Low calorie lunch and dinner ideas?

I've found the recipies on the MFP Blog to be pretty tasty and low calorie by design. Specifically I like broth based soups are usually a good way to go, too.

What do you eat now? You can start by figuring out how to lower it.

But in general what I do is start with some kind of protein. How many calories are in that dictate how many calories I will add from my other foods that I plan to include. Leaner proteins will typically have fewer calories in the same amount, and depending on how you eat this could be a big difference). Then I decide what vegetables to include -- I try to get about half a plate or more of veg, and since they don't have many calories I don't worry too much about this (although I add in the calories, of course). I will normally work with what vegetables I have on hand, which is the best way to make sure you use everything up without letting it go bad. I will spend a few calories on oil to cook the veg in (or make a dressing for a salad). Then, I add in other foods to round out the meal depending on calories available -- usually some kind of starch like potatoes or pasta (or rice or quinoa or barley, or bread if you are doing a sandwich, etc.), and if I have calories available I might add on extras like cheese or seeds or olives.

I vary this, of course -- if I need to cut calories or have a higher cal protein, I might replace the starch course with more vegetables (do something like a pasta sauce on winter squash, maybe). Or I might have a big salad with protein on it or an omelet -- both fast, low cal dinners, IME. I might come in with a plan for a specific meal like pasta (but it would fit the model above with lean meat and protein and I'd make sure the amount of pasta fit my calories and add extra vegetables if needed to round out the plate).

I don't really like following recipes (although I get ideas from them all the time), so thinking in terms of a process like this works better for me and makes things easier as I can make up something from whatever happens to be in the refrigerator.

I have recently found two dishes I like in an attempt to eat less at lunch times. Leaf salad with cooked beetroot and feta cheese (light) lovely! a recipe that is on the MFP blog - cowboy caviar. I am amazed that I am satisfied, but I am. I recently decided to try and only eat complex carbs once a day but that is because I have a very sedentary job and the weather is rubbish so not getting out on my bike as much as I was in the summer.

Weight watchers ranch chicken. you can google it. You use reduced fat sour cream to lightly coat the chicken. Then put the chicken in a bag with crushed corn flakes and ranch seasoning packet. The whole family likes it. Also, zucchini ravioli, baked Parmesan chicken, and potatoes, chicken, and green bean casserole.

I have 6 weeks of meal plans with healthy recipes if you want them. Just shoot me a message with your email and I'm happy to send it over. It should really help and has tons of ideas