Monday, September 22, 2008

Barley Asparagus Risotto_WW 3 Points

Friday night was great. I had the whole house to myself as CB had his arse parked on a bar stool for boys night out. I had time to go to the market, buy groceries and then actually cook them. Wonderful. I perused the WW website for something that I thought would hit the spot and still not be over 6 points per serving, because I was feeling hungry and I wanted to be able to have a nice big bowl of whatever I made as long as it didn't end up tasting like shit.

This was great. I have to admit, I was skeptical, but it ended up being really wonderful and I had enough left overs that CB and I ate it for dinner on Saturday and although this didn't fill him up and he used it as a side dish to his main meal, it really was very tasty and I would not have second thoughts about making this again for non WW peeps.

So, how do I feel about my first week on WW. Well, the first two days were really hard, I felt like I was constantly hungry and was aggravated by how quickly my points seemed to disappear. By the third day when there was movement on the scale, and the points seemed to last longer because I was making better food choices the plan began to feel easy to live with. I'm extremely glad that I decided to give it a try. I think I'll be able to stick with this, I hope I'm not being to premature here...I hope that the plan continues to work for me in the upcoming weeks...we'll see.

So, at then end of one week I have lost a grand total of 4.0 pounds. I have 9 pounds to my goal. Fingers Crossed.

Barley-Asparagus "Risotto" with Balsamic Vinegar
Weight Watchers

2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion(s), minced
1 cup uncooked barley, use quick-cooking pearl variety
3 cup fat-free chicken broth, or vegetable broth
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup chives, fresh, sliced
1 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese


Warm oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until onion is tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in barley and cook, stirring, about 1 minute more.

Add broth, cover and simmer over low heat for 8 minutes; stir in asparagus and simmer 2 minutes more. Remove from heat, stir in chives and vinegar; season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

3 WW points per serving

Rating = Damn Good

8 comments:

AlwaysJoy said...

Hey Julie -
Here is a site of pretty good weight watcher's recipes and they all include points calories fat etc...
http://www.shadesofjaim.com/recipes/

Anonymous said...

I just started reading your blog a couple of weeks ago and I love it!
I'm looking forward to your WW recipe choices. I'll have to try this one. Good luck with the weight loss. I'm try to lose 10 as well.

JB said...

Jennybeth, thanks for stopping by and your nice comment. I hope you keep reading the blog and enjoy the recipes.
JB

Brenna said...

MMM. I've never cooked with barley, I'll have to try. Also, admittedly at your expense, I feel better that someone tiny who runs her arse off also has trouble with a few extra lbs, though I seriously doubt you need to lose 9 more!

JB said...

Brenna...I couldn't fit into my jeans the other day...my arse felt like it was fighting with the fabric and when I took my pants of my but sang "born free".

Brenna said...

Ha! Well I am making this tonight and will re-post the results, then I'm going to make that hella good looking squash dish up above.

Brenna said...

Ok, this was really good - even Steve the veggie-dodger ate 2 helpings. Did not buy quick-cook barley and it took for-freaking-ever but was delish!

Unknown said...

I really like the balsalmic in this recipe, so I tried it and it was very good. Like other barley risottos, it is a bit chewier than those made with arborio, but still tasty. I did add a little extra cheese though.