Low-Calorie Dishes

By Food & Wine
Updated May 24, 2017
From goat cheese-stuffed mushrooms with bread crumbs to eggs baked in roasted tomato sauce, these healthy recipes don't sacrifice taste.
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Lemony Quinoa Salad with Shaved Vegetables

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Calories per serving: 250

Eating quinoa is a great way for vegetarians to get protein. Jeremy Fox tosses nutty-tasting quinoa with crunchy shaved vegetables for a refreshing salad loaded with vitamins and minerals.

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Mixed Green Salad with Fig-Yogurt Dressing

Credit: © Yunhee Kim
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Calories per serving: 163

Tossed with a healthy mix of lettuces such as arugula and watercress, this tangy-sweet dressing combines low-fat yogurt with vitamin K–rich figs.

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Spicy Chickpea Soup

Credit: © Stephanie Foley
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Calories per serving: 288

Chickpeas are rich in both types of dietary fiber, which are important for maintaining heart health and for stabilizing blood sugar levels. Pam Anderson uses them as the base for this Indian-flavored creamy (though cream-free) soup, which she prepares by first pureeing it, then simmering it, to save time. "Pureed beans give you richness without having to enrich the soup," she says.

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Warm Shrimp Salad with Kamut, Red Chile and Tarragon

Credit: © Johnny Valiant
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Calories per Serving: 330

Kamut is an heirloom variety of wheat with a sweet, almost buttery flavor. F&W editor Kristin Donnelly loves using it in her warm shrimp salad.

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Goat Cheese-Stuffed Mushrooms with Bread Crumbs

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Calories per serving: 138

Goat's-milk cheeses are typically lower in cholesterol, calories and fat—and higher in calcium—than cow's-milk ones. Here, creamy chèvre is stuffed into antioxidant-rich mushrooms and topped with crispy herbed bread crumbs.

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Spiced Yogurt Muffins

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Calories per serving: 140

These ingeniously moist muffins from Fraîche baker Jennifer Musty are rich in calcium and low in fat.

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Roast Beef with Root-Vegetable-and-Green-Peppercorn Salad

Credit: © Johnny Valiant
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Calories per serving: 407

Brined green peppercorns aren't particularly popular, but Kristin Donnelly loves them in a dressing for sweet roasted fall vegetables and roast beef.

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Chicken and Noodles in Spiced Broth

Credit: © Joseph de Leo
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Calories per serving: 277

Alternative healers use star anise to fight cold and flu symptoms. Melissa Rubel Jacobson combines the licorice-scented spice with cinnamon and ginger—both stomach soothers—to flavor a restorative chicken-noodle soup.

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Whole Fish Roasted with Potatoes and Thyme

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Calories per Serving: 388

Kristin Donnelly has recently become a convert to cooking whole fish, which is insanely easy, delicious and cheaper than fillets.

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Yogurt and Apricot Pie with Crunchy Granola Crust

Credit: © Yunhee Kim
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Calories per serving: 243

Oats and almonds may both help lower blood pressure; they're incorporated here in an ingenious granola crust for this sweet-tart pie.

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Eggs Baked in Roasted Tomato Sauce

Credit: PHOTO © QUENTIN BACON
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Calories per serving: 246

Studies have shown that people who eat eggs for breakfast tend to lose weight. Here, eggs are cooked in an antioxidant-rich tomato sauce.

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Mustard Green and Sweet Onion Frittata

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Calories per serving: 240

Although high in cholesterol, eggs are a terrific source of bone-building vitamins D and K. Gabe Thompson combines them with nutrient-rich mustard greens in this healthy frittata.

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Maple, Pear and Ricotta Parfaits

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Calories per serving: 258

The ricotta in these parfaits is full of calcium, and the pears are loaded with fiber. To add flavor, Marisa May poaches the pears in water infused with maple syrup and lemon juice. The poached pears can also be served separately with granola or yogurt.

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Eggs Baked Over Sautéed Mushrooms and Spinach

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Calories per serving: 323

Drinking wine with eggs at lunch always feels so French to Kristin Donnelly, likely thanks to Elizabeth David's famous essay, "An Omelette and a Glass of Wine."

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Lemony Quinoa Salad with Pine Nuts and Olives

Credit: © Ellie Miller
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Calories per serving: 259

Quinoa contains all nine essential amino acids. Tossed with pine nuts, it's the foundation of this light salad.

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Lemon-Stuffed Grilled Branzino

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Calories per serving: 277

Branzino, a European sea bass, is low in fat but has a wonderful richness when cooked on the bone. Barbara Lynch stuffs the fish with lemons and herbs, then grills it until the skin is browned and crispy to add even more flavor.

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