Healthy & Slimming-Friendly Comfort Foods: Garlicky Recipes You’ll Love

Garlic is the star of the show in these healthy, slimming-friendly comfort food recipes. The popular onion relative is a tasty way to give your cooking a bold, savoury kick, without ramping up the calories.

A kitchen staple, countless delicious dishes benefit from the distinctive punchiness of garlicky flavours. We’ve got everything from garlic-loaded air-fried bakes to pies, pastas and soups on this list for you. 

Now’s your cue to grab the garlic press and crush some cloves…we’re about to get cooking!

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Bolognese and Garlic Swirl Pie

We can’t talk about garlicky recipes without mentioning one of our most-popular website dishes of the year: Bolognese and Garlic Swirl Pie. This comforting, puff pastry swirl topped bake gives potato-topped pies a run for their money.

With a garlic herb ‘butter’ swirled into the slimming-friendly topping, we’ve basically made it so that every mouthful tastes like you’re eating bolognese and garlic bread at once.

At 593 calories per portion, we can promise you’ll never regret pencilling in for a Special Occasion.

Garlic and Parmesan Sweet Potatoes

When you’re on the lookout for a side dish that’ll steal the show, these Garlic and Parmesan Sweet Potatoes don’t disappoint. Take Sunday roasts to the next level with spuds that aren’t just baked until golden, they’re also coated in a tangy layer of Parmesan cheese.

A mandoline makes light work of finely slicing sweet potatoes into even pieces. Once your potato is arranged in rows in an oven dish, it’s time to sprinkle over the homemade spice mix.

You’ll stir together paprika, onion powder, salt, pepper and – you guessed it – garlic granules! 

Garlic Mushroom Soup

Stop scrolling here if you’re searching for a slimming-friendly comfort food for lunch. Our Garlic Mushroom Soup is just what your soup flask calls for in the autumn and winter months.

Mushrooms and garlic are a dream team combo, since they taste delicious and they’re low in calories too.

Pull your copy of Enjoy from the shelf and turn to pages 88-89 to find out how we make the mixture thick and luscious without full-fat ingredients.

Chicken Kyiv Pasta Bake

It’s no secret that where garlic meets pasta, magic happens. Our Chicken Kyiv Pasta Bake is no exception. The twist? Imagine the herby filling from a Chicken Kyiv, turned into a silky pasta sauce…

Grab the ingredients for this one when you fancy bags of flavour for minimum effort. Your oven will do the heavy-lifting for you; simply sit back, relax and watch your ingredients turn golden with a crispy crumb topping.

Onion Rings with Garlic and Chive Dip

For a savoury snack with a garlic crunch, turn to Onion Rings with Garlic and Chive Dip. While onion rings are typically deep-fat fried and full of calories, we’ve made things healthier with a spritz of low-calorie cooking spray, and a coating of panko breadcrumbs.

It’d be rude to serve them dry, so we’ve also whipped up a scrumptious, slimming-friendly dip using a nifty combination of low-fat yoghurt, chives, punchy garlic and zingy lemon.

Tear and Share Cheesy Garlic Dough Balls

These Tear and Share Cheesy Garlic Dough Balls might just be the ultimate garlic recipe. They’re always at the top of our mind when we’re planning an Italian-inspired feast for a special occasion.

We know ‘74 calories per dough ball’ sounds too good to be true, but we can promise, it’s a fact! Plus, making your dough from scratch is nowhere near as scary as it might sound.

For good measure, each dough ball has a full cube of mozzarella cheese inside – just imagine the gooey goodness!

Cheesy Garlic Naanzone

You didn’t think we’d write a whole article without talking about our air fryer, did you? Two in one, our Cheesy Garlic Naanzone recipe is what happens when garlic naan bread and cheesy calzone cross paths.

Snack on them all alone, or use them to turn a lunch or dinner into an even heartier meal. They’re just as dreamy whether you take them for a dip in mango chutney, or a comforting bowl of soup.

If you’ve got a hankering to try these golden parcels, the full recipe is on pages 54-55 of our Air Fryer cookbook. 

Creamy Garlic Sprouts

As soon as sprout season hits, you best believe we’re stocking up and making crates of Creamy Garlic Sprouts. As far as garlicky sniffle-fighting recipes are concerned, there’s no better go-to when you’re in need of a quick, nutritious side dish.

The word ‘boring’ doesn’t fit the description for these gorgeous leafy greens. We oven-roast them in garlic first, before they’re coated in an irresistible creamy sauce.

Even topped with Parmesan, they’re only 132 calories per serving.

Cheesy Mushroom Bake

More proof that mushrooms and garlic are meant to be together, this Cheesy Mushroom Bake is one of our favourite (and most impressive-looking) side dishes.

If that golden brown crumb topping doesn’t have you licking your lips, the cheesy sauce inside definitely will.

Spoon a serving onto your plate alongside pasta, chicken, beef, fish or veggie alternatives. It’s one of those garlic recipes that goes with just about anything!

Flava It! Creamy Garlic Chicken

Last but not least, we’ve reached the mother of all garlicky recipes: Creamy Garlic Chicken. Loads of you are sure to have tried our website recipe, but have you had a chance to whip up Flava It! Creamy Garlic Chicken yet?

With one of our fan-favourite sachets in hand, you can take a more fuss-free shortcut to the classic Pinch of Nom flavours you know and love. It’s available to buy individually from Tesco for a pound, or you can grab it as part of our fan-favourites box from Amazon.

Bear in mind that they’ve been flying off the shelves, so if they’re not in stock when you first look, keep checking…they’ll be back soon!

You’ve probably got some questions! Don’t worry, they’re all answered in our blog: Where Can I Buy the Pinch of Nom the Pinch of Nom x Flava It! Recipe Mixes?

Let us know which garlicky comfort food you make first

Don’t forget to stop by and say hello in our Facebook group. We’d love to see photos of any garlicky creations you cook up, or just have a chat about what you’ve been cooking.

We’ve got almost 1 million lovely community members waiting to encourage you on your slimming journey, or answer any recipe questions you might have.

You can also look for inspo in our Gallery – head over and have a nosy at what everyone else has been sharing lately. You’ll need to sign up to a free website account to upload and share your own photos (we’ve got a step-by-step guide on how to do that just here).

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