Dear Weight Watchers...

Things I love...cupcakes, cake, wine, steak, mashed potatoes, cheeseburgers and french fries, queso and chips, fajitas, cheese and crackers....Shouldd I keep going?

Sadly, it's because of my love for all things fatty that I have become, well, a fatty myself. Why are all the good things so bad for you?

So, I joined Weight Watchers last week. I am excited about it and am really motivated and can't wait to be thin (thinner) again. It's put a little bit of a damper on my baking and cooking, but I'm learning how to adapt things to fit into WW.

Weight Watchers has a plethora of recipes and, for some strange reason, of all of those recipes, I chose fish and chips. I don't know what made me think that WW fish and chips would be as delicious as the orginial, because it was worse than words can describe. It looked like (and I would assume tasted like) cat vomit. It led me to somewhat of an emotional breakdown. I though eating right and exercising was supposed to make you feel better? After some encouraging words from my sweet husband, I was motivated again and really hopeful in the WW program. I am going to really try to take things we normally eat and modify them to fit into my allowed points. I am a little skeptical to try more WW recipes, but there was one I just had to try after searching for potato dishes.

We had our normal weekend night steak dinner and instead of mashed potatoes or cheesy polenta, I made the WW Potatoes Au Gratin. It was pretty delicious! Aside from taking an hour and a half to cook, it was really easy and only 3 points per serving.

*unfortunately, my picture didn't turn out, but it was very pretty!
Au Gratin Potatoes, adapted from Weight Watchers
1 spray(s) cooking spray
1 Tbsp butter
1 medium onion(s), thinly sliced
1 Tbsp minced garlic (I added this to the original recipe)
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
2 pound(s) Yukon Gold potato(es), thinly sliced
1 cup(s) fat free shredded cheddar cheese (I find that this cheese is pretty good. It's really stringy)
1 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
 
Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat a 2-quart covered baking dish with cooking spray.
 
Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion  and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour; add milk slowly, stirring. Add potatoes and stir to mix. Bring to a boil. Stir in 3/4 cup of cheese, salt and pepper.

Pour mixture into prepared baking dish and level out surface. Bake for 1 hour, uncovered. Cover and bake until potatoes are fork-tender, about 20 minutes more.

Change oven temperature to broil. Sprinkle remaining cheese over potatoes. Broil 6 inches from the heating element until the cheese is golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing into 8 pieces.