⭐️ Thai-style chicken noodle soup ⭐️

❤️ This recipe is from my first cookbook, The Slimming Foodie 📒 (find it here 👉 https://amzn.to/3LaXNNH) ❤️

A steaming bowl of this simple but satisfying soup is a year-round winner, with its garlic, chilli, soy and lime elevating the tender chicken. I`ve used rice stick noodles in this, but you can use any type of noodle you fancy.

CALORIES PER SERVING: 445
SERVES: 4

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, cut into strips
low-calorie cooking spray or spray oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 chillies (ideally 1 red, 1 green), finely chopped
4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
1.4 litres (2½ pints) hot chicken stock
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
300g (10½oz) rice stick noodles (see recipe introduction)
150g (5½oz) broccoli florets
50g (1¾oz) fine green beans, halved
1 head of pak choi, trimmed and leaves separated
2 limes, 1 juiced, 1 cut into wedges
handful of coriander leaves, to serve

Method:

1. In a large, deep saucepan, fry the chicken in low-calorie cooking spray until no pink is showing on the outside, then add the garlic, chillies and spring onions and stir-fry for a minute.
2. Pour in the hot stock and add the soy sauce and carrots. Simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Now add the noodles, making sure they are submerged, and simmer for 5 minutes. 4. Add the broccoli, green beans and pak choi and simmer for a final 3 minutes.
5. Check that the noodles are cooked through, then stir in the lime juice.
6. Serve immediately, scattered with the coriander and with lime wedges on the side for squeezing over.

NOTE This is a great way to use up homemade Chicken Stock and leftover roast chicken. There are also lots of other vegetables that work well in the soup, such as mushrooms, peppers, sugarsnap peas, beansprouts and spinach.

Food photo credit: Chris Terry

⭐️ Rich & smoky veggie Boston baked beans ⭐️

❤️ This recipe is from my first cookbook, The Slimming Foodie 📒 (find it here 👉 https://amzn.to/3LaXNNH) ❤️

Simmered in a sweet and smoky, dark and rich sauce, these are great with a jacket potato or as a toast topping. They also go beautifully alongside a barbecue and always prove a popular dish for a potluck meal.

CALORIES PER SERVING: 226
SERVES: 6

Ingredients:

1 large onion, finely chopped
low-calorie cooking spray or spray oil
600ml (20fl oz) vegetable stock
3 x 400g (140z) cans borlotti beans, drained and rinsed
150g (5120z) tomato passata
1 carrot, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons tomato purée
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon garlic granules
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan (400°F), Gas Mark 6.
2. In a large, deep pan with a lid, fry the onion in low-calorie cooking spray until soft and lightly browned. Remove from the heat, pour in the stock, then add the rest of the ingredients and give everything a good stir.
3. Pop the lid on the pan and bake in the centre of the oven for 1/2 hours. After 1 hour, give the beans a good stir and remove the lid from the pan before cooking for the final 30 minutes.

NOTE If you fancy adding some meat, chopped-up sausage, smoked bacon or pancetta are ideal. Just fry them alongside the onion.

Food photo credit: Chris Terry

⭐️ Singapore noodles ⭐️

❤️ This recipe is from my first cookbook, The Slimming Foodie (find it here https://amzn.to/3LaXNNH) ❤️

These were always a takeaway favourite of mine, fine noodles flavoured and richly yellow-coloured with curry powder, packed with pork, prawns and crunchy vegetables. You can use rice vermicelli noodles, but I don`t always find them easy to get hold of, so I make this with fine egg noodles, which work just as well.

Calories per serving: 437
Serves: 2

Ingredients:

2 nests (125g/41/2oz) fine egg noodles
2 pork loin steaks (about 250g / 90z total weight), fat trimmed away, finely sliced
1 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice powder
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon honey
low-calorie cooking spray or spray oil
80g (23/40z) frozen cold- water prawns, defrosted
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
1/2 red pepper, deseeded and finely sliced
60g (2 1/4 0z) mangetout
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced, to serve

Method:

1. Cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then drain, run under cold water and set aside.
2. Mix the sliced pork with the Chinese 5 spice powder.
3. Mix the soy sauce, rice wine, curry powder, turmeric and honey together in a small bowl to make up the sauce.
4. Set a wok or sauté pan over a high heat and fry the pork in low-calorie cooking spray for 2 minutes. Add the prawns and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
5. Add the garlic, spring onions, red pepper and mangetout and stir-fry for 12 minutes.
6. Stir in the sauce, tip in the noodles, then toss them together with the rest of the ingredients until the noodles are fully coated. Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes to heat everything through and ensure it`s all mixed together.
7. Serve immediately, sprinkled with the sliced red chilli.

NOTE This is a great way to use up leftover vegetables: try adding julienned carrot, broccoli, baby corn, courgette or sugarsnap peas.

Food photo credit: Chris Terry

⭐️ Chilli bacon breakfast quesadilla ⭐️

❤️ This recipe is from my first cookbook, The Slimming Foodie 📒 (find it here 👉 https://amzn.to/3LaXNNH) ❤️

Years ago, I used to love grabbing an egg and melted cheese toasted English muffin on my way into work, and this breakfast quesadilla reminds me of that. With its oozing cheesy middle, it feels quite indulgent, but it is also quick and easy to make at home. It`s simple to wrap up and take with you for breakfast on the go, limiting those impromptu stops at the local coffee shop…

CALORIES PER SERVING: 475
SERVES: 1

Ingredients:

2 lean smoked bacon medallions, finely sliced
2 eggs low-calorie cooking spray
30g (1oz) Cheddar cheese, grated
1 medium-sized low-fat tortilla wrap
1 teaspoon hot chilli sauce
salt and pepper

Method:

1. Fry the sliced bacon in a dry frying pan for a couple of minutes until cooked through. Set aside.
2. Beat the eggs in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
3. Choose a nonstick frying pan that is a similar size to the wrap you are using (if it`s a lot bigger, the egg will spread too much). Spray the pan with low-calorie cooking spray, place over a high heat and pour in the beaten egg.
4. Sprinkle about one-third of the grated cheese over the egg and cook for about a minute, until the egg is nearly cooked through but still a little wet on the top.
5. Place the wrap over the egg and gently press down. Cook for another minute until you can easily slide a spatula under the egg. Flip the tortilla and egg over so that it`s tortilla side-down in the pan.
6. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese and the bacon over the egg. Drizzle the chilli sauce over everything.
7. Use the spatula to fold the wrap in half, gently pressing down on it to help it hold its shape.
8. Lift the quesadilla from the pan to a plate and use a sharp knife to cut it in half. Serve immediately.

NOTE You can replace the chilli sauce with brown sauce or tomato ketchup if you prefer, and, for a vegetarian option, replace the bacon with fried mushrooms, cherry tomatoes or fried onions.

Food photo credit: Chris Terry