Great to serve next to a no fat hot dog (which is only 145 calories on a bun!). This is a great side dish full of fiber and full of rich flavor.
4 servings
235 calories per serving
16 oz. can of pork and beans
15 oz. can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
¼ c ketchup
2 T brown sugar
1 T cooked bacon crumbles
Dash of Smoke Flavoring (optional)
2 t dried minced onion
2 t spicy brown mustard
Combine all and cook on low heat 15 minutes so flavors mingle.
This is so cheesy that you can’t help but think you’re cheating on your diet – but you’re not ! Not by a long shot ! This is quick and easy to prepare and a great dish that deserves to be added to your permanent recipe box.
4 servings
280 calories per serving
1 T oil
1 lb. chicken tenders
¼ t pepper
¼ t salt
¼ t garlic powder
¼ t onion powder
20 oz. package of broccoli and cauliflower in cheese sauce
3 oz. frozen peas and carrots
2 t basil flakes
¼ c grated parmesan cheese
Heat oil on medium high heat and add chicken and sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes or until brown. Stir in veggies and reduce heat to medium and cook 10 minutes until chicken is done and cheese sauce is melty. Then stir in parmesan and basil and continue cooking on low 3 minutes or so.
This is a way lower cal version than your typical scampi. Instead of floating in a lake of butter, this shrimp dish takes the scampi flavor profiles and makes it well affordable in terms of calories 🙂 Use next to a pasta or rice dish (like paella) or use atop salads.
4 servings
46 calories per serving
1 lb. peeled, cleaned shrimp
Butter flavored Pam
Molly McButter
I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Spray
½ t salt
1 t garlic powder
1 t parsley flakes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking dish with Pam. Lay the shrimp out without overlapping. Spray with the butter spray then sprinkle with a little bit of the Molly McButter. Finally sprinkle with garlic powder, salt, and parsley and bake 8 minutes or until done. Optionally sprinkle with just a bit of parmesan cheese just before serving.
I modeled this recipe after a restaurant favorite of mine – it is a wild mushroom ravioli appetizer that I could not help but order every time I frequented a certain restaurant, but the calorie count was over the top. Not this one !! Between the RICH cream sauce and the multiple mushroom flavors, this meal tastes just as decadent but with so few calories, you can eat it without any guilt.
Thanks to Marxfoods.com for the wild mushrooms to create this masterpiece ! The different varieties lend quite a flavor to this dish. The dish would just not be the same using run of the mill mushrooms. The mixture of the chanterelles and matsutakes inside the little packet of goodness combined with the flavors of the porcini, lobster and black trumpet mushroom sauce … well, it’s just a little bit of heaven right here on earth.
Marxfoods offers a bunch of wild mushroom varieties – I think my favorite in this dish were the black trumpet mushrooms – they have a very delicate texture and the aroma is akin to a truffle. These are definitely on my list of favorites.
8 appetizer servings (3 wontons each) – 106 calories per serving
4 dinner servings (6 wontons each – 212 calories per serving
Filling –
1 t oil
4 shallots, sliced
¼ c water
2 oz. reconstituted dry chanterelle mushrooms (reserve the liquid)
2 oz. reconstituted dry matsutake mushrooms (reserve the liquid)
2 oz. Portobello mushrooms, sliced
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1/3 c part skim ricotta cheese
To reconstitute dried wild mushroom, place in a glass bowl and cover with very hot water. Let sit 20-30 minutes. Reserve the water to use as when boiling the wontons.
Heat 1 t oil in a skillet and sauté the shallots on medium high heat for 5 minutes. Add 1-2 T of water if needed to keep the shallots moist. Add the reconstituted mushroom and sauté another 2 minutes. Finally add the Portobello mushrooms and sauté another 7 minutes. When done, place all in a food processor and pulse 14 times. (It’s best to chop or mince the woodier mushrooms like chanterelles and matsutakes). Turn into a bowl and mix with the ricotta. Set aside.
Sauce –
1 t oil
1.5 oz. reconstituted dry porcini mushrooms (reserve the liquid)
.25 oz. reconstituted dry black trumpet mushrooms (reserve the liquid)
.50 oz. reconstituted dry lobster mushrooms (reserve the liquid)
1 T water
1 c beef broth
2 t cornstarch
¼ c fat free evaporated milk
1 t red vinegar
To reconstitute dried wild mushroom, place in a glass bowl and cover with very hot water. Let sit 20-30 minutes. Reserve the water to use as when boiling the wontons.
Heat 1 t oil in a skillet and sauté the mushrooms 6 minutes. Add up to 1 T of water to keep the mixture moist. Mix starch and broth and add to the pan along with the evaporated milk. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook 2 minutes to thicken the sauce. During the last minute of cooking, add the vinegar. Set aside.
Wontons –
24 wonton wrappers
Small bowl of water
Reserved mushroom liquid
Water
2 t salt
Put reserved liquid in a pot and add enough water to make 2 quarts. Add salt and bring to a boil.
Fill wontons with 1 T of the filling – – either use instructions on the back of the wonton package or watch this short video tutorial:
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Complete all wontons then boil in 2 batches. Use a slotted spoon to lift the wontons out of the pot – put on a platter and cover with the sauce.
The glaze makes an already great tasting steak that much better ! Pair this with Roasted Grape Tomatoes and Spinach Orzo for a meal just a teeny bit over 400 calories.
4 servings
203 calories per serving
½ t salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 4 oz. filet mignons
Pam
¼ c rich red wine
¼ c beef broth
Combine salt and garlic and rub evenly over the meat pressing some so it will stick well. Heat a large skillet to medium high and coat with Pam. Add meat and lower heat to medium and cook 4 minutes each side or until done. (alternately, you can cook them on a heated grill). Remove steaks to a plate and keep warm. Add wine and broth to pan and cook about 3 minutes, until reduced to about ¼ cup of liquid. Drizzle sauce over steaks.
This is loaded with veggies and tastes so good ! It’s way quicker than a regular paella and if you really want some seafood in there, add some Buttery Baked Shrimp. Paella is a great healthy dinner that the whole family will enjoy.
6 servings
362 calories per serving
3 T oil
½ onion, chopped
½ green bell pepper, chopped
½ poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
12 oz. sliced mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t paprika
1 t oregano
½ t pepper
¼ t red pepper flakes
1 ½ c brown rice (MINUTE rice)
2 ½ c vegetable stock / broth
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 ½ t salt
9 oz. baby spinach leaves, chopped roughly
1 c frozen peas and carrots, thawed
1 c frozen or canned artichoke hearts
2 T red vinegar
¼ c chopped parsley
Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large soup pot on medium heat and cook onion 7 minutes. Add bell pepper, poblano pepper, mushrooms and salt and cook 5 minutes then add garlic, paprika, oregano, red pepper and black pepper and continue cooking another minute or two. Add stock and tomatoes and salt and bring to a boil. Then stir in rice. Cover and reduce heat to low and cook 7 minutes. Stir in spinach, peas, artichokes, vinegar and half the parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cover again and let sit 5 minutes for all the juices to absorb. Serve with parsley garnish.
Umami – the fifth taste (after salt, sweet, bitter, and sour) – Umami tastes earthy and savory – and a perfect example of the taste is mushrooms or tomatoes – and this recipe has both – it is umami-delicious !
4 servings
108 calories per serving
Just about any mushroom with work in this recipe, but I like portobellos for their intense mushroom flavor.
1 t oil
1 c sliced baby portobello mushrooms
1/2 c grape tomatoes, halved
1 garlic clove, minced
2 containers precooked brown rice (4.4 oz each)
1/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper
Heat oil in a large skillet on medium high and add mushrooms. Cook for 2 minutes and add tomatoes and garlic and cook another 2 minutes. Heat rice in microwave according to package instructions. Add to mushroom mix along with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
This is a meal that the family was raving about…there was much satisfaction around the dinner table the night I made this one ! Even though it is a very quick sauce, it grabs the flavor from the pork and quickly becomes a sauce full of depth. Be sure to add on the fresh herbs – they really add to the awesome flavor of this dish.
4 servings
380 calories per serving
If you don’t use the FiberGourmet pasta, the meal does not come in under 400 calories.
8 oz. FiberGourmet penne pasta
3 T bread crumbs
3 T grated parmesan cheese
¾ lb. pork tenderloin sliced thinly
2 t oil
Pam
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained this time
8 oz. tomato sauce
2.25 oz. can sliced black olives, drained
Salt and pepper to taste
½ t basil flakes
½ t oregano flakes
½ t parsley flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
2 T fresh chopped basil
Cook pasta according to package instructions. Combine breadcrumbs and cheese in a zip loc bag then add the pork slices and shake. Heat oil in skillet and also spray it with Pam and then cook pork 4-6 minutes or until browned on both sides. Add tomatoes, sauce, salt, pepper and olives and bring to a boil the reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes or until pork is tender. Serve pork mix over cooked penne. Garnish with fresh chopped basil.
This recipe makes a nice mellow flavored meal full of Caribbean richness and warmth. Try serving with a tossed green salad and some rice.
4 servings
187 calories per serving
¼ c minced onion
1 T sugar
1 T finely chopped jalapeno pepper (seeds removed)
2 t cider vinegar
2 t soy sauce
½ t salt
½ t ground allspice (or a mix of ground cloves and ground nutmeg)
½ t thyme
½ t pepper
¼ t red pepper flakes
1 ½ lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Pam
Combine all except chicken and Pam in a large bowl. Add chicken and toss well to coat. Heat a grill pan (or the BBQ grill in the backyard !) on medium high heat and spray with Pam. Cook 5 minutes per side or until done.
This is high cal for a vegetable dish but served as a lunch alongside some tuna sprinkled with lemon, it’s a nice change. You don’t even need to wait for good summer tomatoes, because the cooking brings out the sweetness.
4 servings
285 calories per serving
Pam
1 1/2 c plain breadcrumbs
1/4 c parmesan cheese
1 T lemon zest
2 T olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
4 large tomatoes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray baking dish with Pam. In a bowl combine breadcrumbs, cheese, zest and oil. Add salt and pepper. Slice tomatoes and arrange in dish. Season with salt and pepper and top with breadcrumb mixture. Bake 20-25 minutes.
