Your Slimming Essentials – The Weekly Pinch of Shopping 09.12
The countdown to Christmas is ON! We’ve got a sleigh-load of festive finds in today’s Weekly Pinch of Shopping…
Along with essentials for your Christmas dinner, we’ve spotted even more buffet-friendly finger foods. Would you reach for a Chicken Sesame Spring Roll first, or dip right into the Plant Based Delicious Cheddar Style Bake with Spring Onion & Garlic that we found in Asda?
One thing’s for certain, you won’t want to miss the special little Maltesers treats we’ve spotted this week. (Shhh…don’t tell anyone they’re only 80 calories each!).
Can you believe our NEW cookbook, Pinch of Nom: Enjoy, is out NOW? 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!**
M&S Turkey Bacon & Sage Soup – 162 calories per 1/2 pot
If you’ve already got Christmas dinner on the brain, this M&S Turkey Bacon & Sage Soup is a good way to curb the cravings, without spoiling the big day. A bowlful of soup is just what you need to warm you up on a wintery day, and this one won’t disappoint.
Rich and velvety, with 1 of your 5-a-day in each serving, this hearty broth has just the right amount of festive flavour to get you in the Christmas spirit. Made with turkey mince and bacon, the hint of sage really brings it all together.
You’ll also find turkey and sage inside our Festive Sausage Rolls, along with a spoonful of cranberry sauce. These tasty treats are just what your Christmas buffet table has been missing! Easy to prepare, they’re a crowd-pleasing snack that’s nice and low in calories.
M&S Turkey Bacon & Sage Soup is available from Ocado, priced at £3.25 for a 600g pot.
TGI Fridays Sesame Chicken Spring Rolls with a Tennessee Style BBQ Sauce – 105 calories per oven baked spring roll
Party season and finger food go hand in hand, so we’ll be stocking the freezer full of goodies like these Sesame Chicken Spring Rolls with a Tennessee Style BBQ Sauce. Part of the TGI Fridays range at Iceland, they’re perfect for buffets and parties.
Oven bake them in under 20 minutes or pop them in your air fryer for 10 minutes – either way you won’t be able to resist the crunchy, sesame-sprinkled rolls with their BBQ-infused chicken filling. You even get a little pot of dipping sauce in the pack, so you can dunk them for even more flavour!
If you like the sound of these, you’ll love our Sesame Chicken Toast recipe. Inspired by the crispy prawn toast you get from the takeaway, our lighter version keeps all the crunch while losing most of the calories. Each baked piece of toast is just 22 calories – ideal if you’re trying to stay on plan in the run-up to Christmas.
TGI Fridays Sesame Chicken Spring Rolls with a Tennessee Style BBQ Sauce is available from Iceland, priced at £4.00 for a pack of 6.
Costa Coffee Millionaires Mocha – 96 calories per serving
Calling all coffee drinkers! It’s no secret that those fancy frothy festive drinks you see on the coffee shop menus are both expensive and full of sugar. While they’re nice for an occasional treat, we’ve found an option that’s better for your budget (and much lower in calories too).
These Costa Coffee Millionaires Mocha sachets are an instant treat you can make in your own kitchen, for just 96 calories per serving. Add hot water, stir it up and sip away! If Millionaires Mocha isn’t your cup of tea (or coffee), we spotted Salted Caramel and Creamy Cappuccino flavour sachets in the same range.
Imagine combining your favourite caffeinated beverage with a classic Christmastime tipple. That’s exactly what we’ve done to create this unmissable Eggnog Latte. This is an alcohol-free recipe, but you can always add in 100ml of brandy if you want more of a kick! (Just bear in mind the extra calories, if you’re counting).
Costa Coffee Millionaires Mocha is available from Tesco, priced at £2.00 for a pack of 6 sachets.
Malted Milk Twists – 62 calories per biscuit
Light and crumbly, with a moreish malted flavour, you may already be a fan of a classic Malted Milk biscuit. Well, we’ve got good news for you! We spotted these Malted Milk Twists in Sainsbury’s recently and they’re just what you need with a nice cup of tea.
Sandwiched together with a rich, vanilla-flavoured cream, they look a little like a custard cream, and taste even better. For 62 calories each, you can’t go wrong with a couple of these, a cuppa and something Christmassy on the TV!
We love a biscuit, especially if it’s a Lotus Biscoff biscuit. There are so many things you can make with Biscoff, and this Biscoff Mousse might be one of our favourites. Light and airy, you won’t want to miss the crumbled biscuit off the top – it adds the perfect crunch.
Malted Milk Twists are available from Sainsbury’s, priced at 50p.
Paxo Sage & Onion Low Salt Stuffing Mix – 57 calories per 45g serving
This Paxo Sage & Onion Low Salt Stuffing Mix makes 12 stuffing balls with 70% less salt than other shop-bought mixes. Without losing any of the flavour, it gets rid of more of the nasties (there’s no artificial colours or preservatives either).
Served with your roast, or on the side of your Christmas dinner, a delicious stuffing ball is a must-have for your plate. At only 57 calories each, there’s no reason to say no!
If you fancy a change from sage and onion, this Cranberry and Orange Stuffing Balls recipe will be a welcome addition to your Christmas day menu. Zesty and refreshing, the sweet cranberries and zingy orange flavours are deliciously festive.
Paxo Sage & Onion Low Salt Stuffing Mix is available from Sainsbury’s, priced at £1.70.
ASDA Plant Based Delicious Cheddar Style Bake with Spring Onion & Garlic – 63 calories per 1/4 pack (oven baked)
If you’ve been dreaming about festive cheese boards, you’re not alone! It’s not Christmas without cheese, and no one should miss out on the gooey goodness of a melted cheese dip. This Plant Based Delicious Cheddar Style Bake with Spring Onion and Garlic from Asda is ideal if you’re celebrating with anyone that’s dairy-free or vegan. Baked in the oven until it’s bubbling and fragrant, it’ll tempt you away from the brie! At 63 calories for a quarter of the pack, it’s a lighter option that won’t make you feel like you’re missing out.
We take cheese seriously all year round, and this Savoury Cheesecake is our new favourite addition to a charcuterie board. The creamy, cheesy filling sits on a crumbly oatcake base, topped with sweet, caramelised tomatoes. This has got Christmas centrepiece written all over it!
ASDA Plant Based Delicious Cheddar Style Bake with Spring Onion & Garlic is available from Asda, priced at £3.50.
Mr Kipling Deliciously Good Plum Pear And Cinnamon Pies – 191 calories per pie
New-in at Morrisons, these Deliciously Good Plum Pear And Cinnamon Pies are a lower sugar festive treat from Mr Kipling. Made with real fruit pieces, the cinnamon-infused filling has just the right amount of winter spice (and 30% less sugar than similar pies).
Delicious served straight from the pack, these are a handy alternative to mince pies. You could even warm one up in the microwave and serve it with a glug of our boozy Brandy Sauce.
It’s never too soon to get a head start on the Christmas baking! You can take pastry off the shopping list if you’re planning on making these Mini Spiced Orange Mince Pie Crumbles – we’ve made the crunchy little cases from circles of low-calorie tortilla wraps instead. This means they come in nice and light, at just 86 calories each.
Mr Kipling Deliciously Good Plum Pear And Cinnamon Pies are available from Morrisons, priced at £1.75 for a pack of 6.
Tesco Maple & Thyme Baby Parsnips & Carrots – 112 calories per 1/4 pack
Cut down on prep with these Maple & Thyme Baby Parsnips & Carrots from Tesco. The frozen veggies come peeled, chopped and seasoned, ready to go right from the freezer into the oven. That’s less time in the kitchen and more time with the family over Christmas.
Coated in rapeseed oil, thyme and maple syrup, the baby parsnips and Chantenay carrots will turn golden and caramelised as they cook, adding a delicious hint of sweetness onto your plate of turkey and stuffing.
Put your slow cooker to good use this festive season and rustle up our Ginger and Orange Glazed Ham for Boxing Day. It’ll go perfectly with your roasted veggies, and it’s beautifully easy to make – throw all your ingredients in and leave the ham to get melt-in-the-mouth soft.
Tesco Maple & Thyme Baby Parsnips & Carrots are available from Tesco, priced at £2.20 for a 500g bag.
Maltesers® Dessert Cups – 80 calories per dessert cup
Get ready to run to your nearest Iceland – these Maltesers Dessert Cups need to go at the top of your shopping list this week. The white chocolate cups are filled with an airy malted chocolate cream and topped with chocolate-covered honeycomb pieces.
Even though they sound super-indulgent, there are just 80 calories in each one (the perfect excuse to go back for seconds if you ask us!). Take them out of the freezer 20 minutes before you want to serve – they’ll defrost at room temperature.
Fancy stocking up your freezer with more festive treats ahead of the 25th? Rustle up our Frozen Christmas Pudding! There’s no heavy fruit cake in sight; instead it’s a dreamy ice cream dessert made with fresh fruit and crunchy meringue. Pour on the chocolate sauce right before serving and have your spoons ready – this won’t last long before it’s gobbled up!
Maltesers Dessert Cups are available from Iceland, priced at £5.00 for a pack of 12.
Cheesy Pigs In Blankets – 78 calories per 2 pigs in blankets
If you thought pigs in blankets couldn’t get any better, think again! Tesco have given the Christmas classic an extra-indulgent touch. These Cheesy Pigs In Blankets come with mozzarella and Cheddar blended into the little pork chipolatas.
Wrapped in streaky bacon and baked until crispy, your Christmas dinner isn’t complete without them. Best of all, they’re lower in calories than you might expect (just 78 for 2 of them!).
Turn your pigs in blankets into the main event and create this showstopping Pigs in Blankets Christmas Wreath for your buffet or dinner table. The bacon-wrapped chicken sausages have double the blanket, thanks to a golden pastry layer that adds an irresistible crunch.
Cheesy Pigs In Blankets are available from Tesco, priced at £2.50 for a pack of 12.
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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