Healthy Dinners

[Stella]

Since most of us are on this weight loss/work out kick (kick in the ass is more like it ), I was hoping we could post some low-calorie dinner recipes here. My trainer at the gym tonight said dinner should be under 380 calories.

Suggestions???

[Sheherezade]

Under 380? That's tough. Is the trainer thinking you have big breakfasts and lunches? When I did lose a lot of weight (both times ) I almost gave up dinner and focused my eating earlier in the day. Soup is a great option for low cal dinners. Salad? With lots of veggies, a smatter of lean protien and a squeeze of lemon? 380 is low. Your portion size on any "real" food and side dishes (read:traditional) would be small. Lean cuisine size?



I will try to dig out some recipes - but apart from the soup and veggie salads I think that getting under 380 is going to be a portion control exercise.

[MissCrabette]

380 calories sounds awfully low for a dinner but I guess it's doable if you have a big breakfast and dinner and several snacks throughout the day. I don't have any specific recipes but you can check out allrecipes.com and they have a healthy living section. I like how they have reviews of the recipes and pictures of the food.

I think Krystal might have been talking about The Mayo Clinic Cookbook. That's also a great source of healthy recipes although you may find that some of the ingredients used are not always available in all grocery stores.

[DCJenn]

380 calories? that's one beer and a PB and J!

I have a few cookbooks to recommend. Any of the Cooking Light cookbooks. I have several years worth and they're great. I have a fabulous cookbook which is out of print called Healthy Homestyle Cooking which is by the lady who does the recipe makeovers for Shape magazine.

Also check out the cooking light and vegetarian times websites for great recipes.

Jenn

I agree with the Cooking Light suggestion, esp since the recipes have a calorie count. One thing I have noticed is that they really stick to a 30% of calories from fat ratio and that you can still reduce the overall calories while that might up the ratio a little (I tink you come out ahead).

380 sounds low to me. When I did this over the winter, I did closer to 500 for dinner and cut back earlier in the day. I know, I know, the point is to eat less at night but I have a hard time with that. I also made sure not to eat anything after 8:00pm. Yup, no more carrot sticks after 8pm!

[Stella]

Yes, I know... 380. Most of my cocktails contain that many calories. Just kidding... I think.

Anyway, the idea is that you make lunch your biggest meal of the day and try to get your carbs in early in the day so that you can burn them off throughout the day. I typically try to eat a bigger lunch anyway and not finish it. Then I "snack" on it at around 4 so I'm not too hungry for dinner time. I don't know that this actually helps, but I feel like it does, so I think that counts. I bought a can of Progresso Lentil soup today - only 300 calories for 2 cups of soup! There's tonight's dinner!

There are two light cookbooks I really like, by the same team of sisters. They're called "Looneyspoons" and "Crazy Plates". They're really gimmicky names, but if you can get past that, the food is actually quite yummy with decent sized portions that will actually fill you. Cooking Light has interesting stuff, but I often find their portions tiny.

[Sheherezade]

Soup is so easy and usually under the calorie count. I love that as a diet tool. That's probably why I always do better at losing weight in the winter than the summer. Your trainer's diet plan sounds like what HAS worked for me in the past. I can never do no/low carb, so I try to eat them at breakfast. I used to promise myself something hideaously caloric and sweet for breakfast when I went to bed dieting. In the morning, I rarely wanted it, but if I did I got it. Somehow, it is harder to gorge at 7 am.

[planet]

380??!! No way! Ok, all I can think of is a bowl of Go Lean cereal to fill you up. Grilled veggies or a huge salad might work, but they would just leave me hungry again later. With only 380 cals allowed it seems like just adding cheese to a salad would push you over the limit.

A Powerbar?

[alison]

Wow! 380? I guess if you consider dinner to be a light snack (after a big lunch) so that you don't go to bed too full, then ok, maybe... In Germany people eat light dinners and don't overdo it. I prefer that, but it's definitely not 380 calories that we were eating over there.

If you do decide to stay at or below 380, make sure you're still eating a balanced diet. It's not worth it to lose your hair (literally) because you're malnourished.

I think I may have posted this one before, but it is one of my favorite meals. Only takes 20 minutes total to prep & bake! One serving has 404 calories...you can easily get it down to 380 by reducing the amount of feta.


Baked Shrimp with Feta Cheese
from Cooking Light

1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 garlic cloves, minced
Cooking spray
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 cups diced plum tomato (about 3/4 pound)
3/4 cup (3 ounces) finely crumbled feta cheese
4 cups hot cooked linguine (about 8 ounces uncooked pasta) **I think it's tastier served over orzo**
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley


Preheat oven to 350°.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oregano and the next 4 ingredients (oregano through garlic); sauté for 3 minutes. Spoon the shrimp mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Add wine to skillet; cook over low heat until reduced to 1/4 cup (about 3 minutes). Stir in tomato, and pour over the shrimp mixture. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Serve mixture over pasta, and sprinkle with parsley.


Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup shrimp mixture, 1 cup pasta, and 1 tablespoon parsley)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 404(19% from fat); FAT 8.7g (sat 3.8g,mono 2.3g,poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 29g; CHOLESTEROL 148mg; CALCIUM 182mg; SODIUM 677mg; FIBER 3.1g; IRON 5.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 51.8g

[spotty_dog]

When I restrict calories I still usually get about half my day's food at dinner. I dieted the hardest in combination with exercising regularly, and in order to fuel my workouts I had to get my carbo throughout the day in snacks every couple of hours balanced with protein for "staying power". But, whatever works for you.

Last night's dinner registered right around the 400 calorie mark if you don't count the chips before and the ice cream after. I made baked halibut, coated in fat free yogurt (blended with salt and pepper and thyme) and topped with caramelized onions. We ate that with a nice big tossed salad dressed in homemade vinaigrette, and Fitday tells me that the fish plus yogurt plus salad dressing comes to about 360 calories so I think if you add the veggies you're pushing 400.