I had pretty much decided the night before that I wasn’t going to work out yesterday morning, but I still set my alarm for six. If I get in the habit of sleeping in, it will be that much harder to do it on the days I want to get up.
So I get out of bed, from underneath our down comforter and I was like “damn its cold!” I open our bedroom door, shut it, walk in the hallway and if it were lighter out, I swear to God you could have seen my breath. I walk to the thermostat with a flashlight, ready to bump up the heat . . . but there are no numbers. Its a digital thermometer. I turned the little nob from heat, to off, back to heat. Nothing.
So I go in the kitchen and turn the lights on and I was like “well it can’t be the thermostat because the lights are working!” Then I had the bright idea of going down and checking the furnace. As I am looking at it, I thought “WTF am I doing? I don’t know the first thing about heating systems!” There was a switch on it though and I did pause for a few minutes before deciding not.to.touch.a.thing.
So I was literally on the computer, with a hot cup of coffee and three blankets on! I decided I needed to warm up, and what better way to warm up then to get Bizzy in my kitchen!
I normally wouldn’t buy blueberries not on sale, but I was spending my Whole Foods gift card so to me, they were free. 😀
Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes with Lemon Zest
Course: main meals
PointsPlus™ Value: 2
Servings: 10
Preparation Time: 5 min
Cooking Time: 15 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Course: main meals PointsPlus™ Value: 2 Servings: 10 Preparation Time: 5 min |
Ingredients
1 cup(s) White Whole Wheat Flour | |
1 Tbsp sugar | |
2 tsp baking powder | |
1/2 tsp table salt | |
1 item(s) egg | |
1 cup(s) fat-free skim milk | |
1 cup(s) fresh blueberries | |
1 tsp lemon zest |
Instructions
Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl.
In separate bowl, mix egg and skim milk together. Stir in lemon zest.
Add milk mixutre to flour mixture. Mix just until combined, then stir in blueberries.
Using Pam, use 1/4 cup measuring spoon to cook pancakes – this batch makes 10 pancakes, or 2 points per pancake.
Now if you are looking for a sweet pancake, this isn’t it. But the sweetness of the blueberries and the 1/3 cup sugar free syrup I put on them – they were perfect. So here’s my question. I did the points for 1 pancake so you can figure out the points if you eat one or three. So I ate three – on the old program if something was 2 points, but you ate two, it would be 5 points, not 4. So while I have it in my eTools as 6 points of pancakes, not sure? With two slices of Whole Foods uncured Turkey Bacon and syrup, breakfast comes in at 10 PointsPlus.
So I ended up leaving Tony a note by the toilet “the box with the numbers on it and the thingy to move the heat on isn’t working – I didn’t know what to do!” Um, turns out our thermostat is run on batteries! One minute upon him waking up, putting 3 triple A batteries in and the heat was on – while I suffered in the cold for two hours before work! Note to self: have Tony show me how to replace the batteries! 😀
So since I wasn’t working out at lunch either, Hannah picked me up for lunch! Since she’s been off of school we have been like two ships in the night. She’s home during the day while I am at work, and she’s out with friends at night when I am home.
We both had water with lemon, and then their soup and 1/2 sandwich combo. I had the tomato soup (so good – it even was a bit chunky this time but I didn’t mind!) and then got half a California Club (no mayo) turkey breast, bacon, swiss cheese, lettuce and avocado. Now here’s where counting points becomes difficult. I ate 3/4 of the soup (4 points) and I am guessing the 1/4 of the sandwich I had was 8 – so 12 points all together. Does that seem too high or too low?
After I made my pancakes for breakfast, I still had time to put together my crock pot roast beef with potatoes and carrots. I swear I put it on for 8 hours, but about 4 in the afternoon Hannah calls me and says “it has water on the top of the lid, but its not hot.” I put the roast in completely frozen so I thought I was screwed. She turned it on high and I hoped for the best.
Here’s the weird part – the meat was cooked perfectly but the veggies were still almost raw. I ended up having to cook them on the stove for 30 minutes, but it turned out okay. 😀
I cooked the roast and veggies in beef broth, but I like to make this gravy on the side – it really should be in every pantry – and so cheap – my Dollar General sells this 2 for $1 and its only 20 calories a 1/4 cup 😀
My bowl: 4 ounces diced roast, 3 ounces potato, carrots and 1/3 cup of gravy.
Um, I may have kicked it up a notch 😀
- 31 Points (14 Flex remaining, 37 activity earned since Sunday)
- no exercise (felt really weird, but I feel great!)
- average blood sugar 112
I am going to have a great giveaway tomorrow – completely unplanned but I couldn’t say no – get your thinking caps on for your favorite lower fat dish that lets you enjoy something that used to be a once in a while treat to an every day one – think cleaner Mac N Cheese, muffins – and it doesn’t even have to be your recipe, and you don’t have to have a blog! 😀
p.s. I am off to the gym to swim 😀 Can I just say I wish it wasn’t so damn dark outside?! 😀
I am so thankful for you that batteries is all is was!
Hi Biz, what a rude no head awakening for you. brrr….
Glad you had a nice time with Hanna. Hope your swim went well and that the rest of your day is a good one.
what doesn’t taste better with tabasco?!
That sucks about the heat! Glad it was just the batteries though! Yay Tony!
Your meat looks delish (TWSS) – maybe next time try cutting the veggies smaller? I never have had that problem before. I put in the veggies on the bottom, then the meat on top, then liquid. I read somewhere that putting them on the bottom helps – so if you don’t do that, maybe try? Otherwise I have no clue!
No heat = extra snuggles!
Those pancakes look fantastic! I am a sucker for a good pancake. Ugh, I so miss beef! I am mildly allergic so I can’t eat it, but when I see good cuts like that it makes me miss it so much!! I LOVE the pic of your daughter! She is beautiful =) Oh, and totally love her piercing =) I, too, am a sucker for a cool looking piercing.
Hey Biz ~
Of course you’re welcome to do a burger for our Burger Extravaganza month in June. The more the merrier!!! You can email me if you’re interested: foododelmundogmailcom
~ Mary
I guess it took my at and dot as HTML.
That email address again: Foododelmundo at gmail dot com
At least it was only the batteries right? 🙂
Jen
Too funny about the furnace. I am with Helen, I would have woke my hubby up immediately for help!
Eating out can be tricky when it comes to figuring out the points. Sometimes you just have to give it your best guess and go easy on the eating the rest of the day.
How strange that the roast got done but not the veggies. I do buy those little packets for gravy and they are a life saver.
Enjoy having time with Hannah! My daughter leaves tomorrow and I sure am going to miss her.
oh my gosh! The same thing happened to me the other day with our thermostat! I like freaked out 🙂 The pancakes look fabulous. We had pancakes for dinner last night- so yummy. Fun lunch with Hannah! The tomato soup looks out of this world.
i think lemon and blueberry are a match made in food heaven!
Lower fat snack that I can’t have the regualr version of? I’m eating it RIGHT NOW! Yum!
Sorry about the heat. Stinky way to wake up! I’ve been using more tabasco sauce too.
I actually LOL’d at the battery story! You must have strict instructions not to wake up your husband, because I totally would have!
That is weird about the veggies, but maybe because the roast was frozen solid? Turned out ok though, it looked good
I would marry my crockpot if at all possible, but I still am sometimes vexed when veggies don’t come out correctly with the meat (mostly potato fails). Your finished product looked so good though – and I’m all about pantry staples from the dollar store! I even did a post about it a little while ago! (Although judging by the lack of reader response on that one, maybe I love my dollar store a little TOO much?).
Also, blueberry pancakes…..aaaauuuuuuugghhhhhh drooooooool….
Haha…I love the furnace story. That is precisely what I would do, too! Love it! It’s great you and Hannah have been able to hang out despite the difference in schedules. You guys are so cute 🙂 I think your Points sound right on, but then again everything seems SOOOO high in points compared to the old program. Still getting used to that…
I bet mine is battery operated, too. I better check when I get home…
I kind of like the idea of just cooking the roast, putting the veggies on top and then the gravy in a bowl.
That soup looks awesome!
Thanks for the PSA. My furnace has the digital as well so will have to check and see if it runs on batteries now!
Oh welcome to my world! We don’t have heat in our house and it is made of concrete. Some times it is warmer outside than in our house. We have one butane heater in the living room and a dehumidifier that blows out warm air. We use an electric blanket to help keep us warm at night. I hope you are keeping warm today.
That’s so funny that it was just the batteries! I would have steered clear too. It’s best not to mess with anything you don’t understand. Man, your soup and sandwich look so good. I’m ready for lunch now and it’s not even noon yet. Your pot roast looks so good! Glad it turned out.
I used to hate blueberries, even in pancakes and now I LOVE them!
I’m thinking your were probably right on with 12 points or at least very close 🙂
“Mac and cheese muffins??” Do tell!
I hate freezing like that! But I like that you were going to “check the furnace” even though you had no idea what that was all about! lol Sounds like me!
I think you did a great job with lunch. But you only ate 1/8th of your half? If that’s the case, I think you overestimated a tad…but not too worry, a few points here or there are no big deal. Great job!
There is nothing worse than getting out of bed when the room is cold and your bed is nice and warm.
At least Tony was able to figure out the problem. That sounds like something I would do.
I had blueberry pancakes this last week and hadn’t had them in forever. They were so good!
I don’t know, you were probably about right on the sandwich…even though no mayo…the bread, the cheese, the bacon, the avocado…all pretty high point makers there. Maybe a bit low on guessing on the soup. This is one thing I HATE about this new plan…limited resources to figure out accurate point values on foods eaten out. Personally, I think the resources WW provide suck big time. I have the dining out companion, which is ok at best. Do I really need to know what the point value is of EVERY friggin ice cream combo at Cold stone is? And now DWLZ is not as good of a resource as it used to be….so IDK….venting a bit here I guess. I was surprised at how high the points are for things at Panera…not because I found ANY info on WW, but because I searched there nut stats and calculated on my own. I think its all the bread and carbs.
Blueberries from Chile this time of year are wonderful!!!! so sweet and delish!
Mmm…I love tabasco.
Mmm, blueberries…what a treat. You do have a bizzy little kitchen going there. Love the food pics.
Good to know about the batteries, as I bet my thermostat is the same…and mine would have gone out during a week when Jeff was out of town…you probably saved a bunch of your bloggy friends from freezing in their homes! 🙂
Have a great day, Biz! Enjoy your swim 🙂
I’m with Helen – Tom’s sorry arse would have been kicked outta bed in a hurry! Last summer when we were in the midst of a bad heat (and humidity) wave, our air conditioning died. Totally. That wasn’t on the financial planner so we had to scramble and were without it for 3 full nights and days. The nights were AWFUL – I stayed sweaty and sticky and had to cool down with cold showers in the morning.
Thanks for the tip about the gravy – I never by stuff like that, but what a great way to perk up a roast. I’ve had that crock pot phenomenon where the veggies don’t cook much. Baffling – my new crock pot gets it all done just right.
Wow, your pictures look really great. Camera envy over here. I go on Amazon and dream of the camera I want, even sticking it in the cart for fun once in awhile. I need some tips on getting into the pool, a huge goal of mine this year. Though I think I will wait until the resolution crowd dies down at the gym.
Weight watchers used to have eating out guides, I wonder if they still do? While you might not find your particular restaurant, it might be helpful to see what another restaurant’s soup was, for example.
You are a good wife. As soon as I discovered the heat was not on, I would have immediately woken Mr. Helen. I’m a drama queen that way 😉
I did a double take when I saw the cafe name – I work in Egg Harbor Township and most of the county I live in is near the Greater Egg Harbor River
here is a link to the wiki page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_Harbor_Township,_New_Jersey
I just had to share!!
Have a great day, Biz!!
Gosh, yes. Do find out how useful stuff like that works. It is ALWAYS good to be in the know about stuff, even if you don’t think it is necessary because you live with a fix-it kind of person. Life changes, or maybe sometimes, they’re not available. 🙂
I remember after I’d had the electrics re-done in my house, and my ex was no longer living with me (he was the fix-it guy extraordinaire!), a fuse blew on Sunday morning, and I had no idea what to do. I was much too proud to call my ex (we weren’t on good terms then), so I ended up calling a 24 hour electrician… Oh dear, the upshot of all that was when the guy arrived, he just flicked ONE SWITCH, and everything was hunky dory again. 5 minutes after, he was on his way, considerably richer 🙁
Man, can you say EMBARRASSED? That was me, red as a beet for a week. From then on I resolved to pay attention to all stuff of that nature, EVEN if I wasn’t particularly interested, so at least I understood the why of something not working, so I wouldn’t have to outlay loads of cash to fix simple problems like that in future. Got to say, being that teeny bit more au fait with so-called MAN stuff, has given me oodles more confidence in tackling all sorts of stuff I might have left to others previously, and given me a glowing feeling of satisfaction whenever I deal with stuff like that competently and successfully. Hurrah, for independence and self-empowerment.
Your daughter s gorgeous Biz! What a lucky lady she is to have you as a mom 🙂
Yum, I love blueberry pancakes! Unfortunately, I’m the only one in the house who does. I guess I could make a batch just for me and freeze the leftovers! Speaking of leftovers, you have inspired me to use up my leftovers. So often, they were getting thrown away which is so wasteful. After reading your blog a while, I’ve been finding ways to use them in another dish. It’s working out very well 😀
Eating out is probably the hardest thing when counting points or calories. I think you just have to go with your gut and eat what makes you satisfied. Estimate the Points the best you can, just like you did! This time around I promised myself that I wouldn’t get too caught up with the counting when I have to eat out. I don’t want to go back to being afraid of eating out again! You are doing awesome and showing us all how we can eat out and still enjoy ourselves!
Funny about the heat. Glad it’s working now.
Tabasco is yum but I’ve been on a Frank’s kick lately. Go through a bottle pretty quickly.
Can’t wait to find out about the giveaway. My thinking cap isn’t working so good this morning so I’ll have to wait. 🙂
Have a wonderful day and stay warm!
I didn’t work out yesterday either! Rest days are FAB. 🙂
Hannah looks just like her mama – so cute!
You and your tabasco! LOVE!
I have never used packaged gravy before, but I think you are making me a believer. 🙂
Anything you put your seal of approval on is okay by me.
My guess is your soup points might have been a little low and your sandwich points might have been a tad high so it probably works out in the end!