Operation Skinny Jeans: Week Three

This past week has been tough. I’ve been to the gym every single day except for Sunday, I’ve eaten all the right things, and I haven’t cheated once. Yet I still can’t seem to lose weight. My mom told me to not look at the numbers on the scale and to focus on how I feel in my clothes. The only time I felt better in my clothes was yesterday when I put on a pair of leggings and I didn’t have to fight to pull them up. So baby steps, I guess. The appearance of The Kraken (see here for that reference) this week probably isn’t helping much either. I’m upping my exercise this week, so I’m hoping I see some more results soon.

This week I had a craving for pasta. Unfortunately, pasta is not really that diet friendly. But this spin on pasta is good for you and delicious!

Broccoli and Chickpea Pasta

You need:
8 oz pasta (I used a box of Ancient Harvest quinoa rotelle, making it gluten free)
4 cups broccoli florets
1 ½ cup chicken broth (sub chicken flavored broth if you want to make it vegetarian)
4 tbsp all purpose flour
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
8 large cloves garlic, minced
¼ tsp dried rosemary
4 tsp red wine vinegar
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground pepper

Then you:
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Cook pasta for 6 minutes. Add broccoli and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the pasta and broccoli is just tender, about 3 minutes more. Drain. Rinse and dry the pot.

Whisk broth and flour in a small bowl. Heat oil in the pot over medium-high heat. Add garlic and rosemary and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Whisk in the broth mixture. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, until it thickens. Add chickpeas, vinegar, salt, pepper and the pasta mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until heated through and coated with the sauce, about 2 minutes.

Calories: 395
Serves: 4

Voila! Curb your pasta craving with less carbs and more greens. Delish.

I also wanted to share with you a few of my favorite low calories snacks.

Kettle Brand Bakes Potato Chips  – Tastes like a regular kettle chip, but is only 120 calories a serving (20 chips). Tastes so good it feels like I’m cheating.

Wallaby Greek Yogurt - This stuff is SO delicious. Best Greek yogurt I’ve ever had, and I’ve tried a lot of brands. This is the perfect mid morning snack with 12g of protein to tide you over until lunch.

Chip’Ins - I have yet to see the elusive Buffalo Wing and Jalapeño Ranch in stores, but the White Cheddar and I are very well acquainted. With 130 calories for 18 chips (they’re pretty big), these are my favorite night time snack.

Oikos Frozen Greek Yogurt  - Sometimes you need to get an ice cream fix. This stuff fulfills your craving with much less guilt. I love the Super Fruits flavor. A mix of pomegranate, raspberry, and acai with 110 calories a serving and zero fat, this is the perfect fit for your sweet tooth.

If you aren’t on MyFitnessPal, get on it! Dieters who log their food intake lose 6 lbs more than people who don’t. I really like having it in one place so I can maintain accountability for what I eat. I also use the notes section to note how I feel every day. I log things like migraines, energy levels, etc.

So how is Operation Skinny Jeans going for the rest of you?