A Backward Slide

Up 2.5 lbs. today. Not a red-letter day in my diet world, but I'm taking it as a minor backslide. I suspect the reason, not something I want to post on this blog, has to do with forces that are out of my control. So we'll leave it at that. I'm hoping that with a little work, in a few days I'll be down to 8 lbs. again, and on my way to 9. Keep your fingers crossed.

Now for cooking. The meal I cooked on Saturday, Fusilli with Sausage, Spinach and Peppers from In a Flash, jumped off the pages of the cookbook. It was going to be a quick and easy, but tasty, flavorful, a culinary delight, if you will. It had such promise. Well I couldn't have been more disappointed. It was quick and easy - possibly the easiest dish I've made so far. Ok, I know these recipes aren't real high on the difficulty chart, but difficulty isn't the point of this project. When I want difficult, I'll turn to Emeril or Wolfgang or even Julia (isn't it nice that I'm on a first-name basis with THE people to know in the cooking world?) And it didn't taste bad...it just didn't taste at all. There was no flavor. The sause was chicken broth, sausage, red peppers and spinach. Seems like they should have made our palattes sing with delight, but the flavor didn't stick to the pasta, and so the sauce only made my palatte forget the words to the song it was ready to belt out minutes before we sat down to dinner. So - my suggestions - add some chili pepper flakes (just a little), and maybe some tomate sauce to add some stick-to-it-iveness. Maybe that will help.

Tonight's dinner will hopefully be much more exciting.

Choppers are Dangerous!

7 lbs today! I know it may be hard to believe, but I can actually feel a small (very small) difference in my clothes.

I was home yesterday, so I had a little time to make something special for lunch instead of the usual Smart Ones frozen lunch. And so I chose Tuna-and-Bow Tie Pasta Salad from Day by Day. This was an easy recipe, even for me, and it didn't take too long to prepare, but in the end, it wasn't all that wonderful. I mean it tasted fine, but it needed some pizazz. Maybe my lack of enthusiasm has something to do with the fact that I had it for lunch, and then again for dinner. In any case, for those who aren't adventurous eaters (and you know who you are), this might be a good recipe for you. Pasta, tomato, carrot, cucumber, celery, and tuna. You can't go wrong there.

Note to self: Keep your fingers out of the way when chopping. No, I didn't cut myself with the knife, but I pinched my finger between the top of the chopper and the thing you push down on. And, as you might imagine, when chopping one uses quite a bit of force. So, there was a little swearing and some jumping up and down, but the pasta needed to be drained, so I couldn't dwell on my misery for long. A messy kitchen and a bruised finger later I had a nice (although boring) salad for lunch.

Second note to self: Do not sip wine vinegar from a spoon. All I wanted to do was see what flavor of vinegar I wanted to use in the salad, so I sipped a little to taste. Maybe slurp was more accurate, because that vinegar went right to the back of my throat and I started coughing...gagging...choking...struggling for breath...and diving for water. I caused so much of a rucus that the dogs came in to see what was going on. Maybe I should teach them CPR?

I think tomorrow I might try breakfast - maybe it's safer. Stay tuned!