Matchstick Potato Casserole

<p><img src=http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--qzFlPmoBZk/TbKPpmzGD6I/AAAAAAAAByw/w4d1ZAk6Tmc/s400/BILD4983.JPG alt= width=400 height=300 /><img src=http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uP9r5mIQTLU/TVSdwtrfzeI/AAAAAAAABvc/6wIdCGjwJL8/s400/untitled.jpg alt= width=400 height=300 /><img src=http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pdWKI9ofcqY/TVSaUgSfLYI/AAAAAAAABvU/vsThm3lL7TE/s400/untitled.jpg alt= width=400 height=300 /><img src=http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/photo.php?pid=6904575&amp;fbid=464057497463&amp;op=1&amp;o=global&amp;view=global alt= /><img src=http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/photo.php?pid=6904575&amp;fbid=464057497463&amp;op=1&amp;o=global&amp;view=global alt= /><img src=http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/photo.php?pid=6904575&amp;fbid=464057497463&amp;op=1&amp;o=global&amp;view=global alt= /> <object width=288 height=192 data=http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf type=application/x-shockwave-flash> <param name=data value=http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf /> <param name=flashvars value=host=picasaweb.google.com&amp;RGB=0x000000&amp;feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fjanandruss%2Falbumid%2F5047998773731621633%3Fkind%3Dphoto%26alt%3Drss%26authkey%3DoiWHiLPpkPQ /> <param name=src value=http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf /> </object> <img src=http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/photo.php?pid=6904575&amp;fbid=464057497463&amp;op=1&amp;o=global&amp;view=global alt= /><br />Thanks for visiting my page and thanks too to any of you who take the time to make, review or photograph one of my recipes. <br /><br />I came to Recipezaar&nbsp;9 years ago looking for a duck salad recipe. Bergy answered my request, I took a look around the site and joined that day (January 18th 2002). I can't remember my life without Recipezaar. I've made (and met) many wonderful friends through it.</p> <p>In 2005, I was invited to host the brand new Australian/New Zealand forum, but quit that role recently and am really enjoying just being a Groupie!<br /><br />I am married to Russell. He was a widower with 3 teenage boys and I was a single parent with two little boys when we met in Feb 1992. We now have 5 wonderful grown men (my baby is 26),&nbsp;5 beautiful partners (we finally got the girls) 2 special grandsons, and count ourselves so lucky. The night Russ and I met, we stayed up until 6am talking about food and wine and 18 years later, we are still doing it!&nbsp;</p> <p>This mutal love of food lead to a huge weight gain for both of us (both around 110kgs) so at the end of March 2010, I&nbsp; decided enough is enough and&nbsp; embarked on my own weight loss program. We've reduced fat intake and protein portions, upped fibre (so lots of fresh fish, veg, salads and a bit more fruit), reduced alcohol and stopped snacking (unless it's a piece of fruit or a pickled onion or cucumber). I have lost&nbsp;33 kg (or around&nbsp;72 lbs) to date&nbsp;(August 2011)and &nbsp;I've gone from an Aus size 24 (US 20) to my current 14/16 (US 10/12)&nbsp;I'd like to lose a futher&nbsp;8 kgs, but one step at a time! Russ&nbsp;&nbsp;has lost 38 kg so is the lightest he's been since arriving in Australia 32 years ago! I&nbsp; get a shock these days when I do the laundry cos his clothes are so SMALL!!!</p> <p>People often say they are amazed because losing weight is so hard but I'm amazed at how easy this is. And so much nicer than the alternative I was looking at-lap banding! I can go out and eat and drink as I wish, then come home and be sensible. It's certainly working for us! I can walk, get up and down off the floor or ground, and I now&nbsp;buy clothes&nbsp; because I like them, not just because they fit!). My blood pressure has gone from dangerous to perfect, my cholesterol and blood sugars are perfect and way back into normal now so it's been really good from a health aspect too.</p> <p>For every day this has taken, I feel like I've been given back two-my life has changed so much with the things I now feel I can do. I even managed to walk almost 11ks around the big red rock Uluru in the top picture and I know I couldn't have done it 12 months before. My eventual aim is to ride on the FRONT of the camel-recently, I had to ride on the back as I'm heavier than&nbsp;Russ lol. But twelve months ago I couldn't ride at all as I was out of the weight range to do so!</p> <p>Once upon a time, I used to be a chef, cooking for a living, but now just really enjoy cooking for the two of us, family and friends. I think that my food knowledge has really helped in our weight loss though.</p> <p>The&nbsp;middle photo&nbsp;was at my starting weight of&nbsp;110kg taken in Feb 2010 and the&nbsp;bottom&nbsp;taken January 2011 and 24kg lighter, the TOP taken in April 2011 and 27kgs lighter!&nbsp; I can see the difference even if you can't LOL. I wish I knew how to edit them into order.</p> <p>Russ and I still&nbsp;love our food-we wake up thinking about dinner and go to sleep remembering it. I especially like light, bright Asian food and if it has duck in it, that's an added bonus. We are keen fisher people and keep ourselves well supplied with fresh fish, squid, crabs and fresh yabbies (crawfish). <br /><br />In February 2006 we headed off on what was to be&nbsp; 3 years and two months travelling Australia. It was the most wonderful time of our lives but all things must end and in May 2009, we moved into a brand new villa unit. I&nbsp; realised then how much I had missed my own laundry room, kitchen and sofa (all things I took for granted until we travelled in our caravan).&nbsp; Since coming home, we've spent the winters travelling and fishing in the warm northerly parts of Australia and the summers in our gorgeous little home amongst friends and family. It's a wonderful life and I feel so very privilaged to be able to experience it!</p> <p>When we leave home to travel, we take along all the food in our pantry, carry a domestic freezer, vacuum sealer,&nbsp;all our knives and favourite cookware and eat&nbsp;exactly the same as we would at home (perhaps we eat more fresh seafood)-we aren't on vacation-we're just living somewhere else!<br /><br /><br />Why did I give you the stars that I gave you??? <br />5 stars=awsome, fantastic, amazing, nothing to complain about <br />4 stars=very good, but I added something, felt it needed something, the recipe wasn't particularly well written or it really wasn't awesome, fantastic or amazing, just very good <br />3 stars=it was OK <br />2 stars=it was forgetable <br />1 star=no one could/would eat it tonight, tomorrow or ever again <br /><a href=http://www.satsleuth.com/VisitorMap/stats.php?id=6Vsv878m><br /></a></p>