Skinny fruit crumble

A really simple summer dessert without the bold calories and points adding up!

Sometimes I crave a nice comforting dessert even in summer when it's hot, this is the perfect solution.

Just use whatever summer fruit you can get your hands on, I like to use peaches pineapple & strawberries.

Chop them all up to even sizes or leave the likes of blueberries and raspberries while if using these. 

Cover with a layer of sugar or sweetner and oats and bake at 180 for around 40 minutes.

Serve with weight watchers cream or low fat custard. Yum!

(Calories and weight watchers points will vary depending on which fruit and toppings you choose)

Cheese Steak Rolls

I was craving a Philly cheese steak, I don't think I've ever had one in Ireland but anytime I'm in America I eat them and clam chowder in ridiculous amounts.

I decided to try recreate. My main issue is finding the right steak to fry, I got a couple of thin sirloins but maybe deli beef would be better? I need something thinner. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. 

Serves 2 people (2 rolls, 1 steak each) 

Ingredients:

- 2 Thin Sirloin steaks

- 1/2 large white onion

- 1 green pepper

- 1 portobello mushroom 

- Low fat white cheddar (eg. Dubliner light slices)

- 4 Slim rolls (eg. Slimsters, sandwich Skinnys, slimbos etc.)

Method:

Preheat oven to 180

Place steaks between pieces of cling film and bash them with a rolling pin to get as flat as possible.

Chop onion, pepper and mushroom.

Spray pan with low calorie oil and veg until soft.

In a separate pan or the same one emptied and cleaned spray low calorie cooking oil and on a low heat fry steaks until slightly coloured. 

In a baking tray lay out the bottom parts of your rolls. Distribute the onion, pepper and mushroom mix evenly on each. Then divide the steak on top. Add a slice of low fat white cheddar. 

Place in the oven and leave for approx 5 mins or until cheese has melted just right.

Per person 

Calories: 450 

Weight watchers points: 12

Enjoy with a pepper sauce on the side.

(Add extra points and calories for this)

Buffalo cauliflower bites

I love buffalo chicken but its so not skinny food so when I saw a recipe online for buffalo cauliflower bites I thought I'd give it a go. I don't particularly like cauliflower, unless its swimming in a creamy cheese sauce! 

I once tried a recipe I saw online for cauliflower mash, it was described as a great alternative to mashed potato. It really wasn't for me, it just tasted like cauliflower.

If you like cauliflower it might work for you. 

(http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/

george-stella/mock-garlic-mashed-

potatoes-recipe/index.html)

So I was very sceptical about these buffalo wing style bites but there was no need, they were really tasty! 

Buffalo Cauliflower Bites

Ingredients:

- 1 cup of water

- 1 cup of  flour

- 1 tbs of garlic powder/granules 
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 1 cup buffalo or hot sauce 

   (I use Franks buffalo sauce)

Method:

Combine the water, flour and garlic powder/granules until you have a smooth batter.

Chop the cauliflower into bite size pieces and coat in the batter.

Spray a baking tray in oil and bake the cauliflower in the oven for 20-25 mins until golden and crispy.

Remove from the oven, toss and pour on buffalo hot sauce, toss again.

Bake for a further 5 mins.

You may want to add an extra few drops of buffalo sauce.

So good served with blue cheese dressing. 

Serves: approx 6 people

Calories: approx 650, average 100-120 per person 

Pro Points: approx 3 per person 

I just need to figure out a good low calorie low point blue cheese dressing! Please let me know if anyone has a recipe or a tip on where to buy one in Ireland.

No fasting for now & new slim bread

We've been having amazing weather in Ireland. Yes really! Strange but true. I've been out and active so much that the fasting thing isn't practical right now so 5:2 diet is on the back burner for now.

I'm back to keeping an eye on calories and weight watchers points instead. 

It's great how many salads I've been eating, I just need to curb the amount of BBQ burgers and hotdogs I've been eating too! I think it's time to start cooking a little healthier on the BBQ, steak or fish for a change, maybe make up a few skewers. 

A new range of bread I found is the Irish Pride Slimsters rolls & sliced pan. The bread is nice, kind of like a white and brown mix and the rolls are nice and big compared to some of the other low cal rolls on the market at the moment. 

The bread is 60 calories a slice and 2 weight watchers pro points

The rolls are 100 calories and 3 weight watchers pro points 

5:2 Diet - fast day 2

I'm giving the 5:2 diet a go and it was time for fast day 2. 

Fast day 1 went well but I was glad of the break on Tuesday. I decided to keep tracking my calories to see how many I'd consume on a normal or what they call on the diet "feast day". Tuesday clocked in at 1334 calories, not bad. Also not the 1200 calories the app I'm using recommends I have a day to lose 1lb a week. 

Wednesday arrived and I wasn't as motivated to fast as I was on Monday.

     (Breakfast: approx 2 pro points)

     (Lunch: approx 3 pro points)

All looking good so far. I felt really hungry this day. I think mainly because I didn't enjoy my lunch, I thought egg salad made with only egg whites would be nice, it works for omelettes. It does not work for egg salad. Yuck. I ate it anyway but that's where my motivation waned.

By late afternoon I was feeling hungry and grumpy when my husband called and suggested a BBQ and a few drinks. It didn't take much to cave! 

So I abandoned fast day and ate 2 cheeseburgers, 1 turkey kebab and sipped on a few ciders. Mmm I have to say it was worth it! Although the alcohol may have made me extra bold and I ate a lot of chocolate before bed too. 

Terrible calorie day - 1824 calories, way over what I should have normally never mind to lose weight! 

The next morning I decided not to abandon the diet and try fast day 2.

So here's fast day 2, take 2!

Thursday - Day 2 fasting 

    (Breakfast: 0 pro points)

      (Lunch: approx 3/4 pro points)

So far, so good. I felt I needed something filling for dinner so I decided to make my own soup. Recipe to follow.

Research shows that soups can help you lose weight: in one study, published in the journal Physiology & Behavior, people consumed the fewest calories on days when they ate soup rather than the same ingredients in solid form.

This information and some good soup recipes can be found on the eating well site:

http://www.eatingwell.com/blogs/food_blog

/the_ultimate_satisfying_weight_loss_soup

The rest of the day went well and looked like this: 

      (Dinner: approx 2 pro points)

With my tomato soup I had mushrooms stir fried. When cooked I stirred in 1/2 tbs of light cream cheese and piled this on a Ryvita Crackerbread. I had another 2 buttered to dunk in the soup.

     (approx 4 pro points)

Total daily calories = 508

I went over by 8 calories.

You'll see I use a fair portion of my daily calories for snacking. I feel like I really need these to get me through the day. Some 5:2 dieters would disagree with this, think that it's cheating to snack at all and feel weight loss will only occur when 2 meals only are consumed on fasting days. I'll have to wait and see if I lose weight this week. Although with a lot of eating and drinking in my weekend I'm not confident! 

One of the more well known fasters that feels that snacking is cheating is English chef and Hugh Fearnly Whittingstall. (If you don't know him read this article with a ridiculously posh, accent in your head.)

http://m.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2013/jan

/18/hugh-fearnley-whittingstall-fast-diet

Right I'm heading out now to feast!

5:2 Diet - fast day 1

I haven't posted for so long, but I haven't been eating in a very skinny style.

I'm hoping to be back to being good, healthy and motivated! 

I've been reading up on the 5:2 Diet (intermittent fasting). 

Have any of you tried it? 

It sounds very interesting. You fast 2 days a week, surviving on only 500 calories a day for women, 600 for men. Not a lot of calories but the idea is for the rest of the week you don't have to monitor what you eat.

I've never tried a "fad diet" before, I've only ever tried weight watchers really.

However this diet appeals to me as I tend to do very well at eating healthy Monday to Thursday then go a bit crazy at the weekend! 

It's also a bit like the old weight watchers plan where you could save points so I would often have very low point days to save to party at the weekend.

Plus it would be nice to have a break from points and calorie tracking for 5 days a week! 

It boasts other health benefits such as lower cholesterol and even helps fight ageing. Sounds great. 

Here's the official website to read more:

http://thefastdiet.co.uk

I didn't buy the book, I just decided to go ahead and give it a go.

So I've fasted 2 days so far and day 1 I found quite easy. Below is what I ate.

Note: I've added pro points where I can for anyone on weight watchers. Some food amounts are too low to point but I need to include every calorie to have an accurate fasting amount. 

Monday - Day 1 fasting 

Breakfast:

1 Ryvita light Crackerbread  =

19 calories (2 for 1 pro point)

I spread with a tiny bit of my favourite 

Jam from Ikea  = 6 calories & had a

Coffee with almond milk (Alpro unsweetened) = approx 4 calories.

Total breakfast = 29 calories 

(2 pro points)

These crackers do the trick for a low cal low point carb fix.

Lunch:

Egg white frittata

3 egg whites = 48 calories

2 cherry tomatoes = 6 calories 

20g Weight watchers reduced fat grated cheese = 43 calories or 1 pro point

1 tbsp of skimmed milk = 11 calories

Lunch time snack:

Tea &

2 mini weight watchers orange cookies from a pack of 8. (8 = 2 pro points)

= 11 calories each

Total lunch = 130 calories (approx 3 pro points)

Dinner: (recipe to follow)

50g King prawns = 35 calories (1 pro point)

1 pack of oodles of noodles = 89 calories (2 pro points)

2 tbs soy sauce = 20 calories

1 tbs rice wine vinegar = 5 calories

1/2 tbs shiracha sauce = 5 calories

50g Little gems lettuce = 8 calories

15 ml kraft fat free French dressing = 6 calories 

Total dinner = 167 calories ( approx 4 points)

Snacks:

1 Cadbury snack bar (purple wrapper) = 120 calories (3 pro points)

1 mini meringue shell = 19 calories

1 coolpop = 20 calories

Frozen grapes = 15 calories 

Total daily calories = 500

I didn't find day 1 difficult, I think mainly because I'd prepared so much over the weekend and was actually looking forward to it. Day 2 didn't go as well, i'll add this to my blog soon! 

In the meantime here are some articles to read more about the 5:2 diet or intermittent fasting:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/melaniehaiken

/2013/05/17/hot-new-fasting-diet-from-

europe-hits-the-u-s/

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.

cfm?id=how-intermittent-fasting-might-help

-you-live-longer-healthier-life

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/13/

new-diet-craze-offers-five-days-feasting-for-

two-days-famine/

Pancake recipe

Happy Pancake Tuesday. I love pancakes, I love this day!
I will be having mostly pancakes today and not much else.

Serves Makes approx. 12 pancakes - 15 pro points

Ingredients:

100g plain flour - 10 pro points
Pinch of salt
1 egg - 2 pro points
300 ml skimmed milk - 3 pro points

Extra points for oil or butter used for frying, check your pack.
To avoid extra points use 0 cal cooking spray.

Method:
1. Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl and make a well in the centre.
2. Crack the egg into the well and add half the milk.
3. Slowly bring the flour into the liquid stirring with a wooden spoon until all the flour has been mixed in and then beat well to make a smooth batter.
4. Stir in the remaining milk.

Even handier you could beat all the ingredients together for 1 minute in a blender or food processor.

Leave to stand for about 30 minutes, stir again before using.

To cook the pancakes:
1. Heat a small frying until very hot and then turn the heat down to medium.
2. Lightly grease with oil/butter and then ladle in enough batter to coat the base of the pan thinly.
3. Tilt the pan so the mixture spreads evenly.
4. Cook over a moderate heat for 1-2 minutes or until the batter looks dry on the top and begins to brown at the edges.
5. Flip the pancake over and cook the second side.

Toppings:

Fruit - 0 pro points
Lemon juice - 0 pro points
Sugar (5g) - 1 pro point
Sweetener - 0 pro points
Jam (18g) - 1 pro point
Apple sauce (1tbs) - 1 pro point
Nutella (15g) - 3 pro points
Choccy Philly (30g tub) - 2 pro points

You could of course do a savoury filled pancake but that's not for me.

Ill be trying all of the above!