Lighten Up Your Meat
When you're making burgers, meatballs or other ground-meat dishes, combine equal parts of beef or pork with a leaner meat like turkey or chicken. You'll save on fat and calories without sacrificing flavor and texture. We mixed ground beef with ground turkey for Food Network Magazine's Light Shepherd's Pie — if you go all-turkey, you lose that great beefy taste.
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Meatloaf, Lightened Up
I recently ran the numbers on a classic meatloaf recipe and found that it had almost 800 calories and 65 grams of fat per serving! Here are some great ways to lighten up this American favorite.
FN’s Top Recipes, Lightened Up: #2 Paula’s Old-Fashioned Meatloaf
It's no surprise that meatloaf ranks high on Food Network’s Top 50 Recipes of 2009 list -- who doesn't love meatloaf?! And a Paula Deen meatloaf, at that! Ms. Deen isn't known for her low-cal dishes, but we've got some simple tips for slimming this comforting classic.
Rice Pudding, Lightened Up
I was never a rice pudding fan until a few years ago when my middle daughter starting requesting it daily. Since then I’ve been experimenting with a few variations of this classic to help lighten up the creamy calories while still maintaining its delicious flavor.
Pasta Salad, Lightened Up
Traditional pasta salad is swimming with hidden calories that’ll have you hiding from bathing suit season. Find out how to lighten up this summer classic and still keep your svelte shape.
Steak, Lightened Up
Cook up the perfect steak for Dad this Father’s Day. With a few small tweaks and ingredient swaps, Dad can enjoy his juicy steak while the rest of family can breathe easy that Dad won’t have a coronary.
Dips, Lightened Up
Blue cheese, artichoke and other cheesy dips can sabotage your waistline before the main course begins. Lighten up these dips with a few tricks; they’ll still taste fantastic.
Chowders, Lightened Up
As deliciously comforting as a warm bowl of chowder can be, all the fat and calories can wreak havoc on your waistline. A few simple swaps and you can slurp this savory soup with delight.
Potato Soup, Lightened Up
Creamy potato soup can have anywhere from 300 to 500 calories and up to 35 grams of fat per serving! Our lightened-up versions taste even better than the cream-laden recipes, and since the main ingredients are potatoes, it won’t bust your budget.
Nachos, Lightened Up
Every so often I get a big time craving for spicy, cheesy and crunchy nachos. But when most restaurant orders top 1500 calories and 100 grams of fat, I’d much rather make them myself. Use these tips to indulge wisely.
