Tag: healthy foods

Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: Easy calorie cuts

Dr Nancy P

Tuesday Tip: Easy calorie cuts 🍽

Trying to lose some fat? Cutting just 100 – 200 calories a day can help you drop those pounds. Here are some easy ways to cut a few calories.

# Ditch the soft drinks

Switch to water, calorie free squash or zero calorie soft drinks – cutting just one soft drink a day at roughly 140 cals is over 50,000 cals over the year!

# Go naked

Not you, your burger, sandwich etc. Ditch the bread and do yourself a favour by cutting about 150 cals. Have an open sandwich instead or a salad, or use portobello mushrooms for burger buns etc.

# Drink before you eat

Have a big glass of water before you eat. Studies have shown this results in a 13% reduction in calorie intake.

# Switch to cauliflower rice

There is nothing wrong with rice or any other ‘carbs’ so I’m not suggesting you cut them completely but a switch to cauliflower rice now and then is an easy switch to reduce cals. It’s tasty too and will save you approx 160 cals.

# Go black

Try ditching the milk in your coffee or tea – or at least switch to skimmed milk or a low cal non dairy alternative (e.g oat milk). We forget all the extra calories from those dashes of milk in our coffee and they can soon add up!

# Be careful with condiments

Lots of condiments are calorie heavy – mayonnaise and sugary things like ketchup and bbq sauce can easily add in sneaky extra cals. Mustard on the other hand has almost no cals, so try making the swap or go for vinegar, salt and pepper to spice things up.

# Chew the cud

Taking longer over your food helps the body realise it’s fuller sooner, which tends to reduce over eating and means fewer calories are consumed. Studies have shown that individuals reduced their calorie intake by an average of 88 – 100 calories when eating slower. That may not sound much but over a year that can add up to over 95,000 cals! Try to take at least 20 mins over your meals.

Try these tips and see how you get on!

Happy Tuesday 🤗

Xx

Recipes

Chocolate Treat Bars

Dr Nancy P

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3 tbsp Agave Nectar or Honey
2 – 3 tbsp Peanut Butter or any Nut Butter
1 oz (27.5 g) Sesame Seeds
1 oz (27.5 g) Sunflower Seeds
1 oz (27.5 g) Carob Powder or Cocoa
0.5 oz (15 g) Desiccated Coconut
0.5 oz (15 g) Dried Cranberries

Combine the agave nectar and peanut butter in a saucepan, heat gently, stirring continually.

Once combined, remove from the heat and immediately add all remaining ingredients, except the cranberries. Mix well. Then add dried cranberries and mix gently so they remain whole.

Grease a small tin (I actually used a plastic tupperware box approx. 20 x 15cm) and used hazelnut oil to grease it very lightly but you could use almond, coconut or any flavourless plant oil).

Press the mixture into the tin and press down so the top is smooth and it’s well compacted. Cover and place in the fridge to set then slice and serve!

Makes approx. 8 bars which are 125 calories each.

Recipes

Veggie-mince Lasagne

Dr Nancy P

Lasagne is such a popular dish but can be so full of fat and other processed nasties so I thought I’d have a go at creating a healthy lasagne. I’ve never made lasagne before so I’m pretty proud of this. It tastes divine, as good as any “normal” lasagne, rich, creamy and satisfying!

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For the filling:

150g Soya Mince (soaked in 450ml of  vegetable stock (or just plain water) and a glug of olive oil) or quorn or any vegetarian mince (no need to soak)

1 White onion

1 clove of Garlic

1 Red Pepper

800g Chopped Tomatoes

1 tbsp Concentrated tomato puree (optional)

1 – 2 tsp mixed Mediterranean herbs (I used oregano, marjoram, thyme and basil)

Black pepper and himalayan rock salt

For the Sauce:

1/2 cup Olive oil

4 tbsp White spelt flour (or normal plain flour)

4 – 5 cups of Soya milk

Himalayan rock salt and black pepper to season

a pinch of nutmeg (optional)

For the rest of the Lasagne:

8 whole grain Spelt lasagne sheets (or any lasagne sheets you like)

150g soft goat’s cheese or your choice of cheese

Grated hard goat’s cheese for the top or any cheese you want!

Start by soaking the soya mince in the vegetable stock and olive oil. Allow it to absorb the water, ideally leaving it for at least an hour, but if you haven’t got time then just until it absorbs the liquid. If you are using quorn or another veggie mince then you don’t need to  soak it first so you can skip that bit! Chop the onion, garlic and red pepper. Add the onion to a large pan and saute until translucent. Add the garlic and pepper and saute for a further few minutes. Add the soya mince, stirring well and then add the tomatoes and tomato puree. Finally add the herbs. Bring to the boil then simmer for as long as you can, at least 20 minutes. Taste and season.

Preheat the oven to 180 C.

Meanwhile start on the bechamel sauce. Add the olive oil to a cold pan and place on a moderate heat. Add the flour and mix continuously using a wire whisk. The flour will dissolve in to the oil and there shouldn’t be any lumps (if there are you can always run the sauce through a sieve later so don’t panic). After a few minutes, once the flour and oil are mixed and starting to form a paste you can start to slowly add the milk. Run the milk down the side of the pan and start with a little, whisking all the time to prevent the sauce separating. Mix all the time and continue to add the milk. After you’ve added about a third allow the sauce to thicken, then add more milk, continue with this until you have the consistency and amount you want. Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Grease a 8 – 9 inch baking tray/lasagne dish and start by adding a thin layer of the sauce. Then add a layer of soya mince and crumble half the soft goat’s cheese on top. Lay 4 lasagne sheets on this and add another layer of sauce. Next add the rest of the mince and goat’s cheese. Add the other 4 lasagne sheets and pour the rest of the sauce on top. Finish with a grating of hard goat’s cheese and pepper.

Pop in the oven for 35 minutes, or until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Enjoy with a side salad 🙂

(This recipe was originally posted on pureformfitnesskitchen.com)

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