News and Reviews
- Thank you MARLENE for the Stars last week during the Live chat!
- We are skipping news this week because we’ve got another Walk Off! If you’ve never seen Zoolander don’t shame me too much. If you have, you are giggling right now and imagining David Bowie getting ready for Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller to sashe badly on a fake runway. But I digress. In preparation for the second half of tonight’s chat we are going to take just a second and get our air fryer and Instant Pot going. Don’t ask questions, just hang on for the second half and everything will be revealed LOL
Last week in Chat #326 How To Make Healthy Decisions Easier I asked, Who spent more time looking through Instant Pot videos than actually making food this week?
Oh just me? Huh…
Maybe it was IP recipe binging or accidentally eating all your #PurseCheck snacks while you wait for swim lessons to end, intending to do something and actually following through can be a challenge sometimes can’t it?
Three Fast Facts from WW:
Mind Your Mouth
Research shows that just “saying” you will do something does not mean you will actually do it. How many times has your spouse or significant other said “I’ll be right there to help with those dishes or dirty diaper” and never makes it to your side of the house? I rest my case.
Planning Makes Perfect
Well maybe not perfect, but a heck of a lot better anyway. Planning all of the details ahead of time significantly increases your chances of doing the thing.
If This, Then That
Planning also helps to make sure that whatever it is you want to do better aligns with your goals AND it can also help deflect those pesky interrupters that often get in our way of doing what we intended. Things like “If we’re going to go out on Friday nights, then I will being half of my meal home and eat it for lunch with a zero point #bulkitup food the next day” or “If I feel like munching after dinner every night, then I will set a timer and only eat if I still feel like it after 30 minutes”
Your homework was #IfThisThenThat. Making healthier decisions is so much easier if you make those decisions NOW when you’re not in the middle of it. I guarantee something already popped in your head while we were talking, right it down, do your homework and that decision will be a snap next time! Then type it, snap it, share it however you like, and then tag me for your next cool badge!
- If Orlando Debbi does go out to eat Then she eats zero point foods for her other two meals!
- We just found out that our favorite son in law Allan is pre-diabetic so: If Kelly, John and Casey are going to support Allan with his new doctor’s orders, then they are all going to eat more veggies!
- And Chris didn’t even realize she was doing her homework but I already know for a fact that If she is going to walk when it’s hot then she’s going to walk in her pool!
Bravo, you did it!
This Week’s Topic: “How To Eat In Tricky Situations!”
I don’t know about you, but sometimes just being awake constitutes a tricky situation 🙂
But seriously, if you’ve ever gotten to noon and realized you were already out of points for the day you know what I mean. Tricky might mean something different on any given day but think things like: ran out of points, hungry between a planned meal, went off track and needed to reset, at a restaurant with too many options and so on.
Write Yourself a Love Letter
Ok it’s really more of a love “list” but research proves that incorporating the foods you already love can help healthy eating be more enjoyable. Why not make a quick list of your faves and put it somewhere you’ll see it often. Then when that noon time point “uh oh” tricky situation happens you’ll be ready to go!
Lean on Me
This is a fact, WW says so! Leaning on those lower or no point go to foods you just wrote down on your list unlocks opportunities to enjoy higher point foods! Already having your list (and better yet having those go to’s in your fridge and pantry) gives you a third leg to stand on when a tricky situation means higher point foods. And we all know a triangle is stronger than trying to stand on just your two legs alone!
Knowledge is Power
Identifying those go-to foods ahead of time and knowing which ones you have on hand or have easy access to keeps you from having to make a tough decision during those challenging situations! Quick example, since this diagnosis is so new for our son in law I asked him to choose from a list I made of lower carb, better nutritional value, easy for all of us to eat items. Now that I have his “love list” Saturday night dinners at their house should never be tricky!
This Week’s Homework: #MyLoveList
Your homework for this week is #MyLoveList. Make a “love list” during this cool and calm time and have it where you can find it for those tricky times. I guarantee something already popped in your head while we were talking, right it down, do your homework and that decision will be a snap next time! Then type it, snap it, share it however you like, and then tag me for your next cool badge!
Don’t forget to do your homework #MyLoveList and tag me when you share on social media!
- Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on Instagram
- Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on our Facebook Page
- Tag @Kelly Green Milligan in our Facebook Group
- Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on WW Connect
Extra Credit: Baked Potato Test – IP vs Air Fryer!
Last week we put the Simple Living Products Air Fryer and an Instant Pot head to head in a battle for the best hard boiled egg. The air fryer won this round. I’ve been asked to have a rematch with some tweaked times and will do that very soon.
For this week though the battle continues…this time with a baked potato! I don’t know about you, but I stopped baking my potatoes in the oven for hours especially during the summer months. Next came microwaving and that works “ok” but many times they are rubbery or overdone if you don’t watch those spuds closely.
There is another head to head, neck and neck battle brewing between our AF lovers and the IP go-to-ers for the fluffiest, best, and easiest baked potato. Who will win tonight’s battle?
First the Instant Pot:
Amy & Jacky over on pressurecookerrecipes.com did all the hard work and measured, weighed and tested EIGHT different russet potatoes to develop what they consider the best time, temperature and release for a fluffy and delicious potato every time. Their Pro Tips:
- Always poke the potato with a fork several times first to keep them from exploding
- Add a cup of water to the inner compartment of your IP
- Always use a trivet to keep the potatoes off the bottom
- If cooking multiple potatoes at one time be aware the time to come to pressure will take longer which may affect the cooking time
- Use their handy dandy chart below for the best results (cooking chart courtesy of Amy & Jacky, please show them some love for this hard work by visiting their site!)
From our experiments using 1 cup (250ml) cold water with potatoes on a trivet in Instant Pot, here are the best cooking times for cooking baked potatoes in Instant Pot:
- 7.5″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 28 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 8″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 31 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 8.5″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 34 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 9″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 37 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 10″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 43 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 10.5″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 46 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
- 11″ Potatoes – High Pressure for 49 minutes + Natural Release for 10 minutes
*Note: If you’re cooking a big batch or pot full of potatoes in Instant Pot, it’ll take a longer time to “Get Up to Pressure”, so you’ll need to reduce the pressure cooking time accordingly.
(credit: Pressure Cook Recipes.com)
Next Up The Simple Living Products Air Fryer:
While I did not go to the extent that my IP counterparts did to measure and weigh a variety of potatoes, I have made dozens of Russet, Yukon Gold, red (small new potatoes), and other spud varieties over the last few years. My pro tips:
- Always wash/scrub your spuds first
- The poking with a fork rule still rules!
- Don’t mix small and large taters during the same cooking unless you are going to leave the large in after you take the smaller ones out
- In the case of the air fryer if they are not as done as you’d like, you can just stick them back in for a bit longer. Can’t really do that with the IP after you let the pressure come down?
- Always use tongs to remove even when testing…these spuds will be HOT
My instructions for baking a potato in the air fryer can be found here
Air Fryer Baked Potato
prep 5 mins cook 40 mins total 45 mins
author kelly milligan
Instructions
- Clean potatoes thoroughly and add to air fryer basket
- Poke the top of each potato with a fork
- Lightly spritz your potatoes with oil or nonstick spray
- (optional) Sprinkle with nutritional yeast and DAK’s Steakhouse seasoning
- Cook in your air fryer on 390 for 35-40 minutes (check them at the 35 minutes mark to be sure they’re soft but not overcooked)
After cool down, we will finally see which potato is superior! The air fryer has a slight end, because I didn’t have to do anything other than wait for the potato to cool down. The instant pot had to be put into natural release for an extra 10 minutes.
First up is the air fryer potato! Cutting into the potato, it is definitely done. It was nice to cut through, even if I do cut them in a zigzag pattern. Super light and fluffy, and tastes delicious. The air fryer baked potato is an easy success, exactly like the hundreds of other times I’ve made them.
The instant pot potato still exploded, which is a tiny issue. Nothing bad, but it definitely split apart. It is nice to cut through and is done on the inside. The taste is pretty good! This would be the perfect potato for potato salad, but the fluffiness of the air fryer can’t be beat.
The air fryer is the winner again! The fluffiness was better and the cook time was easier than the instant pot. However, the instant pot potato would be better for making potato salad or mashed potatoes.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments!
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