Good Recipes that are very low calorie

Hello Everyone, I know Cathy from Culinary Historians and just joined this group. I love to eat good food but am currently on a medically supervised diet to get some weight off and hopefully keep it off. Is there a place anyone can recommend to me that provides ideas for 100-200 calorie food items? The medically supervised diet I am on allows me to have five 150-200 calorie meals per day during the weight loss phase.

I am going through a mental transformation of what is nutritious food that prevents me from getting headaches or feeling hungry and what is food that has to be saved for a special occasion. For example, I learned today that a Hershey's kiss has about 20-25 calories, a peanut butter cookie (1 oz) has 145 calories, the combination of which at 170 calories is one of my favorite cookies. But I would have the worst headache if I chose this for one of my five meals and one little cookie would not fill me up. So I have to choose food wisely if I want to feel good.

Here is one meal I have developed that is nutritious and gives me something for my sweet tooth:

Put a handful of ice into a food processor and process to snow consistency. Put 3 Tbsp Carnation chocolate instant breakfast for 100 calories (or 6 Tbsp for 200 calories) in with the ground ice and a little bit of skim milk and process to soft serve ice cream or milk shake consistency.

Everything or whole wheat bagel thin, w low fat veggie cream cheese ( I like to add cucumber and tomato slices). 4 low fat triscuits, with a slice of low fat cheddar sliced in to four. banana or apple with low fat peanut butter, eggwhites w low fat feta and veggies sauteed in non stick pan with some flavored Pam. 100 calorie whole wheat wrap w a tablespoon of low sugar pizza sauce, low fat mozzarella and veggies (turkey pepperoni) for a pizza I bake this around 425 to get the wrap crispy. I like Flat Outs for this, I probably make it once a week. Low sodium turkey breast, wrapped in a piece of low fat swiss cheese. And of course the go to 80 calorie greek yogurt cup with Trader Joe's freeze dried blueberries and flax seed sprinkled on top. I try to find snacks that have the most fiber, it tends to fill you up.

I'm trying to understand your primary goal here: Nutritionally complete meals that are <200 calories? Things that will make you feel full?

chgoeditor wrote:I'm trying to understand your primary goal here: Nutritionally complete meals that are <200 calories? Things that will make you feel full?

The OP can have both! It would be rooted in a focus on leafy greens, raw, steamed, or water-stir-fried then a host of most other vegetables, e.g zucchini, peppers, onions, mushrooms, broccoli, asparagus, etc. the trick is to use fat for flavor, not to cook them in fat + a smidge of beans, tofu, etc. to feel full.

OP, PM me and I can send you down a rabbit hole where your jaws are probably tired before anything else.

Thank you everyone for good suggestions for me. My goal here is nutritionally complete meals that are 150-200 calories that fill me up and taste good. I have to lose 50 pounds and the only way this is going to happen in a reasonable amount of time will be if I sustain about 1000 calories per day. I am aiming at planning for 1000 calories because I know I will probably have a little bit larger portion size than I should or pick up a snack that wasn't part of what I planned, so my total calorie count per day will likely end up being 1200 per day which will still sustain weight loss. Once I get the 50 pounds off, and I still won't be a Skinny Minnie but at least a healthy weight, then I can splurge occasionally but have to get right back on controlled intake again. So this is for life and I have to like it if it is going to continue to happen. So I want to find good tasting foods with proper portion control that I can enjoy now and always. Thanks everyone for your help with this!

So I'm guessing you're ultimately looking for something that's about 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat? I like a lot of the recipes in The Formula diet/cookbook. They offer 4-5 versions of each of their recipes, depending on your target caloric intake.

In particular I think they have a bunch of good smoothie recipes. I also like their recipe for oatmeal with cottage cheese, almond meal and a little sweetener. Filling, plus a nutritionally balanced dish.

I'd suggest you look for dishes where you can get bulk from a lot of filling but low-cal veggies + a lean protein. For example, cook a pound of ground turkey or beef (lean) draining off the fat as you go. Add a ton of low-sodium but healthy seasoning (I usually do something like ginger + garlic + scallions + sriracha) as it cooks so you get flavor without many calories. Steam a ton of broccoli, cauliflower, snap peas or other veggies, then top with the ground beef.

chgoeditor wrote: For example, cook a pound of ground turkey or beef (lean) draining off the fat as you go. Add a ton of low-sodium but healthy seasoning (I usually do something like ginger + garlic + scallions + sriracha) as it cooks so you get flavor without many calories. Steam a ton of broccoli, cauliflower, snap peas or other veggies, then top with the ground beef.

To cook the beef or turkey, you want to basically wash the fat off, so you would use a flavorful stock to rinse the cooked beef or turkey - sautee it, then put in the liquid, strain it (keep that stock!) and de-fat the broth, do it again a few times, so you get the nutrients in the stock, texture from the meat, and you lose much (not all) of the fat. Then you can use the meat as a garnish, the stock for flavoring, along with whatever it is you want the meat for. You would add in good fats, since your body needs fat to absorb nutrients and to satisfy yourself - fat is filling, too. A drizzle of olive oil, or a blend like Udo's Choice. I'm sure I've seen a better description of how to de-fat ground meat somewhere on the web.

See Dean Ornish books for some good recipes - all are very low fat vegetarian, so if I were to cook them I would add in a drizzle of oil to make them more satisfying (for instance see "Eat More Weigh Less").

Your doctors are making sure to keep you from starving yourself, right? Because if you starve yourself, your body goes into survival mode and hangs on to every calorie it can, and it's actually hard to lose weight at that point.

Love all these great ideas. I will be referring to all of your suggestions in the coming weeks and months and will report back how they work for me and what I did. You're all great to take the time to give me some ideas for keeping my sanity and satisfying my love for good food while losing weight.

One of the best tools that was suggested to me when I was losing weight was the book "The Seven Principles of Burning Fat" by Dr. Eric Berg. It completely changed the way I think about food and what I consume day to day. He has some recipes in there that will help you on your way but it's really the overall education you gain from it that's so valuable.

In 2008 I was pushing 220 pounds. I started losing weight that year but could only get down to about 180 while doing some heavy duty MMA workouts several times a week. A guy at my gym suggested that book when I was cutting weight for a Jiu Jitsu tournament in early 2009. I planned on competing in the 150-159 weight class but ended up losing so much weight so quickly that I decided to compete in the 140-149 class. The day I weighed in I was 147 which I hadn't seen since high school. I was 39 at the time. I now walk around at about 155-160 and have maintained that for the most part since 2009.

My wife has been using the 7 Principles since last year (she also does weight watchers) and she's about 3 pounds away from losing 100 pounds. We both eat really clean at least 90% of the time. If you do that then eating crap the other 10% of the time really won't matter. She still picks up that book and rereads over sections just to keep herself on track.

Pick up a copy and start reading through it. I personally skipped over the "cleanse" that he wants you to do to start off the program and instead opted to just really clean all of the crap out of my day to day diet using his general guidelines.

Hope that helps, it was a life changer for my wife and I.

If you are trying to go that low, fruits and vegetables are the way to go as they are low in calories. Fish and turkey are also very low in calories for protein. I wonder about the approach you are on though. I've tried just about every diet possible and I did lose weight only to gain it back. I 've been off and on weight watchers for over a year now (I have been a bad girl lately though) and it does work. You do not need to eat such tiny amounts of calories to lose weight and I think you will be much happier. Most people can only stay on a really strict diet for a limited amount of time and then they stop eating that way. There are really very few meals that are satisfying at that amount of calories. Not trying to discourage you but don't give up if it does not work try WW.

Hi- I was going to suggest weight watchers too. When you are eating as few calories as you propose, then your body shuts down, and you quit losing weight after a while. I know a few people that lost weight on WW and were happy with it. The nice thing about WW is that no food is forbidden. They work on a point system, and if you want to splurge occasionally you can, but realize that most of your points are going to go towards that dessert or whatever that normally you would not eat. One of my sisters knows somebody who was on WW a few years ago, and was dieing to go to jazzfest in New Orleans and have a serving of crawfish monica. She figured out how many points she would need, and was able to purchase it and stick to her program. Another thing that helps when you are trying to lose weight is to make sure that you get some exercise. You can go swimming or do some walking or even join Curves which caters to overweight people. Hope this helps, Nancy

Hi,

It is my understanding the WW point system is modeled after diabetic exchange diet. There is lots of information on the internet without going to weight watchers.

Regards,

Still more great ideas. I have tried WW and it is not for me. I am now with Alexian Brothers Weight Loss Clinic and I like it because you have to make a 2 year commitment to the program and if you have the amount of weight I have to lose (50 pounds) there are options but they do have you on a low calorie diet at least for starting out, probably increasing calories slightly when close to one's goal weight. The thing that will force me to adjust my thinking about food is that the less you weigh, the less calories are needed just to maintain that weight. So overweight people can eat more and not gain weight because the excess weight they are carrying requires more calories to maintain. So I must get used to smaller portion sizes, cutting the crap out of my diet most of the time. I plan to look into that book that was recommended (Fat Busters). Once I get to my goal weight, I think I could live with eating right 90% of the time and not eating right (delicious high calorie foods) 10% of the time. Thanks again for all the great suggestions.

Cathy that is true their are lots of healthy diets you can follow on the internet, etc. but what WW offers is their meetings which acts as a support group and accountability. Some people can do it alone, others like myself can't. I do know its expensive and does take up time. It does work though and you do not have to starve or severely restrict yourself.

toria wrote:Cathy that is true their are lots of healthy diets you can follow on the internet, etc. but what WW offers is their meetings which acts as a support group and accountability. Some people can do it alone, others like myself can't. I do know its expensive and does take up time. It does work though and you do not have to starve or severely restrict yourself.

There is TOPS, which is far less expensive than Weight Watchers, which meets weekly, too.

Some people don;t want meetings, so the internet provides all the support they want.

Regards,

Back to the OP questions about recipes. I have completely changed my eating style too like you. Every now and then on a weekend, I eat what I want, but in a completely different portion amount. Plus I work out like a maniac because I love food. Mexican food is by far my worst downfall. I really try and stick to fish when I go out. The two sources I have used for recipes are http://www.hungrygirl.com I think they even have a 200 under 200 section...and www.nutrisystem.com has a complete cookbook, that doesn't use their food, posted on line in the forum section. That site helped me the most because it is high protein, high fiber, and that seems to work for me.

You all have given me such good suggestions and I really appreciate that I have so many ideas now for meal preparation.

I like Alexian Brothers Weight Loss Clinic for the following reasons:

1. The total cost for the 2 year program is $185 enrollment fee, and $600 addt fee. Total %785 for 2 years.
2. Each week there is a required class that is taught by a nutritionist, exercise physiologist or psychologist. The clinic has 2 nutrionists, 1 exercise physiologist and 1 psychologist, and they rotate duties with the weekly motivational/educational talk so you are taught by 1 of these 4 people each month.
3. Can schedule a free appt with either of the 2 nutrionists or exercise physiologist at any time during the 2 years.
4. During the weight loss phase, you have regularly scheduled appts with their medical director who is an obesity expert. You also have regularly scheduled blood tests to make sure that you do not have any deficiencies due to the restricted diet. All of this is covered by medical insurance. If you want to meet with the psychologist on staff, that too is covered by medical insurance.

They give several options for weight loss, including their very expensive meal replacements that are produced by Nestle's Health Care Corporation, same company that produces Carnation Instant Breakfast. I evaluated Carnation Instant Breakfast to the powdered drink mix sold by AB Clinic and they are virtually identical, though the weight loss product is intended to be able to be used for total meal replacement for months if necessary.

I decided to only use the Carnation Instant Breakfast meal replacement for 2, maximum 3 meals, per day, because of 2 minimum reasons:

1. I was told that after a month of fasting while consuming only the liquid meal replacement, my body would no longer be able to digest raw vegetables and when I started eating regular food I would have to start with cooked meat and cooked vegetables. I thought that this sounded like a pretty radical thing to do to one's body so I decided that I would eat 1 salad per day to keep my body used to digesting raw vegetables.
2. The cost of the liquid meal replacement is excessive, $3 per packet at AB Clinic but much less if purchasing Carnation Instant Breakfast powdered mix.
3. Since the over-the-counter Carnation Instant Breakfast powdered mix is not as fortified as the AB Clinic's powdered mix is, it is not intended to replace all meals, just 1 meal per day. I am allowed to eat 5 meals per day, so I may use this for 2 meals most days, 3 meals rarely.

I really like that I am being forced to think in terms of 200 calorie meals. This is forcing me to transform my thinking about what is good nutrition, what is proper portion size.

I have gone through a physical withdrawal with the significant calorie reduction, and the withdrawal symptoms (horrible headache, fatigue mostly) lasted about a week until my body started getting used to getting a lot less calories. Now I do need to make sure that I eat every 3 hours or I feel the same symptoms. You all have given me many sources where I can find a variety of recipes I can use which will keep my interest high as I make this transition to healthy eating.

I use Andrew Lessman Secure Meal replacement to make smoothies. Its delicious. I put it in the blender with fresh or frozen non sugared fruit, some liquid, ice and half a banana and it really good. Thick like a milkshake or frappicino and you can make it non dairy. One scoop has only 70 calories so you can definitely make it under 200 calories.

Another thing that is really low in calories is a non meat vegetable soup like a minestrone. Has very few calories and you can even splurge by sprinkling with a spoon or so of parmesan cheese.

http://www.hsn.com/products/lessman-sec ... gs/5857873