Holiday blues

I think the holiday blues have arrived. 

Thanksgiving has come and gone - and it's a little late to be posting about it, but today's the first day I got to it, so here it is.

My Thanksgiving was... well, it was fine, I guess.  I enjoyed spending time with our guests, my mother-in-law and our friend Alexa, especially when we watched a few episodes of the show Tom's editing. 

Our Thanksgiving table

But something our friend Josh had mentioned in class before Thanksgiving really hit home with me.  Now that I'm a recovering food addict, holiday eating is - frankly - stressful.  It used to be joyful.  It used to be one of the rare times in my life that I ate happily... or, rather, I overate happily.  Perhaps it was because I always had company.  Perhaps it was because the holiday food is always so delicious.  Perhaps the warm feelings of the holiday were mainlined into my system via food.  Perhaps because in my mother's kitchen, food was love.

Now... food is fuel.  Tasty fuel, mind you, but fuel nonetheless.  And that made my holiday eating feel kind of... empty.  It's hard to explain.

Since I was making much of our food (I covered the cranberries, the low-cal pumpkin pie, the butternut squash, the stuffing and the turkey; Tom made the root veggies, the green beans and the Brussels sprouts) I had control over what was served.  I planned fewer dishes - and smaller, less-heavy ones - than we usually make, and adjusted the recipes.  I cut down the use of butter by about 300%.  And I tasted it. 

This is everything I ate for Thanksgiving dinner, save for a piece of my low-cal pumpkin pie and a glass of sparkling cider.

I didn't have any desire to eat more than one plate of the food.  Which is healthy, I know.  But without it, I was bummed.  I missed that butter.  I missed having lots of leftovers.  Each dish fit into single-serving tupperware, with room to spare.  It was all gone by dinner the following day.  I was living that joke from Annie Hall.  "Two elderly women are at a Catskill mountain resort, and one of 'em says, 'Boy, the food at this place is really terrible.' The other one says, 'Yeah, I know; and such small portions.'"

Don't get me wrong.  I know the food wasn't terrible.  But it wasn't emotional.  And I missed that.  Maybe someday I'll be able to balance bringing in some positive emotion about food without going overboard.  For now, I'm just worried about how to handle the upcoming family events - starting this weekend - when I'm not in charge of the menu.

I'm a bit blue today, and I don't quite know why. 

The Santa Ana winds are blowing in, knocking out power across town - but other than the damage I do, I really enjoy them.  A rare moment of weather in Los Angeles.

Yesterday we were out in the afternoon and evening.  Tom wanted to enjoy the holiday offerings at Disneyland while he was on his hiatus, so we went around to the various Christmas-themed things (Small World Holiday, the parade and fireworks, etc.) to get in the spirit.  I had a nice time, and made food choices that were in-line with my plan.  (I did have dessert - part of a pumpkin yule log - and per Richard's recommendation, I'm allowing myself one dessert each week.)

But I saw something yesterday that I still can't shake.  We were boarding pirates with a woman in a wheelchair who reminded me of my mom.  The struggle to move her from the chair to the boat was one that was all too familiar to me.  It reminded me of recurring nightmare I have, where we're in peril and I'm unable to transport Mom to safety.

I suppose maybe I'm blue because I turned the Christmas music on - or I turned the Christmas music on because I'm blue.  Because I'm missing her.  Because Christmas really was her time of year.

There's so much to be un-blue about, though.  My friends and family.  My time with Tom this week - my life with Tom, for that matter.  My writing, both personal creative and professional freelance.  My health, and how much it's improved over the last year.  Funny thing about that word, "improved"...

Thanks to Bella of Bella on the Beach, I'm considering participating in a month-long blog carnival of sorts, called WEverb11.  And today's question is:

December 1: Choose one word.
Encapsulate the year 2011 in one word. Explain why. Imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2012 for you?

That would would be "improvement."  This year, I've improved my health, my strength, my ability to cook, the way I handle my food addiction.  I've improved my freelance career (and definitely improved my life by leaving the interactive marketing behind.)  I've improved my blog.  I've improved my creative writing.  And I've improved my overall happiness.   This is probably the year I've been most proud of.

Next year's word, I hope, is "achievement."  I'd like to continue toward the goals that I actively began seeking this year, in health, in career, in family.  And I'm hoping to be closer to achieving them next year than I am this year.  I'm certainly closer this year than last, by miles.

Or maybe the word for both years should be "care."  I'm putting so much care into my life.  I'm taking care.  And almost every day, I remind you to take care. 

That reminds me: take care of you today.

Mangia! Italian Recipes from Supper Club 600

Following up on yesterday's Adventure blog, today I'm sharing some of the recipes from our Italian edition of Supper Club 600.

This supper club was the first one that, during the full preparation time, I was home solo.  Tom used to be our primary (who am I kidding - our SOLE) cook, and the testing - outside of baking - was his turf.  Now that he has a very busy work week, it was up to me to come up with the majority of our recipes, except for Tom's favorite...

Spaghetti Aglio Olio

• 1 ounce spaghetti
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp good quality olive oil
• red pepper flakes (to taste)

Warm the olive oil, and then saute the garlic until browned and fragrant.  Boil the spaghetti until just al dente (which means "to the tooth," or just biteable.)   Drain the pasta, and then add to the pan.  Toss with a touch or red pepper, and you're ready to go!  Tom cooks this for himself, occasionally, for breakfast.  And it never fails - when I wake up and come downstairs, I ask him what he's been cooking because it smells delicious.  The answer is always Aglio Olio.

Now, on to some of my own recipes!

Roasted Vegetable Salad

Red bell peppers (30-40 minutes at 400)
Cherry tomatoes (15-20 minutes at 400)
Zucchini (15-20 minutes at 450)
Sweet onion (30-45 minutes at 400)
Garlic (30-40 minutes at 400)
Olive oil spray (like Pam)
Balsamic Vinegar

Spray the bottom of a few different baking pans (I recommend pyrex a few inches deep.)  I tend to pair like veggies together, because they take different times to cook.  Then prepare the veggies: cherry matoes are good as-is, peppers need to be halved and de-seeded, zucchini sliced into spears, and onion into wedges.  You can just slice the top off a head of garlic and roast all together.

Once you lay the veggies in their pans, give them another quick spritz of olive oil spray, and then pop them in the oven, time and temperature listed with each ingredient above.

When all are finished roasting, combine tomatoes, zucchini and onion in a bowl.  Place the peppers while still warm (but not hot) in a plastic zipper bag, to steam the skins.  They'll be ready for you to peel after a half-hour.  Then squeeze the roasted garlic (through the sliced top of the head) into the bowl with the rest of the veggies.  Toss with a tablespoon of vinegar, and you're all set!

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

Authentic carbonara was my favorite dish in Rome.  I had no idea that all of America made it so improperly.  I had always thought it was a cream-based dish.  In fact, the glory of carbonara is that there is no cream, only egg - and that's what makes the spaghetti strands stick together!

Real carbonara is very caloric - pancetta, lots of egg, lots of cheese, and lots of pasta.  I lightened up the recipe by reducing egg/cheese, swapping turkey bacon for panchetta, and swapping spaghetti squash for pasta.  It's surprisingly delicious for the calories.

1 spaghetti squash
3 egg yolks
3 slices of lean turkey bacon
2 tb good-quality parmesan cheese, grated.
2 shallots, minced
Olive oil spray (like Pam)

Halve the squash and bake it rind-up 30 to 40 minutes at 375 degrees.  Cool slightly, and then separate the "spaghetti" strands by lightly scraping with a fork from stem to stern.  This can be done slightly ahead of time, as the squash will be rewarmed later.

Saute the shallots in olive oil spray, with the turkey bacon, until all are browned. Whisk the yolks together with the grated cheese.  Add the squash to the bacon pan, and pour the eggs in.  Toss the squash quickly and continually until the eggs are cooked and the cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.

Tiramisu

I am insanely proud of this recipe.  We knew, as soon as we decided to have the Italian theme, that we'd want tiramisu for dessert.  And little did I realize that tiramisu is crazy caloric per serving.  If you've eaten even a small serving of regular tiramisu, it was probably light and fluffy, and you probably didn't realize how calorie-dense it was.  A typical small serving is around 350 calories, and goes up from there.  Though - I have to apologize, this is actually 55 calories, not 50 calories.  (Still, that's a big reduction.)

But I love a challenge, so I went hunting for ingredients to combine and swap to lower that calorie count.  And swap, I did.

Swap #1: Lady Fingers.  They're not the worst thing in the world, but they're dense and rich, and in tandem with the creamy filling, they add to the overall pudginess of tiramisu.

So instead, I used individual angel food bundt cakes that I purchased at Ralph's. (Also known as Kroger's, for all of you who grew up in or around Midland.)

Swap #2: Mascarpone cheese. This little bugger crams 120 calories into a single tablespoon.  But it has a particular taste and texture that is hard to recreate, so I wasn't sure I could do it... that is, until I met Quark.

Quark is a German cream-style cheese that is kind of similar to mascarpone, but is slightly more sour... and comes in a fat-free variety!  To adjust texture and flavor, I folded in fat-free (5-calorie) Reddi Wip after the usual tiramisu ingredients.  It may be challenging to find Quark, but I was able to locate it in a specialty grocery store (Gelson's) so you may be able to locate it at one near you.

Here's the final recipe.

• 1/4 cup Quark
• 1/4 cup fat free Reddi Wip
• 1 tb sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1/3 mini angel food bundt cake
• 2 shots of good-quality espresso
• scant 1/4 tsp unsweetened cocoa (or less - you don't need much.)

With a mixer, blend Quark, sugar and vanilla.  Once smooth, fold in Reddi Wip.

There should be 12 ridges in each bundt. Slice between each ridge, and use four ridges for one serving. 

Soak one side of a ridge in espresso for 2-3 seconds, then flip and soak the other side.  Repeat, and place both ridges at the bottom of the serving cup.  Then layer a tablespoon of the Quark mixture on top of the cake, sealing it in the bottom.  Repeat the soaking process for the other two ridges, and lay them on top of the Quark mixture in the cup.  Layer one last tablespoon of Quark, making sure to seal in the rest of the cake.  Sprinkle a touch of cocoa on top, and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Woo-hoo! 

There are other recipes we used from that day, but if I gave all of them to you... why would you buy the cow when you get the milk for free?  Just kidding.  If you want one of the other recipes from the menu I shared yesterday, let me know and I'll pass it along to you.  Everybody needs a good recipe - it's a great way to take care of you (which I hope you're doing today!)

Supper Club 600: B-Movie BBQ at the Drive-In!

I am so happy to be writing this blog entry.  You have no idea.  I've been preparing for it for weeks!

Every so often, my Adventure Wednesday post is extra-special to me, because the adventure of the week is a gathering of friends and loved ones for a celebration of my journey.  A celebration of food and health and joy... which IS POSSIBLE.  You can combine food and health and joy.  And that is why we started Supper Club 600, a dinner party series where we teach - by example -  that you can eat healthfully and still take great delight in being a foodie.  Each SC600 meal clocks in at less than 600 calories. And each time, it's themed for maximum party pleasure.

This time it was a barbecue.  At a drive-in.  With B movies.  And it was a blast.

Tom and I have been perfecting the menu over time, starting with the jackfruit itself.  I've already shared the recipe, but for those of you who missed it, the short story of jackfruit is: it's canned, it's unripened, it shreds like pulled pork, and it's delicious.  We first served it at another SC600 BBQ gathering, but I managed not to take a single photo of that party, so we decided to throw another one!

This time, we knew we needed to make everything simple so that we could prepare it in advance and deliver it to the Mission Tiki Drive-In, where we gathered for the occasion.  Here's our menu for the evening:

I lifted the illustration from an old B-movie poster I found while gathering inspiration for the party.

I stumbled upon the theme idea after Googling "movie fabric," on the hunt for some sort of textiles I could use to decorate.  I happened upon some amazing monster movie fabric by Robert Kaufman, and I thought... of course!  B-movies are notorious at Drive-In theaters, and it was just the perfect element to tie everything together.  Kaufman's fabric had gone out of print, but I was lucky to snag just enough on eBay, so my crafty mother-in-law Jean whipped it into table runners.  And a theme was born.

Here's the Kaufman fabric runner, plus one of our centerpieces - white hydrangea "popcorn."

  

It was the THEME THAT WOULD NOT DIE.  I ended up making personalized bags for the movie snack sampler, using an array of B-movie posters I'd found online.

Mmm.  Black Lagoonlicious!
Photo courtesy of Rochelle

We even used thematic serving forks - as modeled by our new friend David.
I got these beauties at Target during Halloween season two years ago.
Photo by Rochelle

Enough with the theme.  Let's get to the party!

We set up our table before the Drive-In opened for the night - and once other guests
arrived, there was much staring.  We could read their minds. "What the hell?"

  

THERE WAS NO ESCAPING...
Our dinner spread.
Photo by Rochelle

 

THRILLS AND CHILLS!
We offered chilled zero-calorie beverages, including still water, "fuzzy" water (as it's known in my circles)
and a selection of diet sodas from the awesome Rocket Fizz in Burbank.
Photo by Rochelle

Among them, Jones Zilch Pomegranate... plus Old Philadelphia Creme Soda,
Avery's Orange, Virgil's Black Cherry, Root Beer, Cola and Dr. Better.
Man, I love that "Children of the Damned" poster.
Photo by Rochelle

   

Every single one of our lovely guests arrived early
to help set up, and soon we were ready to dig in.
Photo OF Rochelle! (And David.)

ATTACK OF THE KILLER JACKFRUIT!
Possibly our proudest moment was hearing raves about the jackfruit from a friend of ours who is a firm non-vegetarian.

   
   

The awesome Patty is about to try jackfruit for the first time!

  

A bird's eye view of dinner.
Photo by Rochelle

Time flew past, and suddenly the sun was setting on the beautiful Southern California evening.

  
But at a Drive-In, that means the party's just starting.  Our gang grabbed their treat bags and split off into three different movie doubleheaders: B-movie horror (Fright Night & Final Destination), B-movie remakes (Conan & Planet of the Apes) and comedy (30 Minutes or Less & The Change-Up.) 

Regardless of movie quality, everyone seemed to really enjoy their Drive-In adventure.  Goodness knows I did.  Thanks, from the bottom of my heart, to Frank and the team at Mission Tiki, who made this possible; to Tom, who keeps me grounded and pops excellent popcorn; to our amazing guests.  No amount of cooking or planning really makes a party great.  It's the guests who do that.

Hungry for more about the Drive-In?  You're in luck! I'll be back tomorrow with RETURN OF THE DRIVE-IN... a close-up on the recipes from this edition of Supper Club 600, and a peek inside those little treat bags.  And if that's not enough... come back for Fashion Friday: IT CAME... FROM THE DRIVE-IN! That's right, it's a B-Movie BBQ trilogy.

'Til then, I'm working hard on taking care of me.  And I hope you'll take care of you, too.

A barbecue recipe... and a barbecue invitation!

 Man, we had some fun yesterday!

I mean, aside from watching the New York Philharmonic's production of Company starring Neil Patrick Harris (which is being shown in movie theaters across the country for three more days - tonight & Tuesday at 7:30 PM, Sunday at 2.)  If you're a fan of NPH or musical theater, you should catch it.

Some of that fun was had in the kitchen, where Tom attempted to recreate the specialty of the now-closed Pure Luck restaurant... which, you may recall, was the location of an Adventure Wednesday last month. 

We found jackfruit! It's available at most Asian or Indian food stores.
Some recipes recommend getting it in brine, but we think it's better in water.

 Jackfruit is an Asian fruit that is sweet when ripened, but can be used in its unripe (or "young green") stage as a vegetarian base for curries or other dishes.  We LOVED Pure Luck's barbecue jackfruit sandwich, but now that it's closed, we're SO(Pure)L.  Or so we thought.

Thanks to a little Googlin', we got wind of a cooking method for jackfruit.  So yesterday, we tackled a recreation of that magical sandwich.  And it worked!

Here's how jackfruit looks before cooking.  Drain well and squeeze out whatever liquid you can.

Dice two cloves of garlic, and saute in a spritz of Pam for a few minutes. 
Then add the jackfruit and saute for another few minutes.

Move the mixture to your slow cooker or crock pot, and add your favorite barbecue sauce.

After about an hour, the jackfruit will start to fall apart.  It will look surprisingly like pulled pork.
Help it along with a fork - keeping in mind that the core may not shred as well. It's still edible.

Use your preferred bun and toppings (we used Trader Joe's rustic rolls, Vegenaise, dill pickles and onions)
and you've got a barbecue sandwich that is not only scrumptious, it's low-cal.

Can you believe it?

There are 100 calories in a cup of barbecue jackfruit... 

as compared to 528 calories in barbecue pulled pork.

Jackfruit really is surprisingly delicious.  But a word of warning - it is not chewy and firm like actual pulled pork.  It has a softer texture.  If you're a meat fan, you'll probably want to still enjoy pulled pork as a treat, but if you've got a hankering for barbecue sauce and don't want to spare those 528 calories, jackfruit will definitely hit the spot.

And speaking of hitting the spot...

Announcing...

That's right, everyone.  At our next Supper Club 600, we will serve a mouth-watering barbecue feast, complete with summery salads, home-made condiments (including our new concoction, tamarind barbecue sauce) and a dessert that is... the bombe.

We'd like to host it on Saturday evening, July 23.  And consider this your invitation!  Please RSVP here, on Facebook, Twitter, or to me directly. 

We don't yet have a firm location, but it occurs to us that our home isn't big enough to host this party series as it grows.  We have had one offer to host, and we'll try to firm that up soon.  And if you'd be interesting in hosting a Supper Club in the future, let us know.

In fact, this thing seems to be growing like a weed (a tasty, tasty weed) so we're going to do a little something different this time.  Tom and I are thrilled to plan, prepare, and cook for everyone.  In fact, we're passionate about it.  But in order to keep up with the pace we're setting, I don't think our finances can cover every ingredient for a huge dinner ever other month.  And instead of making it potluck (since the aim is to balance the calories, and push our culinary creativity) we'd like to open it up for donations, instead.

Just to make it clear - donations are in no way required of our guests.  And they don't have to be financial donations.  There are all kinds of ways you could contribute to this.

• Open up your home for the party
• Assist with set-up
• Donate money to cover an ingredient/course/decoration for the meal (for instance, the jackfruit. We'd even list you as Official Jackfruit Sponsor on the menu!)
• Lend plates, or tablecloths, or folding chairs/tables
• Offer to drive a carpool to the location
• Entertain the guests after the meal with your fancy dancing
• Help clean up (this'll be an important one, especially if we're not in our own home.)

If you'd like to contribute, please let me know and I'll keep everything organized.  Any extra donated funds will NOT be kept by Tom and I; we'll simply keep a SC600 pool and apply it to the next party.  We want to make this a community celebration - not a business in any way.

OK!  We're really looking forward to sharing this with you.  So think about joining us - and take care of you today!

Adventure Wednesday with an Indian Dinner Party!

After a day full of accomplishing a bunch of tasks that had been hanging over my head, I feel great.  Isn't it funny how scratching something off a list feels so... empowering?  I've felt empowered in general, lately, and I think that is because - as I mentioned on Twitter this weekend - I've been feeling more and more authentically myself.  I seem to be doing more of what drives me and makes me passionate, and it's very fulfilling.

It turns out that one of those things is a new project I've been working on with Tom.  It's not exactly new, per se.  We've been throwing theme parties for almost as long as we've been together.  (It wasn't something either of us did before we were together, but I think it's something that we bring out in each other.)  We've done Oscar parties with dishes themed to the best picture nominees.  We've hosted our own short film fest, where all of our dishes were "small" foods to accompany the small movies.  We are, quite frankly, a bit nerdy about themes.

So I guess it's not too surprising that after the luncheon we hosted earlier this year (when we discovered how fun it was to plan a party meal under 600 calories - but still stuffing our guests with delicious food) we craved... more.  More dinner parties.  More themes.  More unique combinations under 600 calories.  And so, our supper club was born.

Welcome to Supper Club 600... a series of themed meals under 600 calories. Over the next... (well, I don't know how long, but so far we have ideas that will probably take us through a few years) Tom and I will curate and create these dinners for our fellow lovers of good food and good company.

Our first (or second, if you consider March's non-themed) edition of SC600 was held in celebration of Tom's birthday.  And since Tom's favorite cuisine is Indian food, the meal was built around his favorite Indian recipe, samosa-stuffed potatoes, which I shared here in April.

That's right... if you took exactly the serving sizes listed above, you'd have a full plate - and a full stomach - for 595 calories.  And while that's on the upper end of a meal size if you're reducing your calories, it's perfectly feasible if you plan for it.  (For instance, that day I had about 350 calories for breakfast, and 450 for lunch, landing me at my goal of about 1400.)  If you're aiming for ~2000 calories a day, 600 is about the size of a meal to aim for if you eat breakfast, lunch, dinner and a 200 calorie snack.

Here is what 595 calories of Indian goodness looks like.  (Less, actually - no cake pop or chai in the picture!)
Photo courtesy of David

 
It was great fun preparing for the party.  Tom used his brand new spice grinder to make homemade garam masala, a spice blend frequently used in Indian cuisine.  I think that the freshly-toasted and -ground spices made the dal (a savory lentil stew) extra delicious.

I'm a nut for decorating to theme despite our budget limitations, so I cobbled together some things I already had (plus some flowers from TJ's and pair of inexpensive table linens from India Sweets and Spices - where I had a previous Wednesday adventure.)

The table spread, prior to setting up the second table. 
Photo courtesy of Rochelle

Thank goodness Rochelle & David took photos; by the time the guests arrived, I was completely wrapped up in hostessing!

At the table with our very funny friends, Samantha, Lindsay and Kyle.
Photo courtesy of David

    

A big bowl-o-cauliflower, plus the hands and/or chests of Tom, Brendan, Cynthia and myself.
Photo courtesy of David

  
It seemed to me like Tom's homemade tamarind chutney was the hit of the meal!  Our adorable pal Keith recommended that we try putting it on our cauliflower, which I'd never attempted before.  What an amazing combination of flavors!  Keith also led the rally to try the tamarind with the fruit salad.  His appreciation inspired us to try another tamarind recipe for our next SC600... more on that later!  For now, here's the recipe for the chutney:

Ingredients
3 tb of tamarind paste
2 cups of water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

Directions
In a saucepan, mix the tamarind paste into the water over medium heat until dissolved.  Turn the heat up and bring to a boil.  Add sugar and stir to dissolve.  Reduce heat and simmer until it is reduced by half - it will be thick enough to coat the spoon.  Grind the seeds and stir into the chutney.  Cool before serving - it will thicken considerably as it cools.

Once everyone had finished their meal, we passed around the coconut cake pops I had made for the occasion.  As I mentioned yesterday, I had trouble resisting eating more than my share of these, but I only had one for dinner.

Our lovely friends David and Rochelle, before their first-ever cake pop!
Photo courtesy of David

  
I think others enjoyed them as much as I did... we heard Lindsay say "Heidi, what did you do to me!?"  It made my night.  And now, these little coconut wonders can make your night, too.  Here's my recipe, sans photo essay because I was too busy whipping our party into shape to photograph!  If you'd like visual examples, you can check out some of my previous Cake Pop Quest photos.

Cake Base Ingredients
One box of cake mix, (preferably Trader Joe's Vanilla Baking Mix)
4 ounces of fat free plain Greek yogurt
4 ounces of unsweetened applesauce
3 egg whites
1 cup light coconut milk (preferably Trader Joe's)

Frosting Ingredients
4 ounces of butter
8 ounces of powdered sugar
2 tb plus 2 tsp light coconut milk (preferably Trader Joe's)
1 tsp coconut extract

Coating Ingredients
1 bag of Wilton (or other) Candy Melts. (Do not use white or regular chocolate; it will not coat smoothly.)
Unsweetened coconut flakes

Directions
Make the cake base. Blend the yogurt, applesauce, egg whites and coconut milk together with a stand or hand mixer, until smooth.  Add the cake mix and blend until smooth.  Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350.  Cool overnight or for 8 hours.

After cake has cooled, assemble the frosting.  Bring butter to room temperature. Cream butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar to the butter and beat well, then add coconut milk.  When smooth, add coconut extract and blend until smooth.

Using two forks, scrape the cooled cake, creating crumbs until it's fully separated with no clinging edges or large clumps. Add the frosting (though, I found that the full amount was too much so I reserved a quarter-cup. Maybe try to throw it away instead of eating it.)  Work the cake and frosting together until it is an even consistency - squishy like clay.

With a tablespoon scoop, dole out 55 even portions of the cake/frosting mixture.  Roll each between your palms to create the cake balls.  Insert lollipop sticks, and freeze for at least 2 hours.

Melt half the Candy Melts in a double-boiler, and transfer to a small bowl that allows you to fully submerge a cake pop.  Dip half of the cake pops, and roll in 1/2 tsp unsweetened coconut flakes.  Place the pop stick in a block of dry florist foam (I've found this is the ideal way to store and transport.)  Repeat with the second half of the candy melts, coconut, and pops.

Finished pop!
Photo courtesy of David

Tom had a birthday request, to watch Samuel Fuller's Shock Corridor after dinner, so the guests who stayed got exposed to the weird and wonderful B-movie, with plenty of mental patients, gnawing nymphos, white pants, and hallucinatory feather boas.  We've decided we'll be embarking on a retrospective of Fuller's career, because it's just too fun to watch with friends.

We had a terrific time planning, prepping, and entertaining our guests.  (Actually, they entertained us!)  And the next morning, we woke up brimming with ideas for our very next Supper Club 600.  Keep your eye out for some announcements soon!

I'll be back tomorrow with a special edition wedding-anniversary entry.  Fair warning: you might want to come armed with a glass of milk or a cup of coffee to wash away the sweetness.

Enjoy your own Wednesday adventure today - and keep taking care of you!

Angel Eggs and Easter Food Plans

Easter is Sunday, and for most people celebrating the holiday, there's sure to be a ton of scrumptious food, tempting mindful eaters to throw caution to the bunny rabbits.  But that's not my plan.

This is the first big family-type holiday we're celebrating since we started our plan. (Side note... I hate the word "plan" used in context of weight loss.  Much like my friend Audra hates the word "craft" used in the context of acting.  But sometimes there's just no better word for it.)

So Tom and I have crafted a springy menu full of fresh, healthy, and still delicious foods we'll be serving for Easter.  One of these includes a new recipe I've been building for the occasion.

Growing up, holidays meant a veritable groaning board full of food.  (Do you know why a buffet is called a groaning board? Because the table wood was so heavily laden, the planks would groan.  Much like the buffet-eaters would grown afterward, I imagine.  When your tables and guests are groaning from food, it might be a sign that you should scale back.)  Easter - aside from the choco-fest in our baskets - was never without my mother's signature deviled eggs.  Which I loved.  But when made with full-fat mayonnaise, could add up quickly if you didn't limit yourself to one egg.

So this year, I have created a new recipe that I call Angel Eggs.  A few simple ingredient swaps preserve the tangy flavor and creamy texture, while removing 75% of the fat and 50% of the cholesterol.  Not to mention retaining 100% of the protein.

Start with a few simple ingredients. (Do use 6 eggs in total.)

Peel and halve the boiled eggs. Discard 3 yolks, and mash the other 3.
Once fully mashed, stir in the Greek yogurt and mustard until smooth,
followed by the dill relish (if dill is your style. If not, go sweet or skip it!)

Chop the chives and fold to combine. (I love herb scissors, by the way. Don't they look cool?)

Here's a helpful trick - whether or not you have bakery frosting tips, you can use a regular
plastic zippy bag to stuff your eggs. Simply snip off a corner (just large enough
to insert the tip, if you're using one) and spoon the filling into the bag.

This makes for an neat and easy stuffing process, though you can
scoop and spoon the filling that way if you prefer.

Garnish with a few more chopped chives.

And here's a fun tip... if you need to transport the eggs, but have no fancy-pants
deviled egg carrier, you can use baking liners to keep them upright!

Ingredients

• 6 eggs (using 12 white halves, but only 6 whole yolks)
• 2 tb fat free plain Greek yogurt (the thick consistency is preferable to regular yogurt.)
• 1/2 tb dijon mustard
• 1 tb dill relish
• 1.5 tb chives (with 1 tsp reserved for garnish.)

And check out the nutrition facts!

Along with the Angel Eggs, we'll be serving tilapia en papillote with lemon and thyme, fresh snap pea pods with mint, a citrus-and-greens salad, a reduced-calorie version of my mother's potato salad (using, you guessed it, Greek yogurt) and lemon-basil sorbet for dessert. Don't you wish you were Eastering at our house?

I'm also allowing myself one Easter treat this weekend, which I will be enjoying at our friends' Easter party on Saturday.  I'm a sucker for Cadbury Creme Eggs... but one is all I ever really need.  And it turns out, as Easter candy goes, one Creme Egg is 150 calories. A decent portion for a treat.  And dammit, I am going to enjoy it!

Before I bid you adieu for the holiday weekend, I'll share part 4 of my week of daily food blogging:

Thurssday 4/20/11 - total 1429 calories
Breakfast: 1/2 cup fat free greek yogurt, 1/2 cup strawberries, 1/4 cup honey oat cereal, 1 boiled egg
Lunch: Bowl of homemade noodle stir-fry (2 oz soba noodles, 1/2 bell pepper, 1/4 onion, 1 clove garlic, 2 tsp fresh ginger, 1/2 tb light soy sauce), 7 scallops, 2 cups steamed broccoli with lemon, 1 navel orange
Pre-Slimmons Fuel: 1/2 cup fat-free no-sugar-added frozen yogurt from Menchie's, 1/4 cup kiwi, 1/4 cup blueberries
Dinner: 2 roasted carrots, 1/2 whole wheat pita, 2 tb garlic hummus, 1 wrap sandwich (low-carb tortilla, 1 tsp veganaise, 2 cherry tomatoes, 2 oz grilled chicken, 1 oz brie)
Evening snack: 1/4 cup honey oat cereal
Beverages: 64 oz water, 8 oz skim milk


Have a lovely Easter/Passover/Spring weekend, everyone - and keep taking care of you!