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!

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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!

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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!

The post Souvlaki Style Chorizo and Halloumi Kebabs – 11sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

This recipe is the perfect January recipe to get you kick started for the new year. It has the lovely comforting warmness that any winter dish needs, but the crab, chorizo and chilli combo bring a lovely fresh and vibrant flavour to the dish. Using orzo instead of risotto brings the cooking time right down so it can be made much more quickly if you are in a rush. If you can’t get a hold of fresh crab meat, tinned crab meat will work just as well. Most supermarkets have samphire these days and for such an easy ingredient to cook, it brings a lovely fresh crunch to the dish. If you can’t get a hold of any samphire I would add a handle of frozen garden peas to the dish ten minutes before it’s finished so that it keeps a nice green burst.

Crab, Chorizo and Chilli Orzo with Samphire

Serves 2 = 11sp each

Ingredients

1 x white onion, peeled and finely diced

2 x garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced

1 x red chilli, finely chopped (and deseeded if you don’t like it too hot)

40g chorizo, peeled and sliced into half moons

1 tbsp tomato puree

125ml white wine

120g orzo, dried

½ litre vegetable stock (made with 1 vegetable stock cube)

125g cooked white crab meat

Large handful of parsley, finely chopped

Juice of 1 lemon

Small pack of samphire

1 tsp lurpack lightest

Method

1. Take a large saucepan and pop onto a medium heat. Spray with 1kal and add the onions. Fry for 4-5 minutes until the onions start to soften (add a little water if the pan gets dry).

2. Add the garlic, chilli and chorizo and fry for another minute until the oil from the chorizo starts to release. Then add the tomato puree, fry for another minute and then add the wine.

3. Simmer the wine for a few minutes until the wine reduces and then add the orzo, stirring in.

4. Add half the stock so that it covers the orzo turning down to simmer.

5. Keep adding the stock until the orzo is cooked (it usually takes 12-15 minutes). Once the orzo is cooked and the stock is absorbed, add the crab meat and season to taste. Toss the crab meat through the orzo until it is warm.

6. Add the parsley and juice of 1 lemon and then take off the heat. Leave to rest for a minute while you cook the samphire.

7. Boil the samphire in another pan for 2-3 minutes. Drain and pop back into the same pan with the butter. Let the butter melt with the heat of the pan and toss through the samphire.

8. Serve the orzo in a bowl topped with the samphire.

9. Enjoy!

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The result was this recipe which I have to say hit the spot. The coconut milk adds a lovely creamy flavour whilst the thyme adds just that hint of herbiness. If you can’t get a hold of the fresh thyme, feel free to leave this out. Just add a little extra fresh coriander at the end!

Spiced Butternut Squash and Coconut Soup  – 4sp

Makes 4 portions = 4sp per portion (Flex)

Ingredients

1 large butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and chopped into rough medium sized cubes

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

Handful of fresh thyme leaves, roughly chopped (optional)

1 tbsp curry powder

½ tsp turmeric

1 vegetable stock cube (made up with 800ml boiling water)

1 x 400ml tin lighter coconut milk

Sprinkle of crushed chillies

Handful of fresh coriander

4 tbsp light greek yohurt

Method

Take a large saucepan, spray with 1kal and add the onion. Fry for 4-5 minutes until its starts to soften (add a little water to stop the pan getting dry). Then add the garlic, ginger, fresh thyme leaves, curry powder and turmeric and fry for another 3-4 minutes until the onions are totally softened.

Next add the vegetable stock, bring to a boil and then simmer for around 20 minutes (or until the squash is totally softened). Remove from the heat and pop into a food processor or blitz with a stick blender.  Once smooth, add back to the pan and add the coconut milk, stir and again bring to a simmer. Season with salt, pepper and crushed chillies to taste.

Serve with a final sprinkle of crushed chillis, sprinkle of fresh coriander and 1 tbsp light yoghurt swirled through per person.

Enjoy!

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