Decadent, rich, gourmet foods that are also low calorie.

imaginaryplant

Most decadent, rich, gourmet foods that I've cooked in the past have been very high in calories. It's been beautiful food, although I haven't made most of these foods for around a year.

I would ideally like to return back to the gourmet, decadent foods, but do it in another way that it is very reasonable calories.

I've been altering my crepes, my meat roulades, my various salads and whatnot.

I would like to ask if anyone has any suggestions for decadent, rich, gourmet, homemade foods that are easily made as low calorie?

laurenjill

I did a search for "low calorie gourmet" and both of this result looked pretty decent: http://www.delish.com/recipes/best-recipes/low-calorie-recipes

imaginaryplant

I'm looking for more decadent, rich meals. The ones on that page are not decadent or rich, I just see regular low calorie meals.

When I say decadent, I mean truly gorgeous, rich, beautiful meals, not just low calorie home made meals.

stuffinmuffin

It depends if your mind set of having rich decadent meals is the ones with all the high calorie ingredients and cooking methods. Low calorie meals, are always going to be low calorie meals, maybe using low fat products and baking good rather than frying.

My only recommendation is to look on the Skinny Taste website where the blogger has spent years making lower calorie variants of everyday meals.

Lykia

Could you give some examples of what meals you have in mind if they wouldn't be low calories?

imaginaryplant

It depends if your mind set of having rich decadent meals is the ones with all the high calorie ingredients and cooking methods. Low calorie meals, are always going to be low calorie meals, maybe using low fat products and baking good rather than frying.

My only recommendation is to look on the Skinny Taste website where the blogger has spent years making lower calorie variants of everyday meals.

There are ways to alter meals to make them still very decadent, yet lower in calories. This post is not asking for everyday meals.

I think I'm having trouble communicating what I'm looking for, if someone understands what I'm asking for and is able to describe it better than I am, please speak up.

TavistockToad

I think I'm having trouble communicating what I'm looking for, if someone understands what I'm asking for and is able to describe it better than I am, please speak up.

maybe give an example of one of these 'decadent' low calorie meals...?

Michifan

Buy the best smoked salmon you can find (order it from Barney Greengrass in NYC). Poach a couple of eggs with some grilled asparagus. Hit it with some caviar if you really want to go to town.

imaginaryplant

Buy the best smoked salmon you can find (order it from Barney Greengrass in NYC). Poach a couple of eggs with some grilled asparagus. Hit it with some caviar if you really want to go to town.

LOVELY! Thank you, you understand the fine cooking I am looking for! Beautiful!

Michifan

Take a small veal chop and sprinkle some smoked sea salt, a touch of extra old balsamic (highly concentrated) and truffle oil (also concentrated). Cut away any extra fat, shave black truffles and serve with asaparagus or artichoke hearts grilled.

imaginaryplant

Take a small veal chop and sprinkle some smoked sea salt, a touch of extra old balsamic (highly concentrated) and truffle oil (also concentrated). Cut away any extra fat, shave black truffles and serve with asaparagus or artichoke hearts grilled.

These are such beautiful suggestions, I really appreciate it! They sound so elegant and yet, very calorie reasonable!

Michifan

I can keep going, but the trend is to take a healthy protein (lean animal or fish) and use any number of gourmet condiments to compliment the flavor. I eat sashimi 2-3x a week. I also have gotten back to loving high quality foods and haven't had much to any processed foods.

I eat a very savory diet and my portions are reasonable. Since I don't like throwing away food or torturing myself with a complicated recipient that I'd taste along the way, everything needs to be much more simple. But you can really enjoy the best quality eggs, meats and in small amounts cheeses.

jtm4210

Game stroganoff? I make this sometimes with a mixture of rabbit, venison and pigeon (ie very very lean meat) braised in a mixture of game stock and brandy/port/sherry depending on taste. Add some oyster mushrooms, wholegrain mustard and low-fat creme fraiche to make a thick creamy sauce.

Serve with a mixture of basmati and wild rice and purple sprouting broccoli. Shave a truffle over the top for some zing.

ETA: If you're looking for something to make dinner parties more exciting yet healthy, look up kaiseki-ryori recipes (Japanese haute cuisine). It can be fiddly to put together but it looks amazing and being Japanese, most of the dishes are super-healthy.

buffywhitney

Bobby Flay has some great recipe ideas that are just what you are looking for:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/photos/bobby-flays-healthy-recipes.html

imaginaryplant

I can keep going, but the trend is to take a healthy protein (lean animal or fish) and use any number of gourmet condiments to compliment the flavor. I eat sashimi 2-3x a week. I also have gotten back to loving high quality foods and haven't had much to any processed foods.

I eat a very savory diet and my portions are reasonable. Since I don't like throwing away food or torturing myself with a complicated recipient that I'd taste along the way, everything needs to be much more simple. But you can really enjoy the best quality eggs, meats and in small amounts cheeses.

To track the calories per serving, I'm guessing that you input each individual ingredient and weigh each serving? This is a wonderful equation, Thank you again.

jackiemonx

this is what im looking for too! real food!
i always find roasting vegies makes them taste so nicer than other methods.
creme fraiche instead of cream makes good sauces for certain things.

im not long back from france as well so struggling not cooking lovely meals with wine n cheese n meats that r still tasty!

imaginaryplant

this is what im looking for too! real food!
i always find roasting vegies makes them taste so nicer than other methods.
creme fraiche instead of cream makes good sauces for certain things.

im not long back from france as well so struggling not cooking lovely meals with wine n cheese n meats that r still tasty!

Yes, exactly! When I lived in Europe, everything was so decadent, gorgeous and delicious. This is what I miss, I know there are some ways to make this, or maybe smaller servings of sauces, creams and make them all delicious, yet making it lower in calories. I KNOW it's possible!

litsy3

Oysters, lemon juice.

Brunette_H

I second the venison suggestion - it's much leaner than beef but has way more minerals, especially iron. It also tends to always be free range.
I make a lovely dish (actually haven't made it for a few years but this has reminded me to do it again!) where I marinate venison steak with cumin, thyme and sherry vinegar, then pan fry in just a tiny amount of oil. Roast loads of whole red and yellow peppers (with whatever garlic, herbs etc you fancy), then peel them. Cut into slivers and serve with the venison. I know that sounds quite simple but the strong flavours of the ingredients make it feel like something quite special and "restauranty" if you see what I mean!

If you have a good fishmonger nearby you can put together a plateau de fruits de mer (mixed seafood plate) - just serve with some lemon wedges and a quick shallot vinaigrette and it's a pretty low-cal dinner that has a definite feel of a Parisan brasserie about it!

And remember Champagne is only 80 calories a glass :-)

jackiemonx

yeah its amazing food!
risotto is the healthiest i can come up with that still tastes rich lol

even adding some capers or something to the side of ur plate helps things feel a bit tastier...yeah im clutching at straws here

Kymmu

http://www.tasteloveandnourish.com/2013/03/01/silken-cocoa-chia-pudding/

http://www.rawfoodrecipes.com/recipes/avocado-vanilla-cheesecakes.html

_Zardoz_

this is what im looking for too! real food!
i always find roasting vegies makes them taste so nicer than other methods.
creme fraiche instead of cream makes good sauces for certain things.

im not long back from france as well so struggling not cooking lovely meals with wine n cheese n meats that r still tasty!

Why not just eat the foods you like but in moderation. I havent yet found a food or meal that I like that if I really want it that I can fit it into my calorie goals.. I don't eat diet food I just eat food

ChrisM8971

Oysters, lemon juice.

Or oysters with bloody mary sauce

skinnyinnotime

Meals with fish and seafood are your best bet.

ElkeKNJ

I made a meal this week that I really savoured, and light in calories:
- oven-baked potatoes with rosemary and seesalt (skimped on the olive oil for the calories, but they came out a bit dry)
- pangasius fish fillet with a sjalot and chives cream sauce
- stir fried sea lavender


edit: just deleted a comment on French restaurants, who cares what I think, to each their own right?

icrushit

Haha, decadent and rich in my world = rich in fat. Given most folks looking for lower calorie meals seem to cut fat out before anything else, there's usually not much richness and decadence left, lol. In order to have decadent and rich *and* lower calorie, I would suggest cutting the carbs, that way you can still have all that lovely tasty fat

dopeysmelly

I get the best quality ingredients I can find, and find that as long as you don't mess around with them too much they will be the best-tasting meals. I do get meat from top-notch butcher, fish from wholesale fish market, specialties like cheese, marinated anchovies, olives, capers etc from online specialty retailers and buy fruit and vegetables from farmers markets and subscribe to a CSA. These do cost more than regular stores, but don't need the mountains of butter to make them luxurious and you don't need a lot of the expensive stuff to make a meal fabulous. My meals still revolve around lean proteins and mountains of vegetables and fruit, and I eat a lot of beans, lentils and whole grains cooked with various herbs, spices and always garlic.

I also keep my eyes open for the unusual, like duck or goose eggs, rare honey or vegetables I've not seen before, then race home, shift through my recipe books for ideas or google recipes as a last resort.

I rely on a few good recipe books and adapt the recipes which are a bit lardy. My favorite is Olives and Oranges. The zucchini with mint for pasta is devine, even with 1/4 of the parmesan and a dash of butter and olive oil.

geneticsteacher

Had a lovely meal in Seattle that was fairly low calorie. Grilled salmon with a sweet chili lime beurre blanc, chayote/jicama slaw, and a small serving of sesame rice.

I made the beurre blanc when I got home - 2 tsp.approximately 50 calories and adds so much flavor. (I forgot this is a restaurant-sized recipe! Fortunately, the leftover sauce froze well.)

http://www.elliottsoysterhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Elliotts-Recipes.pdf

dbmata

Most decadent, rich, gourmet foods that I've cooked in the past have been very high in calories. It's been beautiful food, although I haven't made most of these foods for around a year.

I would ideally like to return back to the gourmet, decadent foods, but do it in another way that it is very reasonable calories.

I've been altering my crepes, my meat roulades, my various salads and whatnot.

I would like to ask if anyone has any suggestions for decadent, rich, gourmet, homemade foods that are easily made as low calorie?

There really aren't any unless you have comfort and experience with molecular gastronomy.

Foie Gras is still foie gras.
A duck fat seared scallop is still a duck fat seared scallop.

Which all that is fine, just eat less.

stealthq

Yet foie gras is very satisfying in an appetizer serving size - and that's how you get it to be lower calorie. A small amount of foie, with a pan sauce and grilled peaches is delicious.

That duck fat seared scallop isn't a problem, either, unless you're eating a dozen of the things. A more usual serving size is four. There's not all that much fat that sticks to the scallop. Now if you're serving it in a duck fat sauce, well ... that's a problem.

I had a really tasty lemon pasta and shrimp dish from Giada De Laurentis the other day. If you try it, make only half of the lemon vinaigrette at most. When we made it with the original recipe, the pasta was absolutely swimming in it. Totally unnecessary, and cutting that brings the calories per serving nicely in line. http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/lemon-spaghetti-with-shrimp

Roseygirl1

Last night I served a composed salad:

a bed of farmer's market fresh red leaf lettuce

3 thin slices each diner of high quality prosciutto

thin slices of hand made full fat mozzarella cheese

black olives

slices of freshly made artisanal pan ancienne (French bread)

homemade mayonnaise and Dijon mustard

Sliced ripe tomatoes


It was delicious, satisfying, beautiful to look at and fun to eat!

Great question!
Rosey