Your Slimming Essentials – The Weekly Pinch of Shopping 28.06.24
Nothing gives us that Friday feeling quite like a fresh Weekly Pinch of Shopping, and this is the very last one for June! Time flies when you’re celebrating the release of a BRAND-NEW PINCH OF NOM BOOK!
It’s been lovely to see some sunshine this week, so it was the perfect moment to spot M&S’ new Green Goddess Salad. Drizzle on the creamy herb sauce and add your favourite BBQ dishes on the side.
Or how about a Tapas-style fakeaway night this weekend? Asda has taken the hassle out of making the Patatas Bravas, so you can focus on other Spanish-inspired recipes like prawns and meatballs…
Don’t forget the Wimbledon Championship starts on Monday – and we’ve found the perfect treat to sit down and watch it with. Scroll to the bottom of the list to learn more about the Strawberries and Cream cakes we’ve got our eye on!
PINCH OF NOM: AIR FRYER is OUT NOW!!! It’s official – our most-requested cookbook ever is finally out there in the world! We’ve already seen so many of you posting recipes from the book in our Facebook group…and yet it still doesn’t feel real! If you don’t have your own copy yet, go and have a browse through what everyone’s been making (warning, it’ll leave you feeling SO hungry!).
You can pick up a copy here if you want to join in on the air-frying fun!
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! The members in our incredible Facebook group are always happy to have a good old chat about lots of these shopping items. You can join the group by clicking here.
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. There’s a fresh selection this week, so scroll down to find out what’s included, along with some ideas on how to make the most of the ingredients.
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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!**
Tesco Crustless Spinach Edamame Kale Quiche – 292 calories per quiche
It’s no secret that we love a crustless quiche! If you don’t have the time to make one yourself, this Tesco Crustless Spinach Edamame Kale Quiche could come in handy.
The ready-to-eat quiche has a super-thin pastry base and a filling that’s brimming with green vegetables and mature Cheddar cheese. Served hot or cold, you can munch your way through the whole quiche for just 292 calories.
Quiche and Homemade Oven Chips is a staple in our house, but when we fancy switching it up, we add a spoonful of our Potato Salad on the side. Thanks to a dressing made from quark and fat-free natural yoghurt, it’s so much lighter than shop-bought versions.
Tesco Crustless Spinach Edamame Kale Quiche is available from Tesco, priced at £1.80.
Eat Real Hummus Chips Tomato & Basil Flavour – 100 calories per 22g serving
Good news for savoury snack fans! We’ve spotted these Eat Real Hummus Chips Tomato and Basil Flavour on the shelves at Sainsbury’s. A healthier crisp to crunch on, they’re made from chickpeas, with a moreish tomatoey flavour.
With 30% less fat than fried potato crisps, they’re lovely and light (so they’ll come in handy when you need some slimming-friendly snacks to nibble as you watch the Euros!).
If you’d rather dunk some carrot sticks or pitta chips, you need to give our Hummus-Style Dip a go. It’s not made with chickpeas – instead we’ve whizzed butter beans into a creamy, garlicky dip that’s delicious with chopped veggies or pitta chips.
Eat Real Hummus Chips Tomato & Basil Flavour are available from Sainsbury’s, priced at £2.00.
M&S VIVA Green Goddess Salad – 55 calories per 1/4 pack
Next time you need a boost of green goodness in a hurry, grab a pot of this VIVA Green Goddess Salad from M&S. A crunchy mixture of lettuce, slaw, broccoli, sugar snaps, avocado and seeds, it comes with a creamy herb dressing to drizzle over right before digging in.
At just 55 calories per serving, there’s never a bad time for this one – it’s a versatile side dish for all kinds of summery mains.
We’ll be giving it a try with the Air Fryer Chicken and Pineapple Skewers from our new Air Fryer book! Far quicker than rustling them up on the BBQ, they bring the most delicious sweet and savoury flavours to the table.
M&S VIVA Green Goddess Salad is available from Ocado, priced at £5.50.
Morrisons Pollock Fillets – 72 calories per 100g
Adding fish into your midweek meal plan is a great way to keep things interesting! White fish is low in calories and high in protein, perfect if you’re on a slimming journey. These Morrisons Pollock Fillets make things easier and more budget friendly – they cook straight from frozen, and they’re cheaper than buying fresh fish fillets.
Add your choice of seasonings and pop them in the oven or air fryer until you’ve got fall-off-the-fork flaky, delicious fish for dinner!
Speaking of thrifty fish recipes, if you have a couple of tins of tuna in the cupboard, you’re well on your way towards making these Tuna and Sweetcorn Fishcakes. They’re filling, flavourful and just 234 calories for 2 fishcakes.
Morrisons Pollock Fillets are available from Morrisons, priced at £4.95 for a pack of 6.
ASDA Patatas Bravas – 213 calories per 1/2 pack
How about tapas for your next fakeaway night? We’ve spotted this Patatas Bravas from Asda and it’s inspired us to add a selection of Spanish-style recipes to our meal plan next week!
The cubed potatoes come in a smoky, spicy tomato sauce, with a sachet of garlic aioli to squeeze over once they’ve done baking in the oven. Always a crowd-pleaser, you might need to grab an extra pack if there’s a few of you around the dinner table!
Our Spanish-Style Meatballs deserve a spot on the table too. The recipe makes enough for 4 people, and it’ll stretch even further if you’re adding lots of tapas-inspired dishes to your spread.
ASDA Patatas Bravas are available from Asda, priced at £2.50.
Innocent Juicy Water With Bubbles Lemon & Lime – 70 calories per can
Best known for its smoothies, Innocent has just launched these new cans of Juicy Water With Bubbles. We’ve picked out the Lemon and Lime flavour, but there’s also a raspberry and blackcurrant version on the shelves.
Made with real fruit, there’s loads of vitamin C, plus 1 of your 5-a-day in each can! Thirst-quenching and refreshing, they’re ideal for keeping you hydrated during warm, sunny days in the garden.
You’ll need something light and fruity for dinner while we’re enjoying the lovely weather. Nothing beats our Summer Pineapple, Lime, Feta and Quinoa Salad when the sun’s shining. It’s nice and hearty, thanks to protein-rich quinoa, and the zesty lime and juicy pineapple make sure every bite is zinging with flavour.
Innocent Juicy Water With Bubbles Lemon & Lime is available from Morrisons, priced at £1.69.
Border Dark Chocolate Raspberry – 122 calories per biscuit
If you’re anything like us, sometimes you just need 5 minutes, a cuppa and a good biscuit to crunch on. We’ve spied these Border Dark Chocolate Raspberry biccies in Sainsbury’s this week, and we’ve been dreaming of them ever since!
The rich, chocolatey biscuits are made with real fruit, so you get the perfect balance of tart raspberries and bitter dark chocolate. At 122 calories per biscuit, they’re ideal for an end-of-the-day treat (you know you deserve it!).
Why stop there when you can also start your day with a chocolate and raspberry combo too though? Our Raspberry Mocha Granola Pots are just the thing to get you jumping out of bed…
Border Dark Chocolate Raspberry is available from Sainsbury’s, priced at £1.90 (or £1.25 with a Nectar card).
Yeo Valley Organic Kefir Mango & Passion Fruit – 66 calories per 100ml
You might not have tried Kefir before, but it’s been around for a long, long time! It’s a refreshing, tangy milk drink that’s full to the brim with calcium and live bacteria that can boost your gut health.
This Yeo Valley Organic Kefir Mango and Passion Fruit comes with a tropical flavour twist, making it a tasty addition to your breakfast table. Sip up all the goodness to start the day as you mean to go on.
Juicy, refreshing mango is ideal in the summertime, and you can turn a bag of frozen chunks into the easiest ice cream ever! Our Mango and Raspberry Ice Cream only needs 4 simple ingredients, and a few hours in the freezer until it’s perfect for scooping.
Yeo Valley Organic Kefir Mango & Passion Fruit is available from Morrisons, priced at £2.25.
M&S Collection Ultra Thin Spicy King Prawn Pizza – 356 calories per pizza
We love M&S’ ultra-thin pizzas when that craving for a slice just won’t go away! You can imagine how thrilled we were to spot a few new flavours in the chilled aisle this week, including this M&S Collection Ultra Thin Spicy King Prawn Pizza.
The Romana dough is stretched to give an especially light, crisp crust. This also cuts down on calories, meaning you can eat the whole individual-sized pizza for just 356 calories.
Here at Pinch of Nom we can never say no to pizza – which is why we’ve managed to turn it into all kinds of dinner recipes and savoury snacks. Flick to pages 156-157 of Pinch of Nom: Air Fryer to make these Air Fryer Pizza Swirls. They’re so satisfying, and only 50 calories.
M&S Collection Ultra Thin Spicy King Prawn Pizza is available from Ocado, priced at £4.00.
Mr Kipling Strawberries & Cream French Fancies Cakes – 106 calories per cake
Teatime treats don’t come much tastier than a Mr Kipling French Fancy! Excitingly, there’s a new flavour out just in time for Wimbledon to kick off next week – Strawberries and Cream.
The little strawberry sponge cakes have a vanilla topping, and then they’re covered in cream flavoured fondant icing. Each indulgent little cake works out at 106 calories, so leave a little room for something sweet after your dinner!
If you’re planning on watching the tennis, there’s no need to miss out on the traditional strawberries and cream. Put on a selection of summertime snacks, including these Cream Tea Scones. They’re lovely and light!
Mr Kipling Strawberries & Cream French Fancies Cakes are available from Iceland, priced at £2.00 for a pack of 8.
NEW Aldi Super 6 Fruit and Veg Selection
We love Aldi’s fortnightly selection of fresh fruit and veggies! They choose different items for a special offer where you can pick them up for much less than the normal price.
Here’s the rundown of this week’s Super 6 offering, along with some recipe ideas for you.
Lemons – 17 calories per 100g
Sweet or savoury, lemons are one of those ingredients that come in handy more often than you’d think. Squeeze the juice into a fakeaway classic like our ever-popular Lemon Chicken recipe, or zest the citrus-y peel to add into this Lemon Drizzle Cake.
Either way, it’s worth picking up a bag of these unwaxed lemons while they’re included in the Super 6!
Little Gem Lettuce – 16 calories per 100g
Crunchy leaves of Little Gem lettuce make for a tasty salad base or sandwich filler. Refreshing and low in calories, it’s always worth your while to have some in the fridge crisper drawer.
To keep things slimming friendly, we nestle the filling for these Pork Carnitas with Pineapple and Mango Salsa inside cups of Little Gem lettuce. They add the perfect crunch to every bite, without ramping up the calories!
Sweetcorn – 86 calories per 100g
Boiled, grilled, barbecued or roasted, there are so many ways to enjoy sweetcorn’s signature crunchiness. If you’re a fan of bright and colourful corn on the cob, you’re in luck – it’s only 89p for a pack of two at Aldi this week.
Pop the corn on the BBQ, then add the delicious toppings to turn it into our Mexican-Style Corn on the Cob. You won’t regret it!
Vine Tomatoes – 18 calories per 100g
With a more aromatic and intense flavour than their off-the-vine counterparts, these vine tomatoes are a tasty addition to a whole host of recipes.
Fun fact about vine tomatoes – they’re packed full of health-boosting antioxidants, so they’re well worth popping in your shopping basket.
Roast them in the oven and toss them into this Black Pepper and Parmesan Spaghetti with Garlic and Thyme Tomatoes for a speedy dinner that’s simple yet delicious.
Extra Fine Beans – 31 calories per 100g
Green beans can add a colourful crunch to a variety of main meals at a moment’s notice, including stir-fries, salads and curries. They also make for a mean side dish with meat or fish dishes, especially if you prepare our Air Fryer Crispy Green Beans.
Ready in under 10 minutes, they’re cheesy, garlicky and crunchy – for only 79 calories per serving!
Pink Lady Apples – 52 calories per 100g
Pink Lady Apples are famously oh-so-sweet with a delightful crunch, so it’s no surprise when they’re first to disappear from the fruit bowl. A refreshing snack on a hot summer’s day, they also hold their shape well in heat, so they’re ideal for cooking and baking.
No matter the time of year, Apple Crumble is always one of our favourite puddings. We can’t say no to that tart yet sweet apple centre, or that satisfying crunchy crumble topping. Why not make the fruitiness in this pud even more refreshing with a scoop of ice cream?
**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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