Newsletter, week of March 11th

Last Week

No matter where you are on the ladder of achievement, believing that you can will help you move to the highest rung.

This Week

If you've ever turned to food in response to an emotion, you'll want to be at this week's meeting. We'll explore why we do it and what we can do instead.

Kudos

Larry has lost 5 pounds, and Emily has lost 6.4 pounds. You both are off to a fantastic start, so keep up the good work!

WW Product of the Week

Walking Kit - if you'd like to get started on a walking routine, or are looking for something new to earn activity points, check this out. It's got a Walk at Home DVD, a CD with workouts you can take with you, and a walking guide with all the tips and ideas you'll need to make it happen.

Non-WW Product of the Week

If you love Mexican food, but hate to spend a lot of points on tortillas, check out La Tortilla Factory's low-carb low-fat tortillas. They've got several flavors and sizes to suit your recipes. One note of caution - these are NOT zero point tortillas, despite what your points calculator will tell you. If it's not a vegetable, it's not a zero point food. The original tortilla has 50 calories, so please count a Point when you eat one.

Recipe of the Week

Corned Beef and Cabbage with Red Potatoes
Serves 4
8 Points

1 pound lean beef round
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp yellow mustard seed
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp coriander seed
1/2 tsp ground cloves
2 bay leaves
8 small uncooked red potatoes, cut into 2-inch pieces
16 baby carrots
1 medium head green cabbage, coarsely shredded

Coat beef with salt and pepper and place in a large stockpot; cover with water. Add seasonings and bay leaves, and set over high heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer 40 minutes.

Add potatoes, carrots and cabbage and return to a boil. Increase heat to medium, partially cover pot and boil, until everything is fork-tender, about 10 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of liquid; discard bay leaves.

Slice meat crosswise into thin slices and serve with vegetables. Pour some reserved cooking liquid over each serving.

Tip of the Week

Cooking tip: Rely upon fresh herbs, pungent spices, citrus juices, spicy relishes and/or hot peppers and chiles to boost flavor when cutting back on fat in recipes (fat carries a lot of flavor so you need to replace it with strongly-flavored ingredients).

Quote of the Week

"ANY food can be a red-light food when I'm having red-light feelings" - Ellen Dietschy