This curry is a twist on Rick Stein’s version of Chettinad Chicken. His version is dry where as we fancied something with lots of spices but still nice and saucy. The result was delicious, and it has become a firm favourite in our house. The ingredients list may look a little long, but most ingredients are store cupboard essentials and it really is quite easy to throw together.

If you can’t find any curry leaves you can leave these out, but they are available in most supermarkets these days and add a lovely authentic taste to the dish, if you can find fresh they are even better!! (FYI – curry leaves are edible but if you don’t like the texture you can push to the side when eating).

If you like curries a little more creamy, feel free to add a little fat free Greek yoghurt to the curry when you add the green beans.

I’ve served this with normal basmati rice (60g portion per person) as well as with pilau grilled cauliflower rice (which is 0sp) and both are lovely options depending on how many points you have left for the day. The curry itself is only 1sp so you can always have a cheeky little naan bread  or some poppadums with it too!

Chettinad Chicken Curry

Serves 4 = 1sp per serving

Ingredients

For the spice blend

½ tbsp each fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, black peppercorns, black onion seeds, chilli powder

½ tsp turmeric

For the Curry

1 large onion, peeled and finely sliced

Handful of curry leaves (optional)

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely minced

Thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and finely minced

1 chilli, finely chopped (optional)

2 peppers, sliced

1 tbsp tomato puree

400g tin of chopped tomatoes

1 chicken stock cube

800g chicken breast, diced

1 tsp each salt and sugar

Pack of green beans, trimmed and halved

1 tsp cornflour

Small pack of coriander, roughly chopped

Small pot of fat free Greek yoghurt

Method

Start by making the spice mix. Pop all of the ingredients into a pestle and mortar (or a spice grinder if you have one) and grind until you have a very fine powder. It’s essential that you get the spice mix into as fine a powder as possible as you don’t want the finished curry to by ‘bitty’. Pop the spice mix to one side.

Take a large saucepan, spray with 1kal and add the onion and curry leaves. Fry for 8-10 minutes until the onions start to soften and then add the garlic, ginger, chilli, peppers and spice mix. Fry for another 2 minutes.

Add 1 tbsp tomato puree, fry for another minute and then add the tin of tomatoes, chicken stock cube, 400ml boiling water (I measure this out using the tomato tin), salt and sugar. Stir and add the chicken. Stir again and then pop a lid on the pan. Simmer for 15-20 minutes (until the chicken is cooked through).

After 15 minutes of simmering pop the rice on to cook according to the packet instructions).

Once the chicken is cooked through, add the green beans to the curry and simmer, lid off for 5 minutes until they are al dente. Mix 1 tsp cornflour with a small splash of cold water to make a paste. Add to the curry and simmer for another 5 minutes (this will help the curry thicken up). Finally add the coriander to the curry, stir through and take off the heat.

Serve the rice with the curry on top and a dollop of yoghurt. Enjoy!

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The recipe below makes 8 burgers and each burger patty works out at 1sp. The sauce makes enough for 8 burgers and is 2sp per serving (when split between 8). If you aren’t planning on serving all the burgers within the same meal, I would still make all of the sauce as it can be kept in the fridge for a couple of days and used on things like salads and wraps too.

I served my burger as a double decker with 1 serving of blue cheese sauce, an Aldi Brioche Bun (5sp), salad leaves, red onion and tomatoes. I also served it with roasted butternut squash chips (BNS) so the whole meal was a grand total of 9sp and I was thoroughly stuffed afterwards!

If you haven’t got time to create the burger mixture, or if you aren’t a fan of chicken/turkey mince, you can cheat and use chicken breasts instead. Simply flatten the breast, sprinkle with a pinch of paprika and cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper. Then fry until cooked through (in 1kal) and finish in the buffalo/butter sauce.

You could also serve your burger without a bun and instead serve with a large salad (burger in a bowl style).

Buffalo Chicken Burgers with Blue Cheese Sauce

Makes 8 Burgers = 1sp per burgerpatty

Ingredients

For the burgers

500g lean chicken or turkey breast mince

6 tbsp Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce

1 carrot, grated

2 sticks of celery, grated

1 tsp garlic, peeled and finely chopped

Large handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 egg

50g breadcrumbs

For the blue cheese sauce

100g lightest cream cheese

4 tbsp skimmed milk

40g blue cheese, crumbled

Juice of ½ lemon

¼ tsp Worcestershire sauce

Extras

2 tbsp Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce

1 tsp light lurpack

Brioche Buns or Warburton’s Thins

Salad leaves

Red onion sliced

Tomato, sliced

Method

Line a baking tray with tin foil. Pop all of the burger ingredients in a large bowl, season with salt and black pepper and combine well.  Form the mixture into 8 burger patties and pop onto the baking tray. If you have time, rest the burgers in the fridge (covered) for half an hour.

If you are having BNS chips with the burgers, pop them in the oven on 180c (I season mine with salt, pepper, paprika and chilli flakes and spray with 1kal). Once the chips have been in the oven for 25 minutes, add the burgers to the oven and cook for a further 20-25 minutes (until cooked through)(turn the BNS chips too).

Whilst the burgers are cooking, make the blue cheese sauce. Pop all the ingredients into a blender and wizz until smooth. Add a tbsp. or two of water to loosen if the sauce is a little thick. Pour into a bowl and pop in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

Once the burgers are cooked, remove from the oven. Then take a large frying pan and place onto a high heat. Add two tbsp. buffalo sauce, 1 tbsp water and 1sp lighter lurpack and melt until both are combined. Swirl around the pan and the two burgers. Let the burgers fry for a minute so they become coated in the glossy buffalo sauce.

Once everything is cooked, take your bun/thin, spread over a little blue cheese sauce, add salad leaves and then your burger. Add a little more sauce, a second burger a little more sauce and the veggies of your choice (I added red onion and tomato).  Top with the other half of the bun and plate up with your BNS chips.

Enjoy!

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Ingredients
Makes 6 pancakes
Serves 2 = 1sp per person (Flex)

2 eggs, beaten
2 bananas, 1 well mashed and 1 sliced

4 tbsp 0% fat Greek yoghurt

2 tbsp PB2 powder

2 tsp Sweet Freedom Choc Shot

Sprinkle of cinnamon

Method
In a large bowl mix together the mashed banana and beaten eggs.

Take a large frying pan, spray with low cal spray and warm to a high heat.

Using a ladle, drop a sixth of the mixture into one corner of the pan. The pancake should be around the size of a large mug and quite thin.

Cook each on one side for 1-2 minutes and then flip quickly using a spatula (you need to be quick with this otherwise you risk the pancakes falling apart a little) and then cook on the other side for 1-2 minutes.

Remove from the pan, pop on a plate and repeat with the remaining 3 pancakes.

Mix the PB2 with the yoghurt and drizzle over the Pancakes. Finish with a drizzle of choc shot (1 tsp per person), a sprinkle of cinnamon and any extra fruit you fancy.

Enjoy!

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I got my beetroot houmous from Sainsbury’s but you can get something similar in most other supermarkets. If you are really struggling to get it, instead, spread the goats cheese on top of the spinach and then add the cubed beetroot.

Beetroot and Goat’s Cheese Blinis

Makes 15 = 1sp each )(flex)

Ingredients

15 cocktail blinis

15 spinach leaves

70g roasted beetroot houmous

50g cooked beetroot, chopped into small cubes (I got this in a pack of 4 in Aldi)

50g soft goats cheese, crumbled into pieces

Method

Pre heat the oven to 190c. Pop the blinis on a baking tray and cook for 4 minutes.

While they are cooking, get all the other ingredients ready.

To assemble, pop a little houmous on the blini and then the spinach leaf (to stick it down), add a little more houmous, a few cubes of beetroot and a crumbling of goats cheese. Finish with a twist of salt and black pepper and drizzle over a little balsamic glaze.

Enjoy!

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My last Christmas Canape (the Turkey, Brie and Cranberry Bites) required some cooking however these ones are even easier as they are assembly only! The blinis themselves are great as they come in at only 36kal for 3 blinis. That means you can top them with all sorts of lovely bits and pieces to create and overall low smartpoint treat to take along to a buffet or serve before Christmas dinner.

The blinis I bought from Sainsbury’s came in a pack of 30 so I used 15 for one type of blini and 15 for another. The recipe for the Creamy Avocado and Smoked Salmon Blinis below makes 15 blinis. Double up the recipe if you want to use the whole pack and make 30.

Creamy Avocado and Smoked Salmon Blinis

Makes 15 blinis – 1sp per blini (flex)

Ingredients 

15 cocktail blinis (I got mine in Sainsbury’s)

35g avocado flesh

35g lightest soft cheese

1 lemon

Handful of fresh coriander, finely chopped (optional – omit if you aren’t a fan of coriander)

40g smoked salmon trimmings

Sprinkle of crushed chillies

Salt and Pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 190c.

Pop the avocado into a bowl, mash and add the creme cheese, juice of 1/4 lemon, a sprinkle of coriander (keeping the rest to dress the canapes) and a twist of salt and pepper. Mix everything together until smooth.

Pop the blinis on an oven tray and pop in the preheated oven for 4 minutes.

Remove from the oven and pop onto a plate. Top each blini with a tsp of the avocado mixture and a piece of smoked salmon. Finish each blini with a sprinkle of corainder leaf, a sprinkle of crushed chillies and drizzle over the juice of another 1/4 of the lemon.

Enjoy!

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One of the things I’ve done to tackle this for a good few years now, is to always take along a contribution to the buffet that you have prepared and know exactly how many points are in it! I find this way, I know I’ve got something I can eat that I’m going to enjoy, and I can track it without guesstimating.

It got me to thinking, I should probably post some of my little party canape creates so, every Friday in December leading up to Christmas, I will be sharing with you one of my buffet/canape creations.

The first is one I actually make all year round as it so quick and easy and always goes down a treat. Who doesn’t like meat, cheese and pesto!! Give it a whirl, you won’t be disappointed.

Mozzarella, Pepparoni and Pesto Boccones!

Makes 24 = 1sp each (flex)

Ingredients

24 cocktail sticks

240g half fat mozzarella ball, sliced into 12 cubes (I got mine in Tesco  if you can get a hold of the half fat ones, you could use 200g of the full fat mozzarella balls but each boccone becomes 2sp each).

24 pepparoni/salami slices

24 small fresh basil leaves

24 sun dried tomatoes, each sliced into 2

2 tsp green pesto

Juice of 1 lemon

Tablespoon of water

Method

On to each cocktail stick add half a sun dried tomato, then a cube of mozzarella, then a slice of pepperoni/salami, then a folded basil leaf, then the other half of the sun dried tomato.

In a bowl, add the green pesto, water and lemon juice and mix together.

Pop the assembled buccone onto a plate and drizzle over the lemony pesto mix.

Finish with a good twist of salt and black pepper.

Enjoy!

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That evening we headed to a lovely cottage in the Peak District and some friends made us the most delightful celeriac mash, what a coincidence I thought! I loved the flavour and texture so I was even more set on experimenting with it in the weeks to come. On returning home and heading to Aldi for a ‘big shop’, I was pleasantly surprised to find these bulbous looking vegetables stocked in abundance so, I picked one up and thought I would start my experimentation with a soup.

Celeriac is actually a brilliant option for a low smart points soup as it’s a huge chunky vegetable so it really bulks out the pan and helps to create lots of soup portions for such a low points value. The taste is delicious too with a subtle celery like flavour. The addition of peppery kale and warming cumin and coriander also really bring this easy soup alive.

Celeriac, Kale and Apple Soup – 1sp

Serves 6 = 1sp per serving (flex)

Ingredients

1 white onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 celeriac, peeled and chopped into ½ inch chunks

2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped into rough chunks

3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

1 vegetable stock cube made up with 1.5 litres boiling water

Bag of kale, leaves removed from hard stems

3 tsp each coriander and cumin seeds

2 tsp lurpack lightest

5 tbsp lighted crème fraiche (I used Sainsbury’s Be Good to Yourself as it’s the lowest one I can find)

Salt, black pepper and white pepper to taste

Method

Fill the kettle and pop on to boil.

Take a large saucepan, spray with 1kal and add the onion. Fry for 3-4 minutes until it starts to soften (add a little water if the pan starts getting dry) then add the celeriac, garlic and apple and fry for another 3-4 minutes.

Add the stock, bring to a boil and then simmer for 15-20 minutes until the celeriac is nice and soft. Add the kale leaves and submerge in the soup mixture (add up to 200ml extra boiling water if the kale is not totally covered). Simmer for another 5 minutes and then blend using either a food processor or stick blender (I used a big blender and did it in batches).

Pop the soup back into the sauce pan and keep on a low heat.

Toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a small dry frying pan (for 2 minutes until you can smell the lovely toasted scent coming off the seeds) then pop into a pestle and mortar and grind to a powder. Add most of the powder to the soup (I keep a little to sprinkle on top).

Add the butter and 4 tbsps of the crème fraiche to the soup, stir through so it is smooth and creamy and season with salt, black pepper and white pepper to taste.

Serve with a ½ tsp crème fraiche swirled through the soup and a sprinkle of the cumin/coriander mix.

Enjoy!

The post Celeriac, Kale and Apple Soup – 1sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

The sauce was inspired by a dressing I had on a steak salad when visiting the ‘big smoke’. I got home and the next day set to work with my blender trying to work out what was in the dressing and how I could adapt it for us Weight Watchers.

The result was delicious. Low in points, packed with flavour and best of all, makes a big enough batch that you can use it for a few days after as a lovely salmon or chicken salad dressing. Just pop into some tupperware and keep in the fridge (it’s served cold – no cooking is required for the sauce!!)

My dish here (pictured above) was 11sp and consisted of:

• 1 x rump steak, fat removed (200g – 4sp)
• 1 x small sweet potato, baked (160g – 5sp)
• 1 x corn on the cob, baked (0sp)
• Drizzle of Avocado Steak Sauce (recipe below)(1sp)
• Drizzle of light Soured Cream (1sp)
• Sprinkle of paprika to finish

So give the sauce a go! You won’t be disappointed!!

Avocado Steak Sauce

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If you aren’t a fan of salmon you could replace it with chicken breast (which is also 0sp). We actually had this dish with Salmon on the Sunday night and Chicken on the Monday night! If you are having the chicken instead of the salmon, make sure you flatten the chicken with a rolling pin before you marinade it. This will allow the marinade to cover more of the surface, and make the chicken cook quicker. I sliced my chicken into strips before serving.

Whilst the ingredients list might look a bit fiddly, most of the prep work involves throwing things into a bowl in some way, shape or form, so it’s actually exceptionally easy to put together.

The mint sauce in this recipe is definitely worth a go. It really lifts the whole dish and brings it all together. Give it a whirl, you won’t be disappointed.

The dish itself is only 1sp but you can add a Weight Watchers Mini Garlic and Coriander Naan if you want to add something a little more filling. Alternatively, if you want to bulk it out even more, you could swap the cauliflower for pilau rice, but be sure to add the points.

I’ve used pre prepared cauliflower cous cous as its not much more than buying a cauliflower and much less fiddly. If you prefer, pop the florets of one cauliflower into a blender and wizz up. Then you have cauliflower cous cous ready to go.

Tandoori Salmon with Pilau Cauli Cous Cous 

Serves 4 = 1sp each (Flex)

4 x 110g salmon fillets (I use the Wild Alaskan fillets as they previously used to be less points)

For the Tandoori Rub – 1sp per person

1 ½ tsp each ground cumin and ground coriander

1 tsp each turmeric, chilli powder, garam masala and paprika

¼ tsp cinnamon

½ tbsp honey

2 garlic cloves, peeled and grated

1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated

200ml fat free Greek style yoghurt

Juice of ½ lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

For the Cous Cous – 0sp per person

1 tbsp pilau seasoning (I used Shwartz or Barts)

330g Cauliflower Cous Cous (I got mine in Tesco’s)

½ red onion, finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped

Handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered

Handful of fresh coriander, finely chopped

Large handful of fresh spinach, finely chopped

1 lemon

For the mint yoghurt – 0sp per person

½ bunch each fresh coriander and fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped

3 green chillies (deseeded if you don’t like things too hot), roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

½ tsp sugar

Juice of ½ lemon

200ml fat free Greek style yoghurt

To serve – optional, add another 3sp per person

4 x Weight Watchers Mini Garlic & Coriander Naans (3sp each).

Method

Start with the marinade. Pop all the dry spices together in a large bowl and mix with the honey. Add the garlic, ginger and lemon and give another good mix. Finally add the yoghurt and combine everything together. Add the salmon (or the flattened chicken) and coat well and then pop in the fridge to marinade (you can do this overnight or just until you come to cook it, either is fine).

For the mint yoghurt, whack everything in a blender and wizz together. Pop in the fridge until you serve everything.

Meanwhile, preheat the grill. Spray a non stick baking tray with 1kal and evenly spread over the cauliflower cous cous. Sprinkle with the pilau seasoning and then pop under the grill for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, give everything a shake and turn and pop under for another 5 minutes.

While the cauliflower is cooking, take a large mixing bowl and add the onion, pepper and tomatoes. Squeeze over the juice of ½ a lemon and give a mix. Add the coriander and spinach, mix and when the cauliflower is finished cooking, add to the bowl and toss through. Finish with the juice of the other half of the lemon and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Finally, pop the marinaded salmon (or chicken) onto a baking tray sprayed with 1kal and pop under a hot grill. Grill until cooked to your liking. My salmon took around 15 minutes and I flipped half way. My chicken took around 20 minutes, again flipping halfway. You could also pan fry/griddle the salmon/meat if you prefer.

Serve the dish with the cauliflower cous cous on the base and the salmon or chicken on top. Drizzle with the mint yoghurt. Serve with a naan bread if you are having it.

Enjoy!

The post Tandoori Salmon with Pilau Cauli Cous Cous- 1sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

You can serve this curry with the accompaniments of your choice. I served it with some beautiful Pilau Cauliflower Rice. I simply popped the riced cauliflower on a heated greased baking tray, sprinkled it with Swartz Pilau seasoning and put in the oven on 180c for the last 10 minutes that the curry was cooking. This lovely 0 point rice alternative means you have enough points left over for a little naan if you fancy.

If you are having a dinner party, you can also make this curry as part of an Indian feast. I started my feast off with some 0 point Indian Onion Salad, Rathia (0% fat Greek yoghurt mixed with ¼ tsp mint sauce, ¼ cumin and juice of ½ lemon) and Mango Chutney with 1 poppadum per person.

I then served the curry as the main with some cauliflower rice, normal pilau rice for the non Weight Watchers (basmati rice cooked with chicken stock and pilau seasoning as in the picture above) and some of my lovely Saag Aloowhich goes with this curry perfectly.

POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 4 – per serving= 1sp or 465 cals, 2.4g fat, 69.6g carbs, 44.1g protein

For the paste

4 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

Thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

1 red chilli, roughly chopped

1 tsp each of ground coriander, paprika and ground turmeric

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

400g tin of chopped tomatoes

Low calorie cooking spray

For the curry

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

2 pepper, deseeded and chopped into large chunks

Small piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

1 tsp each of ground cumin and ground coriander

1 chicken stock cube made up with 300ml boiling water

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp cayenne pepper

Large pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

600g chicken breasts, raw and cubed

15g fresh coriander, roughly chopped, reserving some to garnish

Juice of 1 lemon

Method

1. Begin by making the paste. Take a large frying pan, spray with low-calorie cooking spray and bring to a medium heat. Fry the garlic, ginger, chilli, ground coriander, paprika and turmeric for a minute or two to release the flavours, adding a little water to stop the mixture sticking to the pan. Then add the onion and fry for around 10 minutes until the onion is nice and soft.
2. Add the tomatoes and 250ml water and then simmer on a low heat for half an hour. The paste should get thicker, with the water evaporating away. Once thickened, blend until smooth.
3. While the paste is simmering in the first pan, spray another large pan with low-calorie cooking spray and fry the onion, garlic, peppers, ginger, ground cumin and coriander for 10 minutes until the onion is soft. Add a little water to stop the mixture sticking to the pan if necessary.
4. Next, take the paste from the first pan and add to the second pan, then add the chicken stock, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, chilli flakes, bay leaf, tomato purée, white wine vinegar, sugar and salt to the second pan.
5. Give everything a good mix to combine together and then add the raw chicken, covering in the sauce. Everything should now be in one pan.
6. Pop the rice on to cook at this point.
7. Simmer the sauce for 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and then add the fresh coriander and lemon juice. Stir and simmer for another 10 minutes until the curry has reduced and is thick and velvety. Garnish with the reserved coriander.

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