Mozzarella Dippers

It's no secret that I love cheese, and the discovery of deep fried cheese may have had a lot to do with my weight gain! The takeaway at the end of my street does a portion of 8 mozzarella sticks for less than £3 (which in London is a bargain!!) I was really craving some the other day, but I was good and instead of going to the takeaway I walked straight past it and into the shop and purchased a ball of light mozzarella!! I headed home and made my own baked mozzarella dippers and I have to say they were damn tasty!!
 

 
Ingredients:
1 Ball of Light Mozzarella
1 Egg
2 tbsp Flour
3 tbsp Breadcrumbs (I use Hale & Hearty gluten free)
1 tsp Italian Herbs
Pinch of Salt and Pepper.
Spray Oil
 
Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
2. Slice the mozzarella.
3. Whisk the egg in a bowl, put the flour in another bowl and breadcrumbs with italian herbs and seasoning in another.
4. Spray a baking sheet with oil.
5. Dip each slice of mozzarella in the flour, then the egg and then breadcrumbs. Place on the baking sheet.
6. Spray all the dippers with a little oil.
7. Place in the oven and bake for 5-7 minutes. Not too long or the mozzarella leaks out everywhere!
8. Serve with a tablespoon of marinara sauce (I cheated and used light pasta sauce as it was all I had!)

Serves 2 with a propoints value of 8 per serving (propoints calculated using recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)

 

Creamy Sundried Tomato Pasta

I love pasta, especially with creamy sauces. Unfortunately for me my waistline doesnt appreciate them so much! So I have been on the hunt for creamy pasta sauces I can make at home that taste good, but don't cost me all my weekly propoints! This recipe is adapted from an American one I found on the Very Best Baking site, I found it very creamy and satisfying and perfect for a week night meal!
 

 
Ingredients
120g Pasta (I use Doves farm rice pasta)
25g Chopped Sundried Tomatos
140ml Light Evaporated Milk
1/2 tsp Dried Basil
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Black Pepper
50g Grated Half Fat Mozarella
 
Instructions

1. Cook the pasa in salted boiling water.
2. Chop the Sundried Tomatos and combine with the evaporated milk in a saucepan on a medium heat.
3. Add the basil, garlic and seasoning. Simmer.
4. Add the Mozarella and stir until melted into the sauce.
5. Add the cooked pasta and stir into the sauce until all covered. Serve!!

Serves 2 with 9 Propoints per serving (Points calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)

 

Easy Cheesy Mexican Rice

As you might have noticed, I love Mexican food (and cheese!) So any recipe that combines the 2 is always good in my book! This only takes 5 minutes and it's ready, a bonus in my book when I am feeling super lazy or have been working long shifts!
 

 
Ingredients:
1 pouch of Tilda Microwave Brown Basmati Rice (or any other microwaveable rice)
175g of Defrosted Quorn Pieces
4 tbsp Salsa
3 tbsp Low Fat Sour Cream
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Pepper
60g Half Fat Grated Mozarella
 
Instructions:

1. Defrost the quorn.
2. Microwave the rice.
3. Combine salsa, sour cream, seasoning and cheese in a pan and heat gently until cheese is melted into the sauce.
4. Add the quorn and rice and heat through. Serve!

Serves 2 with 10 Propoints per serving (PP values calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)

 

Pasta with Quorn, Cherry Tomatoes, Ricotta and Pesto

I love this quick and easy dish, it contains 2 of my favourite ingredients - Cheese and pasta!! Its a dish that a cook when I have very little time and patience at the end of a busy day!! The recipe is for one serving but you can double up to make 2 or whatever! I used quorn because the boy is veggie, but you could put chicken, turkey, ham or anything in it!! Enjoy.
 

 
Ingredients:
60g Pasta (I use doves farm)
Spray Oil
100g Cherry Tomatoes, Sliced in half
3 tbsp Ricotta Cheese
1 tsp Green Pesto
60g Quorn Roast Style Sliced Fillets

Instructions:

1. Cook the pasta in salted boiling water.
2. Fry the sliced tomato in a little spray oil until soft.
3. Add the quorn, ricotta and pesto and stir.
4. Stir in the pasta until coated in the sauce and serve!

Serves 1 with 11 Propoints per serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)

Broccoli Blue Cheese Bake

I really struggle to eat my vegetables, to be honest I just don't like them!! I can eat fruit all day everyday but veggies... Blergh!! So I am always looking to hide my vegetables in yummy ways! I came across a recipe for this Broccoli Blue Cheese Bake at The Girl Who Ate Everything I adapted it slightly to make it more weight watchers friendly and gluten free, but damn it was tasty!!
 

 
Ingredients:
1 Head of Broccoli
1 tbsp Light Butter (I use Lurpak Lightest)
1 Chopped Clove of Garlic
1 tbsp Gluten Free Flour
200ml Skimmed Milk
40g Blue Cheese (I used Stilton)
2 tbsp Light Cream Cheese
1 Slice of Bread (whizzed up into breadcrumbs)
 
Instructions:

1. Cook the broccoli.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the garlic.
3. Add the flour and milk, mix into a smooth white sauce.
4. Add the cheeses and stir until melted.
5. Put the broccoli in a oven proof dish and cover with the sauce.
6. Top with breadcrumbs and bake for 15 minutes at 200 degrees.

Serves 2 with 6 Propoints per serving (Calculated using the recipe calculator on weightwatchers.co.uk)

 

Super Cheesy Salsa Quorn

This totally satisfies my cheese cravings! It is quick and simple to make AND low in points. I usually have it with vegetables when I have over indulged and eaten a few too many points during the day (like today when I accidentally ate 6 cheese strings and 10 marsh mallows for lunch, I'm not proud!! Haha!)

However you could have it with chips, pasta, tortilla chips, salad or whatever you fancied really!! You could also make it with chicken breasts if your a meat lover, but remember to alter the points values!

 

 

Ingredients:

4 Quorn Fillets

4 Light Laughing Cow Cheese Triangles

1 Jar of Salsa

30g Grated Light Cheddar Cheese (I use the Sainsburys Be Good range)

Instructions:

1. Heat the oven to 200 degrees.
2. Spread a cheese triangle on top of each quorn fillet and place in an oven proof dish.
3. Top with the jar of salsa.
4. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
5. Top with the grated cheese and place back in the oven for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Serves 2 with 6 Propoints per serving (Calculated using the recipe calculator on weight watchers.co.uk)

 

Lasagne

I love lasagne but with it being 1. Made with pasta, so not gluten free and 2. Super high in points a lot of the time. Meant I haven't had it for a long time. So I decided the make a weight watchers friendly version that is gluten free and veggie friendly and this is the result! It tastes amazing and only 7 Propoints! Amazing.

 

 

Ingredients:

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 Chopped Onion

3 Cloves Garlic

1 Grated Carrot

1 Grated Courgette

150g Chopped Mushrooms

500g Passata

200g Chopped Tomato

2 tbsp Tomato Purée

1 Vegetable Stock Cube

300g Quorn Mince

2 tbsp Italian Herbs

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Pepper

235g Free From Lasagne Sheets

650g Cottage Cheese

150g Light Grated Cheddar Cheese or Mozarella

 

Instructions:

1. Pre cook the lasagne sheets in boiling water until tender.
2. Fry the onion and garlic in the olive oil.
3. Add the mushrooms, carrot and courgette. Sweat for a couple of minutes.
4. Add the Passata, chopped tomatoes and purée. Stir.
5. Add the stock cube, Italian herbs and seasoning.
6. Add the quorn mince and stir. Leave to simmer for 10 minutes.
7. Layer the sauce and pasta in an oven proof dish. It usually do sauce, pasta, sauce, pasta, sauce and then pasta.
8. Top the last layer of pasta with the cottage cheese and grated cheddar or Mozarella.
9. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 200.

Serves 6 with 7 Propoints per serving (PP calculated using the recipe calculator on weightswatchers.co.uk)

 

Gluten Free Pizza

The boy will tell you how when we met I was totally pizza obsessed. This was before I was diagnosed as wheat/gluten intolerant. Giving up pizza was sooooo hard, and il be honest I do have the occasional slip up and tuck into a dominos! Today I was really craving pizza, so decided to give making a stuffed crust pizza a try! I had had success with the recipe for the dough previously, so i stuffed the crust with light mozzarella and topped it with pineapple and jalapeños (the boys topping of choice!) and even he happily ate my GF alternative stuffed crust! Success! I have a lot of cheese on my pizza, if you wanted to make this less points you could omit the stuffed crust and just use half the Mozarella. Enjoy!!

 

 

Ingredients:

200g Gluten Free Plain Flour (I use Doves Farm)

1 Sachet of Instant Dried Yeast

1 tsp Sugar

1 Pinch of Salt

125ml of Warm (Not hot!) Water

1/4 jar of Light Pasta Sauce (I use weight watchers or sainsburys light garlic and herb pasta sauce)

125g Light Mozarella

50g Low Fat Cheddar Cheese

 

 

Instructions:

1. Mix the flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a bowl.
2. Add the water and mix together with your hands to make a dough.
3. Roll out the dough onto a floured baking sheet.
4. Now if you want to make a stuffed crust, chop up half the Mozarella and place all around the edge of the pizza about 1/2 inch from the edge. Fold the edge over the Mozarella and squish down using your finger tips.
5. Spread the pasta sauce on the base and top with the remaining chopped Mozarella, your choice of toppings (remember these may be extra propoints!) and then top with the cheddar.
6. Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes at 200 degrees.

 

Serves 4 with 8 propoints per serving ( PP calculated using the recipe calculator on weight watchers.co.uk)

 

Taco Tuesday - Nachos!

I am still Mexican obsessed so Tuesday is still Mexican night in our house. Tonight it was nachos. It's not really a recipe, but it was so tasty I still want to talk about it!! I used quorn mince mixed with taco seasoning and tomatoes, put them on top of 2 bags of weight watchers nacho chips and topped with cheese, sour cream and guacamole. YUMMY!

 

 

This worked out as 14 pro points, but totally worth it!!

 

Blue Cheese Risotto

I am obsessed with risotto at the moment. It is one of my favourite things to make and is super filling for not too many propoints. I really love this blue cheese version and make it at least once a month!

 

Ingredients:

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 Chopped Leek

1 Clove of Garlic

120g Arborio Rice

750 ml Vegetable Stock (I use a knorr stock pot dissolved in water)

1 tsp Italian Herbs

40g Stilton Cheese

 

Instructions:

1. Chop the leek and garlic before gently frying in olive oil.
2. Add the rice and vegetable stock a cup at a time. Once the stock has been absorbed add another cup.
3. When the rice is tender and all the stock has been absorbed add the herbs and cheese and stir until melted.

Serves 2 with 9 Propoints per serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weight watchers.co.uk)

 

Quick Carbonara(ish)

I love spaghetti carbonara. It is a real guilty pleasure, however being gluten free (and the boy is veggie) means I very rarely have it anymore. This is my lightened up version which uses gluten free pasta, turkey and bacon but if you wanted to make it veggie (and less points!) you could use quorn bacon and mushrooms instead.

Ingredients:
Spray oil
1 Garlic Clove
2 Rashers of Chopped Bacon
40g Cooked Turkey Breast
70g Pasta (I use Doves Farm brown rice pasta)
50g Light Soft Cheese
Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook the pasta in salted water.
2. Fry the pasta in spray oil, add the garlic and turkey.
3. Add the soft cheese until melted and seasons.
4. Throw in the pasta, mix and serve!

Serves 1 with 13 Propoints per serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)

 

 

 

 

Swede and Carrot topped Sheperdess Pie

I love this recipe! It is quick and easy to make and really warming on cold nights! Plus it's a low Propoints dinner that is super filling, and putting cheese on top tricks you into thinking it's unhealthy pub grub shepherds pie!!

Ingredients:

1 tsp Olive Oil

1 Chopped Onion

140g Chopped Mushrooms

1 Grated Carrot

150g Quorn Mince

200g Chopped Tomato

1 tbsp Tomato Puree

1 Vegetable Stock Cube (Dissolved in 100ml water)

Salt and Pepper

250g Mashed Carrot and Swede (I cheat and use Aunt Bessie's!)
50g Low Fat Grated Cheddar

Instructions:
1. Heat the olive oil and fry the onion, mushrooms and carrots.
2. Add the quorn mince and tomatoes.
3. Add the stock and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Season and put in the bottom of an oven proof dish.
5. Top with the mashed carrot/swede and grated cheese.
6. Bake for 20 minutes at 180/Gas 4 until the cheese is crispy.
7. Serve and eat! Nomms!

 

Serves 2 with 8 Propoints per serving (PP calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.co.uk)