Creamy Salmon Pasta with Garlic & Herbs- 9 Smart Points

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Filed under 9 Smart Points, Pasta, Recipes, Salmon

This dish tastes more induglent than the Smart Points value would suggest and is a great wholesome option when you fancy some comfort food.

Servings: 2

Smart Points: 9 per serving

Time: 20-25 minutes

What you need:

  • 1 tsp oil
  • 100g pasta – twists or congliche would be my choice
  • 2 salmon fillets
  • lemon
  • mixed herbs
  • small onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 125ml dry white wine
  • 150g low fat soft cheese with garlic and herbs
  • 4 handfuls of baby spinach

What to do:

  1. Heat the oven to 150C. Put a large sheet of tinfoil onto a bakingctray. Place the salmon skin side down onto the foil. Scatter over the mixed herbs and squeeze over the juice of 1/2 the lemon.
  2. Wrap the foil around the salmon to make a parcel. Put the baking tray into the oven and bake for 20mins.
  3. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pan of salted water for around 10 minutes until the pasta is al dente.
  4. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Gently fry the onions until softened – about 5 mins. Add the garlic and fry for 1 minute. Add the wine and increase the temperature slightly until the strong alcohol smell burns off.
  5. Add the spinach to the onions a handful at a time and stir until wilted.
  6. When the past is cooked, turn off the and drain, reserving some of the water.
  7. Add the soft cheese to the onions and spinach over a low heat, stirring until the cheese has melted. Add some of the pasta water to slacken the sauce to the desired consistency and season to taste.
  8. Stir the drained pasta into the sauce. Divide the pasta between two bowls and top each with a salmon fillet.
  9. Squeeze a bit of lemon over each dish and add some freshly cracked black pepper.

Snap Out Of It!

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Filed under Mindset

I wrote recently about the importance of working to make yourself happier and maintain a positive outlook. And whilst I definitely try to remain upbeat and optimistic, I am of course only human and am prone to a good ‘ole strop now and then,  as I’m sure my family would be only too keen to testify!

So finding ourselves in a bad mood is completely natural and happens to the best of us. We can’t change that. Things will happen in life which will wind us up. But what we can change is how we react when we find ourselves in a bad mood – we can choose stew on it or snap out of it.

Let’s take the first option: you can find yourself in a bad mood because the traffic was bad so you were late home from work, then you broke a nail and managed to superglue all of your fingers together which then made you even later for the gym than you had been before and you found yourself apoplectic with rage at the fact that you needed to hoover the stairs and landing because no one else was going to do it for you (true story). Choosing to stew on it tends to lead to you finding more things to become annoyed about and to you inevitably becoming even more annoyed. Before you know it, a minor irritation has become a full-force strop.

But what if we choose to snap out of it? Acknowledge that you’re feeling in a bad mood, for whatever reason, and do something to distract yourself from it – in much the same way as you would try to distract a toddler who was teetering on the edge of a tantrum.

Personally, I find doing something physical to be most effective: listening to upbeat music whilst doing housework is particularly effective for me (although, I’d avoid angry rap music as experience has taught me that this has the opposite of the intended effect) or doing some kind of exercise like going for a walk whilst listening to an entertaining podcast.

So the next time I find I’m late home from work, I’m going to get myself straight to the gym without ending up fuming about all of the household chores I’m going to need to do for the rest of my life. And I’m definitely going to leave the superglue alone.

 What strategies do you use to help yourself to snap out of it? Let me know in the comments section – I’m always looking for new strategies to try.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

Review: House, Leamington Spa

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Filed under Restaurant Reviews, Reviews

I am not paid for any of the reviews I write and products that I review are paid for with my own money. Read more on my disclaimer page.

I am lucky enough to live close to Leamington Spa, a gorgeous town known for its Regency architecture and broad boulevards. It is home to a good selection of shops including many quirky, independent stores and  a good selection of places to eat and drink. On a recent shopping trip there, Mr FFF and I inevitably found ourselves hungry and decided to check out a bar-restaurant called House which happened to be right next to the shop we’d been to.

On entering, we immediately liked the industrial vibe with pallet wood, retro posters and subway tiles. These elements were softened by the use of circular, studded-leather banquets which put me in mind of Chesterfield sofas, velvet armchairs and curtains, crystal cut glasses, test-tubes of baby’s breath on the tables and a green foliage wall with twinkling fairy lights. Of course, Mr FFF took very little notice of these elements as the Ruby World Cup was being show on a big screen! Despite the sporting excitement, the atmosphere was very much one of relaxed sophistication.

We didn’t have a reservation but were quickly seated in the restaurant, although food is also served in the bar area. The menu was wide-ranging with a number of interesting options without being overwhelming, with a good selection of starters/nibbles, pizzas, sandwiches and mains available. Several items caught my attention but I eventually settled on the Cuban Mojo Pork Salad (with mango, avocado, pickled cucumber, tomato, baby gem and ranch dressing) and a portion of skinny fries, whilst Mr FFF went for the Philly Steak & Cheese Sandwich. The restaurant was pretty full and there was only one member of staff serving so we braced ourselves for a bit of a wait. We needn’t have been concerned as our food arrived in about 20 minutes and was delicious. The salad in particular was divine with the ranch dressing in particular being the tastiest I’ve ever had. Mr FFF’s sandwich was enormous, filled with well-cooked steak and although messy, a real winner of a dish. As always, I did my best impression of a discrete meerkat when other diners were being served and can report that the pizzas and chunky chips looked delicious and will probably need to be sampled on our next visit.

We felt that the menu was pretty reasonably priced too at only £26 for the food and 3 diet cokes between us. Being a Sunday lunchtime, we unfortunately didn’t sample any of the fabulous sounding cocktails or wines, but we will definitely be paying a visit again in the future and will have to try them then in the name of ‘research’!

If you ever find yourself in Leamington Spa looking for a place to eat, I’d highly recommend giving House a try.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

This autumn I’ve been loving – baking

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Filed under Things I Love

I love a sweet, baked treat. Unfortunately, in the past, I’ve been known to enjoy them rather more often than is probably good for me. In fact, I’m sure there have been times where cakes, biscuits and pastries have formed the staple of my diet!

I’ve noticed though that mass-produced, shop-bought goodies never taste as good as homemade versions do, and sometimes, don’t even taste very nice at all (not that that’s stopped me eating them!).

With this in mind, and inspired by this years’ series of the Great British Bake Off, I’ve broken out my rolling pin and substituted lots of shop bought ‘treats’ with occasional homemade ones.

I’m a believer in the legend that is Mary Berry’s philosophy when it comes to baking: don’t try to reduce the calories by cutting out fat or sugar; instead, reduce your portion size. To help me to do this, I’ve been sampling each of my bakes, enjoying one or maybe two portions over a couple of days, but giving the rest away to friends, family and colleagues.

I was originally only planning on baking whilst the GBBO series was on but I’ve really enjoyed trying new recipes and looking forward to my home-baked treats has helped me to resist the temptation to succumb in shop-bought items. So I’m looking forward to keeping my baking going over the next few months.

Have you got a favourite baked-treat recipe? I’m always looking for inspiration so please share your favourites in the comments section.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

Drink of the Week: Hedgerow Chat – 3 Smart Points

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Filed under Cocktails, Drink of The Week, Gin

Another gin-based cocktail this week, but this time, one that uses sloe gin. I usually think of sloe gin as a wintery option but couldn’t resist trying this surprisingly refreshing option on my summer hols.

Mix together a measure of sloe gin, 50ml of fresh orange juice, a dash of lemon juice and a teaspoon of vanilla syrup. Fill a short, wide glass with crushed ice. Pour in the gin and citrus mixture then top up with soda water. Garnish with a lemon ribbon and enjoy. Cheers!

This week I’m loving – Philadelphia Milka

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Filed under Things I Love

I am not paid for any of the reviews I write and products that I review are paid for with my own money. Read more on my disclaimer page.

As regular readers of the blog will know, I LOVE cheesecake. But why does it have to be so flipping calorific?! Ditto both points for chocolate.

So when I spotted Philadelphia Milka on a recent supermarket trip, I HAD to try it and I’m pleased to report it might just be the best £2 I’ve ever spent!

It tastes just like a good chocolate cheesecake filling and is rich, sweet, tangy and creamy in all the right proportions.

At only 4 Smart Points for a rather generous 30g serving, it’s delicious spread on WW Shortbread Biscuits or a good old digestive for a little cheesecake hit for a fraction of the Smart Points/calorie spend.

If you love a bit of cheesecake too, you might like to make my Breakfast Cheesecake and read my review of Costa’s Baked Vanilla Cheesecake.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

Be Kind to Your Future Self

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Filed under Mindset

One of the things I’ve previously struggled with when trying to create and, more importantly, maintain, new habits, it to keep the motivation going over the long term. I’ve often found that I’m good at getting motivated to begin a new habit, but once the initial wave of optimism fades, I find it becomes trickier to balance the demands of keeping the new habit going with the routines and unexpected happenings of daily life.

Recently, however, I’ve come across a new mantra courtesy of Gretchen Rubin and Liz Craft’s Happier podcast. In one of the episodes I listened to this summer (apologies, I can’t remember which one – note to self: jot things down in future!), Gretchen and Elizabeth talked about the idea of being kind to your future self. In short, there may be things you don’t really feel like doing in the moment but which, if you do do them, your future self will thank you for. For example, you might feel too tired after dinner to wash the dishes but if you leave them, when you wake up in the morning, you’ll wish you had just done them at the time. Therefore, thinking of your future self at the time you don’t feel like doing something can help to encourage you to do it.

I’ve been using this to my advantage in helping to stick to my healthy eating and exercise habits. There have been (several)times when I haven’t felt like preparing a healthy lunch or going to the gym, but I’ve stopped and thought about how grateful my future self will be that I did make the lunch or go to the gym. Similarly, I’ve employed this strategy when trying to avoid certain behaviours such as binge-eating or when tempted to indulge in more sweet treats than ar good for me. I’ve also found that picturing how that future self will look and feel – strong, lean, healthy and confident – when she’s thanking me for my actions has helped to boost the motivation to stick with my healthy habits.

 What are you going to do this week that your future self will thank you for? Let me know in the comments section.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

Beef Tacos – 5 Smart Points

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Filed under 5 Smart Points, Beef, Fast Food, Mexican, Recipes

Quick and easy to put together for a Friday night dinner, this dish is delicious served with some Cajun Courgettes

Servings: 2

Smart Points: 5 per serving

Time: 15-20 minutes

What you need:

  • 1 tsp oil
  • 250g lean beef mince
  • 1/2 onion, finely chopped
  • 1/2 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1/2 tin kidney beans
  • Mexican seasoning
  • 2 taco shells

What to do:

  1. Heat a non-stick pan and add the oil. Soften the onions before adding the minced beef stirring until browned all over.
  2. Sprinkle over the Mexican seasoning and stir in the tomatoes and kidney beans. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes until everything is heated through.
  3. Heat the taco shells in the oven according to the instructions on the packet.
  4. Fill the taco shells with the beef filling and try not to make a complete mess whilst eating. (If anyone knows how to do this, please let me know!)

Progress Report 1.10.19

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Filed under My Progress

Weigh-in Result: -2lb

What do you do when plans go awry? That’s how my healthy eating plans have felt this week. I’ve been trying to streamline my meal planning and shopping process to save me time but this is in the early stages and this week I ran into a few problems involving missing ingredients. In the past, my reaction would have been to throw any ideas of sticking to my plan out of the window as I headed to the chippy. But this time has been different. I’ve reminded myself of the progress I’ve made and how much better I’m feeling and I honestly haven’t wanted to resort to takeaway food.

I’ve been back in the kitchen baking along with the Great British Bake Off and this time it was the turn of my colleagues to ensure that I didn’t eat the entire cake!

This week was book club week and, as I mentioned last month, this would usually be an excuse for me to indulge in a glass of wine and a slice of cake without tracking either of them. Last time around I chose cake, this time, I opted for wine. It was actually the first glass of wine I’ve had since my summer cruise and it was nice to savour it whilst discussing this month’s read.

The weekend saw me visiting my parents in Wales. Previous visits have always had quite a boozy theme to them – although there are 9 pubs in the small town (population 2013) that she lives in, so it can’t really be helped! But this time around, my mum knows how focused Mr FFF and I are on improving our health and fitness so, rather than just getting us some drink in for our arrival on Friday after work, she asked us about it first and we politely declined.

We went out for dinner on Saturday night (almost all of the pubs serve delicious, home-cooked food) but I again stayed in control of my eating by having a light breakfast and lunch and only having two alcoholic drinks with dinner.

A warming bowl of cawl made a delicious lunch.

I continue to surprise myself with my attitude towards my fitness. Rather than seeing spending the weekend at my mum’s as an excuse not to exercise, I took my walking boots to Wales with me. Unfortunately, we were thwarted by the Welsh weather but we managed 20 minute walk and also walked to and from the pub! What I did notice was that climbing the steep hill on the way back from the pub no longer leaves me breathless.

I’d also booked an appointment with my PT for the Sunday afternoon when I got back and was delighted that I was able to tell him that I’d been gyming-it consistently whilst he’s been on holiday.

After a busy couple of weeks, I’m looking forward to a quieter time over the next couple of weeks.

Here’s hoping…

FFF

Who Doesn’t Want to be Happier?

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Filed under Mindset

People often comment that I’m always happy and have a positive attitude. Don’t get me wrong, I have my off days and I’m more than capable of having a good old strop, as Mr FFF will confirm, but, on the whole, I do try to maintain a positive outlook.

The key word in that statement is ‘maintain’. It’s something I actively work on and have done for years. One of the ways I do this is by listening to podcasts that promote positive thinking. One of the podcasts I particularly love in this vein in the ‘Happier‘ podcast.

Hosted by Gretchen Rubin, a writer who studies happiness and habits, and her sister Elizabeth Craft, a TV writer and producer. Each week they discuss tips and strategies for how to be happier and provide ‘try it at home’ ideas. Despite living, and recording the podcast, on opposite coasts of the USA, Gretchen and Elizabeth clearly have a close and supportive relationship which shines through in each episode.

I personally love listening to their podcasts whilst doing the housework – it always makes a boring chore a little Happier.

Thanks for reading,

FFF