personal one - features overnight oats. 

Heard of them? They're all the rage on Pinterest.

I like the recipe on Skinnytaste (of course) and have modified it to fit my own taste buds:

1/4 cup of oatmeal

1/2 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk

1 tablespoon of milled flaxseed

1/4 of a banana, mashed

1/4 cup of your favorite fruit

Sprinkle of cinnamon

1 packet of Splenda

Mix all of these ingredients together, place in a jar or Tupperware bowl (my preference) and put it in the fridge. Wait at least 12 hours before eating.

My calculations show this to be a four-point breakfast - unless you top it with natural almonds or walnuts, which is fantastic.

For the next four days, I have lots of overnight oats options - strawberry and blueberry, blueberry and raspberry, and peach. 

And there's no way I could pick a favorite.

You can't ask that of a breakfast eater.

Just like Magnolia Bakery

During a long weekend trip to the Big Apple a few weeks ago, my mom and I happened upon the famous Magnolia Bakery.

Overwhelmed by the selection of gorgeous and sure-to-be scrumptious cupcakes, I wasn't worried about points. After all, we had already walked nearly nine miles in one day. Mom chose the featured cupcake for the day - hummingbird - while I struggled to make a decision, finally landing on a strawberry and cream cheese beauty. 

We trudged back to the hotel, where Mom promptly fell asleep. After a long shower, I settled in with a movie and decided to enjoy my sinful dessert. Who in the world knows how many points were in that little piece of heaven? Halfway through it though, the Catholic guilt set in and I tossed it in the trash. Note: this act of wastefulness didn't have anything to do with the taste - it was magnificent!

The next morning, Mom woke up and decided to have her hummingbird cupcake for breakfast. "It's kind of like a breakfast cinnamon cake," she told me, with a giant smile on her face. Unlike me, she didn't toss half of hers in the garbage bin, but she did let me have a morsel of a bite (which probably cost me five points). It was even better than the strawberry cupcake! 

This got me to thinking that there had to be a way to enjoy such a delicious treat without breaking the Weight Watchers daily bank. 

Enter Skinnytaste - in my opinion, one of the best Weight Watchers recipe blogs around. Gina, the blogger, had a slimmed-down version of a hummingbird cupcake. Last night, I got a baking wild hair and decided to see how these would compare to those at Magnolia. 

Three words: Make them now. 

Eat them for breakfast; eat them for a snack; or eat them because you've walked nine miles in New York City and owe yourself a treat. Just make them.

Oh, and bonus, you can make 22 of these for less than it cost me to purchase two cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery. 

And that's counting dollars, not points. 

Leaning in: back to blogging

A thought-provoking post showed up in my Facebook feed this week from Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In team.

"What would you do if you were not afraid?"

There are so many possible answers, but one really stood out: I would finally take the steps to become an official, on-the-record, certified Weight Watchers leader. 

This would require a commitment of time, something I feel like I don't currently have - between raising kids, being a wife and a little gig called a full-time job in Corporate America. Then I remembered this blog, which I have ignored for over a year. This blog is an easy way fuel that passion, by sharing my WW tips and recipes. 

So, I'm back. Promise.

I'm still living the WW lifestyle. Last year was key for me. I shed 16 pounds to get back to the magic 1-3-5, and even dropped below those numbers. Faithfully journaling has been the key, along with lots of cooking at home. 

This morning, I tried a new breakfast option and I'd like to share. The first meal of the day is important for me because I typically (1) eat it in the car during my commute or (2) eat at my desk once I get to work. (Someday, I will be able to quietly enjoy my cup of coffee while sitting on the deck in my robe.) It has to be filling because, once work kicks up, I run all day. Lunch sometimes doesn't come until 2 p.m. so breakfast is crucial.

Today's breakfast spot was my poffice. On the menu was Chobani greek yogurt (3.4) with fresh strawberries (0) and two tablespoons of KIND granola (1.3). It was fantastic! And all for 4.7 points.

I'm not afraid to try new things, and I'm not afraid to get this blog back up and running.

I'm leaning in.

What is muenster cheese?

For the past three months, I've been trying to find the world's best WW breakfast casserole.

I haven't found it yet.

But this morning's attempt wasn't too bad. In fact, what ended up as more of a souffle, it was pretty tasty and very filling. Using an altered recipe from Pinterest, this was a fairly easy six point meal.

It's rated fairly easy due to one small issue.

Muenster cheese.

What in the heck is muenster cheese?

Thank goodness for Google because I had no idea. While shopping at Walmart for the ingredients to make the casserole/souffle, I drug poor AM all over the SuperCenter trying to find this special cheese. It was nowhere to be found. After finally resorting to using the iPhone to find a Google image, a helpful associate located the German cheese in the fancy cheese section at the front of the deli. Problem solved.

So, this morning before Mass, I decided to suprise JJ with the casserole/souffle for breakfast.

I had no idea it was going to take me almost an hour to prepare, cook and serve it.

And, while it was good, I'm not sure I'd invest the time again.

For me, the search continues for the world's best breakfast casserole.

For you, here's the recipe so you can make up your own mind.

Ingredients:

6 eggs

1 1/4 cup Eggbeaters

1 ½ slices bread (torn into pieces with sides removed)

6 ounces muenster cheese, cut into cubes

4 stalks of green onions, chopped

1 cup of milk

¼ cup of fresh cilantro leaves

¼ cup of fresh parsley leaves

A dash of salt

A dash of ground pepper

1/3 cup of water

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees

Coat an 8X8 baking dish with cooking spray

In a bowl, crumb the bread and soak in milk

Stir together the eggs and Eggbeaters and add them to the milk/bread mixture

Also add the salt, pepper and water

Chop onions, cheese, cilantro and parsley leaves in the food processor

Pour the egg mixture into skillet and cook while stirring until soft, not set completely

Scoop half portion of egg mixture to the baking dish, sprinkle with cheese mixture and cover with the remaining half of egg mixture

Bring to room temperature before baking for up to 25 minutes

It makes six servings, each six WW points plus.