More on my diet and other thoughts

It's been awhile since I've been here. Not sure why. I keep telling myself it's because I don't have anything interesting or mind-blowing to share, but I really know it's just my down-in-the-dumps, can't-lose-weight-blah-blah-woof-woof attitude. Last two weeks at weigh-in, I've lost POINT-something of a pound. Last week it was -.4 and this week was even worse at -.2. Boy oh boy, I don't want to give up, but geez, the negative point-somethings aren't helping. I eat decent meals, but I think I'm slacking on the snacking. Or rather, I'm not slacking on the snacking. Anyway, that's that. And I'm ready to move on from talking about it. I've heard there's this movement where weight-loss bloggers have been taking pictures of themselves on a weekly basis and documenting their losses. It's helping them. I hate pictures of myself so I don't think I'd even look! haha.

On to more upbeat things. I've been reading quit a bit lately. Two books you should check out: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and Wild (From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail) by Cheryl Strayed. Flynn's is a novel and Strayed's is non-fiction. Both are brilliantly written and great stories.

And I have a recipe to share with you. BEEF STEW!! I'll tell you what, it got better as a leftover! Love when that happens.

Basic Beef Stew (adapted from food52.com)
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 lbs top round or chuck steak, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 C all-purpose flour, seasoned with a little salt and pepper
1 or 2 large yellow onions, diced
1 1/2 C red wine
3 C beef broth (I used lower sodium and it was fine)
1 1/2 lbs red potatoes (leave the skins on), cut in quarters
1 C carrots, peeled and sliced (I used those already peeled baby carrots, cut in half)
1/2 C chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper, to taste.

Directions:

• In a dutch oven or large, deep pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, until is glistens.
• Dredge meat in seasoned flour. Place meat in the hot oil until browned, about 5 minutes on each side (don't overcrowd meat). Transfer browned meat to a bowl.
• In the same pot, add chopped onion and brown for 3-5 minutes.
• Deglaze the pot with the red wine. Add meat back to the pot. Cover and cook on medium for 25-30 minutes.
• Uncover and add broth, potatoes, and carrots. Cook covered, on low to medium-low heat until meat is very tender, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Add more broth if necessary (this wasn't necessary for me, instead my stew was too thin--I added to the pot a stirred mixture of a tsp of flour and a little bit of water). When meat is cooked, stir in herbs, salt and pepper. Add fresh parsley before serving.

I bet you could freeze this too. YUM.

On a parting note, here's a picture that makes me smile. My husband and I went camping a few weeks back; it was a successful trip! Good time had by all, including my dog! Ok, I'll add two pictures that make me smile. One is a shot of the lake and the other is my dog discovering the lake.

Toodles!