Shopping List.

There are a few things that you simply must have in your house if you are going to embark on the slimming world plan.

Frylight

First and foremost is some sort of low calorie cooking spray. There are many of these product our there although im unfamiliar with their names. The only one which i no the name of is frylight which i own. If they are less than 2 calories per spray they are considered free to use on the slimming world plan. I somewhat take advantage of this when i am cooking chips as i use upward of 50 sprays :P I have yet to ask my consultant if this is ok but as i rarely have chips im just gonna play the ignorance is bliss game :P

Marmite

Next up on the shopping list is marmite. Obviously for a lot of people this is a take it or leave it product. At the same time i feel i have to mention it as it is such a versatile cooking item. You can have it on toast mix it in with potato for some extra flavor, you can even turn in into a gravy to put over roast potatoes.

Herbs and Spices

Another very important thing to start stocking your house with is herbs and spices. Personally i was never one for using herbs to taste my meals as they always tasted just right with a slab of butter. On the slimming world plan you will find that some foods just need that extra kick as they no longer have fat in them to flavour them. If we look at burgers for example. You can make them up with extra lean mince and they are just as tasty if not better than the normal fat version. Sometimes though they can be a little dry or lacking some kick so i would mix in peri peri or some mixed spice just to give it that extra something.

The same can be said for chicken or chips. If im doing chips and chicken in the oven i will open the oven up half way through and throw a few handfuls of chilli powder and crushed peppercorns over them. Once they are done the flavours have mixed into them so well that your going back for seconds.

Hand Blender/Blender

I really wish someone would have told me how good soup at the start so im tell you. Im not a big fan of having chunks in my food while im eating. I no its just a piece of tomato or onion but it still ruins the meal for me. So after i make a pot of soup i will stick in my trusty hand blender and blitz the whole thing til it smooth. A brilliant recipe which i found was to use a few stock cubes, 2 leeks, 2 onions, few large potatoes and a kettle full of water. Mix them all together, let it cook for an hour and then blitz it into a perfect soup :) If you are a fan of spicy soup i advice crushing up a handful of black peppercorns and throwing them in. NOM NOM NOM.

Another thing that is just essential is a few bottles of sugarfree drinks. If you are a recovering coke addict like myself you will be aware at how hard it is to kick the habit. When i joined slimming world the biggest transition i had to make was to stop drinking coke. When i discovered that coke zero had basically no calories and was just as tasty as real coke i was delighted. This is the same for all other diet/zero drinks just make sure to check the nutritional info on the back.

Butter

While you are out shopping it is advisable to try to find lower calorie/fat versions of the things you are already eating. I myself went from golden cow to flora light and honestly i cant tell the difference. Dont quote me on this but if i remember correctly flora light has less than 1/4 of the calories and fat that regular butter has.

This doesn't just apply to butter tho. If you have anything in your fridge that you think is too high in fat just try and find a better one. 90 percent of the time there is an alternate out there!

The next post i will talk about my first week and sweeties :)