WW POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 4 – per serving = 16 points or 507 cals, 19.9g fat, 58.7g carbs, 18.7g protein

INGREDIENTS

• 240g pasta, dried
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 4 x spicy sausages (I use the hot honey and nduja sausages from Aldi), skin removed
• 1 small red onion, peeled and finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 50ml vodka
• 200ml water
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 100ml Elmlea single cream
• 30g Parmesan, grated
• Handful fresh basil, roughly shredded
• Salt and pepper
• Chilli flakes (to taste)

METHOD

1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
2. Then spray a large pan with 1kal and add the olive oil too. Add the skinned sausages and begin frying, breaking up with the spoon as they cook.
3. Add the onion and fry for 3-4 minutes then add the garlic frying for another minute.
4. Add the tomato purée, fry for a minute and then add the vodka. Simmer until reduced by half and the alcohol has burned away then add the water, sugar and Italian seasoning. Simmer the sauce for 5 minutes until it starts to thicken.
5. Add the cream, simmer for a minute and the add the pasta with a splash of pasta water. Simmer until the sauce has thickened and coats the pasta nicely.
6. Add the Parmesan and basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add chilli flakes if you like a little heat.

Enjoy!

As always, if you like my recipes don’t forget my cookbook ‘Slimming Kitchen Secrets’, which includes over 80 delicious easy healthy recipes, is available now!

The post Spicy Vodka Sausage Pasta first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

You can bake the dish at the end if you fancy (make sure to add additional points if you use more cheese) however I’ve tested it both ways and my favourite is to stir the cheese through the pasta and let it go all stringy and melty. Divine.

I used Cape Herbs and Spices Texan Steak Seasoning in this recipe but you can use any steak seasoning you can get your hands on (Schwartz do one which is available in most supermarkets). Pickle relish is also widely available, just look near the chutneys!

If you are feeling really extra you can fry up a couple of slices of bacon near the end of cooking the pasta. Remove the fat, fry in 1kal til crispy and then chop to a fine crumb, then sprinkle across the finished dish when you are dressing it. If you use bacon this would make it one extra point per person.

 POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 6 – per serving = 9 points or 441 cals, 12.3g fat, 51.6g carbs, 29.4g protein

Ingredients

500g lean (5%) beef mince, raw

1 white onion,  finely diced

4 garlic cloves, finely minced

5 tsp steak seasoning

1 beef stock cube, crumbled

1 tbsp tomato puree

1 tsp paprika

½ tsp each onion powder and garlic powder

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

400g tin of tomatoes

1 tsp salt

360g pasta (shape of your choice), dry

2 tbsp each reduced sugar and salt ketchup, American yellow mustard and pickle relish

75g light Cheddar cheese, grated

3 spring onions, sliced into thin rounds

2 large gherkins, sliced into rounds

Low calorie cooking spray

Method

1. Take a large pan (with a lid if you have one), spray with low-calorie cooking spray and add the mince. Fry on a medium/high heat for around 5 minutes until the meat starts to brown and cook through.
2. Add the onion and garlic with 2 teaspoons of the steak seasoning, fry for another few minutes, and then crumble in the stock cube and add the tomato purée.
3. Stir-fry for a minute, and then add the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce.
4. Fry for a few seconds and then add the tomatoes, 1 litre of boiling water and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir and add the pasta, stirring to make sure the stock covers it.
5. Bring to the boil, pop the lid on and reduce to a simmer for 10–12 minutes until the pasta is cooked through (the pasta should absorb most of the water so the dish doesn’t end up a runny consistency).
6. Remove the lid, add the remaining steak seasoning, ketchup, mustard and pickle relish, and simmer for another 5 minutes, letting the sauce thicken up.
7. Season to taste with salt and pepper and then finally stir through the cheese, spring onions and gherkins. Simmer for another minute or so to let the cheese melt, then remove from the heat.
8. Plate up and sprinkle with bacon crumb if you are having it.

The post Cheeseburger Pasta first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

Variations

If you want to bulk this one out, you could always fry some finely chopped onion and sliced mushrooms once the bacon is crispy. No extra points but a bigger portion all round.

If you fancy mixing it up entirely you could replace the bacon with chorizo and once the oils have released, throw in some chopped spring onion. Up to 22g of chorizo will mean the dish is the same amount of smart points. Remember to peel the chorizo before you dice and cook so the oils can seep out and flavour everything  nicely.

Making for a small person?

Fancy making it for a baby too? Make the adults sauce base (egg yolk, parmesan and cream cheese) in one bowl and in a separate bowl make a mini version which omits the egg (ideally using full fat cream cheese and parmesan). Make the rest of the recipe as below, just remember not to add salt to anything (I would probably cook the pastas separately too so you can salt the adults pasta water). Once the pasta and peas are cooked, take a little of the bacon mixture from the main pan, pop it in a smaller pan and then separate the pasta and peas into the two different pans adding the relevant sauce. Season the adults with salt and pepper to taste (and crushed chillies if you like a kick like me)!

Smart Points and Nutritional Information

Serves 2 – Per Serving:

• 11sp on BLUE, 15sp on GREEN and 6sp on PURPLE (when made with wholewheat pasta)
• 322 Cals – 14.1g Fat – 27.4g Carbs 25.8g Protein

Ingredients

120g spaghetti, dried

30g garden peas, frozen

4 rashers of back bacon (smoked or unsmoked, fat removed and diced into 1cm chunks)

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

3 egg yolks

40g parmesan, grated

50g lightest cream cheese

Handful of basil/parsley, finely chopped

Method

Pop a large pan of boiling water on a high heat and add 1 tsp of salt.

Take a small bowl and add the egg yolks. Whisk and then add the parmesan and cream cheese.  Season with black pepper and then whisk again until you have a smooth mixture.

Next pop the pasta in the pan to cook and add the peas for the last 2-3 minutes.

Whilst the pasta and peas are cooking, spray a frying pan with 1kal and once hot, add the bacon. Fry the bacon for a few minutes and once it’s starting to crisp up, add the garlic (with a little splash of water if the pan is getting a little dry). Fry for another few minutes until the garlic softens and then reduce the heat to low.

Once the pasta is cooked, lift it out the water with tongs (rather than draining it) and pop it straight into the pan with the bacon. Use a slotted spoon to lift out any remaining peas and pop them into the bacon pan too. You want a little bit of the pasta water to splash in to the bacon pan to help the sauce stick to the pasta. Stir to combine and then switch off the heat. Next, pour the sauce mixture into the spaghetti/bacon pan with everything else and stir together with the pasta quickly so the sauce becomes nice and smooth (if it’s on the heat, the eggs could scramble so make sure its off!!) If the sauce is still a little thick, you can add an extra splash of the pasta water to loosen it up.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Finish with a sprinkle of basil/parsley and a little extra parmesan if you fancy.

Enjoy!

Print

Spaghetti Carbonara

Nutritional Information

Serves 2 - Per Serving

11sp on BLUE, 15sp on GREEN and 6sp on PURPLE (when made with wholewheat pasta)

Calories - 322

Fat - 14.1g

Carbs - 27.4g

Protein - 25.8g

Course Main Course, Pasta, Starter

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Calories 322kcal

Ingredients

• 120 g spaghetti dried
• 30 g garden peas frozen
• 4 rashers of back bacon smoked or unsmoked, fat removed and diced into 1cm chunks
• 3 cloves of garlic peeled and finely chopped
• 3 egg yolks
• 40 g parmesan grated
• 50 g lightest cream cheese
• Handful of basil/parsley finely chopped

Instructions

• Pop a large pan of boiling water on a high heat and add 1 tsp of salt.
• Take a small bowl and add the egg yolks. Whisk and then add the parmesan and cream cheese. Season with black pepper and then whisk again until you have a smooth sauce..
• Next pop the pasta in the pan to cook and add the peas for the last 2-3 minutes of the pasta cooking time.
• Whilst the pasta and peas are cooking, spray a frying pan with 1kal and once hot, add the bacon. Fry the bacon for a few minutes and once it’s starting to crisp up, add the garlic (with a little splash of water if the pan is getting a little dry). Fry for another few minutes until the garlic softens and then reduce the heat to low.
• Once the pasta is cooked, lift it out the water with tongs (rather than draining it) and pop it straight into the pan with the bacon. Use a slotted spoon to lift out any remaining peas and pop them into the bacon pan too. You want a little bit of the pasta water to splash in to the bacon pan to help the sauce stick to the pasta. Stir to combine and then switch off the heat.
• Next, pour the sauce mixture into the spaghetti/bacon pan with everything else and stir together with the pasta quickly so the sauce becomes nice and smooth (if it's on the heat, the eggs could scramble so make sure its off!!) If the sauce is still a little thick, you can add an extra splash of the pasta water to loosen it up.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste. Finish with a sprinkle of basil/parsley and a little extra parmesan if you fancy.
• Enjoy!

The post Spaghetti Carbonara first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

I decided to make a nice homemade pesto to go with this and included peas to both up the flavour and lower the points (you don’t need to use as much cheese to get a lovely depth of flavour). The pesto recipe as listed below is enough to serve 4 people. If you are only making this for two (like me) you can just pop half of the pesto in a sealed pot in the fridge to be used at a later date.

Salmon and Pea Pesto Pasta

Serves 2 = 9sp per person (Flex)

Ingredients

For the pesto- the pesto recipe below is enough to serve 4. Pop half in the fridge to be used at a later date. The pesto itself is 2sp per person.

100g peas, frozen (and thawed) or fresh

28g pack of basil

Juice of 1 lemon

20g toasted pine nuts (or normal pine nuts, toasted in a frying pan)

20g parmesan, grated

2 garlic cloves, peeled

100ml water

For the pasta (serves 2 = 7sp per person)

4 tbsp low fat crème fraiche (I used Tesco’s Healthy Living)

Handful of tender stem broccoli

Handful of spinach, shredded

2 x wild Alaskan salmon fillets (110g each)

Salt, Pepper and Crushed Chillies (to taste)

1 lemon, quartered

120g pasta of your choice, dried (I used fusilli)

Method

Put the pasta on to boill and pre heat the grill. When the pasta has 5 minutes left, add the broccoli and then, once cooked, drain everything and return to the same pan.

Meanwhile, pop all the pesto ingredients in a food processor and blitz until smooth. This will make enough pesto for 4 servings so pop half in a pot and keep it in the fridge for another meal. Keep the other half to one side.

Add the remaining pesto to the cooked pasta and broccoli along with the crème fraiche. Pop on a low heat to warm the crème fraiche through (this should just take a few minutes). Season to taste.

Pop the salmon on a baking tray, squeeze over a little lemon, season with salt and pepper and add a few crushed chillies. Pop under a hot grill for 6 minutes until cooked through (or to your liking).

Finally add a handful of shredded spinach to the pasta pan. Once wilted, taste for seasoning, add a few crushed chillies and a final squeeze of lemon and serve in a pasta bowl with the salmon on top.

You could shred the salmon and mix through the pasta but I like it left whole.

Enjoy!

The post Salmon and Pea Pesto Pasta -9sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

The result was fantastic. The sauce tastes so creamy and indulgent and is packed with the most vibrant flavours. You can add anything else you fancy to this to bulk it out ( courgette ribbons, peppers etc) but I like the sauce a little smoother so just went with the recipe below.

If you would like to reduce the points further you can swap the mascarpone for extra light soft cheese. For an extra few points though, the lovely creaminess and flavour of the mascarpone is really special.

POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 2 – per serving = 13 points or 508 cals, 16.9g fat, 44.0g carbs, 47.1g protein

Ingredients

300g raw chicken breast, cut into strips

½ large onion, finely sliced

40g sun dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

Sprinkle of chilli flakes

1/2 tsp plain flour

½ chicken stock cube made up with 250ml boiling water

1 tsp dried oregano

75g lighter mascarpone

100g dried pasta of your choice (I like spaghetti)

1 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

10g each of fresh basil and spinach, finely chopped

1 lemon

Low calorie cooking spray

Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and add the chicken.
2. Season with salt and pepper and fry for 6–7 minutes until cooked through. Remove from the pan and pop to one side.
3. In the same pan, spray again with low-calorie cooking spray, add the onion and fry for a few minutes, adding a little water if the pan gets dry. Next, add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic and chilli flakes and fry for another 2 minutes.
4. Add the flour, stir in for a minute, and then add a quarter of the stock. Once the stock starts to thicken, add the chicken back into the pan and keep adding the stock bit by bit until you’ve used it all and the stock thickens up nicely. Add the oregano and mascarpone and reduce the pan to a low simmer.
5. At this point, pop the pasta on to cook. Once the pasta has cooked, drain, reserving a little of the cooking water.
6. Finally, add the Parmesan, most of the fresh basil, the spinach and the juice of half the lemon to the sauce, then mix and simmer for another minute to combine. You want the sauce to be thick but loose enough to coat the pasta. If it’s a little too thick, add a bit of the reserved pasta water to loosen up.
7. Finally, mix the pasta into the sauce, combine everything well and serve with a wedge of lemon and a little basil on top.

The post Sundried Tomato, Chicken and Mascarpone Pasta first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

Ingredients

Serves 4 =5sp (previously 5pp) per person

500g Extra Lean Mince

1 vegetable or beef stock cube

2 onions, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 x pepper, deseeded and chopped

2 x carrots, peeled and chopped

2 x sticks of celery, washed and chopped

1 chilli, deseeded and chopped (optional)

1 box of mushrooms chopped

Dash of Tobasco sauce

½ tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

Half a tablespoon of oregano, basil and marjoram

2 heaped teaspoons of beef gravy granules

1 tablespoon of tomato puree

Grating of nutmeg

Sprinkle of sugar

A few bay leaves

A few fresh basil leaves

Method

Pop your mince in large pan and begin to brown. Make up your stock (I used 1 veg stock cube and 1 tomato tin of water) and put a little in with the mince to stop it sticking to the pan. When half browned, add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and once they are nice and soft add the pepper, mushrooms and chilli. Then add your chopped tomatoes and most of your stock so it covers the mince. Add the rest of your ingredients and give a good stir and leave to simmer while you are cooking your spaghetti. Pop your basil leaves in two minutes before your spaghetti is cooked!

I usually do 40g of Spaghetti with this for 4sp and then have 20g of half fat cheese on top at the end (an extra 2sp). It makes it a really filling and tasty meal for only 11sp in total!

Enjoy!

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