Need inspiration

[coccinelle]

I need a a low fat main meal for this weekend. I do this every weekend and I'm running out of ideas especially that most are chicken... PLEASE not chicken again.... I've done lowfat lasagnes and bolognaises too. Any ideas?

[hippyhoppy]

dust? - sorry not at all helpful!.. I lost weight when the ******* husband left me.. I'm now a size 8 so I'd recommend that route!! and you don't need to iron again!! good luck!

[mumof3angels]

What about a stirfry. Just bung in a load of veg-beansprouts,mangtout,baby corn,green beans,water chestnuts,carrots,mushroom,onions add some meat if you want-strips of steak or (dare I say) chicken.There are loads of low fat stir fry sauces around I use blue dragon ones- I think the hoi sin and garlic is quite low in fat. Serve with rice or noodles.

[pinktwink]

baked fish and veg. You could have samlon, tuns , seabass, monkfish etc. Add a ratatouile sauce.

have you tried stir fry tofu with plenty of veg.

vegetable curry basmati rice

fishcakes and salad

spanish omelette and veg

turkey mince use for burgers bolognese etc

turkey breasts, boiled spuds and steamed veg

[tamborine]

Try boiled prawns with rice & chilli. Fresh coriander or parsley.

Greek yogurt & chopped pineapple.

[LucyThomas6]

I can't be specific but try something with fresh fish. White fish is very good for you and very low in fat.

[ethandron]

ooh coccinelle, i have two lovely one-pot recipes which would fit the bill for you - except they're both based around chicken!! we too seem to eat a lot of it, but i have to say we don't get fed up with either of these.
one is delia smiths chicken basque (you can google it to find out the recipe and i reckon you could substitute lean pork or turkey if you really didn't fancy chicken again).
the other includes chickpeas, onions, garlic, tomatoes and chillie sauce or flakes, along with chicken. again, i reckon you could substitute a different meat or even tuna.
i'm doing the delia one on friday for some friends as i can do most of it in advance and i won't be stuck in the kitchen while everyone else is chatting and drinking elsewhere!
if you have any simple, healthy desserts i'd be glad to hear about them, i'm a bit stuck.....

[heathfield]

I've stopped using butchers mince for chilli-con-carne, and instead use chopped up rump steak with any bits of fat trimmed off. It's amazing the difference. Tastes great, and virtually fat-free.

[coccinelle]

Thanks everyone for all the great ideas. I usually have fish during the week but why not on a weekend? heathfield; I think I'll give the chilli con carne a bash this week and try chopped chump steak for a change. Stir-frys aren't things I do but will give them a go too. Thank you.
ethandron; those are the kind of things I do all ready as I love one pot cooking, here's a couple of healthy easy recipes that my (many) guests love.

Prunes in orange juice
Ingredients:
 1 cup orange juice, preferably fresh squeezed
 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
 1 tsp grated or minced lemon zest
 � cup honey
 � tsp cinnamon
 � cup chopped walnuts
 24 pitted prunes
Directions:
1. Combine orange and lemon juice, lemon zest, cinnamon, and honey in a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a simmer on high heat and add prunes.
2. Turn the heat as low as possible and cover. Simmer gently for only about 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them so prunes don't get soggy. Add chopped walnuts and cook for another couple minutes.
3. Remove prunes with a slotted spoon and turn the heat to medium-high; reduce the liquid to about half. Pour the syrup over the prunes and chill or serve warm.
These are lovely with ice-cream.

OR even simpler:
Cut a banana per person in 2 lengthwise and put into a dish where they fit so not too big. Sprinkle on some rum or brandy and leave to soak about an hour. Put 2 slices of bananas in a piece of foil add some raisins and close the foil packet. Either bake these in the oven or pop on the barbecue during the meal they only need 20 minutes. Even people who don't like bananas love them!! Only problem people ask for seconds!!

[ethandron]

thanks for those coccinelle - like your name by the way, just looked it up to see what it means :) have been to asda in the meantime and bought the necessary for a fresh fruit brulee as i already have a huge bag of ratafia biscuits which need using up. not very healthy but very delicious.
have been browsing through delia's summer collection and found pasta puttanesca (tarts spaghetti) which i've done in the past and which is very tasty as it has anchovies, capers and chilli in it, and NO chicken! or what about pork saltimbocca, or lambs liver with melted onions and marsala - both are really tasty and relatively low fat?
hope you find something which appeals.

[coccinelle]

Thank you for those ethandron, I'll be giving them a try. This weekend I've gone for FISH!