Dinner and a movie

After a few crazy busy days at work this week (my eating out trend continued from Saturday until Wednesday night!) normal life has resumed once more. I had a big presentation at work on Thursday morning that I had been preparing for, so once that was over things settled down again. Since I hadn't seen Evan for a few days, we went out Thursday night for a movie and dinner. We saw The Adventures of Tintin, which I really enjoyed! I am not a big fan of 3D movies, but I enjoyed the art and the story. It was fun and very well done.

Then we went out for dinner. It was 9:30pm so we didn't have too many options. My husband is a HUGE Denny's fan, so we decided to go there. At first I wasn't very excited (I hate being forced to eat unhealthy when I don't want to. If I feel like a burger and fries, that's fine, but I hate making poor choices when it's not worth it) but when I looked at the menu,  I saw they actually had a number of healthy "Fit-Fare" options. I had the Fit Fare Slam, which was really good!! It was egg whites mixed with spinach and grape tomatoes, 2 slices of turkey bacon, an English muffin, and a side of fruit. I actually asked for a side of sourdough toast instead of the English muffin (I love sourdough!) which bumps up the calories slightly, but "as is" this meal clocks in at only 390 calories according to the Denny's website. I think that number might be a little low, but even it's 500 calories, that's still a GREAT choice compared to most of the stuff on the Denny's menu (my husband got the Lumberjack Slam, I'm not even going to comment on how bad that is). I didn't take a picture but here is what it looks like. I was quite happy with my choice (it was really tasty and filling) and would be willing to go back to Denny's more often, now that I know they have options like this.

Friday I had a very busy day in the lab. I kind of like days like that when I'm busy and not watching the clock! It also helps me not want to eat too much. I had a coffee in the morning and then ate the sandwich I had brought for lunch in the afternoon (no time for my veggies, soup, or yogurt!). The sandwich was SO good!! I followed Roz's lead and bought the Foldout Flatbreads. So good!! I got the Olive Oil and Rosemary ones, which work out to 3 points each, because that was the only ones they had at the store, but I see from their website (http://www.flatoutbread.com/products/foldit-artisan-flatbread/) that the 5 Grain Flax ones are only 2 points each. I'm going to try those next. Either way, these are great. They are much more filling and substantial than WW sandwich thins and have a great texture and taste. They don't taste like diet food. I had mine with turkey, Laughing Cow swiss cheese, cranberry chutney, and spring greens. Definitely a keeper!

Friday night I made a modified version of a Hungry Girl Recipe: Pasta with White Clam Sauce (http://www.hungry-girl.com/chew/show/2202). I made it with whole wheat spaghettini instead of the Tofu noodles and it turned out really well. It was my first time using canned baby clams and my first time making a "pan pasta". Other than the fact I added too many chili flakes (whew, it was HOT!), it turned out really well. I will making this again. The baby clams were really tasty and cheap - for $2.50 it's a cheap way to add seafood. Next time I would add white wine and maybe some extra clam juice to boost the flavour.

I also tried a bunch of new recipes this weekend, but I think they deserve their own post, so look for that coming soon!