Are you wondering how to make your favorite foods less calor

jsteinberg87
jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
edited October 4 in Recipes
I actually am a chef (although its just a hobby for now) - and I am working on a food blog. The blog is private, but I'm always looking for new idea's to make my favorite foods with less calories. You post something you want to eat, and I'll try my best to make it for you with reduced calories, and post the recipes, Then I will post them to my food blog, and make it public for all to see!

Keep on keepin' on!

Peace, Love, & Get Healthy!
Jacklyn
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Replies

  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    cookie dough!!
  • galaxyhearts
    galaxyhearts Posts: 258 Member
    This is an amazing idea!!! Maybe shrimp alfredo?? I love alfredo sauce but it's sooooooooo bad for you hahaha
  • smathinly
    smathinly Posts: 23
    Hungry Girl does this, which I love for when I am craving something... I salute your efforts! I would love to see a really great low calorie cupcake recipe--my boyfriend's birthday is Nov 5th, mine is Nov 15th, and we love cupcakes! Right now my plan is an angel food cake type thing with no icing... thoughts?
  • tuskegee4
    tuskegee4 Posts: 110 Member
    Hot wings, french fries, yeungling
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I love grilled chicken alfredo - but dang is alfredo sauce a killer -- calorie-wise.
  • istalkzombies
    istalkzombies Posts: 344 Member
    garlic bread! haha
  • pelleld
    pelleld Posts: 363 Member
    What a great idea. I just made a lighter version of mac and cheese and it was pretty good. Not the same as the full fat version but not bad at all :) I would love to see what ideas people have. Me, I really like sweets, so anything that can be done to make them less fattening but still flavorful would be great!
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    garlic bread! haha
  • arispawild
    arispawild Posts: 155
    PB&J

    Black bean enchiladas

    Pumpkin Pie
  • amoffatt
    amoffatt Posts: 674 Member
    Chocolate cake:bigsmile:
  • mrnjen2009
    mrnjen2009 Posts: 19 Member
    oh yes... Pumpkin Pie!! ... oh, and cornbread stuffing. =):bigsmile:
  • CityOnAHill
    CityOnAHill Posts: 136 Member
    I found this elsewhere and I haven't tried it yet but here's an Alfredo that's sipposed to be really good:

    1/2 head cauliflower (30 cal)
    3 tbsp parmesan cheese (60 cal)
    1 tbsp garlic
    salt & pepper to taste

    Cook cauliflower till its mushy. Throw everything into a blender and blend until smooth. Add water till its at the right consistency. Heat and serve over whole wheat pasta for a satisfying low cal dinner!
  • kiminoo
    kiminoo Posts: 12 Member
    french fries, caramel, noodles
  • KayHBE
    KayHBE Posts: 906 Member
    Yorkshire Pudding
  • RNMDFF
    RNMDFF Posts: 153 Member
    Any thing with chocolate. I love Alfredo sauce. rolls or biscuits. mac and cheese. I love so many bad, high calorie things
  • babybellyfat
    babybellyfat Posts: 1,102 Member
    poutine! frys, sauce and cheese YUMO!
  • missfluffyuk
    missfluffyuk Posts: 245
    Creamy pastas...
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    Great replies everyone!!! I will really start working on this! It might take me a while, as I have to wait to get paid... but I am more than happy to do this for all of you!!!!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    cookie dough!!

    Cookie dough I will work on first. Since you commented first :) Butter flavored shortening should help, as well as baking sugar substitues like splenda. I will try my best okay!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    This is an amazing idea!!! Maybe shrimp alfredo?? I love alfredo sauce but it's sooooooooo bad for you hahaha

    The shrimp isn't necessarily bad for you, however, alfredo sauce will be tricky to make less calorific as I'd like to call it. I know I can find a way to make it just as tasty. Surprisingly, dont be afraid if I use things such as yogurt, or a low fat milk to make a roux (which is a thickener of sauces, however you need butter) - There are such things as cream of tartar in the spice section that will do the same however. I love alfredo, so I'l experiment . :)
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    Hungry Girl does this, which I love for when I am craving something... I salute your efforts! I would love to see a really great low calorie cupcake recipe--my boyfriend's birthday is Nov 5th, mine is Nov 15th, and we love cupcakes! Right now my plan is an angel food cake type thing with no icing... thoughts?

    The 5th is coming up quickly... however, I think I could actually help you out. I know I add sour cream to alot of my "baking" recipes (to make them moist in lieu of butter) - So I will try this. I'm a chocolate person, angel food cake sounds delish - I know its "dense" so I will have to play with it a few times to get it right. I'm not as great of a baker as I am chef... but for my MFP peeps, I'll try anything!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    Hot wings, french fries, yeungling

    Hot wings. Let see. Problem is 1. they are usually dark meat (fattier) and contain butter in the sauce. This can be easily replaced by making almost "hot breasts" because its leaner, and I will find a way to make that sauce more calorific. :) Fries, I can honestly say, all oil is going to SIGNIFICANTLY ADD CALORIES. You are much better off baking them. I suggest par-boiling (boiling but not quite cooked) then baking them with whatever you choose to season them with. Just be mindful of the sodium. Alot of premade seasonings have a ton of sodium, when you can look at the ingredients and make it yourself. The secret to crispy frenchy fries is that they are TWICE fried. In restaurants, most places fry them once, and when an order comes in.... fries them again to order so you get that crunchy outside and mushy inside everyone enjoys. If you par-boil them, you are essentially cooking them once, then baking for the second CRUNCH factor, which is what every fry needs. I will play around with that to see how long the cooking time and what temperature needs to be. But thank you for your input because I'm sure alot of people want to know!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    I love grilled chicken alfredo - but dang is alfredo sauce a killer -- calorie-wise.

    Alfredo sauce, I'm working on. If you look at the comments, you'll see I responded to a girl asking the same question! :)
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    garlic bread! haha

    Lets see. The main ingreients are bread, some kind of oil or fat, and garlic. Most calories will actually come from the oil if you don't choose correctly. And the bread you can alternate for a whole grain bread to get more dietary fiber. Let me reseach and find an oil that is suitible for this type of prep. For example olive oil can run up to 100 calories PER TABLESPOON!!! So at restaurants, think of ordering even something healthy, sauteed.... veggies... whatever, but if they use olive oil or EVOO - it totally ruins the calorie count. I'll reseach :)
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    What a great idea. I just made a lighter version of mac and cheese and it was pretty good. Not the same as the full fat version but not bad at all :) I would love to see what ideas people have. Me, I really like sweets, so anything that can be done to make them less fattening but still flavorful would be great!

    Mac and Cheese is really not a toughie if you are open to new things like whole grain pastas. However, light versions of cheese, mixed with non-fat milk and some kind or roux, or thickener (I'm thinking cream of tartar - no calories but molecularly it helps thicken things) - could really make for a delicious low cal version. Sweets - still working on that one. But with each and every reciple, I will try like I promised to make everything low cal, and as low fat as I possibly can!
  • Healthy_Hannah483
    Healthy_Hannah483 Posts: 151 Member
    Peach cobbler!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    PB&J

    Black bean enchiladas

    Pumpkin Pie

    PB & J. Let me start out by saying that the peanut butter (high in calories though) is extremely healthy for you. It has good fats and good cholesterol, but it would have to be controlled by the AMOUNT you put on your sandwich. The bread. Pick a whole grain bread. There are many out there for 80 - 100 calories that are PACKED with a ton of dietary fiber. Right then and there you have good carbs, fats. and a little lower calories. Jam. This is where sugar comes into play. Pick a low sugar jelly or non sugar. Usually its replaced by aspartame (which is a little sweet for me) - or look at your local farmers market - they have non preservatives. Just be sure to read the label!!!!

    Black bean enchiladas. Let me start with the tortilla. That is the problem. Now a days, they offer at grocery stores "low calorie wraps" which are MUCH less calories than a general tortilla. Corn or not. Doesn't matter. Replace the tortilla with a wrap that can be as low as 30 calories as opposed to just one normal tortilla (160 calories) and some form of light cheese. Shredded is good. Consider portion control as well. I know cheeses that are not light and are in slice form are around 90 calories. If you add that up, Without the beans, two slices of cheese and a normal tortilla could be 310 calories. Thats alot, and you haven't even added the beans. El Rosorito has a brand of fat free black beans and I suggest getting them whole and not refried. Refried adds more oil and fat, which isnt needed. You will have a decent Bean and Cheese burrito if you just simply follow those directions. If you want the beans mushy.... well then buddy, take a fork to it! Add a tablespoon of water and mash it up. It IS possible to make it low calorific!!!

    Now as I said before, I really am not much of a baker, so pumpkin pie is a perfect recipe for me to come up with especially with the coming holidays. I will work on that for you. :)
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    Chocolate cake:bigsmile:

    Man theres a ton of sweet tooths here!!! I am not a huge baker, so I will try. I do have a great recipe for chocolate zuchinni rum cake (trust me you cant taste the zucchini, its for moisture purposes only) - I should post it!
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    oh yes... Pumpkin Pie!! ... oh, and cornbread stuffing. =):bigsmile:

    As I replied to another post, I need to work on the pumpkin pie recipe. Cornbread stuffing. Man that is such a hard one. You almost have me stumped on that. I will definitely try my absolute best to create a recipe for that. However for now, all I can say is portion control! I know that sucks, but until I can make a decent recipe, just make sure you realize how many calories are in it, and try and balance it with appropriater protiens and other veggies (which do have carbs too.)
  • jsteinberg87
    jsteinberg87 Posts: 146 Member
    I found this elsewhere and I haven't tried it yet but here's an Alfredo that's sipposed to be really good:

    1/2 head cauliflower (30 cal)
    3 tbsp parmesan cheese (60 cal)
    1 tbsp garlic
    salt & pepper to taste

    Cook cauliflower till its mushy. Throw everything into a blender and blend until smooth. Add water till its at the right consistency. Heat and serve over whole wheat pasta for a satisfying low cal dinner!

    WOW! Thank you so much for posting this recipe, I am sure to try it and see if I can tweak it in anyway. Cauliflower is one of the best most low calorie veggies that I can think of and works on so many levels! Check out my post on cauliflower pizza! Again, Thank you!
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