Going grocery shopping...snack and meal ideas PLEASE!

I love snacking on pickles (VERY low calories), pineapple (canned cause I'm too lazy to cut a fresh pineapple), Triscuits (especially the Rosemary & Olive Oil flavor) and popcorn (get the low fat, usually only 90-100 calories for the whole bag).

My favorite easy and low cal/fat recipe is something that I stumbled on while trying to figure out what to make. If you have a crock pot, take chicken breast and place on bottom, season with whatever you like (I use Adobo, Garlic, Onion & Red Pepper flakes) then pour a whole carton (the box carton not the cans) of chicken broth on top. Let it cook all day while you are at work. When you get home it will be soooo tender you wont even need a knife to cut it! I usually combine that with brown rice and a veggie.

I have REALLY enjoyed this website for meals and some homemade snacks: www.skinnytaste.com They are all REALLY yummy and both my little boys will eat them, too.

I love grapes, even frozen (slows you down and gives a completely different take on them.), and the vitatop muffins, if you can find them in your local freezer section.

Tacos! - Taco shells (hard or hi-fiber soft), ground chicken breast or 90% lean beef or beans, taco seasoning, lettuce, tomatos/salsa, low/reduced fat cheese, low/no fat sour cream. Two tacos, 1/3cup chicken, 1/4cup cheese, and veggies are 500 calories or less/ Tonight I had 3 taco shells, 1cup ground chicken, 1/2cup regular cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and 2Tblsp low fat sour cream for 650 cals. I'm stuffed!

I buy several different fruits each week and cut them up when I get home. This week I bought a cantaloupe, personal sized watermelon, strawberries, and pineapple. I also have sugar free jello pudding which rings in at 60 calories per cup. If I mix that with some fresh cut strawberries it's pretty delicious. I also like to have hummus & carrot sticks as a snack. I reserve luna bars for if I forget to eat breakfast in the morning... I keep a box of them at work.

As far as meals go, one of my favorites is chicken tacos:

Cut up some chicken breasts into small-ish sized cubes (I use 2 medium size breasts for 2 people).
Put the chicken in a ziplock bag and throw some mexican seasonings in there. I use 2tsp red chili powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1tsp onion powder, 1tsp cumin, a dash or two of dried cilantro, a dash of cayenne pepper (if desired), a dash of black pepper, and a dash of salt. You can add a little flour just to make the chicken brown up nicely, but it's optional.
Then add about 2 tsp of olive oil, just to coat the chicken.
Shake it up real good.
Dump it into a larger-sized pan at medium to medium-high heat and brown up the chicken. Your best bet is to use a non-stick pan, but if you don't have one then you might have to add a little more oil to keep the chicken from sticking to the pan. Then dump about a cup of salsa on top and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.

Dress your tacos as you like. I usually use just a dallop of low-fat sour cream.

Beef Jerky or in fact any kind of jerky. Low calorie and low fat. Watch out if sodium is a problem for you. Suprising me is Salame Higher in fat but a different taste. You do have to control the amount. Look at the calorie count on the microwave popcorn.

Unfortunately I have not found any version of pre-built meals that is reasonable from a fat standpoint. There are a few frozen meals in the 300 to 400 calorie range. Many of them are mostly Carb loaded. I do better on high protien low carb and high vegetable diet.

Frozen vegies will grill up into a meal in about 10 minutes and there are mixed veggie packs that work for two people. A 1 pound bage of mixed vegies and a small piece of chicken diced up. Saute the chicken in a little olive oil for 3 ninutes then throw in the frozen veggies with no water. Stir till the Veggies are as tender as you want. Add most any sauce, like soy or Oyster sauce. Add Onions and Garlic if you want. You can make a meal in about 10 minutes. You can vary the veggie mix and the meat and sauce and have almost unlimited variety.

Baby carrots.... 5 an hour. Can never go wrong with that.

Get a little color for the skin too.

I think vegetables and fruits are low in cals.
Here is a list of low calorie foods in one of my Jillain Michaels books:
Apple, medium: 75 cals
Apricots, 4 medium: 70
Banana, 1 medium: 90
Carrots, 1 medium: 30
Cherries, 15 cherries: 85
Corn on the cob, 1 medium ear: 80
Grapefruit, 1 medium: 75
1 cup cooked green vegetables: 40
Kiwi, 1 medium: 45
Orange, 1 medium: 65
Papaya, 1 cup cut: 55
Peach, 1 medium: 70
Pineapple, 1 cup cut: 75
Plums, 2 medium: 70
Popcorn (full-fat) 2 cups: 110
Pretzels, 1 oz: 115
Pumpkin, 1 cup mashed: 85
Strawberries, 1 cup: 50
Watermelon, 1 cup cut: 50

If I can find some other cook books with low calorie snacks. I will post those as well!
Good luck!

I get frozen chicken tenders and grill them and grab some veggies.. Super good when seasoned with lemon pepper.

progresso soups are pretty low in calories and I love the yoplait yogarts. cheerios is a low calorie snack that i'll munch on dry while at work if i just feel like i need to eat. I also get the morning star veggie burgers (130 calories) they make a great easy dinner. Or the tyson grilled chicken breast, they are already cooked so basically you just have to season them a little and heat. I use those on nights when i'm running late. And a grilled chicken breast with a bowl of soup is pretty filling.