Recipe: Pumpkin whoopie pies

OMG! There's really nothing else to say about these cookies. If you like pumpkin, you're gonna want to try these immediately. Warning: You might want to eat the whole batch.

Ingredients
1 box angel food cake mix
1 can (15 oz.) pure pumpkin
8 oz. fat-free cream cheese
2 tbsp. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
Water
Pumpkin pie spice
Cinnamon
Cooking spray

Combine cake mix, pumpkin and a tablespoon of water in a large bowl. Mix with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. About a minute. Coat two cookie sheets with cooking spray. (I lined mine with aluminum foil first as well.) Drop cake mix into 12 round spoonfuls on each pan. About a tablespoon per cookie. You're trying to make 48 cookies total so use about half the mixture on the first two pans. Bake at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes or until edges of cookies start to brown. Remove from oven and cool completely. Repeat with second half of cake mixture. Meanwhile, mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, 1 tsp. water and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon in a small bowl. Once all of the cookies are completely cool, spread cream cheese filling on one cookie and top with a second cookie. The cookies were a bit sticky, so I put them on wax paper when I was done. Makes 24 whoopie pies.

Recipe: Steak and cheese

Usually when I get a craving for something, I try to find a healthier way to make it. This isn't exactly the kind of steak and cheese you'd get in Philadelphia, but it was quite tasty, very filling and much less likely to pack on the pounds.

Ingredients
1 flatbread (I used Joseph's multigrain, but you could use the FlatOut brand.)
3 slices deli roast beef
1 slice monterey jack cheese with jalapenos
1 small tomato, sliced and cut in half
Handful of fresh spinach (If this seems too odd for a steak and cheese, try adding mushrooms instead.)

To build the sandwich, place flatbread on a plate. Add the roast beef. Break cheese slice into long strips and place sporadically across the roast beef. Spread spinach on top and add tomato slices. Heat in microwave for 30 seconds. Roll flatbread and cut in half.

Weekly weigh-in: A breakthrough?

Last week's weight: 172.8
This week's weight: 169.8
Difference: -3
Total weight lost since January 2010: 102 pounds

I don't really know where to begin. This week has been overwhelming in so many ways. On the down side, my stress level was higher than it's been in months, I barely got a single night's good sleep and I felt hungry a lot. On the up side, I was diligent in my food choices, I exercised almost every day and by the end of the week my body seemed to be adjusting to the decreased amount of food.

I'm elated by a 3-pound loss this week, but I'm just a bit skeptical. Regardless, I feel like this was a breakthrough week. I had several opportunities to do the wrong thing, but I made smart choices. I'm really proud of how I thought through everything I ate and drank. For example, one night while out for dinner with friends, I wanted pizza. But I ordered a salad. I used very little dressing, yet I really enjoyed it. Sure, I would have liked the pizza better, but I would have felt so guilty for eating it.

I don't know whether the number on the scale will stay as low as it was this week. It doesn't matter. I know that mentally I found the strength to truly assess my choices. Even today, as a new week begins, I'm proud that I turned down munchkins from Dunkin Donuts. I did splurge a little at lunch and dinner, but I'm only over my daily Weight Watchers points allotment by a few points.

Oh, and for the record, I don't want anyone to think that I'm losing weight because I don't eat. That's simply not the case. I'm just eating less than I used to. Just to prove it, here's what I ate yesterday: cereal for breakfast, salad with a few bites of meatloaf and pork barbecue for lunch (I got it from a local salad bar), cut up mixed fruit for snack, string cheese for snack, veggie frittata for dinner, a peach for snack, a FiberOne brownie for snack and a Weight Watchers popsicle.

I'm hoping this week's weigh-in finally helped me cross the 100-pounds-lost mark for good. I know it won't be easy to maintain the weight loss much less lose the last 20 pounds, but I feel prepared and I know I can do it if I just set my mind to it. Plus, a quick trip to mall after work gave me a bit of a boost ... I can almost fit into a size 10. That's unbelievable!

Weekly weigh-in: What's normal?

Last week's weight: 172.2
This week's weight: 172.8
Difference: +0.6
Total weight lost since January 2010: 99 pounds

I'm not surprised by the weight gain this week. I had several moments of weakness, including a giant chocolate chip cookie and a jumbo-sized bag of potato chips. I'm not going to dwell on it. I'll just try to do better this week.

I had two strange moments during the week. One came when I saw a photo someone had taken of me and I felt like I didn't even recognize myself. This happens fairly regularly, especially if it's a big group of people. I find myself studying the photo and wondering if that's what I really look like. I typically like what I see in the photo, but it's not the imagine in my head. I wonder if that will ever change?

The second odd encounter was when a woman I had just met told me I look "normal." I don't exactly remember what prompted me to tell her about my weight loss (but I do talk about it a lot). She was immediately excited to tell me that she, too, has lost weight with Weight Watchers. We started comparing stories about our journeys. Then she leaned in and said, "I know you'll understand what I'm about to tell you. You look normal." At first, it felt like a compliment. But then it started bothering me. What does normal look like? I know she meant it in the nicest way. Losing as much weight as I have is a major accomplishment and people genuinely seem excited for me.

Anyway, both moments struck me this week because they are about my self imagine. As the three-year anniversary of the start of this journey approaches, I worry that I'll never be able to truly see how much I've changed. And I also struggle with the realization that no matter how much progress I make, it's still very easy to slip back into old habits.

Recipe: Potato, broccoli and corn chowder

I must be craving carbs ... again. At least this time I'm trying to eat them in moderation and as part of an overall lowfat meal. Yesterday I made stuffed shells. Today I went with a creamy potato, broccoli and corn chowder. I can't wait to make the chowder again when winter rolls around.

Ingredients
2 cans (14.5 oz. each) 99% fat-free chicken broth
2 cups fat-free buttermilk
1 onion, chopped (You need about 1 cup. I used a yellow onion, but you can use whatever you like, but I wouldn't recommend red.)
1 2/3 lbs. potatoes, peeled and diced (I used Yukon gold, but you can use whatever you have on hand.)
3 tsp. garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 bag frozen chopped broccoli
1/2 cup frozen corn kernels
Salt and pepper to taste

Pour chicken broth into a large pot. Add potatoes, onion and garlic. Cover and bring to a boil. Once potatoes are tender, let mixture cool slightly. Mix with a handheld immersion blender. (If you don't have one, you can transfer the mixture in batches to a regular blender, but that might get messy. If you don't have an immersion blender, I'd recommend simply not blending it. It will just be soup instead of chowder.) Once creamy, add buttermilk, broccoli and corn. Cover until it returns to a light boil. Reduce heat and add salt and pepper. Makes 4 servings. (I added a sprinkle of parsley and shredded cheese, but that's not necessary.)

Recipe: Stuffed shells

Yes, it is possible to eat pasta and lose weight. I must admit that I don't eat pasta very often and when I do, it's in small amounts. But I could never live without it. So here's a recipe I adapted from Weight Watchers for stuffed shells. Before I began my weight loss journey, I made them about once a month. And they were stuffed with full-fat mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan and ground beef and then topped with plenty of sauce and cheese. Now, I make them just a few times a year and each time I've made the recipe better and better. So here's the latest version, which has a little more heft (and fat) than the Weight Watchers version. But it is so yummy!

Ingredients
24 jumbo pasta shells (I prefer whole-wheat, but I couldn't find jumbo shells.)
1 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
1 cup 2% milk fat cottage cheese
1 package frozen spinach
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tbsp. Italian seasoning
Sprinkle of red pepper flakes
1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce with basil, garlic and oregano
1/4 cup 2% milk fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tbsp. parmesan cheese, shredded
Sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese
Cooking spray

Cook shells according to package directions. Thaw spinach in a large bowl in the microwave. Mix in ricotta, cottage cheese, garlic salt, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes. Coat a large baking dish with cooking spray. After pasta is slightly cooled, stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons of filling and place in baking dish. Pour both cans of tomato sauce over shells. Sprinkle with shredded cheeses. Bake at 350 degrees until sauce begins to bubble. About 15-20 minutes. To serve, put four shells on a plate and add just a sprinkle of grated parmesan. Makes 6 servings.

Weekly weigh-in: It's a wash

Last week's weight: 173.8
This week's weight: 172.2
Difference: -1.6
Total weight lost since January 2010: 99.6

The past two weeks have been somewhat of a blur. I've been working a ton and feel like I've barely had time to stop and think. That means I haven't been very diligent about monitoring what I eat and I've gotten in very little exercise. So I guess it's no surprise that I gained last week, but I lost this weight. And I'm right back where I was two weeks ago.

Once again, this is just proof that even when life gets in the way, I can maintain my weight loss. I've had a lot of opportunity in the past two days to talk about myself and how I operate. The biggest thing I realized is just how different I am today than I was three years ago. My entire thought process and approach to life has changed.

I often feel like I'm not very confident. But someone I consider a role model told me today that I'm a lot more confidant than I give myself credit for. I'm glad I come across as confident ... even if I may not always feel that way on the inside.

What I also noticed during my discussions this week is just how more positive I am now than I used to be. I'm still realistic and not one to sugar coat things, but I'm much more able to see the possibilities that lie ahead and to handle uncertainty.

The moral of the story this week: I feel good about myself.