Cutting carbs is a great way to slim down before summer arrives. Carbs are the body’s main energy source, but excess carbs can easily be stored as fat.
This next low carb dish has been one of my favorite easy-to-make dishes these last few weeks. It’s simple, delicious, flavorful and very addicting.
These yummy grilled buffalo chicken bites only require a few ingredients and a few minutes of my time.
Ingredients:
- Boneless chicken breast(s)
- low sodium hot wing sauce (or mild)
- 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt n peppa
- 4 tbsp fat free blue cheese dressing
- 1 oz crumbled blue cheese
Preparation:
- Season chicken with salt n peppa
- heat olive oil in a pan
- grill chicken 3-4 minutes on each side
- remove chicken and let it cool
- chop up chicken into cubes
- heat your pan again and pour your worces. sauce, wing sauce and blue cheese dressing
- toss your chicken bites and stir around until fully coated
- pour concoction into a bowl and sprinkle the remaining crumbled cheese on top.
I love to eat these chicken bites straight, on a bed of romaine or even stuffed in a low carb tortilla wrap.
So Yummy!
The summer is approaching and most people are on a mission to slim down. You can certainly lose weight on bland chicken and tasteless steamed veggies but why eat that, when you can eat something delicious!
This tangy grilled calamari is low in fat, calories and carbs. This dish is also packed with slowly digesting proteins that will help keep your appetite at bay while helping you in sculpting your new summer body.
Tie those aprons and let’s get cooking!
Ingredients:
- 1-2 lbs of Calamari
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 chili pepper or teaspoon of chili flakes
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 lemon
- salt n peppa
Preparation:
- prep your outdoor, indoor or George Foreman grill
- get fancy like the food network chefs and score the calamari
- throw it in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, chili peppers, salt n peppa and chopped garlic
- let it marinade for 10 minutes or longer if you can
- Grill it up! 1-2 minutes per side should be good
- Using tongs or forks, grab the bites and place on a plate
- drizzle olive oil and lemon juice then season with salt n peppa
Place these yummy bites on a bed of mixed greens or just eat them straight!
If you’re uneasy about this recipe, I would suggest eating it out first. You can usually order these at an Italian or Mediterranean restaurant so you can get an idea of the texture and flavors before venturing into making them yourself.
There’s just something cozy and comforting about a good hearty breakfast especially with the one you love.
This next recipe was inspired by two sources. The first one is Lean Bodies, a motivational fitness site, and the second is Chef Annie from Annie’s Eats. The concoction is appealing to the eyes and tastefully pleasing to the tongue but I tweeked it a little bit to reduce some calories and add a little more fiber for you! 
Check out this easy recipe:
Ingredients:
- eggs or egg whites
- whole grain english muffins
- low fat/ low sodium turkey bacon
- low fat shredded mozzarella (optional)
- spray butter or olive oil
Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- In a pan, grill turkey bacon until medium cooked (not crispy)
- spray a cupcake pan well to avoid sticking
- lay and squeeze in 1/2 of english muffins on the bottom
- wrap turkey bacon along outside of pan
- crack open 1 egg on top off muffin and in between bacon strips
- sprinkle cheese on top
- Bake for 6-10 minutes
Mmmmm…. Bacon, egg & Toast cups are welcome in my mouth anyday!
I like to make these with a side of sauteed spinach and mushrooms and maybe a few orange wedges.
How can you have a bad day after a meal like that!
When it comes to preparing a delicious meal, ingredients are very important. I love my ingredients to be fresh, flavorful and healthy.
I stumbled upon the next concoction while searching for meals that contained cayenne or black pepper, spices that have been shown to aid in weight loss.
The Chef is GingerlyJ, a 25 year old wife, mom and business owner. She began to cook with her Grandmother at age 5 and watched her mother run a deli. After GingerlyJ’s mother passed at age 17, she was inspired to write a cook book and now running her own successful catering business. click here to connect to her Twitter page.
Not only is this recipe full of fat blasting ingredients like cayenne, ginger and garlic, but it’s also low in carbs and fat! Now, that’s my kinda meal!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- 8 ounces flaked crabmeat
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions
- 1/4 cup chopped red sweet pepper
- 1/4 grated carrots
- 1/4 cup low fat/ fat free mayo
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/3 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 1 lemon
Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Toast coconut in a pan or microwave 3-4 minutes in microwave
- In a bowl, combine crab, ginger, scallion, red pepper, carrot, lemon juice, mayo, egg, rice vinegar, and garlic
- mix well
- combine bread crumbs and cayenne and mix again
- sprinkle half of coconut flakes on a plate or board
- using a spoon, or ice cream scoop, create even size portions and form into balls
- roll the balls into coconut flakes and place on baking sheet
- sprinkle remaining coconut flakes on top
- bake for 20 minutes until golden brown
GingerlyJ suggests an asian hot mustard to accompany these yummy crab cakes.
I would definitely serve this on a bed of ginger sauteed buk choy or chinese broccoli.
Enjoy!
I recently had a delicious side dish from an Ethiopian Vendor while visiting a local fresh food market. I can’t seem to remember the actual name of the dish, but it was a mixture of steel cut oats and cauliflower. The flavors, textures and overall taste was so comforting and yummy.
As usual, the mad scientist in me tried to recreate this dish
Not only did I recreate this recipe, I reinvented it! Instead of just cauliflower, I added more veggies, broth, beans and spices.. End result: AMAZING
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup steel cut oats
- 1 1/2 cup veggie broth
- 1/2 cup chopped cauliflower
- 1/2 cup chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped eggplant
- 1/2 cup chopped cherry tomato
- 1 cup chopped kale
- 1/2 cup chickpeas
- salt n peppa
- Italian seasoning or curry depending on your taste (I love curry!)
Preparation:
- Bring your veggie broth to a boil
- throw your oats in, lower heat and let it simmer for 5-10 min
- In a wok, sautee your veggies and chickpeas for a few minutes until almost cooked
- Don’t forget to season with your preferred choice of spices (italian or curry)
- 10 minutes after oats are cooking, combine the veggies and mix in.
- Let it simmer some more for another few minutes
- If you need more broth, feel free to add more too depending on what consistency you like
I’m not a vegetarian, but I do enjoy vegetarian dishes throughout my week. This dish provides a complete protein (chickpeas + grains = complete protein), complex carbs and plenty of nutritents!
I hope you enjoy my crazy yet yummy concoction!
Oh! and if you happen to know what that Ethiopian dish is called, I would love to hear from you!
Since it’s the start to a fresh New Year, I thought the first recipe of the year should be easy, healthy and light!
The following recipe is so easy to make and won’t wreck your weight loss efforts.
Ingredients:
- 4 Halibut Fillets (2-3 ounces)
- Salt n Peppa
- Low Sodium Salsa
- 1/4 cup sliced black olives
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp capers
Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
- In a baking dish, place fillets of fish and season with Salt n Peppa
- In a separate bowl, mix salsa, olives, capers and lemon juice
- Pour mix on top of fillets
- Bake for 15 minutes
How easy was that! If you’re starting a low carb New Year, then try serving this fish along side some steamed asparagus or zucchini or even some cauliflower rice. If you’re aiming for a well balanced meal, try a 1/2 cup of whole grain rice or couscous.
If you have similar delicious recipes that are figure friendly, please feel free to submit them!
Happy New Year!
Earlier this week, I introduced you to one of my favorite facebook girls, Sarah! As a sign of appreciation, I wanted to dedicate this week’s concoction to her.
During our interview she mentioned that her favorite cheat meal was overloaded nachos! If you’re a nacho lover too, then I know you’ll love this lighter version that you can have on both your cheat and light days.
Ingredients:
- A handful of scoops (6 scoops = 70 calories)
- 1 cup mild or spicy salsa
- 1 small can of corn
- 1/2 cup black beans
- 1/2 cup avocado chopped into little squares
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1/4 cup chopped red onions
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Preparation:
- Lay your scoops on a baking pan
- In a large bowl, mix all ingredients
- With a spoon, scoop mixture into tortilla scoops
If you want to add a little more flavor to your crunchy and tangy mini bites, sprinkle a little low fat shredded cheese on top and pop it in the oven for a few minutes ad 350 degrees. If you’re not into cheese due to lactose issues, top it with some ground turkey or grilled chicken.
Just because you’re on a diet, doesn’t mean that you have to eliminate nachos out of your life. You just have to tweek it slightly so you can enjoy it more often and reduce the guilt!
If you’ve been following the site this week, you would have noticed that I focused on healthy natural weight gain tips. So for this week’s concoction, I felt it was only fit to showcase a hearty meal that would boost calories and weight gain.
Counting on a reliable weight gain expert, I called my little body building brother Yousef who consumes 3000+ calories a day in order to build a huge physique. I asked him to suggest a few of his favorite weight gainer recipes. Yousef suggested calorie packed meals like pot roasts, noodle stir frys and veggie omelettes.
After I narrowed it down to a few good ideas, I logged on to Dirty Kitchen Secrets (DKS: one of my favorite sites) to find a fit recipe. If you haven’t visited this site, take some time to browse through mouth watering recipes and read about the beautiful Bethany, culinary expert and mastermind behind DKS.
Since I can’t post everything from Dirty Kitchen Secrets, I chose a delicious hearty lamb stew recipe that I highly suggest you try. You can make this if you’re on a diet too, just watch your portions!
This recipe incorporates protein, complex carbs and appetite enhancing spices! coriander, chilli, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom, paprika, cumin & tumeric
Ingredients:
- Half a shoulder of Lamb or 800g
- 2 carrots- chopped into cubes
- 1 large aubergine/eggplant- chopped into cubes
- 1 onion- finely diced
- 4 gloves of garlic-minced
- 1 glass of wine
- 400g chickpeas
- 10g coriander, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons of Ras el Hanout
- 400g chopped tomatoes and their juice
- 1 tablespoon hot chilli paste or tomato paste
- 400 ml stock of choice- hot
- 2-3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses (found in any Middle Eastern stores)
- Salt & pepper to taste
Preparation:
- Rub the shoulder with all ras el hanout spices, salt and pepper.
- In a deep skillet, sautee onions till transluscent about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the meat and sear it on each side for about 4 minutes.
- Add the garlic, for about a minute.
- Pour the wine in, and let the wine evaporate about 5 minutes.
- Add the chopped tomatoes, the harissa paste and the stock. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about one and a half hours. Turn the meat over occassionaly, if its not fully covered with the liquid- depends on dish depth.
- After an hour and a half, add the veggies; aubergines, carrots, cooked chickpeas. Let it all cook for about 30-45 minutes.
Once veggies are done, mix in the pomegranate molasses and sprinkle with finely chopped corriander.
I hope you enjoyed Dirty Kitchen Secret’s recipe and that you found this week’s information helpful if you’re looking to gain some weight.
Click here to check out the VIDEO VERSION of this recipe.
The holidays are not so cute when it comes to tempting desserts. Everywhere I go, I smell the sweet aroma of baked goods and its dangerous especially when I’m trying to maintain my figure.
Grocery stores are displaying the desserts as soon as you walk in, from holiday cookies, apple dumplings and my weakness, Egg Nog!!!!
This creamy cozy warm beverage is the devil! It calls me and makes me do bad things like drink more than I should. So instead of fighting this urge, I decided to seek out a healthier version so I can eliminate the guilt.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups skim milk
- 1 package sugar free jello pudding vanilla
- 1 cup egg beaters
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg or pumpkin spice
Preparation:
- Mix pudding mix and 2 cups milk in a bowl and blend
- add remaining 2 cups of milk and rest of ingredients
- blend well
- refrigerate overnight
Serve in cute mugs, sprinkle some nutmeg on top and enjoy!
Thanksgiving dinner always ends up with a bunch of leftover white turkey meat. Instead of eating the same ol’ turkey carvers all week, I like to transform the bland meat into a delicious, flavorful turkey salad.
Check out my yummy recipe for lean turkey, cranberry & walnut salad!
Ingredients:
- a bunch of white turkey leftover meat (2-3 cups)
- 2 x finely chopped celery stalks
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1 oz chopped walnuts
- 1-2 tbsp low fat mayo/ miracle whip
- dash of salt n peppa
- dash of garlic powder
Preparation:
- Shred your turkey meat to your liking.. I love chunks!
- mix all ingredients in a bowl
- store in fridge for a hour before serving
Scoop this delicious concoction on to whole grain bread or right on to a bed of greens. If you’re in the mood to cook some more, then try a yummy sandwich with a warm cup of butternut squash soup!
click here for that recipe.
