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5:2 Diet: Comfort Food that?s Low in Calories! Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken

5:2 Diet: Comfort Food that?s Low in Calories!

Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken

French Tarragon

Using the last of the French tarragon in my garden, I have lightened up a favourite recipe of mine,?Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken,?the original buttery high calorie recipe can be found here?Tr?s Rapide French Summer Tarragon Chicken for Bastille Day!?But, I have more than halved the calories for this delightfully easy and comforting dish, thus making it a VERY suitable recipe for my 5:2 diet fast days, which, I am still doing. With a weight loss of one stone over seven weeks now, and that?includes?the odd blip now and then, as I was travelling and attending press days and events, I am really pleased with how I feel, as well as the?obvious?weight loss of course. I have more energy and I?m sleeping much better; ?also, whilst having a meal at a friend?s house recently, I also had lots of ?compliments at just how ?well? I looked??..so, although I was originally sceptical about the 5:2 diet, I am seeing (and feeling) real benefits now, and I am also eating much healthier.?

5:2 Diet: Comfort Food that?s Low in Calories! Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken

One of the reasons I am eating healthier, (and I have always thought we ate very?healthily?at home,?with?lots of fruit and veg, and not many fried foods etc) is that on my two ?fast days? (that?s the low calorie days that I have two days a week, with a maximum of 500 calories to consume in a day) I am?developing?recipes and cooking more creatively with seasonal ingredients to hand. So, instead of reaching for ready-to-eat diet meals in the supermarket, I am creating my own low calorie recipes at home, which means I have more control over salt and additives. This recipe to day is a perfect example; there was a very similar ?French style? low-calorie meal for offer (in the freezer section) of my local supermarket, but it was loaded with salt and also had 100 calories more per portion! Then I remembered my summer stand-by recipe?..the one I make when I only have to cook for one, and when I want something tasty and comforting. I lightened up the original recipe by cutting back on the oil, omitting the butter, and using half fat?cr?me?fra?che, and less of it.?

5:2 Diet: Comfort Food that?s Low in Calories! Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken

This makes a great main meal for a fast day on the 5:2 diet and has only 227 calories per serving, including a generous portion of steamed spinach??.it?s comforting for the cooler weather and fills you up for the rest of the day, if you eat it for lunch. On the day I ate the ?lightened? version of this recipe, I had a small boiled egg in the morning with a small banana (54 calories + 80 calories = 134 calories) and then a bowl of my lovely?Roast Tomato & Garlic Soup Recipe (70 Calories) with my milk allowance (51 calories), I had eaten well and only consumed 482 calories for the day!?

Roast Tomato and Garlic Soup for the 5:2 Diet and Weight Watchers

With?apologies?for the lack?of?a Mid-Week meal plan that I?premised?yesterday, but my daughter is?visiting?for a wee?break?and time is at a?premium??.however, I have posted a few previous meal plan links below, so you may gather?inspiration? from them, and I am also linking this post to Mrs M?s Meal Planning Monday?post too?..that?s it for today, look out for more seasonal recipes later on this week, as well as some news on what I have been up to lately! Oh yes, as this recipe has herbs in it, I am also linking it up to my own Herbs on Saturday challenge too, where there is a wonderful prize up for grab, for the best recipe of the month ? so, if you have cooked with herbs on any day throughout the month, do join ?in here: October?s Herbs on Saturday ? Win a copy of?The Kitchen Herb Garden Cookbook. See you later, Karen

Herbs on Saturday

Low Fat Tr?s Rapide French Tarragon Chicken

A simple low-fat 5:2 Diet supper or luncheon recipe that can be whipped up in a trice! Organic chicken breasts that are diced and then saut?ed with fresh tarragon and half-fat cr?me fra?che with just a hint of lemon juice! This can be made in less than 15 minutes from prep to plate, making it an ideal recipe for busy bees or couch potatoes! I love this served with spinach or a side salad. Do try to use fresh tarragon, I have not tried this with dried, but imagine that it will not be as zingy and fresh. (215 calories without the spinach or 227 calories WITH a portion of spinach)

Ingredients

Skinless Chicken Breast Fillet, 100g (154 calories)
Fry Light Olive Oil Spray, 4 sprays (4 calories)
1 tablespoon Half Fat Creme Fraiche (47 calories)
juice of half a lemon (8 calories)
1 tablespoon freshly chopped French tarragon (3 calories)
Spinach: Cooked, boiled, drained, with a litle nutmeg, 50g (To serve - 12 calories)

Note

Directions

Step 1	Cut your chicken breast into smallish pieces, I like to cut mine into fingers about 1/2" wide and 3" long -- you can also dice it into cubes if you wish.
Step 2	Heat a frying pan and spray the oil in, then add the chopped chicken pieces immediately and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until the chicken is sticky and a nice caramel colour; turn the chicken over and cook another 1 to 2 minutes.
Step 3	Add the cr?me fra?che, and allow to bubble for about 2 minutes; then add the tarragon and lemon juice and stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Step 4	Serve with fresh tarragon leaves scattered over the top and a portion of steamed or boiled spinach for a super healthy and satisfying meal