Parsley Sauce

This parsley sauce recipe is an ideal accompaniment for steamed fish or perfect with gammon or grilled bacon. The light creamy sauce also works great served with mashed potato or as a dip for vegetables.

When making sauces, many people worry about lumps forming. I find that warming the milk first, then adding the other ingredients eliminates lumps every time. 

Wholemeal Wraps

Wholemeal wraps on the menu today! When trying to loose weight, wholemeal options are the best ones to chose. Wholemeal bread, pasta or cereals are better for you, fill you up more and keep you full for longer.

These wraps are kept on the light side by using low fat milk and only one teaspoon of olive oil. They are great served with some cooked chicken, lettuce and a little low fat mayo.

Mince Rissoles

Mince rissoles are a great combination of minced meat, spices, breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese, bound together with egg and a little low fat milk. Turkey mince would be best to keep the calories down, but lean beef, pork or lamb would also work well.

Great served with Mashed Potato or Roast Potatoes with a little gravy, they could also be served in a brown roll as a burger with some Spicy Potato Wedges and a little ketchup on the side. 

Wholemeal Pitta Breads

A little baking today with these delicious wholemeal pittas! As I've mentioned in previous posts, wholemeal options are the best way to go when trying to loose weight or just eat healthier. 

These pittas are a great alternative to bread when making lunches. They would also go great with Kofta Kebabs or Chicken Kebabs.

Béchamel Sauce

This basic white sauce is a classic béchamel that goes great with grilled meat or chicken or with steamed fish. The calories are kept down by using low fat milk and butter.

When making sauces, many people worry about lumps forming. I find that warming the milk first, then adding the other ingredients eliminates lumps every time. 

Broccoli Soup

This light creamy soup is a great option for lunch or would work well as a starter. To maintain the colour and vitamins, the broccoli is steamed over the simmering stock and then added at the end.

Like the other soups I've posted, this is great served with a slice or two of Weight Watchers whole meal bread and a little low fat butter, or 2 slices of wheaten bread such as Mc Cambridges. A couple of Ryvita crisp bread also go very well as an alternative.

Flour Tortillas

Flour tortillas on the menu today! Flour tortillas are a great alternative to bread and there's no need to touch the oven! They taste great, are very easy to make and are ready in no time.

These tortillas are kept on the light side by using low fat milk and only one teaspoon of olive oil. They are great served as a wrap with some cooked chicken, lettuce and a little low fat mayo.

Prawn Massaman Curry with Brown Rice

Massaman curry is a delicious Thai style curry that contains potatoes. When ordered in a restaurant or takeaway, this dish will be made with gallons of coconut milk hugely increasing the calories and fat content. (Even 'low fat' or 'reduced fat' tinned coconut milk contains pots of calories and should be avoided!).

This recipe replaces the coconut milk with a cornflour/milk mixture that maintains the consistency and mirrors the taste.

You could omit the prawns and chicken stock and add some butternut squash or sweet potato (and vegetable stock) for a veggie version of the curry. Alternatively, some chopped cooked chicken would also work, but take this into account when counting the calories.

Salmon Mousse

This salmon mousse is a great way to make smoked salmon go a bit further. Salmon and low fat cream cheese are combined to make a creamy mousse.

Fantastic served on crackers, Ryvita crisp breads, or even on Butternut Squash Scones it would also work well as a sandwich spread or a topping for a baked potato. 

Butternut Squash Scones

A bit of baking on the menu today to banish volcanic blues! These scones are a great stand-by that are fantastic with a cuppa. 

Mashed butternut squash boosts the nutrition factor and gives the scones a lighter texture and colour.

They are great served with a little low fat butter and jam, although you could serve them with more savoury toppings such as ham and cheese.

Oriental Dipping Sauce

This oriental sauce is a fantastic accompaniment for Chinese starters. The classic combination of soy, sesame, spring onion and lime work great together.

The sauce is perfect to serve in dipping bowls with Oriental Meatballs, Vegetable Spring Rolls or Wontons.

It would also work well poured over boiled/steamed rice or instant noodles. Alternatively  drizzled over mixed lettuce leaves as a quick Asian salad. 

Veggie 'Meatballs'

Up today is a veggie 'meatball' recipe that uses roasted aubergine instead of meat. Combining classic Italian flavours, these meatballs are fantastic served with a stir in pasta sauce such as Red Pepper & Sun Dried Tomato Cream Sauce or Tomato Pesto or your favourite pasta sauce.

Sweetcorn Fritters

These sweetcorn fritters are a light savoury pancake that would work well as a starter or a great lunch. Alternatively, you could make two larger fritters for a main meal or to accompany some grilled chicken or fish.

The basic batter is the same as my Buckwheat Crepes recipe. Using half buckwheat flour keeps the fritters on the light side. You could add more veg such as chopped spring onion or chopped peppers to make them go a bit further. Alternatively, you could add a little low fat cheese or even some cooked chicken or ham.

Carrot & Sweet Potato Soup

This delicious soup combines carrot, sweet potato, onions and curry powder to give an Indian flavoured soup.

The soup would go great served with Weight Watchers naan breads or a couple of Ryvita crisp bread also go very well as an alternative.

Low Calorie Pesto

Pesto is the classic Italian mix of fresh basil, pine nuts, parmesan, garlic and olive oil. To cut back on the calories, this recipe uses stock instead of olive oil, but it still retains all the flavour.

Fantastic stirred into pasta, it's also great added to sandwiches or a topping for a baked potato. 

Vegetable Risotto

Spring has definitely sprung and something a little lighter is called for! This vegetable risotto is tasty and filling, but not too heavy or stodgy.

This recipe is very versatile and can be made to go further by adding a little cooked chicken or cooked prawns. You could also throw in some left over veg without anyone noticing!

Roast Potatoes

Oven roasted potatoes are great alternative to mash. This recipe is kept on the lighter side by using a little olive oil to get them started and spray oil to crisp them up.

Fantastic with chicken, beef or lamb roasties are an essential part of any Sunday roast dinner.

Creamy Mushroom Soup

A lovely lighter creamy soup up today! The weather seems to be brightening up over the last few days and at the risk of sounding a thousand years old, there's a grand stretch in the evening! 

This soup is best when you use a mixture of mushrooms although standard button mushrooms would work fine. Fancier types like chanterelles, shitake or oyster give a woodier taste that's really delicious. Many of the supermarkets do a pack with mixed varieties that are perfect.

Serve with a slice or two of Weight Watchers whole meal bread and a little low fat butter, or 2 slices of wheaten bread such as Mc Cambridges. A couple of Ryvita crisp bread also go very well as an alternative.

Parsnip Puree

Parsnips are a great veg that are often overlooked when planning accompaniments for a meal. Often included in supermarket special offers, they are cheaper, contain more vitamins and have more fibre than their glamourous, ubiquitous counterpart; carrots.

In this recipe, the parsnips are steamed first, locking in their sweetness and vitamins and then pureed in a little vegetable stock to form a creamy consistency. They would be a great, lower carb, alternative to regular potato mash.

Ideal with roast chicken or fish, pureed parsnips would also go great with a Sunday Roast with other veg on the side.

Buckwheat Crepes

Buckwheat crepes are a light thin pancake that can be served with sweet or savoury fillings. This recipe uses a equal portions of buckwheat and plain flour to give a lighter mix that's better for you.

Ideal as a weekend breakfast or a light lunch when served with a sprinkle of sugar and lemon juice or some fresh fruit. Alternatively, the crepes would make a more filling lunch or starter when served with some extra low fat cream cheese and smoked salmon or a slice of low fat cheese with lean ham or salami. 

The batter will make smoother crepes if it's chilled beforehand for at least 30 minutes and can be stored in the fridge for up to 24 hours on standby. 

Potato Gnocchi

Potato gnocchi are Italian dumplings that work as a fantastic alternative to pasta. Made using mashed potato, they are a great way to use up any left over mash. They are delicious with a little grated parmesan or with your favourite pasta sauce.

My previous Sun Dried Tomato Mash or basic Mashed Potato (with two teaspoons of olive oil added) would both work great for this recipe.

When planning this post, I did look up what the word gnocchi meant in English, hoping it would be some delightful Italian shape; It means 'lumps'!

Sun Dried Tomato Mash

Sun dried tomatoes are a great stand by item that can be kept in the store cupboard.

In this recipe, they are simply chopped up and soaked in a little olive oil and seasoning, then mixed with creamy mash. 

This mash is fantastic with any grilled fish such as John Dory or would go great will grilled meat or chicken.