Chicken Kebab with Yogurt Sauce

For quite some time I have been trying to find a non-boring chicken recipe. Chicken usually come out bland but this recipe is really delicious, the sweet-minty yogurt sauce adds an excellent taste to the mildly spicy kebabs.

Here's what you'll need:

Kebab:
1 lb chicken breast cubed
1 tbsp red curry paste
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil

Yogurt sauce:

1/2 cup fat free plain yogurt
2 tbsp cup light mayonnaise
1 tsp honey
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp finely chopped mint 

In a large bowl mix the red curry paste with salt and olive oil and marinate the chicken cubes for 2 hours. Then on grill at medium-high heat cook the kebabs for 8-10 minutes, turning as each side gets a little charred.
In the meantime, in a small bowl whisk together the yogurt and mayonaise until well blended. Add the honey and lime juice and mint and mix together a little more.

Makes 4 kebabs, about 200 Calories per kebab.

Cheese Pancakes

This is a great and fast breakfast meal. The ricotta cheese creates a very uniquely flavored pancake that is fewer calories than a regular pancake.
You'll need:

1 egg
1/2 cup non-fat ricotta cheese
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 oz raisins
2 tbsp fat free milk
1 tsp sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)



Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together then add the egg yolks, milk, ricotta, sugar and vanilla. Whisk together and mix in the raisins. Heat a skillet and lightly grease with cooking spray. Spoon out batter onto hot skillet about 2 tablespoons per pancake. Cook until golden brown on one side then flip and cook until golden broken on other.

Serves 1 about 350 calories per serving.


I have yet to try this, but it should be possible to separate the egg and whisk the egg whites with sugar to a meringue like consistency and fold it into the batter. This would give a airier and lighter feel to the pancakes. 

Turkey Lasagna

Here's a recipe courtesy of my wife. This delicious Lasagna is a complete dinner on its own, its filling and a pretty balanced meal.

1 lb Lean Ground Turkey Breast
2 cups Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
12 oz Fat free Ricotta cheese
6 oz Fat free Mozzarella (you can use low fat mozzarella for a slightly better look and flavor)
1/4 cup low fat parmigiana cheese
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp garlic powder
6 pieces whole wheat lasagna pasta

Preheat the over to 350. In a large skillet spray a little cooking spray and cook the turkey breast until no longer pink. Add the Pasta Sauce, parsley and garlic powder and simmer for 10 minutes.

In a 9x5 loaf pan spoon out the turkey and sauce mix to cover the bottom lightly, lay 2 pieces of uncooked lasagna side by side and spoon out half the turkey and pasta sauce mix on top. Cover with half of the Ricotta cheese a couple of ounces of Mozzarella and then with 2 more lasagna sheets. Repeat, spooning the Turkey and pasta sauce then covering with the rest of the Ricotta cheese and a few more ounces of Mozzarella. Finally, add the last 2 pieces of lasagna and spread the Mozzarella on the top sheet and sprinkle with the parmigiana cheese.
Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes then uncover and cook for 10 more minutes.

Serves 4, about 450 Calories per serving.
You can replace the ground turkey with bison for a juicier though slightly fattier lasagna.

Chicken Stir Fry

I'll admit, this is a little boring but there is an upside. It's fast to make, the ingredients are readily available and it's a complete meal.

Here's what you need:
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast thinly sliced
8oz broccoli
4oz carrots
1oz snow pea
4oz mushrooms
6oz baby corn
5oz water chestnuts
4oz stir fry sauce (I used House of Tsang Classic stir fry sauce)

chopped or dried garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon dried ginger

Mix the vegetables with the sauce and spices and let marinade for 10 minutes.
Pour a little bit of olive oil into a large wok and turn the heat to high. Throw the chicken in and cook until it is no longer pink. Add the remaining ingredients with the sauce and cook for an additional 10 minutes, gently tossing the ingredients throughout. Serves 4, about 250 Calories per serving.

You can use pretty much any vegetables you can think of and replace chicken with shrimp or thinly sliced beef cuts (like flank steak). For a really interesting flavor try replacing the stir fry sauce with a Thai coconut curry sauce.

The Ostrich Burger

Ostrich, the other red meat! Ostrich is simply juicy and delicious. The meat is dark-red and bares a closer resemblance to beef than to any other bird meats such as chicken and turkey. Ostrich is very lean and high in protein and has about 130 Calories in 4oz of meat, making it an excellent wholesome food that tastes great and fills you up.

To prepare, season the ostrich patty with a pinch of salt and pepper and add a pinch of dried cilantro and parsley to keep the juices a little bit better. Grill the patty on a gas or electric grill on medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes on each side, until the center is cooked through.
Here I used a low Calorie, whole wheat burger bun (90 Calories). Sauteed some mushrooms with onions and added a lettuce leaf, slice of tomato and onion. Garnished with a little bit of mustard or barbecue sauce to taste. Total about 250 Calories.

Remember, it's rather easy to turn a low calorie burger into a big mac, so avoid the cheese and thousand island dressing...

Carrot & Ginger loaf

Starting off the blog with a little bit of fun for those with a sweet tooth.
Here's an interesting dessert recipe I came across for a carrot and ginger cake. It's fairly simple to make and rather low calorie (200 per serving).

Here's what you'll need:
For the loaf:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flout
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
2 pieces preserved ginger finely chopped
3/4 cup fine brown sugar
8oz grated carrots
1/3 cup raisins
4 egg whites
3tbsp corn oil
1 juice of an orange



For the frosting:
1/2 cup fat free cream cheese
2 tbsp confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract



Topping:
finely grated carrot
ground ginger


Preheat oven to 350 and line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper.
Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground ginger in a large bowl.
Mix in sugar, carrots, preserved ginger, raisins.
Beat the eggs, oil, and orange juice and pour into the batter and mix well.
Spoon out the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 1 hour or until toothpick comes out clean.
Let stand to cool completely before adding frosting.

For the frosting, let the cream cheese get to room temperature mix with a blender until soft. Add the sugar and vanilla and mix well.
Smooth the frosting over the loaf and decorate with a little bit of finely grated carrots and ground ginger.

Serves 10. Approximately 200 calories per serving.
Enjoy :)

P.S. don't go too hard on the ginger as it can overwhelm the rest of the cake.

Why am I doing this?

A few months ago I decided to lose some weight with one a couple of little caveat(s). I have no time to exercise or work out and I looooveeee good food. I wanted to change my diet and eat healthier yet not compromise on taste. I found that it is possible to make delicious and healthy foods that are filling as well. By altering my diet and watching the calories, I've been pretty successful so far with my weight loss: 30 pounds in 3 months (with several weeks of splurging here and there). I tried to stick to more whole grains and less fattier foods rather than cutting out carbs completely or turning to slim fast diets. After some minor interest in the food I made and my recipes, I've decided to create this blog to share some of them with others. Enjoy and feel free to share your favorites.