Pasta cravings

What should I have for/with pasta that is low calorie? I don't like those miracle noodles that are like 8 calories per serving and I tried pasta with the springlina (vegetables like carrots or zucchini) and I wasn't impressed. I think I eat two or three servings of pasta which is too much and the toppings aren't exactly healthy either. When I crave pasta, I have to have it! It's probably only once a month, but still, would be good to have some solutions :-) thank you
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Replies

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    If I'm just eating pasta and butter, I will eat a ridiculous amount. So instead, I have a smaller amount of pasta (and butter) with a protein and vegetable.

    Earlier in the week, we had spaghetti, meatballs, green beans, and butter. I had 112 grams (4 oz) pasta cooked and the meal was 396 calories. This filled me up nicely.

    Tonight we are having raviolis, chicken, green beans, and butter and it looks like my meal will come in at 432 calories.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Oh, and I'm with you on the "miracle" pasta noodles. Yuck. (Even with Asian seasonings rather than Italian.)
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    I agree with using regular pasta, but bulking it up with a lot of veggies and the protein of your choice. You'll end up eating less pasta, even if you still have a large serving.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,264 Member
    Once a month, don't sweat it. If it was in your weekly rotation, then you might have to fight the temptation to overindulge, or you could just simply adjust your caloric intake for that day to allow for it.
  • ehju0901
    ehju0901 Posts: 394 Member
    I use red lentil noodles instead. It does have a different consistency that regular noodles, but once I got used to that I enjoy them a lot.
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,759 Member
    May be sacralige but I (finally) tried the hearts of palm noodle like stuff and it wasn't bad. Did it taste like pasta? Not really. Did it look and feel like pasta? Yup!

    Low cal (3 servings are 60 cals) and I continued to keep it low cal by using tomato sauce and some garlic and parmesean spice as the topping. Could have used a meatball but what are you gonna do?

    Also, WAY better and easier than the shirataki noodles.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,617 Member
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?

    Can you show us a typical recipe? There are usually ways to lighten them up, keep a lot of flavor.

    Personally, I tend to eat pasta with muchMuch more vegetables in it than pasta, but I love veggies. (I also eat the red lentil pasta, which has more protein - almost twice as much - compared to regular white wheat pasta. (Not everyone will enjoy red lentil pasta as much as I do, but it may be worth a try.)
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    I feel you. What I like about pasta is the warm feeling I get when I eat a healthy serving of it with butter and good parmesan. It hits all the reward centers of your body. We evolved to seek out such foods and over eat them whenever possible, turning any extra into fat that we could use later. It was a very good idea at one time in human evolutionary history and got us where we are today.

    For those of us lucky enough to have access to practically unlimited food, the primal impulse to over-eat can only come from your rational mind. Best of luck!
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?

    Can you show us a typical recipe? There are usually ways to lighten them up, keep a lot of flavor.

    Personally, I tend to eat pasta with muchMuch more vegetables in it than pasta, but I love veggies. (I also eat the red lentil pasta, which has more protein - almost twice as much - compared to regular white wheat pasta. (Not everyone will enjoy red lentil pasta as much as I do, but it may be worth a try.)

    San Remo Pasta Spaghetti probably 200g, tinned tomatoes, salt and cheddar cheese. I also like tortellini with tinned tomatoes, spaghetti bolognaise and seafood carbonara.

    I have red lentil pasta sometimes but I'm not that fond of it.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?

    Can you show us a typical recipe? There are usually ways to lighten them up, keep a lot of flavor.

    Personally, I tend to eat pasta with muchMuch more vegetables in it than pasta, but I love veggies. (I also eat the red lentil pasta, which has more protein - almost twice as much - compared to regular white wheat pasta. (Not everyone will enjoy red lentil pasta as much as I do, but it may be worth a try.)

    San Remo Pasta Spaghetti probably 200g, tinned tomatoes, salt and cheddar cheese. I also like tortellini with tinned tomatoes, spaghetti bolognaise and seafood carbonara.

    I have red lentil pasta sometimes but I'm not that fond of it.

    What type of tinned tomatoes? People rave about San Marzano.

    https://josieandnina.com/real-san-marzano-tomatoes/

    I would minimally add Italian seasoning. Consider sautéing some onions as well.

    To be more filling, add a protein and some veggies.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?

    Can you show us a typical recipe? There are usually ways to lighten them up, keep a lot of flavor.

    Personally, I tend to eat pasta with muchMuch more vegetables in it than pasta, but I love veggies. (I also eat the red lentil pasta, which has more protein - almost twice as much - compared to regular white wheat pasta. (Not everyone will enjoy red lentil pasta as much as I do, but it may be worth a try.)

    San Remo Pasta Spaghetti probably 200g, tinned tomatoes, salt and cheddar cheese. I also like tortellini with tinned tomatoes, spaghetti bolognaise and seafood carbonara.

    I have red lentil pasta sometimes but I'm not that fond of it.

    What type of tinned tomatoes? People rave about San Marzano.

    https://josieandnina.com/real-san-marzano-tomatoes/

    I would minimally add Italian seasoning. Consider sautéing some onions as well.

    To be more filling, add a protein and some veggies.

    Plain or italian herbs. It would be nice if I could double the amount by adding veges. I might miss the quantity of pasta though!

    I think I'm used to eating bulk and heavy meals from my childhood.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,617 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    I guess eating pasta once a month isn't so bad. The recipes I come up with aren't so good, maybe I should get it when I eat out?

    Can you show us a typical recipe? There are usually ways to lighten them up, keep a lot of flavor.

    Personally, I tend to eat pasta with muchMuch more vegetables in it than pasta, but I love veggies. (I also eat the red lentil pasta, which has more protein - almost twice as much - compared to regular white wheat pasta. (Not everyone will enjoy red lentil pasta as much as I do, but it may be worth a try.)

    San Remo Pasta Spaghetti probably 200g, tinned tomatoes, salt and cheddar cheese. I also like tortellini with tinned tomatoes, spaghetti bolognaise and seafood carbonara.

    I have red lentil pasta sometimes but I'm not that fond of it.

    What type of tinned tomatoes? People rave about San Marzano.

    https://josieandnina.com/real-san-marzano-tomatoes/

    I would minimally add Italian seasoning. Consider sautéing some onions as well.

    To be more filling, add a protein and some veggies.

    Plain or italian herbs. It would be nice if I could double the amount by adding veges. I might miss the quantity of pasta though!
    ,
    I think I'm used to eating bulk and heavy meals from my childhood.

    It may not work for you, but when I eat pasta, I'm likely to add massive veggies. I'm for sure a volume eater, and veggies are a big chunk of volume for me. Normal would be around a pound, 450g or so, of veggies in a pasta combo. That's a big dish full'o'stuff. Consider your options.

    My normal daily goal is 800g (around 1.8 pounds) of veggies and fruits. Very occasionally I don't hit that, but most days I exceed it. If you like volume, think about it.

    Also, if you haven't considered this thread, you might want to:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10563959/volume-eaters-thread/p1

    There's more than veggies/fruits in there. Not all the ideas will suit you, but some might.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,097 Member
    Recently I've been using pasta (dried weight 50 to 75 g) as the base for chicken & veggie stew (sometimes with a little spicy sausage as well, but mostly veg). My veggies of choice are eggplant, tomatoes (fresh recently but soon I'll likely switch to canned as the season is pretty much over here), bell peppers, onions, and garlic. A little broth of your choice. So the bulk tends to come from the veggies, with enough chicken to get a decent amount of protein, and enough pasta to enjoy.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?
  • GloriaBJN
    GloriaBJN Posts: 78 Member
    edited September 2022
    Curbing your appetite is everything in weight loss. I haven't paid much attention to the calorie count of the alernatives, but I'd like to encourage you to do portion control and make sure you have a healthy portion of low calorie salad with it. It might help to learn that I've gained a lot of weight ignoring how much pasta I was eating in one sitting, but I won't eliminate it from my diet.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k

    LOL :-D

  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k

    LOL :-D
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    This has been asked a million times.

    Maybe it has been, but I don't think the search function works well for finding the information you want. I wanted the thread about low calorie foods to stretch your food budget and I couldn't find it. It should really be stickied! The calorie dense one is.

  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k

    LOL :-D
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    This has been asked a million times.

    Maybe it has been, but I don't think the search function works well for finding the information you want. I wanted the thread about low calorie foods to stretch your food budget and I couldn't find it. It should really be stickied! The calorie dense one is.

    I'm talking about pasta substitutes. Everyone thinks there is a great substitute out there and they just don't know it. NOTHING beats the real durum pasta--nothing. Better to eat less than eat something crappy. The old timers, here in Italy, would make a plate of green beans, boiled and strained, leaving them long, and add tomato sauce and Parmigiano Reggiano. However, they never pretended that it was pasta. It was green beans and sauce. :D:D
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,679 Member
    edited September 2022
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k

    LOL :-D
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    This has been asked a million times.

    Maybe it has been, but I don't think the search function works well for finding the information you want. I wanted the thread about low calorie foods to stretch your food budget and I couldn't find it. It should really be stickied! The calorie dense one is.

    I'm talking about pasta substitutes. Everyone thinks there is a great substitute out there and they just don't know it. NOTHING beats the real durum pasta--nothing. Better to eat less than eat something crappy. The old timers, here in Italy, would make a plate of green beans, boiled and strained, leaving them long, and add tomato sauce and Parmigiano Reggiano. However, they never pretended that it was pasta. It was green beans and sauce. :D:D
    That sounds delicious!!!! And my husband adores green beans.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Thanks everyone! definately some things to think about.

    That being said, does anyone know of any types of pasta with less calories, that still tastes like pasta?

    60g pasta have less calories than the 100g pasta and taste just the same, cheers. j/k

    While you might be kidding, reducing portion sizes of proper wheat pasta is actually what I do.
  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    If you stick with a red sauce, the calories are much lower than with a cream based or pesto sauce.
  • sugarfreesquirrel
    sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
    I like pasta with tomato based sauces