Baked Potato Soup/Homemade Salsa

So, my first week of getting back on track and I did way better than I thought I would. I used www.myfitnesspal.com to track all my foods and exercise in. So are you ready?

-5.6 pounds!

What did I do?

*Planned my foods in advance
*Entered in everything I ate to know how many calories I consumed
*Walked home from work instead of getting a ride/taking the bus
*Did a few workouts on demand
*limited alcohol
*Cut out late night eating during the week.
*No seconds at dinner

So, I am pretty excited about that!

This is going to be a short post, I have to make my breakfast and lunch for work, but I did make a few great things:

I made my Baked Potato Soup – the best ever based on Cooking Light.com (updated 2020 – Cooking Light is now Eating Well Magazine)

Ingredients:

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups soup, 1 1/2 teaspoons cheese, 1 1/2 teaspoons onions, and about 1 tablespoon bacon)

Ingredients

4 big baking potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds)
2/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 3 ounces)
6 cups 2% reduced-fat milk – I used skim milk
1 cup (4 ounces) reduced-fat shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese, (such as Kraft brand) divided
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
3/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
6 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled – I used turkey bacon
Cracked black pepper (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°. * Or to save on time I baked mine in the microwave!! Or this time, I baked my potatoes in the crock pot all day so they would be ready when I got home from work. Just wash the potatoes, and cook them on low all day. You don’t need to add anything else!

Pierce potatoes with a fork; bake at 400° for 1 hour or until tender. Cool. Peel potatoes; coarsely mash.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Place flour in a large pot; gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (about 8 minutes). Add mashed potatoes, 3/4 cup cheese, salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, stirring until cheese melts. Remove from heat.

Stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup onions. Cook over low heat 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated (do not boil). Ladle 1 1/2 cups soup into each of 8 bowls. Sprinkle each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons cheese, 1 1/2 teaspoons onions, and about 1 tablespoon bacon. Garnish with cracked pepper, if desired.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 329
Fat: 10.8g
Protein: 13.6g
Carbohydrate: 44.5g
Fiber: 2.8g
Cholesterol: 38mg
Sodium:587mg
Calcium:407mg

And I made some Salsa

And yesterday my Mom invited me to a club she belongs to for a nice luncheon and singing program. Thanks Mom, it was a lot of fun!

And, I didn’t have dessert OR seconds at the buffet, I chose smaller portions! Wahoo!!

Have a great Monday!