Friday, 12-06-26

Good evening, everyone.  Apologies for the last few days - I haven't been very well.

I had loads of bits and bobs that needed using up and I didn't have the energy to concoct anything whizz so I basically shoved the lot into a pot and made a sort of stew and that's what I have had all day plus some fruit.

This is what I had for breakfast and lunch.  It looks a bit radioactive but that's the bright sunshine.  No seeds for breakfast.

I cooked some rice to have with it for dinner.  I was going to add cheese but I nibbled on it instead.

I had fruit too - nectarines, an apples and an orange.

Summary:

Two calcium healthy extras and one oil
One and a half swips for the seeds

B:  fruit and yogurt

L and D:  more of the stew

And fruit

Exercise:  helping at the community garden.

Tuesday, 09-06-26

Good evening, everyone!

I had a banana and a pear before Groove and when I got home again I was really hungry so I scrambled a couple of eggs - just eggs and a bit of seasoning, nothing else, so SW speed and free.

I decided to go a bit Cretan and split my lunch into two courses.
I started with the salad, just the usual stuff plus a beetroot, carrot and apple salad which was nice but next time, I think I will cube the beetroot rather than grating it.

One swip for salad cream in the beetroot salad and one swip for ditto on the leaves after I had taken the photo.

And then I had the second portion of the sort-of-lasagne, reheated in the air fryer.

It went down a treat!

As yesterday, two oil swips, one swip for the white bean sauce and half a calcium healthy extra for cheese.

And I finished off with an apple.

For dinner, I made a simple chicken pasta arrabbiata with some Italian cheese and some cooling yogurt on the side.

For afters, I had some strawberries.

Half a calcium healthy extra and four oil swips which, with the dinner oil swips, makes a fats/oils healthy extra.

Summary:

One oil and one calcium.  No fibre - but, as I keep saying, I'm fine on the fibre front.

Three swips.

B:  fruit and yogurt

L:  crustless quiche and salad

D:  imam bayildi (from the freezer) and salad

And fruit

Exercise is personal training.  

Monday, 08-06-26

Evening, all. 

I was hungry after Circuits so I had some fruit (strawberries, kiwi, blueberries and apple) with some yogurt and maple syrup.

One swip for the maple syrup.

A filling lunch of avo on bagel, scrambled egg and tomatoes

One fats healthy extra, one fibre healthy extra and two swips for oil to cook the tomatoes.

Later on I had an orange and some grapes.

A lot of my meals are 'sort of' meals and this was no exception.  A sort of lasagne with broccoli followed by a banana.

I left half for tomorrow.

Two swips for oil, one swip for the cheesy sauce and one calcium choice plus three swips for extra cheese to nibble!

Summary:

One of each healthy extra
Six swips

B:  fruit and yogurt, if wanted

L:  the rest of the sort of lasagne with salad

D:  chicken penne arrabbiata with sort of garlic bread and salad

And fruit

Exercise will be Groove.  

Sunday, 07-06-26

Good evening, everyone.  Hoping you've had a great weekend.

Through the morning, I had about ten grapes at odd intervals.

This was lunch - I mixed some chicken with a little pot of butterbean and red pepper pate, made a potato salad ans found some wholegrain rice with added seeds in the freezer so had that too plus salad veg and mixed seeds.

One oil swip for the pate, one swip for salad cream in the potato salad, one and a half oil swips for seeds and the rice was one swip and one and a half oil swips.  So a total of four oil swips and two other swips.

My lovely neighbour went strawberry picking and gave me eight beautifully delicious berries so I had some of them with some grapes and some 0% yogurt for afters.  So good.

A very nice dinner of roast chicken in gravy with carrots, broccoli, cauliflower and five titchy little mange tout from Beth's 'garden' (all there were).

I sprinkled some grated cheese over the broccoli and cauli and it was lovely.

One and a bit calcium healthy extras and the rest is SW free, speed or protein.

I had the last of the lovely strawberries with some grapes, blueberries and a few raspberries from the garden.  No yogurt this time.

Summary:

Almost one oil/fats healthy extra, one and a bit calciums and no fibre.  No worries, I have plenty of fibre in my diet anyway.  

Two swips.

B:  fruit and yogurt

L:  avocado bagel with egg and tomatoes

D:  chicken and veg lasagne, salad

and fruit

Exercise is circuits.

Saturday, 06-06-26

Evening everyone.
I had a bit of a kitchen time today.

I roasted a chicken crown from the freezer

I made another batch of Roy's cheesy white sauce, adding Nooch instead of cheese this time. just to see.

I started this weekend's sourdough.

And I looked up some recipes and now have a million and one ways to use cooked chicken!

(Slight exaggeration, maybe!)

I had an apple and a banana in the morning.   

This was lunch - the rest of the sort of moussaka with a big old salad and I added salad cream.

Dinner was off plan so I didn't take any photos and can't summarise.
Back on it today.

 B:  I might go for something eggy, seeing as it is Sunday - a shakshuka sort of thing maybe as I have loads of tomatoes.

L:  chicken salad bowl

D:  roast chicken dinner - chicken, toasties and veg.  Very trad.

And fruit.

Friday, 05-06-26

Evening, everyone.
One pound off this week - I'm very happy with that!  xx

After group and shopping, I had a coffee and a banana.

My 'sort of moussaka' was really nice.  Smashed potato on the bottom, then the ratatouille, then some sliced aubergine, softened in the microwave and then griddled with spray oil and finally some white bean cheesy sauce with a sprinkle of hard Italian cheese, about fifteen minutes in the air fryer.
It made two portions

Half a calcium choice and two oil swip.

Afters was some melon and later I had an apple.

I totally forgot to take a photo of dinner but it was as planned.  Air fryer lemony garlic chips, hake topped with breadcrumbs and a bit of grated cheese and some smashed petit pois.  

Four oil swips, part of a fibre choice and two swips for the cheese.

Afters was a banana and some strawberries.

So - summary:
One oil, one calcium and part of a fibre healthy extra

Two swips

(I think)

B:   fruit and yogurt, if wanted

L:  leftovers of the sort of moussaka, salad

D:  lemon spiced chicken with chickpeas, broccoli
Lemon-spiced chicken with chickpeas recipe | Good Food

And fruit

Thursday, 04-06-26

Evening, everyone.  I hope you're well and have had a good day.

I had fruit salad, yogurt and seeds for breakfast - one and a half swips for seeds.  No photo though.

This was lunch and very delicious it was too.  The avocado was my fats healthy extra and the bread was my fibre plus three swips.

Afters was the rest of the fruit salad I made yesterday

And dinner - I didn't have the bean dip, etc, just the main and it was delicious - new potatoes, chicken, onion, mushroom and pepper with sweet paprika and garlic granules.  
I'm counting the evoo I used as another fats  healthy extra as I didn't have any calcium choice today.
Afters was an orange.

Summary:
Two fats healthy extras and one fibre

Four and a half swips

After weigh in at SW group, I will be popping to Morrisons to get just a few things that I need.  I'm finding that it's OK to shop when I'm hungry as long as I have things planned and, sometimes, prepped.

B:  (if wanted)  fruit, yogurt and seeds

L:  sort of moussaka - I plan to use a portion of my ratatouille, layered with cooked potato and topped with a portion of Roy's Alfredo Sauce (made with beans) from the freezer

(it might make more than one portion, fingers crossed)

D:  fish and chips - I will top a piece of hake with a breadcrumb, lemon and herb mix, bake, and serve with hm air fryer chips and some smashed peas (or salad)

Wednesday. 03-06-26

Good evening!

I have been watching Weary Wolf on YouTube.  He does various frugal challenges - a week on a pound a day - that sort of thing.  They're very good.

I rather fancy some sort of short term challenge but have so much food in the house, so to speak, that costing things out would be very tricky and it makes no sense to buy more lentils, for example, when I have loads already.  Also I would need to stick with Mediterranean/Slimming World principles - not that this would be a problem as it's so wide ranging and unrestrictive.

I need to have a think about this - if you have any ideas, please do let me know.

(By the way, this original blog started as a frugal challenge - thirty pounds for thirty days)

Not the brightest photo in the world, is it?  Such a gloomy day!
I made a fruit salad with pineapple, melon, blueberries, kiwi, mango and a very few raspberries from the garden and I had some of that with yogurt and half a tbsp maple syrup.
One swip for the maple syrup.

Lunch was a home made wrap with some of the ratatouille and some cheese.  Really nice.

One fibre, one calcium and three and a half swips for all the ratatouille.

Later on, I baked bread and had to try it - six swips.

(the rest is now in the freezer!)

And even later on, I had a pear and an apple.

Dinner was a red pepper stuffed with the rest of the ratatouille with some added couscous and topped with feta.

Another calcium choice and I've already counted the ratatouille.

It wasn't really a particularly hungry day but there was plenty of veg in the ratatouille.

Summary:

Two calcium choices and one fibre choice

Ten and a half swips.

B:  fruit and yogurt if needed

L:  smashed avocado on toast with egg; side salad
(I got avocados in the last Oddbox and they need using.)

D:  dip from the freezer with carrot and cucumber sticks; salad; chicken and new potato in tomatoes
(might be less than this, it depends on how hungry I feel)

Tuesday, 02-06-26

Good evening, everyone!  

Morning was all about the squishy fruit.  The peaches and nectarines I bought last Friday went from hard to soft in the blink of an eye and wouldn't have lasted one more day so I scoffed them all - two nectarines and three peaches.  Too much, I know.  

I know beans on toast isn't, at first sight, Mediterranean but, you know, home made sourdough toast and white beans . . . not all that bad really.
One fibre for the toast (plus three swips for another thin slice I nibbled) and three swips for some brown sauce.

Later on I had an apple and an orange.

This was a lovely dinner.  The chips were lemony and herby and garlicky and just delicious - and I reheated the chicken in the same dish so it took on that flavour too.

One healthy oil and one calcium for the feta plus one swip for salad cream

Afters was some melon.

Summary:
One of each healthy extra

Seven swips

B:  fruit and yogurt

L:  ratatouille wrap pizza, side salad

D:  butter bean and red pepper dip with crudites;  stuffed tomatoes and/or pepper, salad

And fruit

Exercise:  personal training

Monday, 01-06-26

 I'm posting this early because I'm off out soon.

Before circuits, I had a banana and when I got home I had a peach.  Very nice it was too.

This was lunch.  Stuffed aubergine.  It was delicious and I believe I posted the link in yesterday's plans.

It took an oil healthy extra plus one oil swip, half a calcium choice for cheese, half a swip for some breadcrumbs and one swip for salad cream.

I took a quick photo of what I'm taking with me.  Yes, I could have dinner in London but not only would it be off plan, it would also be horrifically costly and I'm not in the mood for either.
So I made - don't laugh - baked bean scones which I have split and spread with philly light plus some fruit.
I used wholemeal SR flour and am just wondering if I could use sourdough discard.  Must have a go and see.

So, for dinner, it should be one fibre choice for the flour, half a calcium choice and two swips for the philly.

Provisional summary:

One each of the healthy extras.

Four and a half swips - which does give me a bit of wriggle room.

B:  fruit and yogurt

L:  baked beans on toast (I have beans to use up)

D:  lemon and rosemary potato wedges with chicken and salad

Exercise:  Groove.