Pumpkin Oopsie Roll

I depend on oopsie-rolls <--link. They are very mild flavored so I decided to spice it up a bit with some pumpkin.

So instead of 3 oz of cream cheese, I reduced it to 1 oz and added 1/4 c pumpkin....and added 3 pkts stevia. It's not overly sweet at all, the stevia enhanced the flavor. I had 2 with egg salad and some spinach for a nice sandwich. If you wanted a nice sweet desserty one by it's self, add additional stevia and some vanilla.

I buttered one and sprinkled some cinnamon on top. Popped it in the toaster oven until it got nice and toasty, and added a dollop of whipped cream! Still just 1 carb, with 1 g fiber, so 0 Net! Woah Nelly! (the whipped cream has less than 1 carb in 1tbsp and this dollop before 'whipped' is minimal when compared to the 1/2 cup I used (filled a cool whip container halfway), it doesnt quite count, so we're going with 0) (4 g protein, 54 calories, 9 g fat, not counting cream)

Fantastico!

Pumpkin Pie Pancake

3 carbs (1.5 net carbs) per pancake.

(and yes, that's a large dinner plate)

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 c pumpkin
• pinch salt (to taste...some things I just don't measure)
• Your choice of sweetener: I used 2 pkts Stevia and a couple of tbsp of SF Torani Caramel syrup (didnt measure) until it was to my likeness)
• Few sprinkles of cinnamon
• 
  
• Mix well, pour 1/2 c at a time onto buttered pan (makes 4)....let it cook on medium until it's set (and golden on bottom), flip and cook other side til golden....eat with whipped cream! 3 carbs (1.5 NET!) per pancake.

Cream Cheese Muffins

Cream Cheese Muffins

(not my picture)

8 oz Cream Cheese softened

1 egg

pinch of salt.

dash of vanilla

1/4 cup (or more, depending on your sweetness, make it a little sweeter than you think, cause it comes out less sweet after it's baked and cooled) of either splenda or your choice of sweetener. I used Torani (it's made from splenda, but luckily lacks that nasty aftertaste). It's a dream come true. Zero carbs. You buy it on the coffee aisle.

Mix ingredients well and pour into 6 lined muffin tins. Bake 325 for 20 minutes or until the muffins are firm, yet not browned. Let cool before eating.

**If you want Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins, use 6 oz cream cheese and 1/2 cup pumpkin.**

Nutrition Information for 1 regular cheesecake (using zero carb sweetener, not regular splenda):

Calories: 109

Carbs: 4

Fiber: 1

Protein 3

Nutrition Information for 1 pumpkin cheesecake (using zero carb sweetener, not regular spelnda):

Calories: 109

Carbs: 4

Fiber: 1

Protein: 3

Day 18 Pet Peeves

Here are a few of my pet peeves. I'm by all means no expert or anything (I'm just here having fun)...but I'm smart enough to know better than so many other people. It's exhausting.

1. "I'm going to stop drinking soda and drink juice instead" That's no different than saying "I'm going to stop cutting off my left arm and cut off my right arm instead." haha.

2. Someone asking what you're doing (for better health) because they want advice and the only response you get is "Oh I could never do that." "Oh no, that's never something I'd ever do" "Oh I couldn't ever give up that" Nothing but I can't, I won't. Then why ask for advice? I've stopped talking to people "in real life". It's a waste of my energy.

3. "I did the low carb thing back when it was trendy...lost a ton of weight, but gained it all back plus some....I wouldn't recommend it"

----Ok, ANY change in your diet (and activity level) for the better from your typical pig-out-lazy-norm is going to cause you to lose weight. That's just common knowledge. Then when you get comfortable in your new self, you go back to your old habits of eating 12 enchiladas "But they were low fat!" and 32 ounce fruit and yogurt smoothie with 3,204 calories for breakfast "But it has yogurt and fruit, it's natural and healthy!" and late at night, eat 8 brownies...yes, you will gain all of your weight back, plus more. The low carb "diet" works...YOU are a failure.

That's just the tip of the iceberg.

Day 16

I don't have much to say today. I didn't make anything nifty, eat anything nifty, do anything nifty. I drank too much protein shake, used up half my carb allotment for the day by 9am, ate the rest of my carb allotment at lunch, cause I bought a burger at work because I didn't prepare my lunch last night, and I threw the top bun away and just used the bottom. I debated whether to just omit the bun all together, but that left me with a small patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato slice, mayo and hot sauce (did you know hot sauce has zero carbs? I do now!) and said to heck with it, I'll splurge a little.

I ended my day at 24 carbs...also because I took a Vitamin D/Calcium Chew. I still came out well, considering. I'm not hard on myself, I just like to be consistent.

I feel like my diet (not "on a diet" diet, but the food I eat, diet (I don't like the word "on a diet" it's so overused and therefore you can't take anyone serious who claims to be on one. Aren't we always on a diet?) is established. I'm not craving anything naughty. I do need to switch things up a bit, I'm getting tired of scrambled eggs, hard boiled eggs, egg salad, chicken thigh, chicken thigh, chicken thigh, hamburgers. I eat other things of course, those are just my staples.

I need to get back into my routine of exercise. I have the best of intentions...uh hello, I have an elliptical machine 3 feet away from me as I type. There are pros and cons to having one in house. There is no motivating yourself to get up and get ready, get in the car, drive to a gym, and spend enough time there to justify your trip. But then again, it's too easy to tell yourself you'll go on when the kids go to sleep, after this show is over, when my favorite Food Network show comes on. It's my favorite to watch food shows when I'm on the elliptical, it reminds me of why I'm on it and why I got where I am....sugary goodness.

I do my best workout on Friday and Saturday mornings, which are my days off. You cannot get me up any earlier to workout on my work days, I get up at 6am...that's tourturous as it is. The only way to get things done is JUST DO IT!

No point to this entry today. Goodnight.

Day 15

Dinner. Delicious.

Dinner tonight: Filet of Sirloin Steak with peppers and onion, a bed of lettuce (usually use spinach, but I have none) with egg salad.

Total carbs: 3

Total protein: 47

Totals for today:

Calories: 1,753

Carbs: 20

Protein: 108

Peanut Butter Dollops

8 oz. Cool Whip

5 Tablespoons of Creamy Peanut Butter

2-3 tablespoons Sugar Free Hershey Chocolate Syrup

Fold cool whip and peanut butter until mixed well, but mix carefully. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spoon mixture into ziploc bag and cut the tip of the bag. Squeeze out tablespoon sized dollops onto pan. I get 40 and you will too if you time it right. Freeze on pan until firm. Pour 2 tablepoons of sugar free (or use regular if you want, it'll up the carbs and cals) into a ziploc baggie and cut a very small hole in the corner and drizzle over each dollop. Immediately place pan back in the freezezr and freeze overnight (or 6-8 hours). Remove from pan and store in airtight container in freezer. Eat at your leisure :)

Makes 40 dollops.

Serving size: 1

Calories: 25

Carbs: 2

Protein: 1

Fiber: 0

Fat: 2

These are not specifically "healthy" due to cool whip or sugar free syrup, but sure delicious and a great alternative to a high carb/sugary treat!