I would like to post some of my (and my family's) favorite low-cal recipes to date. This is good for me as well because, while I do have a record of every single thing I've eaten since the program began, it's hard to keep track of the favorites v. the non-favorites, and it's also kind of hard to keep track of anything when every meal I've eaten is scribbled in a little notebook. So here are a few of the best ones (with pictures, when available!)
Greek Chicken and Spinach Pie
(Weight Watchers Points Plus Power Foods Cookbook)
My husband was absolutely crazy about this, and "would eat this every day" if he could (which, I'm telling you, says a whole lot about it). I will add the recipe for the yogurt sauce, but we have not tried it yet. Every time I make this, I forget to make the yogurt sauce, but it is just that good alone.Serves 6 (1 wedge per serving)
239 calories
7 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground skinless chicken breast
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 (10 oz.) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 cup crumbled, reduced fat feta cheese
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
8 (9x14") sheets of frozen phyllo, thawed
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375°. Spray a 9" pie plate with cooking spray.
2. To make filling, spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set over medium heat. Add chicken and onion; cook, breaking up chicken with a wooden spoon until chicken is no longer pink, about 8 minutes. Add garlic, curry powder, cinnamon, allspice, salt and pepper; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato sauce and simmer until mixture is thickened, about 5 minutes. Transfer filling to large bowl. Stir in spinach, feta and egg whites.
3. Lay 1 phyllo sheet in pie plate; lightly spray with cooking spray. Keep remaining phyllo dough covered with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap. Repeat with 3 of the remaining sheets, placing corners at different angles and lightly spraying with cooking spray. Spoon filling into crust.
4. Top filling with remaining 4 phyllo sheets, repeating layering and spray. Roll up edges of phyllo toward center to form 1 1/2" wide rim.
5. Bake until phyllo is golden brown, 30 - 35 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Cut into 6 wedges.
Yogurt Sauce:
Ingredients:
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 of an English (seedless) cucumber, chopped
1 scallion, sliced
1/4 tsp. salt
(Mix all ingredients; drizzle evenly over pie).
Pumpkin Ravioli with Gorgonzola Sauce
(Cooking Light: Cooking Through the Seasons)
I thought this would be good because we occasionally eat the Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice pumpkin or butternut squash ravioli, which we like a lot. This was wonderful, and my husband was actually pleasantly surprised by it (he's not usually a fan of Gorgonzola cheese, which tastes a bit like blue cheese, so I was surprised). Even my son, who never eats anything I make unless it's chicken nuggets or spaghetti (lol) ate all of his. It takes a little extra effort (pinching each individual wonton to that they are all sealed was a bit of a pain) but I thought it was definitely well worth it.Serves 6
250 calories per serving
9.1 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups canned pumpkin
2 tbsp. dry breadcrumbs
2 tbsp. grated fresh parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. minced fresh sage
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
30 round wonton wrappers (usually found in the produce section where the tofu is located)
1 tbsp. cornstarch
Cooking spray
1 cup fat free milk
1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup (2 oz.) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
3 tbsp. chopped hazelnuts, toasted (we actually used walnuts, and it was still fantastic)
Sage sprigs (optional)
Directions:
1. Spoon pumpkin onto several layers of heavy-duty paper towels, and spread to 1 1/2" thickness. Cover with additional paper towels; let stand 5 minutes. Scrape into a medium bowl using a rubber spatula. Stir in breadcrumbs, parmesan, salt, minced sage, pepper and nutmeg.
2. Working with one wonton wrapper at a time (cover remaining wrappers with a damp towel to keep from drying), spoon 2 tsp. pumpkin mixture into center of wrapper. Brush edges of wrapper with water and fold in half, pressing edges firmly with fingers to form a half-moon. Place on a large baking sheet sprinkled with cornstarch. Repeat procedure with remaining wonton wrappers and pumpkin mixture.
3. Fill a large Dutch oven with water; bring to a simmer. Add half o ravioli to pan (cover remaining ravioli with a damp towel to keep from drying). Cook 4 minutes or until done (do not boil), stirring gently. Remove ravioli with a slotted spoon; lightly coat with cooking spray; keep warm. Repeat with remaining ravioli.
4. Combine milk and flour in a saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add butter; stir until butter melts. Gently stir in Gorgonzola.
5. Place 5 ravioli in each of 6 shallow bowls, and drizzle each serving with 3 tablespoons Gorgonzola mixture. Sprinkle each serving with 1 1/2 tsp. hazelnuts. Garnish with sage sprigs, if desired. Serve immediately.
Coconut Chicken Tacos
(Hungry Girl 200 Under 200)
Again, my husband loved this one. Whenever I make something with chicken in it, I do my best to make something significantly different each time, because in my experience, too much chicken in my diet can become incredibly boring. This definitely does the trick. The part where you drape the tortillas over the oven rack was a bit of a pain because the tortillas would blow up like a balloon. After you press them flat again, though, they harden and it was fine.Serves 4
198 calories per serving
2.25 grams of fat per serving
Ingredients:
12 ounces raw boneless skinless lean chicken breast, cut into strips
4 medium corn tortillas
1/2 cup sliced red bell pepper
1/4 cup sugar free, calorie free coconut syrup (*see note about this)
2 tbsp. pineapple salsa (or canned pineapple tidbits in juice mixed with regular salsa)
1/2 tbsp. fat-free sour cream (in place of sour cream, we always use plain Greek yogurt - it tastes the same)
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. salt
Directions:
1. Preheat oven 400°. Once oven is hot, use tongs to carefully drape tortilla over two grates in the oven rack, so that the tortilla hangs from the rack. Bake for about 5 minutes, or until tortilla forms a firm taco shell (Shell will harden completely after cooling). Use tongs to carefully remove shell, then let cool.
2. Place coconut syrup, garlic powder, and salt in medium pot. Add 1/2 cup water and mix well. Add chicken and pepper slices to the pot and bring to low heat on the stove.
3. Cook until chicken is thoroughly cooked and tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Remove pot from heat and drain liquid completely.
4. Place chicken and bell pepper in the taco shell. Top with salsa and sour cream.
*If you can't find the coconut syrup, add an extra 1/2 cup water, 1 tsp. coconut extract, and 1 tbsp. Splenda (granulated).
Provencal Stuffed Tomatoes
(Fitness Magazine)
The original recipe for this is Provencal Stuffed Tomatoes, but I honestly didn't like the sound of that, so I did this with green peppers instead of tomatoes. Maybe you'd like to try it with the tomatoes. Anyway, regardless of how you do it, the filling was perfect, and even though my son doesn't like peppers or tomatoes, he did eat the filling! That is a step in the right direction! ;)Serves 6 (1 tomato per serving)
259 calories per serving
9 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 jar (16 oz.) marinara sauce
1/2 cup kalamata olives, chopped
2 tsp. Greek seasoning
1/4 tsp. salt
6 large ripe tomatoes
Fresh oregano to taste
6 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef, onion, green pepper and garlic; cook 5 minutes. Stir in marinara sauce, olives, Greek seasoning and salt. Cook 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Cut tops of tomatoes and spoon out pulp; fill with meat mixture. Bake stuffed tomatoes for 5 minutes.
3. Garnish each tomato with oregano and 1 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese. Serve.
Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash Cassoulet
(Cooking Light: Cooking Through the Seasons)
I loved this, and we had plenty of leftovers. My husband and my son were not too sure about this at first because usually whenever I make anything with beans in it, they tend to be skeptical. The difference here is that the bacon (or pancetta, if you can find it) flavors the dish very well, and when they tried it, they both liked it a lot. This takes a while, but in my opinion, it's worth it!Serves 8
259 calories per serving
7.7 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 whole garlic head
4 ounces of pancetta, chopped (or regular smoked bacon, a little less)
2 cups vertically sliced onion
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
4 1/2 cups of cubed peeled butternut squash (cubed to 1/2"; approximately 2 lbs.)
1/2 cup organic vegetable broth
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
4 (16 oz.) cans cannellini / other white beans, rinsed & drained
1 bay leaf
2 (1 oz.) slices of bread
2 tbsp. grated fresh parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Remove papery skin from garlic (do not peel or separate the cloves). Wrap garlic head in foil. Bake at 350° for 1 hour; cool 10 minutes. Separate the cloves; squeeze to extract garlic pulp. Set half of garlic pulp aside; reserve remaining pulp for another use. Discard skins.
2. Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add pancetta (or bacon); sauté 5 minutes or until crisp. Remove from pan / reserve drippings in pan. Add onion and 1 tbsp. olive oil to drippings in pan; sauté 5 minutes. Reduce to medium-low; cook 25 minutes or until onion is very tender, stirring frequently. Stir in vinegar.
3. Preheat oven to 375°. Add garlic pulp, pancetta (or bacon), squash and next 6 ingredients to onion mixture, stirring well. Place bread in food processor and pule until coarse crumbs measure 1 cup. Combine crumbs, parmesan and 1/2 tsp. olive oil; sprinkle over squash mixture. Cover and bake 50 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes more. Discard bay leaf and sprinkle with parsley.
Spicy Shrimp Noodle Bowl
(Cooking Light magazine)
We found out that we all love rice noodles! My son who, until now, has always refused to even try shrimp, ate all of his! I did have to make a non-spicy version of it, though, only because he won't eat spicy foods. Even so, it was great. The noodles absorbed the flavor of the broth, and I was very happy with the outcome of this recipe.
Serves 4
236 calories per servng
3.6 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 lb. tail-on peeled and deveined medium shrimp
1 1/2 cups of water
1 cup fat-free, lower sodium chicken broth
1 (8 oz.) bottle clam juice
2 (1/4" thick) slices peeled fresh ginger
1 tsp. olive oil
3/4 cups thinly sliced red bell pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup sugar snap peas
2 tsp. chili garlic sauce or 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (we omitted this part for my son)
1/4 tsp. salt
3 ounces uncooked rice sticks
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro leaves
Lime wedges
1. Remove shrimp tails; set aside. Combine shrimp tails, water, broth, clam juice, and ginger in a saucepan; bring to boil. Reduced heat, and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Strain broth mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids.
2. Heat olive oil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, yellow onion, and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Add reserved broth; bring to a simmer. Add shrimp, peas, chili garlic sauce, salt and noodles; cook 5 minutes or until noodles are done. Ladle 1 1/4 cups soup into each of 4 bowls; top each serving with 1 1/2 tsp. cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.
Light Italian Wedding Soup
(This was a Martha Stewart light cooking recipe; I can't remember what the name of the cookbook was)
My husband's thoughts on this were that the meatballs were fantastic, but the soup lacked noodles. I personally was not aware that Italian Wedding Soup usually had noodles in it...but then again, I really have not tried it before, aside from the canned versions. Anyway, you be the judge, and if you do wish to add noodles, just adjust the calorie / fat count, which is already considerably low.Serves 6
250 calories per serving
9.8 grams fat
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground turkey
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup dried plain bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese + more for serving
Coarse salt & ground pepper
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 cans low-sodium chicken broth (14.5 oz.)
2 cans diced tomatoes in juice (14.5 oz.)
2 heads escarole, trimmed and coarsely chopped
Directions:
1. In large bowl, combine first 5 ingredients (1 tsp. salt + 1/4 tsp. pepper). Roll into balls.
2. In large pot, heat oil to medium. Cook onion until soft. Add broth and tomatoes, bring to simmer. Add meatballs and cook without stirring until they float to the surface (about 5 minutes).
3. Add as much escarole to the pot as will fit. Cook, gradually adding the rest, until wilted and meatballs are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt & pepper.
Cider-Glazed Chicken with Browned Butter-Pecan Rice
(Cooking Light magazine)
Again, with chicken, it makes a huge difference when I mix it up periodically. The usual baked chicken with broccoli and rice or what have you tends to get old for me real quick. The apple cider glaze worked well for me, and the rice with the pecans was to die for! I'm not sure my husband was crazy about the rice because he's not a big fan of pecans, but I shared some of it with my father and he couldn't get enough of it!
Serves 4 (1 cutlet and about 1/2 cup rice per serving)
333 calories per serving
13 grams of fat
Ingredients:
1 (3.5 oz.) bag boil-in-bag brown rice (such as Uncle Ben's)
2 tbsp. butter, divided
1 lb. chicken breast cutlets (about 4 cutlets)
3/4 tsp. salt, divided
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup refrigerated apple cider
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup chopped pecans
2 tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
1. Cook rice according to package directions in a small saucepan, omitting salt and fat; drain.
2. While rice cooks, melt 1 tsp. butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with 1/4 tsp. salt and pepper. Add chicken to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side until done. Remove from pan. Add cider and mustard to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits; cook 2 to 3 minutes or until syrupy. Add chicken to pan, turning to coat. Remove from heat; set aside.
3. Melt remaining 5 teaspoons butter in saucepan over medium-high heat; cook for 2 minutes or until browned and fragrant. Lower heat to medium; add pecans and cook for 1 minute or until toasted, stirring frequently. Add rice and the remaining 1/2 tsp. salt; toss well to coat. Serve rice with chicken. Sprinkle with parsley.
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