Gift inspiration - the dieters edition.

Christmas is only a few days away now! This dieters edition of gift inspiration is rather late this year (sooo sorry. I've been really busy). If you do want any of these things, you could buy some of these little gems as last minute/late gifts or buy them for yourself with the Christmas money you receive this year. Some of these things are online only, but a few will be available in stores too! There's something to suit all budgets. :)

Gifts £10 or less:

1. Lunch Bunch Strawberry Snack Boxes - £7.00, Paperchase. 2. One Body Multi-functional Pedometer - £6.00, Tesco Direct. 3. Shabby Chic Fleur Measuring Cups - £6.00, House of Fraser. 4. Me To You White Bear Polka Dot Flask - £3.00, New Look. 5. Funny Calories Dictionary Quote Mug - £6.99, Amazon. 6. Blue Magnetic Notepad with Pencil (Shopping List) - £3.85, White Shore.

Gifts £25 or less:

1. The Hairy Dieters: How to Love Food and Lose Weight (Paperback) - £11.99, Waterstones. 2. Dumbbell Alarm Clock - £16.90, Amazon. 3. Moleskin Recipe Journal - £16.99, Paperchase. 4. Graze Gift Voucher, 5 Boxes - £17.45, Graze.  5. Woman's Health Magazine Subscription (12 month) - £12.00, iSubscribe. 6. Men's Health Magazine Subscription (12 month) - £23.00, iSubscribe.

Gifts £50 or less:

1. Typhoon Novo Mechanical Scale - Teal - £40.00, Lakeland. 2. Crock Pot SCCPRC507CB-060 Digital Slow Cooker, Black - £39.95, John Lewis. 3. Kenwood HM792 kMix Hand Mixer - Almond Cream - £49.99, Currys. 4. Nike Womens Flex Experience Running Shoes - Club Pink/Blue - £49.99, Tennis Nuts. 5. Joseph Joseph Index Advance Chopping Boards - £45.99, Lakeland. 6. Asics Mens GT-1000 Running Shoes - Blue/White/Neon-Yellow - £49.99, Tennis Nuts.

Gifts £50+:

1. Morphy Richards 48822 1000 Watt 16-Litre Soup Maker - Brushed Stainless Steel - £64.00, Littlewoods. 2. Confidence Fitness Magnetic Manual Treadmill Running Machine - £79.99, Amazon. 3. LA Fitness Gym Membership (12 month) - from £35.00 per month (from £420 per year), LA Fitness. 4. Vibram Fivefingers Seeya Men's Running Shoe - £107.99, Millet Sports.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! :)

My home-grown red onions.

This year I decided to do a spot of gardening. I'm not known for being that good at gardening - I struggle to keep ANY plants alive in my house.. And I have also never grown my own vegetables before. But after receiving some free red onion seeds in the post, I thought I'd give it a go.

Firstly, I planted my seeds into little trays and left them in the greenhouse to grow into seedlings. It was strange because I checked daily with no progress, but then suddenly - like over night - all of them popped up! I felt so proud that I actually managed to successfully grow something from scratch!

Then, once all the seedlings had popped up, they were ready for re-potting. I came up with the issue that I had no land that I could dig up to plant my seeds in... If I dug up a patch in my garden, they'd get dug straight back up again by my rascal of a dog. But I found some old plastic storage boxes, so decided to get to work on those. I got a wireless drill and drilled lots of little holes all over the bottoms of the boxes to allow water to drain out the bottom. I then filled them all up with compost. I watered the compost to make it moist. I then started pulling apart and untangling the seedlings. I placed them evenly spread out into the boxes. Then I had to play the waiting game.

Waiting for any onion-like things to start growing felt like forever. But once the first one appeared, again, it felt like they all followed suit, and soon enough I had 3 whole boxes full of little red onions! I was so proud of myself for not killing them all, which is what I expected would eventually happen.

Personally, I think home-grown red onions are much tastier than shop bought ones! Especially the ones I grow. ;) I made everyone try them and the verdict was pretty much the same. The countless amounts of times going up the garden to water them and waiting for them to grow was well worth it! I'd recommend anyone to give growing their own vegetables a go. I found it strangely relaxing and it helps clear your head, and also gives you something to look forward to. I definitely want to grow some more in the future, maybe something different... potatoes maybe? Not sure yet. :)

Gift inspiration - the dieters edition.

Christmas day is fast approaching (only 2 weeks to go!) and whilst some of us are prepared well in advance, there are a lot of us who tend to leave everything to the last minute - well this post is for you. We all have a friend or two who are forever dieting (I know I'm always dieting and I know lots of other people who are too). If you have yet to get them a gift, why not show your support on their journey by buying them some slimming friendly/themed gifts this year? I've put together this post, full of lots of different types of gifts, to give you some inspiration. Or even to give other people ideas of some things that you'd like to receive this year (or you can just treat yourself)! All of these gifts can be purchased online, and a few can be purchased in stores, and there's something suitable for all budgets! :)

Gifts £10 or less:

1. Union Jack A5 recipe book - £8.75, Paperchase.  2. Back away fatty magnet - £3.50, Really Good Shop.  3. Retro magnetic meal planner - £7.00, Paperchase.  4. Diet cheating fines money tin - £2.99, Amazon.  5. Run Fat B!tch Run paperback book - £8.39, Waterstones. 6. Diet kit - £5.99, Amazon.

Gifts £25 or less:

1. Calorie/jump counting skipping rope - £10.98, Amazon.  2. Jamie Oliver herb display pots - £18.50, Boots.  3. The Nakd Celebration Box - £13.00, Natural Balance Foods.  4. Healthy Food Guide subscription - was £27.00 now £21.99, Healthy Food Guide.  5. Union Jack adult apron - £16.99, Joshua's Harvest Store.  6. Wooden cookbook stand - £16.99, Lakeland.

Gifts £50 or less:

1. Typhoon electronic scales - £29.99, Lakeland.  2. George Foreman 14532 10portion health grill - £44.97, Tesco direct.  3. Biosync fitness set - was £39.99 £29.97, Amazon.  4. 16 jar revolving spice jar - £35.00, BHS.  5. La Cafetiere Titania 1 litre - £26.31, Tesco direct.  6. Zumba Exhilarate DVD fitness pack - was £59.96 £48.00, Tesco direct.

Gifts £50+.

1. Delonghi 18 bar pump espresso machine - £169.97, Tesco direct.  2. Body sculpture cable rower with DVD - £99.99, Sainsburys.  3. Robert Welch signature knife block - £274.99, Lakeland.  4. Kenwood FPP225 food processor - £59.97, Tesco direct.

Another gift you can give this year is a gift card! If your friend has lost a considerable amount of weight, dropped a dress size or two, or has reached/almost reached their ultimate weight-loss goal, then getting them a voucher for their favourite clothing store (mine's Topshop, *wink wink*) will be a wonderful gift. They'll be able to buy some new clothes better fitting to their lovely new figure. Most shops allow you to load up as much or as little as you want onto the card, so another great gift for all budgets. :)

Let the festive countdown begin!

Christmas lights decorate the streets of Salisbury (taken 6:30am today)!

Happy 1st day of December everybody! Only 24 more days until Christmas! And only 30 more days until New Years Eve - it's crazy how fast this year has flown by!

Being a dieter/calorie counter is a struggle at times, but I find December is the most difficult month of the year. There are so many temptations everywhere you look! Scrummy Christmas drinks in coffee shops, chocolate and cake offers everywhere you look in supermarkets, advent calenders to open throughout the month (I've got my Mars Bar advent calender!) and of course hundreds of alcohol and parties - and hardly any of it's low kcal, boohoo! This can all be a bit too much for someone who has been minding what they eat for so long.. But stay strong! I'm not saying don't indulge at all, as it's Christmas - you can't forbid yourself a few treats around Christmas time (mince pies are a massive weakness of mine, this time of the year), it's just not natural! I'm just saying don't over-do it, as when you do your dreaded after Christmas/New Years weigh in, you will kick yourself! Everyone's bound to put on a few pounds though - I know I will, but you don't want to be setting yourself back too much. But even if you did, don't beat yourself up too much about it. Use it as the push you need to get back into the dieting game! Maybe even make it a New Years resolution to lose the weight plus more?

I have some great thoughts for festive posts in my noggin that I'm hoping to share with you all over the course of this wonderful, wintery month, so keep your eyes peeled! First one should be posted on Monday (if all goes to plan)! :)

My experimental bean burgers.

Anybody who knows me personally will probably know that I love I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! I have been watching it everyday! The other day, after watching Rosemary Shrager (TV Chef and one of celebrities in the jungle this year) turn their boring beans into mini bean burgers, it inspired me to give bean burger making a go. I decided to try it without looking for a recipe in books or online, just to see what I'd come up with. Unfortunately the burgers I created didn't stick together as planned. It started off as a circular burger shape, but ended up as more of an oval shape.. But they did taste really good! In my opinion, they tasted like sage and onion stuffing - yum yum! So if you like stuffing, you'll most probably like this.
Here's what I did:

The way I have made it below serves 2 people and is approx. 125kcal per bean burger (without the cheese on top).

Ingredients:
- 1 big tin of three bean salad (contains cannellini beans, flageolet beans and adzuki beans)
- pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
- a small splash of Worcestershire sauce
- a pinch of dried mixed herbs (or herb(s) of your choice)
- 1/2 tbsp oil
- 20g of low fat grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Method:
1. Empty the entire tin of beans into a sauce pan, place on the hob and cook for about 4-5 minutes - do not allow to boil. Once that's done, drain the beans well and then put them back into the sauce pan.

2. Get a masher and mash up all the beans until they're mushy. Season to taste and add the Worcestershire sauce and herbs to taste too (if you're comfortable with it, give the beans a little taste before adding each thing to make sure they taste alright, plus you might like the taste without the herbs/Worcestershire sauce).

3. Place a frying pan onto the hob and heat up the oil.

4. (This step is messy). Now, using your hands, mould the mushy beans into 2 burger shaped "balls". Once moulded, place these onto the frying pan.

5. Fry these for approx. 10 minutes, turning often, until golden on both sides. (Turning them over is where it all went wrong and crumbly for me. They squished back together, but not into the original shape).

6. Once finished, transfer these onto a plate and serve with a bit of cheese on top (optional). You can serve these alone, in a roll/sandwich, with vegetables, with your Sunday roast, etc. - whatever you fancy!

Enjoy!

If you know of anything I could do or add into my little experiement to make these bean burgers stick together better whilst frying in the pan, pleeease let me know - I'd be soooo grateful! :)

Low-kcal twist on the traditional English breakfast.

Everyone loves a good traditional English breakfast (also known as a "fry-up"). But they are often very fatty, greasy and full of calories.. So I thought I'd take it upon myself to try and come up with a healthy, filling version of the breakfast, with as few calories as I can possibly make it. So here it is! This breakfast serves 1 person and is approx. 200kcal (if made with the "meat" product I chose).

Ingredients:
- cooking oil spray (such as "Fry Light")
- 2 egg whites
- a dash of Worcestershire sauce
- 60g spinach, washed
- 50g mushrooms, sliced
- 105g baked beans (e.g. 1/4 of a big Heinz baked beans tin)
- pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
- your choice of meat product*

*I chose 1/3 of a pack of "Quorn pepperoni style slices", but you could also use 1 Quorn/meat-free sausage, 1-2 rashers of Quorn/meat-free bacon, 1 lean meat sausage, 1-2 rashers of lean bacon, with the fatty bits cut off.. Whatever you want really, but remember to adjust calories accordingly!

Method:
(You will need to be good at multi-tasking, and own a lot of pans, to get everything timed just right).
1. If using sausages/bacon, stick these in the oven first, at a medium-high heat, for however long the packet says, turning over halfway through cooking.
2. In a sauce pan, pour in the baked beans and place on a low-medium heat. Stir this occasionally to be sure the beans don't stick to the bottom of the pan.
2. Meanwhile, spray a frying pan with the cooking oil spray. Place on a medium-high heat and place in the sliced mushrooms. Keep stirring these often to get them nice and evenly cooked.
3. In another sauce pan, place in a splash of water and all the spinach and put a lid on top, keep an eye on this, as once it's all wilted it will be cooked and ready.
3. In another frying pan, spray all around with the cooking oil spray and place on a high heat. Add in the egg whites and quickly add in a splash of Worcestershire sauce (this is optional, but I just think it gives it that extra something) and season with a pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper. This will cook relatively quick, so be sure to turn it over once it begins to go quite white - don't let it burn!
4. With any luck this should all be cooked and ready to plate up at roughly the same time! Serve immediately with your choice of sauce (although, personally, I don't think it needs it!) and a cuppa on the side. ;)

Enjoy!

Baked fig and hazelnut salad.

This is a recipe I was eager to try! I found it in my November 2012 issue of Healthy Food Guide. It's a baked fig and hazelnut salad. I love figs, but noone else in my household does, so I invited my Nan over to enjoy it with me. It's quite an unusual, but very tasty, combination - I would have never thought of putting all these ingredients together myself, but it does work nicely! It's very sweet, but the cheese stops it from being too sickly sweet. I really love the taste of the juices with the salad leaves - yum yum! My Nan absolutely loved this meal too. As well as being a very healthy dish, it is also "diabetes-friendly" - neither of us are diabetic, but it's something that everyone can enjoy!

I switched up the recipe a bit (as you all have probably noticed I do quite often)! I halved everything on the original recipe, as instead of wanting to feed 4, I only needed 2 servings. I also swapped actual blue cheese for Dairylee light blue cheese triangles. The recipe also only used rocket, but I threw a bit of spinach in with it to bulk out the salad leaves. The recipe below serves 2 and is approx. 330kcal per serving. 

Ingredients:
- 4 ripe black or green figs
- 75g ricotta
- 2 Dairylea light blue cheese triangles
- 30ml agave syrup
- 1 tbsp ground hazelnuts
- 1/2 tsp hazelnut oil
- 25g whole hazelnuts
- salad leaves, such as rocket/spinach, to serve

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°c/fan 160c/gas 4.
2. Cut a cross into the top of each fig and squeeze between your fingers to open. In a bowl, mix the ricotta, Dairylea blue cheese triangles, half the agave syrup and the ground hazelnuts to form a thick paste, then season with a pinch of sea salt an black pepper.
3. Spoon the ricotta mix into the centre of each fig, then put them into a roasting dish just large enough to fit tightly. Drizzle over the remaining agave syrup with the hazelnut oil and roast for 20 minutes. Scatter over the hazelnuts.
4. Serve warm with the salad leaves, spooning over some of the pan juices.


I hope you enjoy this as much as my Nan and I did! :)

Lunchbox idea #4.

I haven't posted a lunchbox idea in a while, so I thought it was about time I did. So here it is:

This is a little twist on the classic sandwich filling, egg and cress - only difference is pretty much just using the egg whites instead of the whole egg and I've added in a sausage! Egg and cress tastes lovely on it's own but the sausage just gives it that extra smokey-tasting something-something. ;)

To make this, just make 3 hard-boiled eggs, boiling them in water for about 10 minutes, and meanwhile cook a Quorn sausage (doesn't have to be Quorn) in the grill for 10-12 minutes. Once the eggs are done, peel them and separate the egg whites from the yolks, throwing the yolks away. Chop up the egg whites into little bits and mix them with about 1 tbsp of low-fat mayonnaise. Then add in some fresh salad cress and mix it all together again. Once the sausage is cooked, cut it into small slices/pieces and stir it all into the egg and cress mix. Season, to taste, with freshly ground salt and pepper. And voila - it's done. Simple as that. :)

Now add it into whatever you want, such as a wrap, a salad, a sandwich, a pitta bread, a bagel, etc. All super tasty!

Leaving the egg yolks out reduces each egg's calories by about 55kcal. It takes out a lot of the protein from the egg, but then you also get protein from the sausage, which is less calories than the 3 egg yolks put together! So all together this filling is approx. 135kcal (using a Quorn sausage). Then just add the calories of whatever you put it in (I used a Weight Watcher's wrap, so I'll have to add 107kcal). Yum yum!

Low-kcal pizza - yes there is such a thing!

I'm not going to lie.. I adore pizza! I use to enjoy late pizza nights with my boyfriend faaar too often (occasionally we still do, but very rarely compared to before). But pizza makes my waste line suffer. I thought I'd have to sacrifice my love for pizza to be able to lose weight.. That was until I saw a pizza recipe in the magazine, Healthy Food Guide (September 2012's issue, page 41). I was also bought a recipe book, called "100 Pizzas From 1 Easy Recipe" - it was a gift from my Nan. It's a book full of lots of different pizza topping ideas. So I decided to have a go at making one.

I took the recipe for the pizza base and pizza sauce from my magazine's recipe. I chose a pizza topping idea from my recipe book, which is called "Neapolitan Pizza" - a cheese-less, but still super tasty topping! I mix and matched my recipe from both sources as the base and sauce in the magazine was lower kcal than the book, but the topping in the book was lower kcal than the one in the magazine. But I also altered the recipe slightly by using granulated sweetener, rather than actual sugar.

This recipe makes 2 very yummy, light, fluffy based pizzas, at approx. 290kcal per 1/2 pizza! Much better calorie-wise compared to a takeaway pizza - can't go wrong with that! :)

Ingredients:
(For pizza dough)
- 275g plain/all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
- 7g sachet fast-action dried yeast
- 1 tsp granulated Splenda sweetener
- 1 medium egg, beaten

(For pizza sauce)
- 250g passata
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp granulated sweetener
- small handful of chopped basil

(For pizza topping)
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 4 small tomatoes, thinly sliced
- 1 tsp dried Italian herb seasoning
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- fresh basil leaves, roughly torn, to garnish

Method:
1. For the base, put the flour, yeast and 1 tsp of sweetener in a large bowl. Mix the egg with 125ml of warm water and pour it into the dry ingredients. Mix well and knead lightly to make a soft dough, adding more water if needed. Divide in two and roll out onto a flat surface, dusted with flour, to make 2 x 20cm diameter circles. Transfer to baking trays, lined with baking paper, and cover with cling film. Leave in a warm place (such as an airing cupboard) for 30 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 200°c/fan 180°c/gas 6. For the pizza sauce, heat the passata, oregano and 1 tsp of sweetener in a saucepan for 5 minutes until it thickens. Add in the chopped basil.

3. For the topping, divide the pizza sauce between the two pizza bases, spreading almost to the edges. Scatter over, evenly, the garlic, sliced tomatoes and the herb seasoning and drizzle over a little oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Bake in the preheated oven for around 15-25 minutes, or until the base is crisp underneath and the crusts are golden. Garnish with the torn basil leaves and serve immanently. Enjoy either on it's own or with a little side salad! :)

Before/after - baggy trousers!

Look at those trousers! I was rummaging through my wardrobe last week and came across my first pair of work trousers, from when I first started my job back in 2009. They are a size 16, and they use to fit me perfectly! And of course, I tried them on to see the difference between then and now, and just.. wow! Couldn't believe how big they were! They drop to my ankles if I don't hold them up myself. I am now size 8-10 (in the majority of shops). Just crazy. I thought I'd share this with you all! I love comparing my photos and clothes from before and now - you never quite realise how much different you look until it's in front of you.

If anyone has any before/after photos, I'd love to see them!

Bruschetta.

I found this is my 'Healthy Food Guide' magazine (page 60-61, September 2012 issue). This recipe is so simple and quick to make and tastes absolutely gorgeous! It's a lovely little dish, great to have at lunchtime, as a starter or as a biggish cheeky snack. It's fresh, light and filling - a very summery dish. The magazine gives you 1 basic bruschetta recipe with 9 different ideas to chop and change this recipe up to suit you.

Here's the basic recipe (serves 4, approx. 177kcal per serving):

Ingredients:

- 4 salad tomatoes, diced

- 1 small red onion, diced

- small bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked and finely chopped

- 1 garlic clove

- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

- 1 tbsp good-quality balsamic vinegar

- freshly ground black pepper

- 8 slices of bread, such as ciabatta or sourdough

Method:

1. Preheat the grill to high. In a medium bowl, combine the tomato, red onion, basil, garlic, olive oil and vinegar. Season with black pepper.

2. Put the bread slices under the grill and toast until crisp and browned. Top each with the tomato mixture and serve.

See - as simple as that! Absolutely delicious!

Here's the variations that I chose to do from the suggestions when making this recipe:

Avacado: Add 1 diced medium avocado to the mix, then spoon over the toasted bread (246kcal per serving using only this change).

Tangy lemon: Replace the olive oil and vinegar in the tomato mix with 1-2 tbsp lemon juice. Sprinkle over a little lemon zest before serving (148kcal per serving using only this change).

Graze day! Top tip & get your first Graze box FREE!

Today is what I call a "Graze Day" - I received my fortnightly Graze box through the post this morning! I was pleasantly surprised with the punnets I received. I LOVE seeds and Graze's flapjacks, so I can't wait to dig into them (although they are both pretty calorific compared to most other punnets..)! And I have never tried the fig and cherry one before, so it'll be nice to try something new. The dipping punnets are great to take to work to munch on, on my tea-breaks, as they're quick to eat and not too messy! I love having my snacks when I'm peckish throughout the day (mainly between lunchtime and teatime and sometimes before I go to bed). They're quite filling and very tasty - yum yum!

In my Graze box I also received a little leaflet, and in there it's saying about their new treat coming out soon - "Healthy Popping Corn"! I cannot wait until this comes out! I love popcorn! And at a bonus, each flavour popping corn, that Graze are bringing out, are under 100 calories - yay! They are going to be microwavable, so they'll also be nice and hot - how I think popcorn should be enjoyed! :)

TOP TIP: Graze always supply the nutritional information and use by date for each snack you receive, but it's written inside the little leaflet and it's not actual written anywhere on the punnet itself.. So - for all you calorie counters - as soon as you receive your Graze box, just get out a permanent marker and write the calorie content and use by date of each yummy snack straight onto the film lid of the punnet. That way you will never forget how many calories it contains or when it goes out of date, plus you won't have to carry the information around with you separately at the risk of losing it.

Here's a little treat for all of you! Enjoy your first Graze box for FREE! Just go to Graze's website and enter the code:

N6JMVCHD

Don't forget to rate/slate the punnets, so you don't end up receiving something you already know you won't like. Also use the "send soon" tick-box for things you want to try asap. You'll probably be asked to enter your card details, but this is just incase you want to continue receiving Graze boxes in the future for a cheap cost (I've been enjoying my Graze boxes since January 2012). But if you don't, once you receive your first free Graze box, you can go back to their website and cancel all future boxes - it's a very trustworthy site and it's very easy to cancel/postpone your boxes.

Enjoy! :)

Creamy stuffed conchiglie.

This is a gorgeous dish that I found the recipe for in an old Slimming World recipe book of mine. Since I first bought this book I've always wanted to try this recipe, but I never actually got 'round to doing anything. So I thought it was about time I did! I have altered the recipe a bit for the purpose of making it more calorie-friendly. This recipe originally served 4 people, but the way I made it serves 3. Also the original recipe included bacon, but I used salmon for my Mum and I, and lean ham for my sister. There was 3 clean plates after this meal and I got compliments on it for being so tasty, filling and well presented - by using 6 pasta shells pointing to the center, it can be made to look like petals on a flower. I definitely want to make this meal again! Please give this recipe a bash, it's absolutely delicious - a must-try!

The meal made with the recipe below serves 3 and, without the salmon is 332kcal per serving and with the salmon is 427kcal per serving.

Ingredients:
- 18 dried giant pasta shells
- 125g spinach
- 176g extra light Philidelphia
- 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 30g lighter Cathedral City cheddar cheese
- 114g salmon
- fry light
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 213g passata



Method:
1. Cook the pasta shells according to the packet instructions, about 8-10 minutes, then drain and leave to cool. Cook the salmon on the grill with fry light, making sure it's cooked right through. Set aside. When cool, flake the salmon and place into a bowl. (Alternatively you can use other meat/fish/vegetarian filling other than salmon. My sister had ham with hers, as she isn't a fish lover. I just chopped the pre-cooked ham up into small pieces and placed into a bowl).
2. Wash and dry the spinach leaves and place in a large pan over a low heat. Cover and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, for 2-3 minutes, until the leave wilt and turn bright green. Drain in a colander, pressing down with a saucer to squeeze out any water. Chop the spinach and add to the salmon.
3. Stir in the Philidelphia and herbs and season to taste. Spoon the salmon and spinach mixture into the pasta shells and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Place under a preheated grill for 3 minutes or until lightly browned and heated through.
4. To make the tomato sauce; spray a saucepan with Fry Light, add the onion and garlic and cook for approximately 8-10 minutes until golden. Stir in the passata and simmer for 10 minutes. To serve, divide the sauce between three plates and place the pasta shells on top.

TIP! Perfect portions.

I don't know about you guys, but I find that one of the hardest things to do when trying to lose weight is serving myself/others correct portion sizes. At my biggest, my portion sizes were HUGE. I probably had enough food for on my plate to feed at least 2-3 people!

Portion sizes are tricky.. But I have learnt, instead of packing your plate up high "just incase", just take a normal portions worth and eat what you have. And if you are still hungry afterwards, you can always go back for a little more. Having too much food on your plate will make you feel obliged to eat it.. Eating the correct portion sizes (correct portion sizes are often suggested on the side of food packages) are key for stomach shrinking and successful weight loss!

My Mum suggested that, when I have a spare 20-30 minutes, I prepare portion sizes in advance so we can just grab and go instead of fussing around with the scales and things - which will be especially handy when in a rush. I thought it was an absolutely amazing idea - couldn't believe I didn't think of it myself!

So before you knew it, I had set up a little work station in my living room, made up of a tray, digital scales and cheap food bags, plus whatever food I wanted to weigh. I decided to weigh out all of our cereals into the portion sizes suggested on the cereal boxes (most serving sizes were between 30g-40g), then putting them back into their boxes for easy storage. I also weighed out our uncooked fusilli pasta into 75g serving bags. So now we can just grab and go!

This has to be the best and most useful tip I've ever received and I shall definitely be keeping it up!