Stuffed mushrooms

STUFFED MUSHROOMS are so satisfying - and would make a fabulous starter, or light lunch served with a salad. They also go well with a good steak, or served on the side with many dishes.
Mushrooms are very low in calories - around 16 calories per 100g.
We estimate each mushroom - using the ingredients below - will set you back about 50 calories, much lower than prepared stuffed mushrooms. If eating these as a light lunch, you'll probably want more than just one!
You can ring the changes using different herbs and cheese to compliment any dish. Gruyere cheese is quite often used, but we didn't have any, so we cooked with what we had. Here's how we made ours:

SPICY VEGETABLE SAMOSA

PEA, CAULIFLOWER AND POTATO SAMOSA.
Deliciously spicy, light and delicate. These are not difficult to make, just a bit fiddly. But the results are pretty amazing - especially when served with a cucumber raita. This was our first attempt too - and everyone tucked in, with a lot of mm's going round.
Here's what the inside of our samosa looked like - so tasty we had to stop ourselves from sampling it. We thought the mixture was so nice that it would make a lovely spicy side dish, or starter all on its own.
If you're looking for a party snack that won't break the bank, then this is one to try. We made 12 samosas with just a small amount of ingredients (see below). Each filo pastry sheet will make 3 samosas. Even with the melted butter, we worked out each samosa at around 60 calories each. Some of the fat runs out during the baking process which also helps the end result being a very light and crispy samosa. Wonderful.
Increase the quantity of ingredients to suit the number of samosas you need.
Why not serve with our home made refreshing cucumber raita dip?

Curried butternut squash soup

This curried butternut squash soup makes a lovely light lunch. Add some rice and it becomes more substantial. 

We still find ourselves hankering after a curry now and then, and this lunch time alternative is delicious. 

Why not try adding some roasted sweet potato cubes - as a garnish? Or some crispy fried onions. We ate ours with some toasted ciabatta - which gave it the crunch we were looking for. The textures all mingled together to create a very tasty lunch at around 400 calories. 

Soup doesn't have to be boring. So why not give this one a try. Cut corners, as I did, and pick up a bag of ready prepared squash, or a mix of squash and sweet potato. A 500g bag will suffice. 

Asparagus with poached eggs

With English asparagus season upon us - we are looking forward to more dishes like this.
Asparagus with poached eggs needs nothing else, other than a touch of seasoning. We've added toast and rocket salad for a more filling experience under 400 calories.
The main secret to a good poached egg is to have the freshest possible eggs you can lay your hands on. Boil a saucepan of water, turn down to a simmer (no big bubbles) and add a dash of vinegar. We don't swirl the water as some people do, just gently lower the eggs and cook for around 2 minutes.
We've managed to grow a few asparagus plants of our own, in a very small (half a square meter) part of the flower border! Much tastier than the roses they share the bed with… When the asparagus appears, which can literally be overnight, they do look like alien vegetables. Not the prettiest thing in the border, but certainly the tastiest. We love experimenting and growing whatever we can, where we can. Sometimes, we're amazed at the results and how little room you need to grow some vegetables. We planted just one courgette seed last year, in the flower bed, and we were invaded, with round courgettes for most of the year! It also made a lovely structural plant - plus you get the courgette flowers to play with, which we might do this year.

Do you know how many calories you can eat each day?

Here's a link to our very first blog post about our weight loss journey, which we began in January 2011. We started this blog as a way of recording what we ate while losing weight. The blog is a food diary, and contains lots of recipes, tips and ideas about losing weight.

You'll find our WEIGHT LOSS PLAN here. 

Copyright © forget dieting forever (2014), all rights reserved. Please do not copy any of this material without our express permission.

My breakfast hunger cure

I was ravenous when I woke up - so headed straight to the fridge. Breakfast was a bit eclectic, but as I could eat whatever I really fancied, I went with my instinct. In an odd sort of way, I usually feel so much better when I do.
Boiled eggs and toast are one of my favourites, but I wanted something tangy too. The strawberries are delicious if you chop them up and  sprinkle a little bit (not a lot) of sugar and leave at room temperature for 5 minutes. This suited me as I was boiling eggs. A couple of spoonfuls of Greek yoghurt - nice and creamy, drizzled with just a touch of honey…. and you have the perfect pillow for your fruit.
The cheese - well there's 10g here - was just enough, and yes, I dipped it into my egg. A small slice of toast satisfied my urge for something crunchy. All this for under 350 calories! What a nice way to start the day. So which would you eat first?

***

Do you know how many calories you can eat each day?

Here's a link to our very first blog post about our weight loss journey, which we began in January 2011. We started this blog as a way of recording what we ate while losing weight. The blog is a food diary, and contains lots of recipes, tips and ideas about losing weight.

You'll find our WEIGHT LOSS PLAN here. 

Copyright © forget dieting forever (2014), all rights reserved. Please do not copy any of this material without our express permission.

TOFU in PANKO with Thai salad

Our first TOFU dish - and we've decided to try it fried in Panko breadcrumbs.
Unlike a lot of diets out there, we don't ban anything. That way we don't crave anything. We think our body will let us know what it wants, and now we tend to eat more intuitively.
This crunchy Tofu worked perfectly with the Thai rice noodle salad - for texture and temperature. We sampled tofu for the first time last week and received some Clean Bean tofu to try at home.
Tofu is low in calories (78 per 100g) and a good source of protein. With no distinctive flavour, you can get creative.
Here's our fabulous recipe:

Hearty ham and vegetable soup

This HAM & VEGETABLE SOUP is one of my favourites.
Making soup can be time consuming, but the result often outweighs the inconvenience. Soups with a depth of flavour often take time to produce too.
To help, you'll find most supermarkets sell hot ham hocks on the deli counter, and I use one of these to make a very large batch of soup. 

The hocks can be quite salty, so the first thing I do is peel off the fat and taste. If it is too salty, I'll rinse it under cold water before removing all the meat. Use the bones in the soup to add flavour. 

There should be plenty of meat for a salad/sandwich too.
Here's my recipe for this hearty soup:

Creamy smoked trout salad

We love this SMOKED TROUT SALAD as it's quite easy to put together. With all the ingredients to hand, it's more of an assembly job, apart from boiling the potatoes.

I added a little more horseradish sauce to the dressing today. 

Smoked trout is cheaper than smoked salmon, and makes a nice change. If you can't find trout, you can always substitute with hot smoked salmon. 

We've used a very thick and creamy Greek yoghurt for the dressing. It really helps give the dish a velvety richness, without using mayonnaise (which can often taste too oily).

This dish comes in under 300 calories - and it is so filling, you would never believe it. Room for something else…… Here's our recipe:

PEPPERCORN SAUCE

Steak with PEPPERCORN SAUCE is a lovely combination. The sauce is very quick and easy to make too.
You can't beat good steak and chips… so if you're having this tonight why not give this creamy sauce a try?

Peppercorn Sauce

Ingredients

2 finely diced shallots

1 clove garlic (chopped)

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons of Brandy (optional)

90ml of beef stock (or half a stock cube)

fresh cream

1 teaspoon peppercorns

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

salt/pepper (if necessary)

***

Lightly fry the shallots until soft and stir in the garlic.

Add the Worcestershire sauce, Brandy, stock and mustard.

Simmer for around 20 minutes - to reduce it to about a third.

Sieve out the onions and garlic.

Season to taste, but the Worcestershire sauce/stock may already be enough.

Add peppercorns and cream - we used around 3 tablespoons. Serve.

***

Do you know how many calories you are allowed each day? Once we found out, our weight loss really began to take shape.

Here's a link to our very first blog post about our weight loss journey, which began in January 2011. We started this blog as a way of recording what we ate while losing weight. The blog is a food diary, and contains lots of recipes, tips and ideas about losing weight.

You'll find our WEIGHT LOSS PLAN here. 

Copyright © forget dieting forever (2014), all rights reserved. Please do not copy any of this material without my express permission.

Discerningly Chop'd

It's been a very busy and inspiring week so far. On Wednesday we were invited to attend the New Season Launch by Chop'd, which was held at the world famous H. Forman & Sons' London Smokehouse.
The restaurant really does boast the best view of the Olympic stadium. There is something very soothing about the whole building, which also boasts its own spacious roof-top gallery of local artwork.
But… when the venue comes second to what you are eating, then you know you are eating good food and that's when you understand provenance.
We sampled just about the softest smoked salmon we have ever tasted (which you can purchase online here).  As suppliers to Chop'd, you'll find H. Forman's delicious salmon on the menu, with a new Spring addition (available from 1st May) - sesame salmon and orange salad - where the salmon is cured with lime, lemon and sesame oil.
The Thai tofu noodle salad was one of my favourites. Being new to tofu I didn't know what to expect, but it was so soft and delicious that I know we'll be using this ingredient again. The tofu is made locally by Neil in Brick Lane.
It's part of our philosophy to eat food we love using good ingredients.
Using good ingredients actually helps us keep the weight off because we find ourselves savouring every mouthful.
NB: I haven't been paid to blog any of this.We just love food - and migrate to the food we love.

***

Do you know how many calories you are allowed each day? Once we found out, our weight loss really began to take shape.

Here's a link to our very first blog post about our weight loss journey, which began in January 2011. We started this blog as a way of recording what we ate while losing weight. The blog is a food diary, and contains lots of recipes, tips and ideas about losing weight.

You'll find our WEIGHT LOSS PLAN here. 

Copyright © forget dieting forever (2014), all rights reserved. Please do not copy any of this material without my express permission.

Chilli beef with wild rice

This minced beef chilli with long grain wild rice was made using mainly store cupboard ingredients. It's a dish that always comes in handy, when you're not quite sure what to do with that pack of minced beef.
I often make this using basmati rice, which is what I usually have in the cupboard. But here I used a packet mixed with long grain and wild rice. It was quite cheap at around £1 per 500g.
I love the nutty texture of the wild rice which adds something to the whole dish.
If you can get hold of star anise - then add this to the pot. It's not necessary, but it does add a hint of something 'different' to the dish. We tend to use star anise more, since discovering it. Unlike lots of spices which can easily accumulate… This woody spice can be added to many other dishes e.g. stews. The only thing you have to remember is to remove it before serving, as it's not very pleasant if you end up chewing on it.
The minced beef was very simple to put together too, and a portion of this will set you back somewhere around 300 calories (or 450 calories including the rice).
Here's how we made the chilli: