Before you start making the sauce, decide which accompaniment you fancy. I’ve made this with several options but my favourites are roast potatoes, pan fried new potatoes (boil potatoes til soft, smash a little and then crisp up in a frying pan) or rice. I usually serve with green beans (boiled for a few minutes and then finished in a 1sp of light butter, lemon juice and salt and pepper) or asparagus. All make for a lovely dish that feels like a real indulgence. Just remember to add the extra points for whichever accompaniment you prefer (I usually have 6sps worth of potatoes or rice).

SMART POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 4 – 3sp on BLUE and PUPLE, 5sp on GREEN for the chicken in tarragon sauce

Per serving – 330 calories, Fat 5.1g, Carbs 10.4g, Protein 64.8g

INGREDIENTS

4 x chicken breasts (around 200g raw weight per breast)

1 large leek, washed, woody end removed and sliced into thin rounds

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

300g chestnut mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

1 heaped tbsp of plain flour

125ml white wine

2 tsp Dijon mustard

500ml chicken stock (made of 1 chicken stock cube)

4 tbsp light crème fraiche

Few sprigs of fresh tarragon (one left whole and 2 chopped finely)

METHOD

Note – Before you start cooking this one, have a read of the short blurb above so you can choose your accompaniment and pop it on at the right time whilst cooking the sauce.

1. Season the chicken breasts with salt and black pepper. Take a large saucepan or frying pan, spray with 1kal and on a medium/high heat fry the chicken breasts for 2-3 minutes on each side until browned. The chicken doesn’t need to be cooked through at this point, you just want some colour on the meat. Remove the chicken from the pan and pop to one side.
2. In the same pan, spray again with 1kal and add the leek. Season with salt and black pepper and fry for 3-4 minutes until the leek starts to soften. Add a little water if the pan starts to get dry.
3. Add the garlic and mushrooms and fry for 2 minutes.
4. Finally add the plain flour, stir through and fry for another minute.
5. Next add the white wine, simmer for a few minutes until reduced by half and then add the chicken stock, the mustard and the whole sprig of tarragon. Add the chicken back to the pan. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer.
6. Simmer for 20 minutes until the liquid is reduced slightly and has started to thicken.
7. Reduce the heat to low/medium and then add the crème fraiche. Stir through until well combined, simmer for another few minutes and then remove from the heat.
8. Finally stir through the fresh tarragon. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if required.
9. Serve with the accompaniment of your choice.
10. Enjoy!

Print

Creamy Tarragon Chicken

WW - 3sp on BLUE and PUPLE, 5sp on GREEN for the chicken in tarragon sauce

Calories per serving – 330 calories, Fat 5.1g, Carbs 10.4g, Protein 64.8g

Servings 2

Ingredients

• 4 x chicken breasts around 200g raw weight per breast
• 1 large leek washed, woody end removed and sliced into thin rounds
• 3 cloves of garlic peeled and finely chopped
• 300 g chestnut mushrooms cleaned and sliced
• 1 heaped tbsp of plain flour
• 125 ml white wine
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 500 ml chicken stock made of 1 chicken stock cube
• 4 tbsp light crème fraiche
• Few sprigs of fresh tarragon one left whole and 2 chopped finely

Instructions

• Note - Before you start cooking this one, have a read of the short blurb above so you can choose your accompaniment and pop it on at the right time whilst cooking the sauce.
• Season the chicken breasts with salt and black pepper. Take a large saucepan or frying pan, spray with 1kal and on a medium/high heat fry the chicken breasts for 2-3 minutes on each side until browned. The chicken doesn’t need to be cooked through at this point, you just want some colour on the meat. Remove the chicken from the pan and pop to one side.
• In the same pan, spray again with 1kal and add the leek. Season with salt and black pepper and fry for 3-4 minutes until the leek starts to soften. Add a little water if the pan starts to get dry.
• Add the garlic and mushrooms and fry for 2 minutes.
• Finally add the plain flour, stir through and fry for another minute.
• Next add the white wine, simmer for a few minutes until reduced by half and then add the chicken stock, the mustard and the whole sprig of tarragon. Add the chicken back to the pan. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer.
• Simmer for 20 minutes until the liquid is reduced slightly and has started to thicken.
• Reduce the heat to low/medium and then add the crème fraiche. Stir through until well combined, simmer for another few minutes and then remove from the heat.
• Finally stir through the fresh tarragon. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if required.
• Serve with the accompaniment of your choice.
• Enjoy!

The post Creamy Tarragon Chicken first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

You can also add chicken breast to the recipe below without adding any extra smartpoints but this changes the method of cooking the skewers. Instead of grilling them, as set out in the method below, pre heat your oven to 180c, spray with 1kal, season and cook on a baking tray for 30-35 minutes (until the chicken is cooked through).

Souvlaki Style Chorizo and Halloumi Kebabs

Serves 2 = 11sp per serving

Ingredients

50g chorizo, sliced into 8 rounds

100g light halloumi sliced into 8 chunks

2 peppers, deseeded and sliced into chunks

1 large red onion (or 2 small), peeled, top and bottom cut off and quartered

Handful of cherry tomatoes (optional)

Juice of 1 lemon

½ tsp each of paprika and oregano

1 tsp honey

Salt and pepper

250g new potatoes (should be around 6 new potatoes, 3 each)

Large lettuce (of your choice) to be used as ‘wraps’ – I’ve used romaine, iceberg and Chinese

Method

Pre heat the oven to 180c.

To begin, place 4 skewers in clean sink with cold water and soak for half an hour (this will prevent the skewers burning when you cook the kebabs).

Next prepare the new potatoes. Take each potato in turn, pop onto a wooden spoon and starting at one side cut across their width at small intervals to create the ‘hassleback’ effect. The spoon will stop you cutting all the way through the potato.  Pop onto a baking tray, spray with 1kal and sprinkle over a pinch of oregano, paprika, salt and pepper. Pop into the oven for 40-50 minutes until golden and cooked through.

Whilst the potatoes are cooking you can assemble the kebabs. To each skewer add a piece of pepper, chorizo, red onion, halloumi, tomato (if using) and then repeat. Finish the skewer with a final piece of pepper and red onion.  You can either pop the skewers in the oven for 10-15 minutes (to cook with the potatoes) or pop under a hot grill for 10 minutes (turning regularly) until the halloumi starts to turn a lovely golden colour.

Mix the juice of 1 lemon with ½ tsp paprika and ½ tsp oregano, along with 1 tsp honey and salt and pepper.

Add two washed large lettuce leaves to each plate. Remove the skewers from the oven and pop onto your plates on top of the lettuce leaves (you should have two skewers per person). Drizzle over the honey lemon dressing.

Finally pop the potatoes onto the plate.

Enjoy!

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A Taquito is simply a rolled up, stuffed tortilla. Usually fried, these lovely creations are rolled tighter and so are thinner than an enchilada, and the top is not covered in sauce in the same way an enchilada would be.

When thinking about what to fill my Taquitos with, I thought I would get my other favourite find of the Mexico trip involved, Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce. I first tried this over there on chicken wings and many of you may have seen it used in my Buffalo Chicken Soup recipe. It really is the most delightful flavour. Spicy and tangy, it makes for a real taste sensation when added to chicken.

The filling I’ve created below is truly delicious. Tangy, a little cheesy and stuff with veggies, this is a dish that will keep you full for hours. I served mine with BNS chips (0sp) however I was so full from two Taquito’s that I probably wouldn’t bother with them next time (or I would have one Taquito with the chips).

I’ve used Sainsbury’s Be Good to Yourself Blue Cheese Dressing in this recipe (instead of the more points heavy crumbled Blue Cheese). If you can’t get a hold of it, or find a light equivalent somewhere else, just leave it out. The other flavours in the dish will more than make up for it.

Buffalo Chicken Taquitos

Makes 8 Taquitos – serves 4 (2 taquitos per person) – 12sp per serving (including salad and soured cream to finish)(Flex)

Ingredients

For the filling 

400g roast chicken, white breast meat, shredded

100g lightest cream cheese

4 tbsp Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce

2 tbsp Sainsbury’s Be Good to Yourself Blue Cheese Dressing (or other supermarket light equivalent)

Juice of 1/2 lime

100g sweetcorn (drained)

4 x spring onions, finely sliced

Half a bag of spinach, shredded

Large handful of fresh coriander, chopped

For the Taquito

8 x Weight Watchers Tortillas (these are 4sp each so if you can’t find these, any other 4sp equivalent will do, Tesco’s and Sainsbury’s are also 4sp).

For the salad – serves 4 = 0sp per person

¼ iceberg lettuce, shredded

Large handful of spinach, shredded

2 spring onions, sliced

1 tbsp sweetcorn

Juice of 1/2 lime

2 tbsp Sainsbury’s Be Good to Youself Blue Cheese Dressing (or other supermarket light equivalent)

To Serve

Drizzle of Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Sauce

4 tbsp light soured cream (1sp per person)

1 x tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Method

Pre heat the oven to 180c.

Take a large bowl and add the cream cheese, buffalo sauce, blue cheese dressing and lime juice. Whisk together until smooth and then season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the rest of the filling ingredients and fold everything together. Taste again and check/adjust the seasoning.

Take a large baking dish and spray with low cal cooking spray. Divide the mixture roughly into 8 in the bowl and then, one tortilla at a time, add the filling and roll longways so that they are nice and tight and relatively thin. Pop into the baking dish and repeat with the other 7 tortillas. Spray the top of the wraps with low cal cooking spray and then pop in the oven for 20-30 minutes (until the wraps have started to brown on top).

While the Taquitos are cooking you can also roast some butternut squash chips (pop these in 10-15 minutes before the Taquitos) if you fancy them.

I also served with a side salad which included iceberg lettuce, shredded spinach, a couple of chopped spring onions and a tablespoon of sweetcorn tossed in a tbsp. of the blue cheese dressing ( the same one used in the main recipe) and some lime juice.

Once cooked, remove the Taquito’s from the oven and finish with a drizzle of Buffalo Sauce, light soured cream and fresh coriander.

Serve with the salad and BNS if you are having them alongside a tbsp. lightest soured cream per person.

Enjoy!

The post Buffalo Chicken Taquitos – 12sp 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.

Ingredients

Serves 2 = 12sp (previously 11pp) per person

100g Fusilli Pasta

225g Bag of Spinach

3 Garlic Cloves, peeled

150g Ricotta

Juice of a lemon

30g grated parmesan

1/2 tsp crushed chillies

Good pinch of salt (up to 1/4 tsp to taste)

Small grating of nutmeg

2 slices of lean smoked back bacon, fat removed and chopped

Box of Mushrooms, sliced

1 courgette, peeled into strips using potato peeler

Method

Put the fusilli on to cook in a pan of salted boiling water. Meanwhile take a frying pan and fry the bacon in 1KAL until nearly crispy. Add the mushrooms to the frying pan and cover in half of the crushed chillies. Cook until soft in 1KAL.

In a blender add the peeled whole garlic cloves, ricotta, spinach (you may need to add this in batches), juice of the lemon, grated parmesan, nutmeg and the rest of the crushed chillies. Season to taste with plenty of salt and pepper. Blitz in the blender until a smooth sauce is formed. I usually add some of the pasta water to make the sauce a little looser.

Drain the cooked pasta in colander and return to the empty pan. Pour the sauce over pasta and mix and warm through on hob. Reserve 1 tbsp of the bacon and mushrooms and then add the rest to the sauce pan and stir until warm. Stir through the courgette, let soften a little and then serve in large pasta bowls and top with the remaining bacon and mushrooms.

Enjoy!

The post Gorgeous Green Fusilli with Bacon first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 4 – per serving = 8 points or 525 cals, 14.3g fat, 65.5g carbs, 37.1g protein

Ingredients

500g extra lean mince (5% fat)

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 red chilli, finely chopped (can be left out if you don’t like it hot)

2 peppers, deseeded and diced

250g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

2 tbsp tomato puree

1-2 tsp hot chilli powder (I use 2, use less if you don’t like it too spicy!)

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tablespoon beef gravy granules

Dash of Worcestershire sauce

400g box of passata

Dash of Tabasco

400g tin of kidney beans in water, drained

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp sugar

200g long grain rice

15g fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Low calorie cooking spray

Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Take a large saucepan, spray with low-calorie cooking spray and then fry the mince for 5 minutes until it starts to colour.
2. Add the onion and fry for another 5 minutes until it starts to soften. Add the garlic and continue cooking until the mince is cooked through, then add the chilli, peppers and mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms are soft.
3. Add the tomato purée, fry for a minute, then add the chilli powder, cumin and coriander and fry for a further 1–2 minutes. Add the beef gravy granules and a dash of Worcestershire sauce, stir in for a minute, and then add the passata, a dash of Tabasco sauce, the kidney beans, paprika, cayenne pepper and sugar. Season well with salt and pepper and reduce to a simmer.
4. At this point, pop your rice on to cook. I like the chilli to simmer for at least 20 minutes, so putting the rice on to cook now gives it the perfect window.5
5. Just before you serve the chilli, turn off the heat and stir through the coriander.
6. Once the rice is cooked, serve in nice big bowls topped with the chilli and the accompaniments of your choice.

The post Chilli Con Carne first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

Tip – If you have this in the evening, any leftovers can be frozen for another day (just freeze it before you add the sour cream). I usually have the casserole by itself, but you could make some mash or roasties to go with it, or even pop some par-boiled new potatoes into the casserole. I’ve
served it with green beans and a slice of crusty bread in the past too. Amend the calories to account for any changes/additions.

POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 4 – per serving = 6 points or 292 cals, 4.7g fat, 27.8g carbs, 34.4g protein

Ingredients

8 x low fat pork sausages (I use Aldi Skinny Pork Sausages 3% fat)

4 x bacon medallions, diced

1 white onion, sliced

250g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp hot chilli powder

1/2 tbsp plain flour

Pinch chilli flakes (optional)

400g tin of chopped tomatoes

1 chicken stock cube made up with 300ml boiling water

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

1 tbsp dark brown muscovado sugar

1 tsp mixed herbs

2 bay leaves

3 sprigs of fresh thyme

400g tin of butter beans, drained

1 tbsp half fat soured cream

Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan).
2. Use a pan that can go both on the hob and in the oven. Put on to a medium/high heat, spray with low-calorie cooking spray and brown the sausages for 5 minutes until they start to colour. Take the sausages out of the pan and pop to one side. Add the diced bacon into the same pan, spray again with low-calorie cooking spray and fry to your liking –I like it crispy on the edges.
3. Add the onion to the bacon and fry for another 4–5 minutes until the onion starts to soften , adding a little water if the pan gets dry. Next, add the mushrooms, fry for a few minutes, and then add the garlic. Cook for a further minute. Add the smoked paprika, chilli powder, flour and a few chilli flakes, if you are having them, to the pan and mix in.
4. Stir in the tomatoes, chicken stock, tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, herbs and butter beans and mix. Add 100ml water and then add the sausages back to the pan. Bring to a simmer on the hob. Add the lid and then pop in the oven for 20 minutes.
5. Once cooked, remove the stew from the oven, season to taste and stir through the sour cream. Remove the bay leaves from the pan before serving.

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