I cleared another hurdle in my Weight Watchers journey this week and it’s a biggie, because this is where my waistline affects my wallet. After six weeks of staying on goal, I finally achieved “Lifetime” status, which means I no longer have to pay for all the benefits of the Weight Watchers program. Yes, you read that right! I can attend weekly meetings and access the awesome phone app for the rest of my life at zero cost to me!
Tag: healthy lifestyle
Oven-Baked Onion Rings
Summer living is in full swing here at The Three-Acre Wood and I’m all about some easy delicious meals that won’t blow up my Weight Watchers progress. After I lost over a pound last week, I gained almost half an l-b back this week. *grrr*
So last night I decided to dip into my WW bag of tricks and cook up some yummy good stuff that wouldn’t sabotage my weight loss progress. I thawed out some homemade barbeque pulled chicken, but sauces are pretty high in points; so I went searching for a complementary side that wouldn’t blow the day. That’s when I remembered these oven-baked onion rings that are so quick and easy to make that they wouldn’t interfere with some good ol’ treehouse building and T-ball playing (it was a busy evening).
Now who doesn’t love a good onion ring with some barbeque? I can really relish a deep-fried, bread crumb coated onion ring as much as the next gal, but those restaurant-style rings are not exactly low cal or even slightly healthy. Oh wait, onions are a vegetable. . . Can we count those as a serving?
Okay, so let’s stop kidding ourselves and get down to business. I found this recipe in a Weight Watchers cookbook that I borrowed from a friend and was really surprised the first time I cooked up this tasty treat (with a few changes), because they actually do taste like real onion rings! They are also super easy to make (my seven-year-old son helped me in the kitchen last night) and only one SmartPoint for six rings. It really does feel like cheating! I just gotta say that these things are so tasty I would use this recipe even if I wasn’t watching my weight. Yeah, they are that good!
- 1/2 c all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 c plain dried bread crumbs
- 1 large white onion
- Nonstick spray (I use Aldi's SimplyNature Extra Virgin Olive Oil spray.)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray.
- Mix together flour, salt and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl.
- Beat eggs in a different bowl.
- Pour bread crumbs in a third shallow bowl.
- Cut onion into 1/4 inch rounds and separate rings.
- While rings are still moist from cutting, coat rings with flour, dip in eggs, and then coat with bread crumbs.
- Place onion rings on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake until browned on one side, about 10 minutes. Turn rings over and bake until browned on second side, about 6-8 minutes.
- Serve warm.
- Six rings are only 1 Weight Watchers SmartPoint or 108 calories.
Chapter 5: Another Weight Watchers Milestone or Two
Last night I reached two milestones in my weight loss journey and I have some new bling to show for it!
I officially (as in according to the big Weight Watchers digital scale I step on once a week) crossed the 25 pound weight loss mark! Yay!! Throw some confetti and toot some horns, because this mama is knockin’ down the pounds and buying new clothes. Okay, so “knockin’ down” may be an exaggeration because I’ve been at this since January, but I’m going to take this victory and keep heading for the finish line (in the cute shorts I bought this weekend that are two sizes smaller than when I started).
I also received my 16-week charm last night, which means I’ve attended meeting for that many weeks. I have been in the program longer than that but I have missed a meeting here and there, and I have to weigh in (even if I splurge at Easter or a Mother/Daughter banquet) for the week to count. Considering I had missed the last two regular meetings, it was a good week for weighing. Plus our wonderful leader and one of the other regular attendees were so happy to see me after my short, couldn’t-be-helped hiatus. It feels good to be part of this little weight losing micro group, and it certainly feels good to be missed!
STARTING WEIGHT: 168.2
JANUARY 2018 : -8.6
FEBRUARY 2018: -5.8
MARCH 2018: -6.0
APRIL 2018: -2.6
AS OF MAY 15, 2018: -4
CURRENT WEIGHT: 141.2