Some years ago pasta and rice helped me to lose a lot of weight in a Weight Watchers context and even to maintain the weight loss afterwards; but I had eaten too much of them so now I eat them more scarcely. Nonetheless, pasta and rice are still an important comfort food that when combined with low fat sauce can make wonders.
In the family of starchy food we also find leguminous (eg. lentils, beans, chick-peas etc), this type of food is a part of my tradition as Greek and is pushed by Weight Watchers because it is healthy and satiating! In Greece, we often make soups out of them, but I discovered other recipes that valorize them and that I share with you. Try them and you will see the difference :)
And now you will ask, how on earth QUICHES can be good for dieting? The secret resides with the quantity we eat and the quantity of cream and cheese we are using to make them. Manage cream and cheese are the only solution to make light quiches because as we all know crust (brisée or feuilleté) has butter in it (or other type of fat) and I have not yet managed to diminish its quantity enough to make a good one :) But then again, I have not really tried! Maybe I will do it in the future, I will keep you posted.
Lentils the Greek way (fakès)
Lentils the Greek way are cooked as a soup or as a dish and they are made with tomato puree, onion and garlic and they have some bay leaf for extra flavor! You serve it with some red wine vinegar or Xérès vinegar and it’s really good! They are different from the lentils as we eat them in France and this recipe has better taste! But the lentils themselves are better in France than those in Greece and they cook faster! Give them a try and let me know!
Risotto with leeks the Greek way (prassorizo)
This is a very flavorful risotto thanks to dill that perfumes the dish in an extraordinary manner! Leaks go very well with onion and dill and the risotto is easy to make and rather quick for this quantity!
Risotto with shrimps
This is a fine risotto that is easy to make and you can use fresh shrimps or frozen! It’s good either way! It has some onion and of course garlic and some red peppers! To season, we use either some “pili-pili” peppers or some French Espelette pepper but if you don’t find either you can use some chili powder or some Cayenne pepper! It’s cooked into white wine for more flavor and you do not need to be on top of the casserole to observe the cooking! It’s easy, very good and quick!
Red Lentils Soup (Velouté) with Cumin and Tomato
This is a fine lentils velouté and cumin goes very well with red lentils! The tomato sauce and carrots help the soup to be more gentle and the overall result is rather comforting and nice! All ingredients are well proportioned and it’s a nice alternative for a light lunch or dinner that keeps you warm and brings comfort!
Potatoes in pan with Thyme and Garlic
These potatoes are made easily in a pan and they are so aromatic thanks to thyme, garlic and bay leaf that you will not believe it! And they are prepared so rapidly that you will not have to wait for ages to eat!
Tomato Sauce with Smoked Bacon and Peppers
This tomato sauce with smoked bacon and peppers (red or green) is very tasteful because all ingredients along with onion and garlic go very well together! It’s also made quite quickly and will coat your pasta in a marvelous manner!
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