Coming to Terms with February 14th

On Thursday, I survived the very last Valentine's Day of my 20's; and I enjoyed it. Can you believe it? Single, and rapidly approaching 30, I spent a quiet Valentine's Day alone and didn't wallow in any sort of lonely hearted misery. It has taken me a long time to learn to embrace this mid-February holiday, and to stop letting the 14th ruin the whole month.

A Valentine from a local pizza place, be still my heart!

I spent so much of my late teens and early 20's obsessed with what Valentine's Day should look like. If I was in a relationship, undoubtedly my partner's romantic gestures were rarely grand enough. If I found myself single on the 14th, I clung firmly to the notion that I was supposed to be miserable and acted accordingly. Sometimes that meant binge drinking (and a little love bashing) with my single pals, other times it meant crying into a pint of fro-yo while watching chick flicks on the couch with my dog. I assume that my heavy dependence on romantic comedies might be partially to blame. It's not rational, however, to let contrived Hollywood plots dictate how I should feel about my life on this holiday. It seems I just got stuck chasing an ideal that I hadn't even created. Why was I so hell-bent on being a cliche?

Love was in the air, and in the snow.

A few years ago I was a month into a new relationship when Valentine's Day arrived. Against my better judgment I was dating someone that I couldn't really see a future with. Grown ups are supposed to be in relationships, right? She looked great on paper (if you're into that sort of thing) and she seemed to really like me; I figured those two facts might add up to enough of a reason to make it work. I agreed to be her Valentine, but found myself increasingly crabby as the day approached. The idea of putting myself through another mediocre date on Valentine's Day was just too depressing. I was sick of doing what was expected of me on this Hallmark holiday. I didn't want to spend the 14th with someone that didn't make me happy, so I canceled our plans.

Awesomely bacon-y Valentine's gifts.

On Thursday, I showed up for work with some Valentine-inspired pep in my step. I ate a small box of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups for breakfast (4 pointsplus, not exactly health food, but I counted it!) with my cup of coffee. When my manager asked me about how I would be spending the evening, I told her that my grand plan was to buy a bathrobe and sit on my couch eating take-out.

"Buy a what?" she asked.

"A really cozy bath robe!" I yelled into her office.

In fact, my night turned out even better than I had imagined because I managed to get free food from my sister in exchange for giving her a ride home from work. She even loaned me her bathrobe, so I didn't have to shell out any money to spoil myself for the evening. If we look at Valentine's day as an excuse to take some time to slow down and enjoy ourselves, then it doesn't matter if we're alone or in a couple. You don't have to do very much to make the day special (for yourself or a loved one), and that simplicity can leave you recharged and happy.

A delightful Valentine's Day dinner for one.

As I write all of this, I'm watching "The Giant Mechanical Man", a quirky rom-com about two 30-somethings struggling to find their way to a happy and meaningful existence. One of the characters just said something so poignant, that I feel it's worth sharing here:

"And it's true what they say. It only takes one person- just one person- to make you feel special and valid. And like you belong in the world." 

I've come to realize that every now and then it is okay, important even, for that "one person" to be yourself. Don't let the hype surrounding February 14th cause you to forget that!

Dinner for One

I may be single and apt to eat alone most nights, but I don't like whipping up single serve meals. Even if I know that I'll be eating dinner on the couch while catching up on "Grey's Anatomy", I love sitting down to a big home cooked meal. I often find that these meals are packed with more robust and complex flavors than quicker and simpler "dinner for one" recipes. Another benefit? All the leftovers! Freezing individual sized portions of the leftovers leaves me with a variety of healthy meal options that can be ready after just a few short minutes in the microwave. One of the great things about these pre-portioned frozen meals is that I already know exactly how many points plus values are in each; this saves me from needing to do any calculations, and makes for easy tracking in my Weight Watchers e-tools. The price of frozen entrees at the grocery store has increased dramatically over the years, so it's also cost effective to make and freeze your own. I do, however, still stock up on my favorite Smart Ones meals when they're on sale.

Every now and then I'll get home too late to cook, and I'll find myself out of (or sick of!) frozen entrees. This has habitually been my favorite excuse to order delivery, but I'm trying to cut back on that this year. If I'm going to successfully curb my delivery food dependency, I'm going to need to invent and discover more recipes for quick and easy dinners for one this year! Below is a new favorite that I've made twice this past month.

Chicken Cutlet with Baked Spaghetti Squash Parmesan

Servings: 1 Serving Size: whole recipe Points Plus*: 10 pts

 

Ingredients

2 sprays  Cooking spray, olive oil
1  PERDUE® SIMPLY SMART® Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Cutlets (22 oz.), frozen*
2 slices  Cracker Barrel cheddar cheese cuts 
1 cup  Spaghetti squash, cooked**
5 slices  Hormel turkey pepperoni
1/2 cup  Tomato sauce, canned
1 dash  Garlic powder
1 dash  Dried basil
1/4 cup  Part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

* I bought a bag of these lightly breaded chicken cutlets earlier this month because it was on sale, and because I was slightly curious about this lighter version of their classic cutlet. They're pretty yummy, and have come in handy when I've had a hankering for a quick dinner that is slightly reminiscent of a naughty takeout meal.

** Each Sunday evening I roast a spaghetti squash. I love this vegetable, and throughout the week I enjoy it as a side dish or use it to help bulk up a meal. 

Directions

Preheat your oven to 400°.

Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and lightly spray it with an olive oil cooking spray. Place the chicken cutlet on one side of the tray. On the opposite side, shape one cup of spaghetti squash into a cutlet-sized bed. (In the photograph below you'll see some smashed roasted garlic on top of the spaghetti squash, I had some kicking around in my fridge and I thought it might be a good addition- it was!)

Top the bed of spaghetti squash with the turkey pepperoni, tomato sauce, a dash each of the garlic powder and dried basil, and the mozzarella cheese. Bake for 7 minutes.

After 7 minutes, take your baking sheet out of the oven. Flip the chicken cutlet over and top it with the two slices of Cracker Barrel cheese. I did not top the chicken with cheese the first time I made this for dinner, but I had some extra points to play with the second time around. What can I say? More cheese is more better! So, if you've got the points to spare, go ahead and add that extra cheese. Bake the chicken and squash for another 7-10 minutes, removing it when the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

Serve the chicken over top of the bed of baked spaghetti squash Parmesan. Last Friday night I enjoyed this meal with a side of asparagus and a light beer. It was perfect comfort food for a relaxing Friday night at home.

Cooking this on tinfoil makes clean up is a cinch- no need to soak and scrub the baking sheet, just toss the tinfoil!


*PointsPlus values calculated using the Recipe Builder on the Weight Watchers website