Your Slimming Essentials – The Weekly Pinch of Shopping 16.12
Who’s ready to write their Christmas food shopping list? Get cosy and grab a pen and paper, a very merry Pinch of Shopping is here!
This week we’ve spotted snacky bits, buffet bites and sweet treats that’ll help you put on your best ever seasonal spread. From golden pastry finger food to a decadent dessert for the Christmas dinner table, we’ve got you covered for the most wonderful time of the year.
If it’s delicious bite-sized nibbles you’re after, you can’t say no to the Biryani Bites we’ve spotted at Morrisons – these spicy nuggets of rice and veggies are something a little bit different for your Boxing Day buffet.
And you won’t want to miss the showstopping super-size brownie that we’ve found! Topped with a rich chocolate glaze, it’s worth saving room after your dinner for a slice.
Our NEW cookbook, Pinch of Nom: Enjoy, is out NOW (and it’d make an EPIC Christmas present for any foodie friends and family)! Enjoy is all about turning mealtimes into memories, and it’s brimming with 100 brand-new recipes that you’ll be excited to make, share and eat with family and friends, time and time again.
From fakeaway favourites to midweek wonders, every dish comes big on flavour without taking you off track. Put the food you love back on the menu by ordering your copy here.
If you’re looking for an extra stocking filler for Christmas, our Family Meal Planner has everything you need to kickstart your slimming journey in January. It’s our most family-friendly food planner yet – plan meals and organise what you need to buy with our game-changing freezer tracker! You can order your copy here.
You can share your recipes and photos by posting over in our Facebook group, where you’ll also find our members having a good old chat about lots of these shopping items too. You can join the group by clicking here. Make sure to let us know if you spot any yummy looking, slimming-friendly new products on the supermarket shelves – we might just feature them in our next article!
Our Weekly Pinch of Shopping list aims to show you slimming-friendly products that you can find online or in one of your local supermarkets. We try to make it as easy as possible for you to pick up these items as part of your usual weekly shop, and we’ll always include the calorie information and the RRP for you.
Please remember that, although all prices are correct at the time of writing, supermarkets can change their prices often, so this should be used as a guide only.
Along with our favourite new finds from the supermarket shelves, each week we include details of the Aldi Super 6. Every fortnight Aldi discounts a selection of 6 fruits and veggies that you can pick up for a fraction of the price. This week we’ve given you a reminder of the current selection, so hurry down to Aldi to pick up some bargains before a fresh selection goes on offer next week!
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**A note on our shopping list: we do not take payment, promotion or gifts for including any of the items mentioned in these articles. We bring them to you because we love them and hope you will too!**
Sainsbury’s Wensleydale & Cranberry Pinwheels – 42 calories per pinwheel
Nothing brings the festive cheer quite like a cheesy baked snack! These Wensleydale and Cranberry Pinwheels from Sainsbury’s are delicious little bites for your Christmas Eve party or New Year buffet.
Filled with creamy Wensleydale cheese and sweet cranberry sauce, the swirls of butter-enriched puff pastry are ready to serve straight from the pack. If you prefer them warmed up, 6 minutes in the oven will do the job nicely – crisping up that flaky golden pastry until it’s even more irresistible.
Ever tried to make your own cranberry sauce? Our Cranberry and Pomegranate Sauce is slimming friendly, easier than you think, and far tastier than the jars from the supermarket. Fruity, sweet and tart, it’s exactly what your Christmas turkey has been waiting for!
Sainsbury’s Wensleydale & Cranberry Pinwheels are available from Sainsbury’s, priced at £2.95 for a pack of 8.
Tesco Pork, Bacon & Cranberry Pasties – 98 calories per pasty
If your buffet table needs even more pastry-based treats, these Tesco Pork, Bacon and Cranberry Pasties are an early Christmas present. Filled to the brim with festive flavours, each little parcel has seasoned pork sausage meat, smoked dry cured bacon and sweetened dried cranberries inside.
At 98 calories each, they deserve a spot on your snack plate! Served hot or cold, they’ll get you in the mood for your Christmas dinner, without spoiling the main event.
If you’re already thinking of ways to use up the festive leftovers, we’ve got you covered with this Christmas Calzone recipe. Using a low-calorie tortilla wrap instead of pastry keeps this dish slimming friendly – just bear in mind the calories may change if you’re using different leftovers than we have in ours.
Tesco Pork, Bacon & Cranberry Pasties are available at Tesco, priced at £2.15 for a pack of 10.
M&S Plant Kitchen Custard – 149 calories per 1/2 pot
There are certain things that are too tasty to miss out on, and custard is top of the list. Vegan and dairy-free, this M&S Plant Kitchen Custard is made from a blend of oat milk and coconut milk. Suitable for serving hot or cold, it’s handy to have in the fridge if you’re hosting over the festive season.
Whether you’re pouring it over a shop-bought mince pie or serving it with a homemade vegan dessert, this plant-based custard will knock the comfort factor up a notch!
We can’t think of a better pairing than custard and crumble, especially on a chilly winter’s evening. This Vegan Blackberry and Apple Crumble manages to taste oh-so-indulgent, even though it’s just 242 calories per serving – just imagine how good it’ll be with a glug of piping hot custard added on top.
M&S Plant Kitchen Custard is available from Ocado, priced at £2.00.
Bakehill Oven Baked Crackers – 94 calories per 5 crackers
It’s not Christmas without a few crackers! If you’re after something to go with your festive cheese board, or maybe to serve with a selection of dips, these Bakehill Oven Baked Crackers are just the ticket.
At 94 calories for 5 of them, the light, salty, savoury snacks will add some crunch to your buffet table. You’ll get 50 crackers inside this value twin pack – not bad for just £1!
You can’t have cheese and crackers without some chutney to cut through the rich, creamy flavours. Made with red onions, courgette and apples, our slimming-friendly Chutney has the perfect balance of sweetness and sharpness to complement a nice strong Cheddar.
Bakehill Oven Baked Crackers are available from Tesco, priced at £1.00.
Morrisons Biryani Bites – 61 calories per bite
These Morrisons Biryani Bites tick all the boxes when it comes to the perfect festive party food. They’re ready to cook from frozen, vegan-friendly and brimming with warming spices.
After just 13 minutes in the oven, the bites will be piping hot and golden brown. Inside each one you’ll find a mix of veggies, rice and medium-hot spices. Designed to cook at the same temperature as the rest of Morrisons’ party food range, these are so handy to have in the freezer for all your Christmas gatherings.
Drawing on the festive flavour combination of turkey and cranberries, these Christmas Meatbaubles are a tasty homemade option for your buffet table. Our recipe even includes a sticky, sweet cranberry sauce that can be poured over the meatballs or served as a dip – that’s sure to impress your guests!
Morrisons Biryani Bites are available from Morrisons, priced at £2.99 for a pack of 10.
Heinz Nuggetz Original Tomato – 128 calories per 3 nuggetz
Made from beans and vegetables, these Heinz Nuggetz Original Tomato are not your typical frozen nuggets! Inside the vegan nuggs you’ll find a tasty mixture of tomatoes, sweetcorn, beans and other nutritious vegetables.
Each bean-shaped nugget has a moreish crunchy coating that crisps up after just 18 minutes in the oven – perfect for an easy midweek meal amidst the Christmas chaos. If you fancy getting more creative with your flavours, we’ve spotted Cauliflower Cheese and Curried Parsnips nuggets in the same range too.
Your plate of nuggets will need some golden chips on the side, and these Homemade Oven Chips will not only save you a trip to the chippy, they’ll save pennies and calories too. Baked until they’re golden, you’ll be pleased to know there are only 96 calories in each serving.
Heinz Nuggetz Original Tomato are available from Ocado, priced at £2.75.
Jude’s Mini’s Assorted Belgian Chocolate Minis – 98 calories or less per mini
It’s never too cold for ice cream! Each one of these perfectly portioned Jude’s Mini’s Assorted Belgian Chocolate Minis works out at 98 calories or less – so you can enjoy velvety vanilla ice cream inside luxurious Belgian chocolate, no matter what diet plan you’re following.
You get 2 white chocolate, 2 milk chocolate and 2 almond minis inside this multipack, so you can be sure there’s a slimming-friendly treat in the freezer the next time your sweet tooth kicks in.
For something a little more indulgent, imagine biting into this Ice Cream Sandwich. We’ve nestled a good chunk of low-calorie ice cream in the middle of our fluffy fatless sponge slices, creating a supersize frozen sarnie with far fewer calories than you might think!
Jude’s Mini’s Assorted Belgian Chocolate Minis are available from Morrisons, priced at £4.00 for a pack of 6.
Whitby Seafoods Lemon & Pepper King Prawns – 219 calories per 100g (oven baked)
Forget the prawn cocktail this Christmas, these Whitby Seafoods Lemon & Pepper King Prawns make for a zesty, refreshing change! We’re talking juicy, responsibly-sourced prawns, coated in a light lemon and pepper crumb.
Cooked in the oven or air fryer until crispy, this is bite-sized seafood that’s made for sharing. Pop a platter of them out on your buffet table and we bet they’ll be snaffled up in no time!
Prawns are super low in calories, so they’re a dream ingredient when you’re planning slimming-friendly meals. Once you’ve tried this Creamy Garlic Prawns recipe, we’re sure it’ll become one of your favourite go-to weekday dinners. It’s so easy to prepare, rich and creamy, and yet only 225 calories per portion.
Whitby Seafoods Lemon & Pepper King Prawns are available from Tesco, priced at £3.00 for a 200g bag.
Sainsbury’s Mini Toad in the Holes – 58 calories each
Move aside pigs in blankets – a new buffet bite has caught our eye! These Mini Toad in the Holes from Sainsbury’s are tiny versions of the classic sausage and Yorkshire pudding dish. Each little pork cocktail sausage is wrapped in batter and ready to cook straight from the freezer. They’re sure to put a smile on anyone’s face, whether you bring them out for Christmas Eve nibbles or save them for an easy Boxing Day buffet.
Speaking of Boxing Day; don’t bin any leftover Christmas dinner veggies! Instead, set them to one side and rustle up this Christmas Hash for breakfast on the 26th. It’s a guaranteed way to make the most of every last bit of festive flavour…it only comes round once a year after all!
Sainsbury’s Mini Toad in the Holes are available from Sainsbury’s, priced at £3.50 for a pack of 12.
Galaxy® Chocolate Brownie – 215 calories per slice
Looking for an alternative to Christmas pudding? This Galaxy Chocolate Brownie will bring rich, chocolate-y indulgence to the dinner table, with absolutely no effort required. It’s a light yet decadent brownie, topped with a silky chocolate glaze (and it’s only 215 calories per slice).
We spotted this epic treat in the freezers at Iceland, and there’s a Chocolate Orange version and a Caramel Wreath in the same range too – all with similar calories per serving! Pop one of each in the freezer and it’s sure to be a very merry Christmas!
If you fancy a spot of festive baking, grab any leftover bananas and whip up a batch of these Banana Bread Brownies. They’re the best of both worlds, and a sneaky peek into the delicious recipes you’ll find inside our brand-new cookbook Enjoy! Psst…it’ll make a cracking stocking filler; order a copy here.
Galaxy Chocolate Brownie is available from Iceland, priced at £3.50.
REMINDER Aldi Super 6 Fruit and Veg Selection
We love Aldi’s Super 6 selection of fresh fruit and veggies! Each fortnight they choose six different items for a special offer where you can pick them up for much less than the normal price.
Here’s our reminder of this week’s Super 6 selection:
- Mini Roasting Potatoes – 80 calories per 100g
- Easy Peelers – 35 calories per 100g
- Romaine Lettuce – 17 calories per 100g
- Broccoli – 35 calories per 100g
- Unwaxed Lemons – 17 calories per 100g
- Mini Apples – 53 calories per 100g
**Remember: we do not take payment, promotion or gift for any of the items mentioned in these articles. We bring them to you because we love them and hope you will too!**
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