Delicious recipes that will make weight loss fun

Tom Kerridge might have made a career for himself turning club into award-winning restaurants and appearing on our screens in everything from MasterChef to Saturday Kitchen, but he’s also a household name for his personal weight loss journey, which he’s also turned into a series of hugely popular cookbooks and TV shows.

Drawing on this experience and his expertise, he shares two easy and delicious recipes to help you stick to your goals – or simply to enjoy!

Curried cauliflower soup

I’ve eaten a lot of cauliflower on my low-carb diet and I’ve grown to love it. When it’s cooked and pureed like this, it takes on such a rich, creamy texture that it feels quite indulgent, particularly when combined with the coconut and cream cheese. It takes on spices beautifully, too.

Carb count: 22g per person

Ingredients:

50g dried onion flakes

2 tbsp vegetable oil

50g butter

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, grated

1½ tbsp curry powder

1 chicken or vegetable stock cub

1 large cauliflower (about 800g), broken into florets

200ml coconut cream

200g cream cheese

4 tbsp chopped coriander, tender stems and all

2 hot green chillies, sliced, seeds and all

Finely grated zest of 1 lime

Sea salt and cayenne pepper

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Scatter the onion flakes on a baking tray, trickle on the oil, give it a stir and season with salt. Bake for 5 minutes, or until the onion flakes are golden brown. Set aside to cool.

2. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over a medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic and sweat gently, stirring from time to time, for 10-15 minutes until soft. Sprinkle on the curry powder and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes.

3. Now pour in 1 litre water and crumble in the stock cube. Bring to the boil and add the cauliflower florets. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 5-10 minutes, until the cauliflower is soft.

4. Stir in the coconut cream and cream cheese until fully combined. Bring back to the boil then take the pan off the heat.

5. Blitz with a stick blender, or in a jug blender or food processor. If you’ve time, pass the soup through a sieve into a clean pan at this point – this will give the soup an unbelievably silky and delicious texture. Warm gently and season to taste with salt and cayenne pepper.

6. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and scatter over the toasted onion flakes, coriander, chilli and lime zest.

Berry and yoghurt breakfast shake

I’ll often have this shake when I want to refuel after morning exercise. By keeping a stash of berries in the freezer I can whiz it up in seconds, and avoid giving in to hunger cravings on the way back from the gym.

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

A large handful (100g) frozen berries

30g porridge oats

2 tbsp Greek yoghurt (0% fat)

1 tsp granulated sweetener

180ml whole milk

A few mint leaves

4 ice cubes

Method

1. Put all the ingredients into a jug blender and blend until completely smooth.

2. Pour into a large glass or portable drinks container and enjoy!

Variation: Use coconut or almond milk instead of cow’s milk.

Bonus: This shake is ideal as a pre- or post-workout breakfast – the oats supply sustained energy while yoghurt provides protein to promote muscle recovery. And berries are a great source of vitamin C, which is also needed for muscle repair and helps to boost the immune system.

Per serving: 341 kcals, 21g protein, 9g fat, 42g carbs, 6g fibre

The Independent