It's the weekend!

Time to be good and make up for some earlier sins this past week.  I'm not going to get too wound up in feeling bad though as I think that's counter-productive.  I'm going to focus on today and what's ahead.  To goal today is to eat better and stay busy--no afternoon naps.  As much as I love a nice long siesta, it's probably not a good idea as I'm not burning any calories just laying there like a beached whale. 
Some friends invited us over for a cookout yesterday which presents an interesting problem for people watching the amount or portions of foods.   It's one that has to be dealt with if you aren't a hermit.   There'll always be birthdays, holidays, Super Bowls and such with vast quantities of food.

I ended up being pretty good I think.  I had a burger and a cookie.  It was funny because every few minutes the hostess would pass around a plate of some new goodie she'd just gotten out of the oven.  Apple turnovers, cranberry scones, and M & M cookies!   ARGH.    It was very hard to say no but I did.  They say you should also concentrate on eating slow and focus on how you feel.  I was full but not bloated.   Also, because the conversation was lively, that makes you slow down while eating.  A super fun time and much appreciated too.  Today it's going to be about staying busy again and enjoying being outside.  Maybe watching some hurling practice in the park?

So with that, I have another recipe, this one totally my own and it's breakfast again.  That seems to be the easiest meal to deal with for us.  So here it goes, my Irish Banana Pancakes.
I used about a half cup of all purpose flour, used a coffee grinder to powder some Irish steel cut oats and put both in a bow--this ended up being just over a cup total.  To this I added about 3/4 tsp of baking powder and 1/2 tsp of baking soda.   Mix those well and add 1 eggs worth of egg substitute and enough soy milk to make it a loose batter as you would expect in pancakes.   Fire up a griddle or frying pan and add some Benecol and once melted, add your batter.   I made four small in the pan--just a little larger than a drink coaster.  These won't rise much like regular pancakes.  I suppose I could noodle with the recipe and perhaps add more baking powder & soda but I digress.  Once these are done, add Benecol if you like and top with bananas and a little warmed maple syrup. 

These pancakes taste a little nutty and were pretty good if I do say so myself.  I did serve with some extra lean bacon because it is important to get a certain amount of protein with each meal.  It keeps me from getting hungry at 11 am instead of noon.