Low Calorie Meals - Mainly 300 and 400 Calorie
I have devised some low calorie meals. OH gas lost over 69 stones gradually over two years. As I do nearly all evening meals I have worked up some low calorie ones. I will try and post one every couple of days if folk are interested. I have calorie counted them all but have not allowed for a drop of oil in cooking if not in the ingredient list
Comments
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Fish or Seafood Pie. Serves 2 - 400 cals/ portion
Ingredients
250g of plain white fish
250g smoked fish
80g thinly sliced onion
100g sliced Mushroom
270g potatoes for mash
80g Fat free fromage frais
30ml Skimmed milk
Fish stock
30ml white wine
½ teaspoon of dried parsley
Optional V small pinch tarragon
2 tsp cornflour
Seasoning
clove of garlic sliced and cooked with onions for last few mins of their cooking
60g green beans cut in half
0r 60g leaf and tom salad
If available I use a 3 fish pie mix of salmon, white fish and smoked fish from ASDA which made 380 cals instead of listed fish but add 45g raw prawns. Prawns are low calorie and more would be nice maybe 90g.
The cornflour in the fish stock is important as is cooling in the method. It means that when the white wine is stirred in it will not split and the quark (I use a seasoned one) will not split either.
Preparation method
Remove fromage frais from fridge. Start the potato for 25 minsHeat splash of oil in a sauté pan and gently fry the onion for a 7 or so mins, until soft.. Add garlic and mushrooms part way through. Remove from pan and set aside.
Season fish on each side with pepper and steam in covered sauté pan for 8mins in mix of water and a little milk. Set fish aside and clean pan. Break into chunks when cool.
In a saucepan add a little boiling water stir in ¼ of fish stock cube, dissolve stock cube and add milk. Heat slowly. When hot but not boiling, add 2 tsp cornflour mixed with a little milk, heat stirring until thickened – do not boil. Leave to cool for 10 mins.
Mash potatoes after seasoning with pepper or or pinch of nutmeg or other spice and a teaspoon of butter and Parsley. (I used dried for this)
Put onions etc and fish in small oven proof dish.
Add white wine to cooled sauce and then Quark or fromage frais, stirring well. Pour over fish and onions and top with potato mash.
Bake at 200 for 40 or 45 mins. About 5 mins before the end of cooking time turn oven down to 110C and put green beans to cook on the hob in boiling water. Remove bake and set aside whilst warming plates. When beans have been in for 10 mins dish up.
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I see that I have referred to Fromage Frais in the above ingredients. I actually use Quark Cooking Cheese with Garlic and Herb. I prefer Quark for cooking and find it easy to use. Could also have used low fat ricotta.
If doing an omelette A generous teaspoon of quark per egg makes for a fluffy omelette.
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Chicken and Vegetable Tray Bake. Serves 2 400 cals/ portion
Ingredients
240g large salad potatoes
2 large ripe tomatoes 200g
120g red onions
120g pepper
100 g mushrooms thickly sliced
300g skinless chicken breast
2 cloves of garlic
¼ bunch of fresh thyme
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Tbsp olive oil
Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Could use chicken thighs. If leaving skin on reduce oil to 6ml, add a splash of water and reduce potatoes to 160g.
Preparation method
Cut the Chicken into thick chunks and marinade in a little oil along with any preferred additions for 30 mins to help prevent it drying out during baking.Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4.
Parboil potatoes for 10 - 15 mins. Cool and slice.
Quarter the tomatoes or maybe in eighths and place them in a large 10’’ base baking dish or roasting tray (roughly 25cm x 285cm) and add mushroom.
Peel the onions and cut into large wedges, then deseed and roughly chop the peppers. Add all these to the tray along with the chicken but not marinade oil .
Squash and peel garlic cloves, rough chop and add to the tray, then pick over the thyme leaves, sprinkle over with the paprika.
Add Tbsp Balsamic and Tblsp oil, a good pinch of sea salt if desired and black pepper. Toss everything together really well to coat, then spread across the tray, making sure the chicken isn't covered by the vegetables and push potatoes to bottom.
Roast for around 35-40 mins or until the chicken is golden and cooked through, turning and basting it a few times during cooking with the juices from the tray. Time depends on oven.
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Great idea Easy!
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Beef Stew and Dumplings Serves 4 - 409 Cals.
OK, slight cheat in the title as probably better described as cobblers rather than 'dumplings'. The recipe for the dumplings is based on one by Brian Turner.
Ingredients
400g Braising steak, cut in cubes
200g Onion, sliced
200g carrot, sliced
200g Mushroom, sliced or quartered
200g Salad potato, thick sliced
40g celery optional and I rarely use
2/3 Beef Stock cube in 700ml water
60g red wine
2 desert sp flour
1tsp olive or veg oil
Oregano, couple bay leaves, splash Worcester Sauce
For the Dumplings (these are for 2 portions to make 4 dumplings) If for 4 as per main recipe then double. I make for two and freeze half of main stew portion and later do dumplings to suit.
135g Flour (wholemeal or plain)
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1tbspn chopped flat leafed parsley
1 tbsp chopped chives
Optional 5 tsp chopped thyme
65ml skimmed milk
10ml olive oil (2tsp)
Preparation method
Put 1 desert sp flour in a plastic bag, grind in several turns of black pepper. Add half beef and toss to coat, repeat with desert sp. Plain flour and pepper for other half.Set oven to 180 to preheat.
Add tsp oil to a large sauté pan on high, and after 2-3 minutes add the beef. I do beef in two lots. Stir for 2 minutes, then once the meat has sealed, set aside and add the onions, carrots, celery and mushrooms, and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add potatoes and any remaining flour in bag and stir. Add wine and deglaze pan. Why does wine seem to deglaze better than water? Then gradually add stock. Stir until thickens.
Pour into a casserole and cook for ¼ hour to get the casserole pot going and turn down to 160C for further 2 hours.
After the stew has nearly cooked, make the dumplings: Sift the flour into bowl add tspn baking powder, pepper. Make a well in centre add the oil 2blspn each of chopped parsley and chives add milk slowly whilst mixing with fork to soft dough. It may look as if all flour will not incorporate but it will. Kneed dour in hands to seal any cracks. Moisten hands with oil and place dough onto lightly floured surface and knead slightly into 4 balls . Place the dumplings on top of the stew, raise temp to 180C and cook uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes until they are cooked with a light crust, but still soft. Turn dumplings half time.
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Please do Tammy. Some Notes.
In all my recipes' spoon levels are for level spoonfuls unless otherwise stated.
When I make a casserole I usually make a day before I require it as I find it improves with standing. I divide the casserole into two portions for two people and usually freeze on half. I am pretty careful to roughly divide meat, tats and carrots fairly equally. When I reheat the half portion I usually do so for an hour or a little less at 160c and turn up to 180 15 mins before the end prior to uncovering and adding dumplings. During this time I sift my flour and make dumplings. Ovens vary and I use mainly a small combi oven. I find that for me 35 mins allows for my dumplings to be properly cooked and not doughy. You can always check one if first time with the recipe by removing and halving.
Although I use a larger earthenware casserole for cooking the main when I reheat I find that a 6'' internal diameter casserole is just right for 4 dumplings. For 8 dumplings (4 people) I suspect that an 8'' or 9'' would suffice. It is possible instead of forming into dumpling the mix could be rolled out to make a crust.
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Definitely going to try these. I have to check the cupboards and freezer to ensure I have ingredients before my next food shop. At the mo we're eating either prep landed or homemade frozen whilst we apply ourselves to DIY. I think our big issue is portion control 😉 and the large dinner plates that we have with our 'new' everyday dinner service. They are now the years old so been creeping on and up!
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Often I do not use a recipe as such but rely on my Excell spreadsheet to work out the calories for me. Last night for example was pork steak with apple onion and cider gravy, baked potato and a mixture of cauli and broccoli. Worked out at 415 cals.
Anyway another recipe to add and a favourite of ours
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Baked Cod with Creamy Lentil and Mushroom 310Cals - serves 2
Ingredients
1 tsp oil
120g red onion, chopped
200g mushrooms, in wedges
1 heaped tsp plain flour
¾ fish stock cube, dissolved in 230ml water
400g can green lentils, drained
1 tbsp 0% fat Greek yogurt or alternatively low fat ricotta. I usually use Quark Cooking Cheese with Garlic and Herb as I think it adds to the recipe.
2 No. 125g cod steaks or fillets
1 tsp chopped parsley
good grind black pepper
Some lemon to serve if liked.
I often use hake when available but any firm white fish would work.
As above I prefer the seasoned Quark but it depends what I have in. I find Quark versatile
Prep & method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 4. Add the oil to a heated sauté pan then add the onions and cook for 5 to 10 mins.
Put lentils to heat slowly in a separate saucepan.
Add mushrooms to the onions and cook for 5 mins or so until onions softened. Sprinkle flour over the top, stir in and cook out for a min or so and then gradually stir in the stock.Place the baking dish in oven for 10 mins to heat.
Remove from heat and add drained lentils let cool for a five mins and then add yoghurt and parsley, stir and then heat gently. Place into the baking dish.
Grind a little black pepper onto the cod, place on top of the veg in the oven and bake for about 20 mins
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Well the above recipe we will be having today or tomorrow. Wednesday and Thursday are our lower calorie days and so 300 calorie evening meal. I think that we will be having Lemon Curried Chicken Stir Fry on the other day but it might be a bolognaise. Not decided yet.
All these recipes are ones that I have made a number of times over the last two years.
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Lemon Curried Chicken Stir Fry 301 Calories per portion. Serves 2
Ingredients
190g Chicken breast cubed
70g Carrot cut into small sticks
100g Broccoli cut in small florets
150g Mushroom, halved & sliced
190g Potato cubed
80g Onion finely sliced & separated
80g Peppers diced
1/3 lo salt Chicken Stock Cube
½ lemon Juice and Zest
Level tsp Cornflour
1 Sugar Cube
2 desert sp
1/2 tsp cumin, garam masala. Turmeric, cumin, pilau rice seasoning, little olive oil
For the marinade.
Large garlic clove chopped or crushed.
A little oil (Sesame, nut oil or whatever). I used a sundried tomato infused oil.
Desert spn Balsamic vinegar.
Half tsp ground ginger,
Few turns of ground black pepper, the zest of half a lemon, Desert sp of Teryaki marinade or low salt Soy Sauce if prefer
Preparation method
Cube the chicken breast and, at least 20 mins before cooking (longer is better) put in a dish with the marinade. Stir from time to time.
Lift the chicken from the marinade (reserving marinade) and fry in a little olive oil for 5 or 6 mins and then set aside.
For speed I cut the carrot into small short sticks and drop into a pan of boiling water for 15 mins along with the potato for the last 10 min until both are both just tender and cool quickly to stop cooking.
Meanwhile gently fry the onion until soft – don’t brown. Stir in half a tsp each of cumin, turmeric, garam masala and cook out the spices, stirring. Add Mushroom, diced peppers, and stir though, cooking until peppers are tender. Add reserved marinade, stirring occasionally and then add the carrots and potatoes, stir through. Add the half lemon juice, the stock made with a little boiled water and a sugar cube. Add the cooked chicken and the cornflour slaked with a little water. Stir though and cover pan and cook for about 10 mins stirring occasionally.
Put the broccoli in a little boiling water and simmer for around 7 mins and then stir broccoli into stir fry.
I could not see my garam masala and used pilau seasoning instead which worked well.
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