Best crockpot potatoes ever

Plug, plug, plug. This is what I do every day. Work at turning eating in a healthy way into a way of life. A lifestyle even. Keep track of my calories. Measure food with scales, cups and spoons. Exercise. Exercise more. Drink quarts and quarts of water. Sleep.

On the plus side my flowers look as good as they’ve ever looked in the almost 23 years we’ve lived up here on our hilltop. On the minus, I’m not much fun, collapsing into my recliner before it gets dark and trudging to bed not long after that!  Today I did my 15 minutes worth of yoga,  rode my newly tuned-up bike for 45, then weeded and clipped irises for two hours. Whew!

This week I’ve also weeded around the rhubarb and realize we probably have some of those lovely red stalks out there now, ready to eat. I’ve picked huge heads of broccoli and found them full of small jade-colored worms that have crawled in to spin their cocoons (a saltwater soak disposes of them most efficiently). I’ve picked lettuce that’s somehow stayed green and crispy in this summer heat (90s today), cleaned up around our two apple trees, pruned 3 gigantic mock orange bushes, several shaggy harlequin glorybower and forsythia bushes. I’ve made an impatiens bed for coral and salmon-colored blossoms and planted 14 basil babies ($2 at Walmart) in the herb bed. I am gardening woman, hear me moan.

The upside here is I lunched on our neighbor Anne Cain’s amazing goat cheese terrine with pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and green olives spread on good garlic crackers. Even with a lime fruit bar (70 calories) for dessert, I still haven’t eaten as many calories as I’ve burned. (Remember, I track calories in and calories out for free on livestrong.com.)

I think I decided (!) yesterday that I’d like to lose 30 more pounds and that it will probably take at least a year, but that’s OK. I don’t want to give up all things tasty, just plan to continue moderating how much I eat. This morning’s breakfast, for instance: One serving of a 277-calorie per serving blackberry cobbler with 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt (another 70 calories).

With these potatoes, which were devoured before I remembered to take their picture, I trimmed fat from the recipe (original recipe called for 1 pound bacon, among other mind-boggling extravagances) and ate no more than 1/2 cup per meal, much as I wanted to devour the entire slow cooker-full!

Best crockpot potatoes ever

3 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into slices, cooked in gently boiling water until done, about 15 minutes

2 ounces Cheddar cheese

3 ounces Parmesan cheese

5 ounces reduced-fat ricotta cheese

5 slices bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix 3 cheeses. Layer in slow cooker with potatoes and bacon crumbles. Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours and try not to eat the whole thing