[Meenuh]

Note/a word of advice: I found that the hardest thing about dieting was the food. The BEST thing to do is meal plan. I'm not even joking. Prepare all your meals. None of those excuses of "I don't know what to make" or "I don't have time"! I work fulltime, I have a bf that takes up a lot of my time, I play computer games, and I still find time to exercise and make all my meals the night before. You can store chicken in a container in the fridge for a couple of days so you won't have to make food EVERY night. Essentially you'd just have to put it together in a container.

Sure, buying food is so much easier and faster but atleast you know what you're putting into your food if you're really serious about getting healthy. Good luck to everyone!!!




I think the hardest thing for me is giving up good tasting food because when I think about dieting I think about limiting all these yummy foods but it doesn't have to be that way!

Let's help eachother get some good recipes together for those of us who want a healthy new lifestyle change and shed some pounds while we're at it.

Please state what your recipe is good for or with and so forth. Feel free to add in nutrition facts if you have them. I have some more recipes at home that I haven't tried yet so i'll add some more later.

Salsa
diced tomato (about 2)
lemon juice (1 lemon)
diced onion (1/2 and onion)
chopped cilantro (1/2 a bunch or less)
diced jalapeno (1 jalapeno)
salt (about 2 pinches of salt)

Directions:
1.Just chop everything up and put it into a bowl.
2. Add lemon juice. Usually about 1. Really depends on you though.
3. Add some salt to taste.

Good with:
I eat this with grilled chicken since I normally don't have carbs for lunch. It gets my veggies in and it tastes good. Made my crappy chicken taste good as well. So that takes care of my protein+veggies for lunch.

Comments:
I didn't write how much to put of what because it's really up to you. Just... don't over do the cilantro unless you really really like cilantro. Rofl. In paranthesis I put about how much I put in my salsa. You can always make it ahead of time and refrigerate it and have it throughout the week.






I received permission from a mod to create this thread so please refrain from saying unhelpful and useless things like "this should be in the food thread" etc etc.

[KiBUm_Love]

for me one of the biggest temptations is icecream x_x
especially the chocolate kind !!!
so i started to get ben and jerry's froyo (frozen yogurt) because it literally has 1/3 the calories and not that much fat
(i think for 1/4 of the ben and jerry's container its 170 calories and 30 calories from fat) and it even has BROWNIE CHUNKS IN IT :]]]]]]

its not really a recipe but its a good suggestion ^^;

also this is a recipe for healthy ramen (the spicy korean kind) (especially for people who like beanpaste soup (된장국))
you just boil the noodles like you normally do (if you want to be really healthy about it you can get the not fried kind (안튀긴면) or you can drain out the oily water and put the noodles into new boiled water.
then you add only 1/4 of the soup powder and add krn beanpaste (its like miso paste except thicker and more salty but its good for your health. oh and you don't have to use a lot) so that the soup will have some flavor. and its done :] its a lot healthier than regular ramen and another suggestion is don't eat all the noodles. i eat about 2/3 of it and its pretty filling

[daisyink]

For anyone who likes bananas, they are really filling and taste soooo good. At least they do to me. XD;

Also, I heard that sugar free jell-o tastes good if you add some whipped cream on it! The jell-o itself is only 10 calories, then the whipped cream, depending on what kind you use and how much, can be added with less than 100 cal.

Hope that helps!

[suzushii]

What I do:

- use brown rice cakes instead of bread slices - one bread slice is 50cal, 1 rice cake is 20 cal
- eat my veggies/soup first. Then eat my protein/starchy carbs. You get full faster

- Easy peasy soup - get X can of green peas, drain the liquid. Get x cans of peeled tomatoes. X cans of mushrooms (in water or frozen). Also get a small quantity of hot peppers (depends how spicy you want it, keep in mind a little goes a LONG way) celery, spring onion, or if not available red onion. Optional veggies (green/red peppers, fresh tomatoes) One spoon of olive oil/sesame oil. Cumin, pepper, sea salt to taste. Fresh parsley to garnish:

1. Fry the chopped onion in the spoon of oil for a bit. Add grated/finely chopped celery. After a bit add cumin, pepper, hot peppers and other spices you want to use.
2. Add HALF of the green peas, and enough water to cover them well. Let boil for a bit
3. Take the other HALF of the green peas, and blend it with water until a paste. Add that, plus peeled tomatoes, mushrooms, other veggies. Add enough water to make it the consistency you want (soupy/chunky)
4. Let boil for 30 min or so

This soup will FILL you up, and has very little calories. Depending on how much water you use, it could be 20-40 calories per 100ml. The peas are the ingredients that satiate you. If you skip them, it will still be tasty, but not as filling. You can blend all of them for a creamier consistency, but I like it best half blend half chunky like that. Mushrooms are great because they're virtually 0 calorie.

[Meenuh]

Dry rub for meat
I used this on chicken. My first time trying it.

1 serving.
You can always double the recipe and so forth and store it in a container so you don't have to continuously make it over and over again each time you make chicken or any other meat.

Warning: It may be spicy for some people. If it's too spicy I suggest you cut down on the paprika and cayenne pepper.

Ingredients:
3/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried thyme

Directions:
• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
• Take your chicken breast and you can cover it in little olive oil and I mean a little.
• Apply the dry rub to the chicken. I find it easiest to do this in a medium bowl (depending on how much chicken you are making.)
• Grill chicken. I use my George Foreman grill. Har.

The best thing about this recipe is that you can change it to your liking. I added other herbs I wanted and so forth. You can always just use this as a guide.

I don't eat carbs for lunch so it's hard for me to eat especially when my food tastes not so good but this chicken rub is really really good. So get your protein in and enjoy it.





Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
You can always improvise and add other herbs as well
or take some stuff out. Just make sure it's healthy.

This recipe makes quite a bit of dressing.
Store it for later use.

Ingredients:
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp onion powder
2 tbs whole grain mustard or dijon mustard
2-3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp basil
1 tsp salt

Directions:
• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl excluding the olive oil.
• slowly mix in the olive oil little by little whisking the dressing at the same time.
• put in a container for later use. I always like to let my dressings sit for a day so the flavors can meld together.

I love salad but I need dressing as well. As everyone knows.. salad dressing like ranch is really fattening. You aren't doing yourself any favors by eating veggies and then throwing on a glob of ranch dressing. This is a healthy alternative so you can still enjoy your salad and not have to throw in the fat and calories. Who says eating healthy can't taste good?

[pandybearr]

Quicky miso soup : )
really filling, really good ;9

About 2 cups of water
1 tbsp of miso paste/korean bean paste
1/4 tsp bonito seasoning
2/3 cup of soft tofu
1 tsp of dried wakame
one slice of ginger
and green onion for last moment

1. Heat water, ginger and wakame until boiling
2. Put in the miso paste and stir until dissolved, add bonito
3. Add tofu and turn the heat down to medium
4. Stir for about 2~3 min
5. Turn off heat and add green onion
6. Serve hot : )

Yummmm. Curbs my hunger right away

[Meenuh]

Sauteed Spinach
very very easy to make and very good.

Ingredients:
about a handful of spinach (or swiss chard)
a little bit of olive oil (for the pan)
2-3 cloves of garlic chopped
salt to taste

Directions:
• heat pan up and add a little olive oil
• put in the handful of spinach (or swiss chard)
• add the chopped garlic
• add some salt to taste

Very simple recipe but very very good. I added some green beans to mine as well. Improvise but always choose healthy ingredients and don't over eat! This is really good with the chicken.

[daisyink]

Ahhh, we must get more recipes~! >''< I already tried the sauteed spinach w/ garlic--I added some broccoli too, to vary up the texture, and it was sooo good. ^o^

[eshtee]

I read that sweet potatoes make good diet snacks? Or at least a healthy alternative to french fries
Sweet potato fries:

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into wedges
2 teaspoons canola oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss sweet potato wedges with oil, salt and pepper. Spread the wedges out on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until browned and tender, turning once, about 20 minutes total.

---

I had them once at a restaurant, I haven't made them yet at home but they're delicious

this website has alot of good recipies:
http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/collecti...od_recipes.html

[suzushii]

Anyone here who likes mashed potatoes? Well here's the non-potato recipe:

Mashed cauliflower

Take one head of cauliflower, and break it into florets
Steam it or boil it (results in slightly different tastes - I recommend steam)
put in a blender with water, nutmeg, pepper, sea salt, a spoon of extra virgin olive oil (the fragrant kind)
Blend

TADAAAAA - serve it over grilled chicken. Together it tastes like meat and mashed potatoes. On its own, it has a mild cauliflower taste, but it's pretty yummy. I personally HATE cauliflower in food, but I like this recipe. And it's.... RIDICULOUSLY LOW CALORIE

The ENTIRE RECIPE is 300 calories and it usually yields something like 1,5-2 quarts of food!

[daisyink]

Anyone here who likes mashed potatoes? Well here's the non-potato recipe:

Mashed cauliflower

Take one head of cauliflower, and break it into florets
Steam it or boil it (results in slightly different tastes - I recommend steam)
put in a blender with water, nutmeg, pepper, sea salt, a spoon of extra virgin olive oil (the fragrant kind)
Blend

TADAAAAA - serve it over grilled chicken. Together it tastes like meat and mashed potatoes. On its own, it has a mild cauliflower taste, but it's pretty yummy. I personally HATE cauliflower in food, but I like this recipe. And it's.... RIDICULOUSLY LOW CALORIE

The ENTIRE RECIPE is 300 calories and it usually yields something like 1,5-2 quarts of food!

That sound so awesome! And if they're anything like mashed potatoes, they'll be really filling, right?

I've been doing research on the Internet and found some low calorie snacks here: http://homecooking.about.com/library/archi...owcalsnacks.htm

I also heard that brown rice cakes are good, and any sugar free Jello products (like their gelatin, puddings, etc). Good luck everyone! :]

[<3StrawberryPocky<3]

Pour some cheerios in a bowl with half a cup of skim milk and diced strawberries. YAY!! Lol. I'm just kidding, but that is a good/healthy meal. I watched this awesome show the other day called "Cooking Yourself Thin," and it seems pretty popular!! The website is http://www.mylifetime.com/on-tv/shows/cook...lf-thin/recipes where they even have the exact calorie numbers for their variety of dishes. I never tried the recipes, but the guests on the show start freaking out and keep saying, "THIS IS SO GOOD, MAN!" Hahaha.

[Meenuh]

For Soda Lovers
a good substitute for those who love that fizziness

ingredients:
1 bottle of sparkling mineral water. (about the size of a regular water bottle you'd buy from the store)
1 packet of crystal light on the go sugar free packet

directions:
• slowly and little by little pour in the crystal light into the mineral water.
You MUST do this slowly and little by little otherwise it'll just overflow and practically explode on you. Lol.

Don't worry about mixing it in because when you add little by little it bubbles up and mixes itself. I love soda and I think i've found a good alternative.

- Crystal Light on the go sugar free packets have 10 calories for 1 bottle of water. 40 mg potassium and 100mg sodium. 0g of everything else.
- I used Perrier mineral water and this has 2mg sodium and 35mg calcium. It has 2 servings in 1 bottle so double those. 0g of everything else.

What is mineral water?
Benefits of mineral water

But what makes mineral water good for one's body? The people at the World Health Organization and Health News Digest both agree that mineral water helps in the body in the following ways: (1) Replenishes water naturally lost from body as well as balance electrolytes as the dissolved minerals enter the blood stream; (2) Helps detoxify the body or potentially harmful substances; and (3) It is claimed and believed by some that mineral water can reduce pain, aches and swelling as well as reduce inflammation of muscles and joints.

There are naturally carbonated mineral waters as well as carbonated mineral waters so you can do some research on that as well. Perrier is naturally carbonated.


Just remember~ Everything in moderation. Too much of anything is bad so don't go crazy with the carbonated mineral water or the crystal light. Lol.

[Meenuh]

Not really a recipe but I thought this was helpful considering cottage cheese is a good/healthy alternative to eating other foods.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/7...pg2.html?cat=22

Ten Ways to Eat Cottage Cheese
1.) Stuffed Tomatoes - Take one tomato, slice into quarters, and remove the seeds and juices. Stuff the inside of the tomato with cottage cheese and sprinkle with chopped turkey bacon.

2.) Mixed with garlic and herbs - A serving of cottage cheese, some chopped fresh herbs, and minced garlic combined together make a much spicier bowl of cottage cheese. The stronger flavors of the garlic and herbs make this recipe in particular a great one to use with low or no fat cottage cheese.

3.) Crab Quiche - Along with 1 cup cottage cheese, you'll need:

6 ounces king crab meat
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 Tablespoons butter
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 drops hot pepper sauce
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Sauté mushrooms in butter and drain crab meat. Set both aside. Combine eggs, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, flour, onion powder, salt, and hot pepper sauce in a blender. After those ingredients are mixed, add the crab meat, mushrooms and Monterey Jack cheese, folding the ingredients into the mix gently.

Pour quiche mix into 10 inch quiche mix and cook on 350 F for 45 minutes.

4.) With tuna - Instead of mayo, add cottage cheese to your tuna for a delicious tuna salad.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/7...g2.html?cat=22#
5.) Toasted - Stuff a pita bread pocket with cottage cheese, then place in the broiler. For extra flavor, add a sprinkle or two of cinnamon to the cottage cheese before placing into the pita.

6.) Cracker spread - Cottage cheese can be a great alternative to the higher fat, less healthy cracker toppings. Simply mix together a serving of cottage cheese, a tsp. black pepper, and ¼ tsp. garlic and spread on top of your favorite cracker.

7.) Substitute for sour cream - Combining low fat cottage cheese and low fat plain yogurt can make a healthier substitute for sour cream and is generally more appetizing than fat free sour cream. Use to top baked potatoes or any other dish that calls for sour cream.

8.) Smoothie - Sour cream isn't the only way that yogurt and cottage cheese can be combined. Adding equal parts low fat cottage cheese and low fat yogurt to fresh fruit and a cup of ice cubes makes for a delicious smoothie.

9.) Combined with fruit - Cottage cheese seems to go with practically any fruit, though peaches and cantaloupe are particularly tasty and healthy options.

10.) As a dip - Combine cottage cheese with lemon juice and fresh dill weed for a dipping mix for vegetables or chips.

[amity]

A good way to get more veggies and beans into your diet for carnivores and carbwhores like me haha
Basically it's a chunky salsa! I got this recipe online~ it tastes yummy :9 (too much is never good though)

Cowboy Caviar
* 1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, drained
* 1 (15.5 ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained
* 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
* 2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
* 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
* 1/4 green bell pepper, finely chopped
* 1/2 cup chopped jalapeno peppers skip if you don't like
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
* 1 cup Italian salad dressing I use Catalina
* 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro I use green onions b/c cilantro is way too strong for me

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix beans, peas, tomatoes, corn, onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno peppers in a large bowl. Season with garlic salt. Add dressing and cilantro; toss to coat. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or until ready to serve.

I don't like lots of cilantro so I used green onions instead (i'm asian and I love green onions), the flavor won't be very strong if you CHOP FINELY. I substituted Catalina Dressing for the Italian, and I only use a little bit of it. The tomatoes should make it wet enough (cuz catalina dressing is a little thicker than Italian ---and less calories I believe). The beans will soak up all the flavor! I usually hate beans but I even enjoy them in this.

[seethewayxx]

here's a really good recipe of a healthy dip that i found in a magazine

-1 package of regular cream cheese (the rectangle box shape)
-1 can of black beans
-1 can of diced tomatoes (make sure the tomato can says it has peppers in it, preferably jalapenos. (sp?) you can't even taste them in the dip!)
-shredded cheese (preferably cheddar or any orange cheese)
-tortilla chips

directions:
1. remove the cream cheese from its packaging and put it in a big microwave-safe bowl.
2. microwave the cream cheese in the bowl for 15 to 30 seconds. this makes the cream cheese easier to stir.
3. once done microwaving, open the can of tomatoes and pour the tomatoes straight into the bowl (DO NOT DRAIN THE TOMATOES)
4. open the can of black beans and drain them (DO NOT RINSE THEM WITH WATER AFTER DRAINING), then pour them into the bowl.
5. put shredded cheese in the bowl, depending on how much you want.
6. get out a spoon or an electric mixer (I RECOMMEND THE MIXER) and mix until the cream cheese is not lumpy at all, and the color is sort of a light red.
7. microwave for 1 to 3 minutes, depending on how hot you'd like it to be.
8. pour the chips in a different bowl and eat away!

[laris]

dieting hungry is a plan of failure.

[seethewayxx]

oh also, here's a really tasty, healthy omelet recipe that i made up. definitely for the cheese and spinach lover. it doesn't take more than 30 minutes to make.

-one or two handfuls of fresh baby spinach (as much spinach as you want to use, really)
-1/4 or 1/3 of a box of velveeta cheese (the rectangle box. oh, and you can also replace the cheese with a big block of soy cheese if you wish)
-2 to 4 egg whites (egg substitute is fine, too. just remember, there are five grams of fat in each egg yolk)
-butter or olive oil

directions:
1. set stove temperature to medium heat.
2. either place a slice of butter the width of your finger in the skillet, or drizzle the skillet with a bit of olive oil.
3. separate the egg yolk from the whites and put the whites in the skillet. (or you can use egg substitute or full eggs)
4. while waiting for the eggs to harden, pull out a cutting board or place (i recommend a cutting board) and knife.
5. start with the cheese as it will take the longest. cut a chunk of cheese about the width of your hand. (thumb not included)
6. start cutting the cheese until you get them into little squares. place the cheese on top of the eggs.
7. get the spinach and rinse it a little with water, then pat dry with a paper towel or thin cloth towel.
8. chop the spinach to your satisfaction, and place on the cheese and eggs.
9. check the eggs every few minutes with a spatula to see if it's still runny. if they're hardly runny anymore, turn the stove off and fold the omelet in half.
10. place it on a plate and voila! you're done!

[Steeeeeve]

dieting hungry is a plan of failure.

I concur.

[Meenuh]

dieting hungry is a plan of failure.

So people that are dieting shouldn't eat or be hungry?