Category: Meals under 350 Calories

Palate-pleasing and surprisingly satisfying, try these lower-calorie options any time of day.

Five Go-To Low-Carb Meals

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Dinners, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, Grain-free, High-protein, low carb, Meals under 350 Calories, Random, Specialty Diets, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Alright, my low-carb lovers and lifestylers!  Where are you?  This round up of recipes is for YOU.  Seems to be the “trendy” thing to do these days.  But just because it’s trendy, does it mean it’s right for you?  That’s a twist on the classic “if all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it, too?”  A dose of healthy skepticism is needed any time a trendy new eating fad rears its head.  Here’s an intriguing read: “Carb Controversy: Why Low-Carb Diets Have Got It All Wrong” from my very own nutrition coaching certifying body, Precision Nutrition.

It’s not as though low-carb diets are actually new.  Each macronutrient (carb, protein or fat) has gone in and out of vogue over the decades.  Restricting any one or combination of macro-nutrients to take energy intake below energy expenditure is going to create weight loss.  Those are the fundamental laws of thermodynamics.  But the question is, what approach is going to work the best for YOU and make you feel, look and perform YOUR best?

Now, if you’ve done your homework and perhaps even consulted with a qualified nutrition coach (like me!), and you want to increase your repertoire of low-carb meals and snacks, who am I to deny you?  One of the best ways to determine if a particular eating approach is going to work for you is to “play scientist” and try it out.  Even if you just want to include these selections from time to time to create a more moderate intake of carbohydrates in your overall eating approach, you’re going to find these useful.

I think it’s safe to say that in my total repertoire of recipes, I have ideas for  meals and snacks that suit just about any and every style of eating (except maybe macrobiotic raw veganism).  And of course, as a busy professional working mother myself, these recipes are generally all kid- and husband-tested and approved, like my round up of family-friendly healthy recipes from just a few short months ago.  I even went the extra step of going live every time I ate over the course of a “low-carb day” – you can check out my Facebook feed for that.

Now, if you want a single place to easily reference ALL of the recipes, be sure to bookmark this page.

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(High-Protein) Power Potato Salad (Gluten-free, Grain-free, Paleo-friendly)

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Dinners, Fitness Foods (Meals), High-protein, Low-fat, Lunches, Meals under 350 Calories, Paleo, Whole30 Compliant1 Comment

Power Potato Salad PlateYou might think of potato salad as strictly a summer food, the stuff of cookouts and backyard barbecues.  Well, it’s time to think again!  Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s entirely likely that you’ll have leftover boiled potatoes on hand.  Keep yourself fueled up for the busy-ness of the season with this high-protein option (and save the recipe for next summer, too!). You can also make a version that is Paleo-friendly (and yes, it can be Whole30-compliant).

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Low-carb Mint Chocolate Protein Smoothie (Vegan option)

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Meals under 350 Calories, Nut-free, Nutritious Noshes (Snacks), Smoothies, VeganLeave a comment

Mint Chocolate Protein Smoothie MugA creamy protein smoothie with the classic flavour combination of rich dark chocolate and cool mint.  Instead of a piece of chocolate or peppermint pattie that runs the risk of melting or being squished, you can safely drink this mint chocolate concoction to get your fix AND do it with more protein and fewer carbohydrates, calories and fat than almost any blended frozen drink!

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Coconut Oatmeal Cookie Protein Smoothie (Vegan option)

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, High-protein, Meals under 350 Calories, Nut-free, Nutritious Noshes (Snacks), Smoothies, Vegan1 Comment

Coconut Oatmeal Cookie Protein SmoothieA creamy, cool protein smoothie that tastes just like an oatmeal cookie with coconut. The extra fiber and healthy fats offer more staying power than your average protein shake!  Whip it up in the blender in mere minutes and enjoy at home or on the go.  Depending on your protein powder, you can even make this recipe vegan, too.

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Weeknight Winner Wednesday: (Paleo) Honey-Lime Spicy Shrimp Stir-fry (Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Grain-free)

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Dairy-free, Dinners, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, Grain-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Lunches, Meals under 350 Calories, Paleo1 Comment

Honey-Lime Spicy Shrimp Stir-fry PanOther than sticking with Wednesdays, I guess I haven’t been very faithful with Weeknight Winner Wednesdays!   But hey, as in all things fitness and nutrition-related, you do the best you can with what you have, when you can.  So here is the long-awaited (?) fourth installment and this time we’ve got seafood back on the blog (or perhaps you’ll consider this the first appearance, if you’re grouping seafood such as shrimp separately from fish).  It’s heating up outside, but there’s no reason you can’t add some heat in the kitchen with the spices in this Honey-Lime Spicy Shrimp Stir-fry!  Make it as hot (or not) as you like!

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(High-Protein) Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Overnight Oatmeal

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Meals under 350 Calories, Nut-freeLeave a comment

Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Overnight Oatmeal Cookie SpoonfulIt’s not the weekend if I don’t have another new Overnight Oatmeal to share (I’ll run out of fresh new ideas someday, but today’s NOT the day)!  And it’s not a Golden Graham Girl Overnight Oatmeal if it’s not a delicious, high-protein, healthyhealthful spin on a flavour combination that is normally reserved for dessert (or at least after noon).  So it MUST be Sunday if I have this sweet Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Overnight Oatmeal to share with you!  (Checks calendar.)  Yup, it’s Sunday!  Just in time for you to make a big batch of this for awesome breakfasts ALL WEEK LONG!

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(High-Protein) Salted Caramel Apple Overnight Oatmeal

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Meals under 350 Calories, Nut-freeLeave a comment

Salted Caramel Apple Overnight Oatmeal BowlSince apples are really a fruit of the fall, I guess I could be accused of pushing the season (but not in a lameefficient let’s-buy-new-school-supplies-in-July kind of way).  But summer makes me think of carnivals and festivals (a little shout-out for the Calgary Stampede July 3-12, 2015, a.k.a RIGHT NOW – Mr. Golden Graham’s hometown, yee-haw, ya-hoo!), and carnivals make me think of candy apples!  And deep-fried Oreos.  But I don’t have an overnight oatmeal for that. Yet. So back to the candy apples. Sticky, sweet and, well, apple-y, this overnight oatmeal has captured it all but without the sugar. And regret. No-regret oatmeal! Catchy, isn’t it?

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Weeknight Winner Wednesday: Basil-Ricotta-Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with Lemon

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Dinners, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, Grain-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Lunches, Meals under 350 CaloriesLeave a comment

Basil-Ricotta-Parmesan Crusted TilapiaTwo classic Italian cheeses pair up with fragrant basil and zesty lemon to create the perfect creamy, crusted topping for flaky white tilapia fillets.  Perfect paired with roasted or grilled seasonal vegetables, this is an elegant yet easy dinner dish.

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Peanut Butter Banana Protein Smoothie

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, Grain-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Meals under 350 Calories, Nut-free, Nutritious Noshes (Snacks), Smoothies2 Comments

Peanut Butter Banana Protein SmoothieIt’s time to break out your blender (again)!  I’ve got a delicious new addition to my Smoothie Lineup, and this time it’s the classic combination of peanut butter and banana.  Starting with a pairing like that, how can you go wrong?  Frozen bananas provide natural sweetness and thick creamy texture, and peanut butter protein powder packs a punch of protein with less fat than regular peanut butter.  I’ve also used almond milk as the liquid in this recipe for added creaminess but fewer calories and carbohydrates than dairy milk (you can of course substitute to suit your personal preference!).  It’s quick and easy and tastes great – what’s not to like?

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Double Peanut Butter Protein Pancakes (Gluten-free, Grain-free, Refined sugar-free)

On By The Golden Graham GirlIn Breakfasts, Crepes, Pancakes & Waffles, Fitness Foods (Meals), Gluten-free, Grain-free, High-protein, Low-fat, Meals under 350 Calories2 Comments

Double Peanut Butter Protein PancakesIf you follow me on Instagram (and you totally should – I post mouthwatering food photos, including recipe links, pretty much all day every day!), you’ll know that I am ALL ABOUT my Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Pancakes.  I eat them at least a few times a week and I never get over how incredibly good they are and how you’d never guess that they’re a “protein” pancake.  I won’t even share them with my own flesh and blood (I keep telling The Golden Graham Boy “you wouldn’t like them – they’re not for kids,” as he doesn’t need that much concentrated protein in one serving, nor the touch of Sucralose that comes in my protein powder.  Moreover, they’re for Mommy and I’m not sharing!).

I didn’t think protein pancakes could get any better – but they did.  I wouldn’t have believed you if you told me they could – but they did.  It wasn’t until I ran out of my regular vanilla protein powder and decided to use peanut butter flavour protein powder instead that the magic happened – and boy, it did!  Still incredibly low in fat, carbohydrates and calories, these Double Peanut Butter Protein Pancakes have 43g of protein per serving and are free of grains, gluten and refined sugar.  You’ll never look at breakfast (or pancake supper) the same way again.

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