Light Entertainment ~

Had a lovely dinner with friends last night. I won’t know the calories until I get the recipes written up in detail, but this is healthy eating with great flavour and a perfect way to celebrate seasonal foods.

Spring vegetables with sesame crisp

Spring Vegetables with Sesame Crisp
Fresh lightly cooked broad beans and petit pois, combined with cucumber, apple and bean shoots. Dressed with tamari soy sauce, lemon juice and toasted sesame oil and topped with a wafers of filo pastry and sesame seeds.

 

Red Mullet with Coconut Lime Sauce and Puy Lentil Salad

Red Mullet with Coconut-Lime Sauce and a Puy Lentil Salad
The fish is dusted with curry-spiced flour and pan fried in a little butter. The pan is deglazed with light coconut milk, spices and raisins. The puy lentils are tossed in lime juice, mint and chilli, with red onion, red pepper, tomato and apple.

 

Rhubarb Compote with Cardamom Custard

Rhubarb-Orange-Honey Compote with Cardamom Custard
I used my beautiful home grown forced rhubarb, which I baked with orange juice and zest and a little honey. Surrounded with a delicate, lightly sweetened soya custard aromatised with cardamom and vanilla.

 

I’m really enjoying the fact that we can eat like this whilst losing weight! 

5:2 Mediterranean Meal Plan for week 11

Now updated with photos and calorie counts.


Swiss ChardContinuing my tour of light and healthy Mediterranean cuisine this week, with influences from France, Morocco and Italy, but adding in a little inspiration from elsewhere to spice it up a bit.

I’ll be aiming to use asparagus and rhubarb as key seasonal ingredients. At the market this morning, I also bagged a lovely bunch of watercress, some Swiss chard and a very healthy looking bunch of pale and interesting carrots.

Behind the carrots are some early globe artichokes – my favourite way of eating these is with loads of butter, so I’d better find a more healthy recipe before I add those to my meal plan!

A few less dishes on this plan – I am finding that we often have left-overs to use up, as I am still buying and cooking more than we are actually eating!  

Rainbow Carrots

This is week 11 for us on our 5:2 diet. I am over 2/3 of the way to my target healthy weight now, having lost 8.7 kg (19lbs), which is absolutely brilliant. My husband meanwhile has lost nearly 15 kg and has revealed that there was a six pack there, all along… 🙂

So this week we’ll do another 2 fast days and the rest of the time we’re keeping light on the carbs, so as not to lose momentum – but there are plenty of delicious treats along the way, as I focus on flavour and make light but tasty versions of some of our favourite dishes to share with you.

 

Spring vegetables with sesame crispRed Mullet with Coconut Lime Sauce and Puy Lentil SaladRhubarb Compote with Cardamom Custard

Saturday: dinner for friends ~ 550 kcals

  • Cucumber, Broad Bean, Pea and Apple Salad with Sesame Filo Crisps
  • Red Mullet with Coconut Lime sauce, Puy Lentil salad and Watercress Salad
  • Rhubarb and Orange Compote with Cardamom Custard

Sticky Marmalade Duck with Celeriac Mash and Red Onion ConfitAsparagus, Comté and Mustard Pockets
 

 

 

 

Sunday: local specialities and home grown rhubarb

  • Asparagus Filo Pastries with Grainy Mustard and Gruyere ~100 kcals
  • Sticky Marmalade Duck with Celeriac Mash, Red Onion Confit and Swiss Chard ~310 kcals
  • Fromage Blanc with Apple and Ginger ~ 120 kcals

Carrot and Cumin Salad  Baked Fish with a Mustard Masala Plum Kulfi

Monday ~ Fast Day with an Indian kick

  • Scrambled Egg with Smoked Trout ~ 130 kcals
  • Watercress Soup ~60 kcals
  • Carrot and Cumin Salad ~40 kcals
  • Fish with a Mustard Masala, served with Kachumber Salad ~200 kcals
  • Plum Kulfi ~50 kcals

Spring Minestrone Soup Turkey Saltimbocca with Celeriac and Chard RostiBeetroot and Chocolate Cake

Tuesday: Italian day

  • Summer Minestrone Soup ~100 kcals
  • Turkey Saltimbocca alla Romana with a Muscat Jus, served with Celeriac and Swiss Chard Rosti ~230 kcals
  • Beetroot and Chocolate Cake (1/2 serving) ~112 kcals

Chicory and Mushroom SaladCod with Tomato and ChorizoBlood Oranges with Dates and Pistachios

Wednesday: Moorish influences

  • Chicory and Mushroom Salad
  • Cod with Tomato and Chorizo Sauce, served with Grean Beans and French Fries
  • Sliced Blood Oranges with Dates and Pistachio

Simple Vegetable SoupStuffed Salmon Fillet with Steamed VegetablesFruity Tiramisu

Thursday ~ Fast Day Italian style

  • Vegetable Soup ~60 kcals
  • Stuffed Salmon Fillet with steamed vegetables ~225 kcals
  • Fruity Tiramisu ~120 kcals

 Baked baby Beetroot with Spiced Walnuts and Goats Cheese_MG_0918_MG_0928

 
Friday: a Moroccan menu with a Mexican twist

  • Baby Beetroot Salad with Spiced Walnuts and Goats Cheese ~235 kcals
  • Merguez Sausages with Cous-cous, Ginger Yogurt , Baked Butter Beans with Spinach and Carrot Salad ~225 kcals
  • Mojito Cheesecake ~175 kcals

As I go through the week, I’ll be checking my recipes and calorie-counting them, putting some of them up here on my blog. I’m also working towards my 5:2 recipe book…..

 

Pear with Chocolate Meringue Topping

Soft sharp pear contrasts wonderfully with a sweet, nutty chocolate meringue topping, less than 150 calories per serving – or if you make mini ramekins, only 60 – 75 calories each, depending on the size and sweetness of the pears.

Pear with Chocolate Meringue Topping

The idea for this dish came from BBC Good Food, where it is called Chocolate Pear Crisp.  But their recipe had way too much sugar for my taste, so I radically changed it.

Pear with Chocolate Meringue Topping
Serves 3
soft sharp pear contrasts wonderfully with a sweet and nutty chocolate meringue topping
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Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
40 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
35 min
Total Time
40 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 egg white
  2. 1 lemon, juice only
  3. 15g granulated sugar
  4. 5g unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
  5. 20g ground almonds
  6. 2 small pears
Instructions
  1. Heat the oven to 160c.
  2. Peel the pears, discard the cores and cut into pieces.
  3. Put into a small saucepan with the lemon juice, cover and cook gently for about 10 minutes, until the pear is nice and soft.
  4. Meanwhile, mix the cocoa, sugar and almonds in a bowl.
  5. Whisk the egg white then fold in to the dry ingredients.
  6. Transfer the pears to 3 ramekins (or 2 ordinary and 2 mini ones) and spread the meringue mixture over the top.
  7. Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes, until nicely crisped on top.
Adapted from BBC Good Food, Chocolate Pear Crisp
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

Haddock in a Saffron Sauce

If you like the Spanish flavours of Saffron and Garlic, I’m sure you will enjoy this way of cooking fish. 

Fish in Saffron Sauce

This recipe is based on one in Tapas, the little dishes of Spain, by Penelope Casas, where she used Swordfish or Shark – but these are off the list of acceptable fish to use these days. I used Haddock, but it would be equally good with Cod or Halibut or a firm meaty fish like Tuna (as long as it was caught by pole and line). If you want more information about which fish are ok to eat and which aren’t, please download Fish to Eat and Fish to Avoid  or get the Fish Fight App.

The lovely golden colour of the finished dish is not entirely due to saffron – I used some frozen tomato flesh, of a home-grown variety called Amish Gold.

I served the Fish in Saffron Sauce with Cauliflower Rice and Broad Beans. A very satisfying and delicious main course under 300 kcals.

Fish in Saffron Sauce, with Cauliflower Rice and Broad Beans

 

Haddock in Saffron Sauce
Serves 2
saffron and garlic lend a typical Spanish flavour to this easy way of preparing fish.
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
30 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
30 min
Ingredients
  1. 240g haddock fillet, cut into cubes
  2. 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  3. 1/2 small onion, finely chopped
  4. 1 clove garlic, finely chopped or pressed through a crusher
  5. 1/2 green pepper, finely chopped
  6. 250ml chicken stock
  7. 100g tomato, skinned and chopped
  8. pinch of saffron strands
  9. freshly grated nutmeg
  10. sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Heat the oil in a frying pan or cazuela (earthenware dish).
  2. Sauté the onions, garlic and green pepper until softened.
  3. Add the tomato and cook for a couple of minutes.
  4. Stir in the stock, saffron and seasoning.
  5. Add the fish pieces, cover and cook for 5 to 10 minutes until the fish is cooked through.
Notes
  1. To make the cauliflower 'rice', cut cauliflower into florets and cook in boiling water for about 5 minutes, so still firm. Drain and mash. This is the really low fat way to do it, other methods include whizzing up the raw florets in a food processor, then frying with some onion. Alternatively, you can make cauliflower mash by cooking a little longer, then mashing with butter and a little milk, cream, soya milk or fromage blanc.
Adapted from Tapas, the little dishes of Spain, by Penelope Casas
Adapted from Tapas, the little dishes of Spain, by Penelope Casas
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

Cabbage, Green Pepper and Caraway Salad

This Spanish style salad makes a great change from Cole Slaw having a light dressing, lovely crunch and an excellent combination of flavours.Cabbage, Green Pepper and Caraway Salad

We ate it with Chicken with Garlic and Saffron (Pollo al Ajillo) and Potatoes with Spicy Tomato Sauce (Patatas Bravas) – about 400 kcals in all for me.

Chicken with garlic and saffron; patatas bravas; cabbage, green pepper and caraway salad

I have reduced the amount of olive oil and raisins used in order to make this a light, low-calorie salad that is suitable to use on a 5:2 Fast Day, or on any day as part of a healthy, balanced diet.

Caraway Seeds contain a variety of vitamins, minerals, essential oils and anti-oxidants with many potential health benefits. They go particularly well with cabbage, as their anti-flatulent properties are particularly helpful.

Cabbage, Green Pepper and Caraway Salad
Serves 2
Spanish influenced crunchy and tasty alternative to cole slaw. The addition of caraway seeds helps to temper the sometimes flatulent effect of cabbage!
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Prep Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
Prep Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
Ingredients
  1. 100g white cabbage, finely shredded
  2. 1 medium carrot, cut in fine julienne strips
  3. 1/2 green pepper, cut in fine julienne strips
  4. 10g raisins
For the dressing
  1. 1/2 tblsp extra virgin olive oil
  2. 1/2 tblsp white wine vinegar
  3. 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
  4. sea salt
  5. freshly ground black pepper
For the garnish
  1. 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
Instructions
  1. Put the shredded vegetables in a serving dish.
  2. Whisk the dressing ingredients together and season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well.
  4. Sprinkle the caraway seeds over the top.
Notes
  1. I like to use vinegar aromatised with walnuts, vinaigre noix - a fab ingredient that is common here in South West France, it lends a wonderful nutty flavour to salad dressings. Look out for it!
  2. As a side dish, this would serve 4 (42 kcals each), or as a more subsantial salad, serves 2 (84 kcals each).
  3. My calculations using myFitnessPal are a little different from the beta version below, I don't really know why.
Adapted from Tapas, the little dishes of Spain by Penelope Casas
Adapted from Tapas, the little dishes of Spain by Penelope Casas
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

Spanish Influenced 5:2 Meal Plan for week 10

I have a lot of cookery books and browsing through them is one of my pleasures. Sitting with a pile of them beside my and thinking of a trip to Spain – I passed my book of Tapas, the little dishes of Spain, by Penelope Casas over to my husband, who marked a few selections for us to try (I have the original paperback version of the book, I bet the new one is lovely with more recipes and more photos). Small dishes of wonderful ingredients, prepared to delight the palate, sounds just right when you only have a few calories to play with. Let’s see what I can do with them this week.

Seasonal food: I have glorious forced rhubarb about ready to pick. Other desserts will depend on what looks good in the market. I’m hoping to find more asparagus, despite the very chilly weather we have had the last few days. I’ll be adding some soups in too, again depending on the seasonal choices on offer. Plus I have my own quince preserve to use.

I am feeling better I think from eating less refined flour so I’m going to try making my pizza dough with wholewheat flour this week.

This meal plan will work with our intermittent fasting lifestyle and support our weight loss targets, helping us to keep to around 1200/1800 calories on a normal day and 500/600 calories on a fast day.

PizzaSaturday:

  • wholewheat Pizza with chorizo, mozzarella and sundried tomatoes; rocket salad
  • Tapas: Manchego Cheese and Membrillo (quince paste), Serrano Ham, Chorizo, Olives, Anchovies,
    Vegetable Stuffed Canelones (Crepes)
    Baklava and Ice Cream

_MG_0374Sunday:

  • Chicken in Garlic sauce, Asparagus salad; 
    Rhubarb Meringue Pots (adaptation of BBC Good Food recipe)
  • Albondigas (meat balls); Patatas Bravas  (spicy oven baked potatoes with tomato sauce) and Aioli (garlic mayonnaise), Cabbage, Green Pepper and Raisin salad

Watercress SaladMonday ~ Fast Day

  • Egg with Tomato and Bacon (thinking of Huevos Rancheros now…)
  • Celeriac, Saffron and Orange Soup
    Trout with Bayonne Ham and Garlic, Cumin-flavoured Carrot salad

 

_MG_0381

Tuesday

  • Smoked Fish on Avocado
    Pork Ribs in Garlic sauce, Cauliflower Salad
  • Wholewheat Pasta with Meatballs and Tomato sauce

 

 

_MG_3307Wednesday

  • Quinoa with Asparagus and Walnuts;
    sliced Oranges
  • Chickpeas and Spinach;
    Tomato, Tuna and Egg salad

 

_MG_0386Thursday – fast day

  • Porridge with Berries
  • Fish in a Saffron sauce, seasonal Vegetables

 

 

_MG_0567Friday

  • Sausages with sweet and sour Figs, White Bean salad
  • French Onion Soup
    then there’s bound to be leftovers to use up…..

Recipes and calories counts will come later, when done!

Please see my other meal plans and recipes, also my list of what we have been eating on Fast Days.

I hope to inspire you to eat well and enjoy every day, fasting or otherwise! 

Hot and Sour Soup

 

_MG_0572

I had forgotten how great this soup tastes! Spicy, slightly sweet, sour, bitter, salty – it has that umami savoury satisfaction factor.

Especially with home made chicken stock…  but you can use Marigold bouillon or even plain water and it is still yummy.

Hot and Sour Prawn Soup

 

You may know it as Tom Yam Gung – Prawn, or Tom Yam Gai – chicken. The fish sauce is an essential part of the flavour combination, so this won’t work for strict vegetarians, but you could try using soy sauce and a little sugar instead and some cubes of tofu.

I buy lime leaves and lemongrass from time to time at an Asian store in Toulouse, and freeze them.

Hot and Sour Soup
Serves 4
Deliciously light and spicy soup which can be made with prawns or chicken
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
10 min
Total Time
20 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
10 min
Total Time
20 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 litre chicken stock (I use home-made, or marigold bouillon)
  2. 1 tsp Thai Red Curry Paste
  3. 1 tbslp Thai fish sauce (Nam Pla)
  4. 1/2 lemon or lime, juice only
  5. 2 lime leaves, finely sliced
  6. 5cm of lemon grass stalk, finely sliced
  7. 100g mushrooms (chestnut or canned straw mushrooms), sliced
  8. 1 spring onion, sliced
For garnish
  1. a few coriander leaves
  2. a few birds eye chillies
Optional
  1. 200g of peeled and deveined prawns or shredded chicken
Instructions
  1. Heat the stock in a saucepan and add the curry paste, fish sauce, lime leaves, lemon grass, lemon juice and chillies.
  2. Taste and add more curry paste if necessary.
  3. Bring to the boil and simmer for a couple of minutes.
  4. Add the mushrooms, the prawns or chicken and the spring onion and simmer for a further 2-3 minutes until the prawns are cooked or the chicken heated through.
  5. Serve decorated with coriander leaves and a couple of birds eye chillies.
Notes
  1. According to MyFitnessPal, the broth comes to about 50 calories per serving without the chicken or prawns.
  2. The Thai red curry paste that I have is furiously hot, so 1 tsp is enough - you may need up to 1 tblsp if yours is mild.
Adapted from The Taste of Thailand, by Vatcharin Bhumichitr
Adapted from The Taste of Thailand, by Vatcharin Bhumichitr
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

If you want to see my meal plans for the week, please go to  Meal Plans – you’ll find my outline plan for the current week, and more detailed calorie counted plans for previous weeks.

 

Pear with Amaretti Crumble <100 calories

Mmm, soft pear topped with a creamy, crunchy topping, and under 100 calories a serving! 

Pear with Amaretti Crumble

There are still some lovely European-grown pears to choose from – these are small Williams pears. 

Pear with Amaretti Crumble
Serves 2
A low fat, low-calorie dessert of soft pear with a crunchy topping
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Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
25 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
25 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 small ripe Pears (about 100g each)
  2. 2 tblsp low-fat Fromage Blanc or Fromage Frais
  3. 2 tsp Honey
  4. 2 small Amaretti Cookies
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 180c
  2. Cut the pears in half and scoop out the cores with a spoon, leaving a nice smooth hollow.
  3. Put the pears in an ovenproof dish.
  4. Fill the hollows with fromage blanc and drizzle with half the honey.
  5. Bake for 10 minutes, then crumble the amaretti cookies over the top.
  6. Bake for a further 10 minutes.
  7. Serve with the remaining honey drizzled over or around.
Notes
  1. Sometimes I add a little water to the dish before baking, to make a light sauce (could use masala wine for a treat day).
  2. 100 calories per serving, if you use small pears (if they are large ones, have just half a one each).
Adapted from BBC Good Food
Adapted from BBC Good Food
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/
 _MG_0557

5:2 My Flavourful Meal Plan for week 9

This week I went to the market in Montaigu-de-Quercy. Lots of lovely fresh seasonal local produce to choose from!

 Montaigu de Quercy _MG_0370 

_MG_0399

I came home with my bags laden :-

lettuces, endive, bean shoots, swiss chard, leeks, brown mushrooms, young turnips, carrots, jerusalem artichokes, watercress, beetroot, radishes, goats cheese, pears, apples and satsumas – and the first asparagus (from Spain).

 

Each week I am trying to feature seasonal produce, but I’m also trying to use up food that I have stored in my freezer, much of which is home-grown.

So my actual plan for the week, updated with calorie counts, designed with flavour in mind for healthy, satisfying  well-balanced meals, which will work for an intermittent fasting and weight loss lifestyle. I’m not showing cups of tea or my standard breakfast, but numbers are included in the daily totala:-

_MG_0375 Sunday ~ 1300 kcals 

  • lunch: leftovers – Pizza and Spanakopitta, Veg Stir Fry with Satay sauce (370); satsuma (30)
  • dinner: Herby Roast Chicken (Alain Ducasse) with Roasted Roots, Braised Turnips and Peas (410);
    Raspberry Cinnamon Meringue (75)
    + 200 kcal of treats (wine and chocolate)!

 

_MG_0368 Monday ~ Fast Day 490 kcals

  • breakfast: Scrambled Egg with Smoked Trout – (140)
  • dinner: Watercress Soup (60); Tuna Steak with ginger and garlic, steamed Asparagus, Beanshoot, Mushroom and Radish Salad (200)
    Baked Pear with Amaretti (100)

 

_MG_0386

Tuesday ~ 1185 kcals

  • lunch: Watercress Soup (60) with cracker (30); 2 Chipolata Sausages with Cauliflower Mash and leftover braised vegetables (360); Satsuma (30)
  • supper: Asparagus Filo Pastries (150); Coronation Chicken Salad (260); Roquefort and digestive biscuit (150); Raspberry Cinnamon Meringue (75)

 

_MG_0387 Wednesday ~ 1275 kcals

 

 

_MG_0388 Thursday ~ Fast Day – 500 kcal

 

 

_MG_0381 Friday: tbd!

    

I’ve updated last week’s meal plan with what we actually ate and the calorie counts. You’ll find my recipes here

I hope you find some of my ideas inspirational and useful.

As always, if you have any questions, please ask. 

5:2 Fast Day Dinner – Vegetable Soup, Smoked Haddock, Mocha Dessert


Smoked Haddock with Poached Egg and wilted Spinach

I just recently noticed that the fish counter in a local supermarket had smoked haddock. Something of a treat for us here in South West France!
Mocha Dessert
It makes a very satisfying evening meal on a fast day.  We started with Simple Vegetable Soup then Smoked Haddock with Poached Egg and wilted Spinach, and finished up with Mocha Fromage Blanc. Total for dinner 385 ~woman or 465 ~man Calories (kcals). Very filling and tasty. 

Here’s how:

Simple Vegetable Soup
Serves 1
Quick and easy, using frozen prepared vegetables and bouillon powder
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Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
20 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
20 min
Per person
  1. 100g frozen mixed vegetables
  2. 1 tsp marigold bouillon powder
  3. 250ml water
Instructions
  1. Put the veg in a saucepan and add the water and bouillon powder.
  2. Bring to the boil then simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Whizz with a stick blender to desired texture, or leave as a broth with veggie pieces.
Notes
  1. Per serving: 70 Calories (kcals)
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/
Smoked Haddock with Poached Egg and Wilted Spinach
Serves 1
an easy and quick to prepare, protein-rich, fast day main course.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
3 min
Total Time
13 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
3 min
Total Time
13 min
Ingredients
  1. 100g smoked haddock fillet
  2. 1 egg
  3. 1 cup spinach leaves
  4. pinch grated nutmeg
  5. freshly ground black pepper
For the spinach
  1. Wash the spinach and put into a saucepan with the water that clings to it.
  2. Season with grated nutmeg and black pepper.
  3. Cook gently over a low heat until wilted.
For the smoked haddock
  1. Remove the skin from the fish, if necessary.
  2. Put enough water to cover the fish into a pan and bring to the boil.
  3. Add the fish and cook at a gentle simmer for 3-4 minutes, depending on thickness of the fillet.
  4. Meanwhile, poach your egg.
Notes
  1. Per serving: 210 Calories (kcals) with 1 egg, 285 Calories (kcals) with 2 eggs
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/
 

Mocha Fromage Blanc
Serves 1
A quick and tasty dessert to round off your meal, with a hit of coffee and a dusting of grated chocolate to satisfy your cravings
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Prep Time
5 min
Total Time
5 min
Prep Time
5 min
Total Time
5 min
Ingredients
  1. 100g fromage blanc or fromage frais
  2. 1 tsp instant coffee granules
  3. 1 tsp water
  4. 1 tsp acacia honey
  5. 1 tsp grated 100% pure chocolate
Instructions
  1. Mix the coffee with a little water to dissolve, then add to the fromage blanc.
  2. Stir in the honey and mix well.
  3. Spoon into a serving dish and grate over some chocolate.
Notes
  1. I use a solid block of 100% Venezuelan Cocoa, if you can't get that use the highest percentage chocolate you can find.
  2. Per serving: 105 Calories (kcals)
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

I hope you enjoy something similar!