Eating healthy weight loss meals can help bring you one step closer to your dream body. While healthy eating is an adjustment, there are many healthy recipes available that are quick and easy to prepare.
What’s more, thesehealthy weight loss meals are all highly nutritious and low in calories – you might even have some of the ingredients stored in your pantry or fridge already.
Healthy Weight Loss Meals: 13 Quick Recipes to Help You Lose Those Extra Pounds
1. Yogurt Parfait
Greek yogurt is a healthier alternative to your regular sugar-filled variety. It is a strained yogurt where the majority of the whey has been removed.
It’s thicker and has a different texture without compromising the taste. This makes it a great and healthy ingredient to your breakfast yogurt parfait.
Ingredients:
- Grapes or mixed berries, 1 cup
- Chopped banana, ½ piece
- Unsweetened shredded coconut, ¼ cup
- Granola, ½ cup
- Non-fat or low-fat Greek yogurt, ½ cup
Directions: Put a layer of each ingredient into a jar and refrigerate.
2. Sweet Potato Pancakes
Using sweet potato in your pancakes removes the necessity of any other toppings as it’s naturally sweet. But, you can add maple syrup or applesauce as preferred.
Ingredients:
- Mashed sweet potato, ½ cup
- Eggs, 2 pieces
- Flour, ¼ cup
- Baking soda and baking powder mixture, ⅛ teaspoon
- Honey or coconut palm sugar, ⅛ teaspoon
- Salt to taste
- Milk (optional)
Directions: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and cook as you would regular pancakes.
3. Creamy Almond Oatmeal
Almond milk is a good alternative to regular milk with its nutty flavor and creamy texture. While it’s strained milk, it’s still rich in vitamins, minerals, and protein. This makes it a good addition to your creamy almond oatmeal.
Ingredients:
- Steel cut oats, ½ cup
- Unsweetened almond milk, 2 cups
- Honey or maple syrup, 3 tablespoons
- Sea salt to taste
- Cinnamon, ½ teaspoon
- Diced almonds, 2 tablespoons
Directions: Add oats, almond milk, honey or maple syrup, salt, and cinnamon in a slow cooker. Whisk to combine all the ingredients. Cook for 4 to 5 hours or until you getthe preferred consistency. Top with almonds and serve.
4. Superfood Smoothie
A smoothie is both delicious, filling, and can pass as a breakfast in itself. What makes this smoothie even better? It has five superfoods and tastes fantastic.
Ingredients:
- Organic apple, 1 piece
- Frozen red grapes, 1 cup
- Freshly-grated ginger, 1 teaspoon
- Plain fat-free kefir, ½ cup
- Chilled unsweetened green tea, ½ cup
- Honey (optional)
- Ice cubes
Directions: Toss all ingredients into a blender and blend until you get your preferred thickness.
5. Avocado Pizza
A regular pizza isn’t exactly what you will call “healthy.” But, this avocado pizza recipe is! While it only has a few ingredients, you get loads of fiber and protein making it one of the most refreshing and nutritious healthy weight loss meals.
Ingredients:
- Whole grain tortillas, 2
- Eggs, 2
- Olive oil, 2 tablespoons
- Peeled and seeded avocado, 1 piece
- Lemon juice, 1 teaspoon
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions: Warm the tortillas in the microwave for approximately half a minute and set aside.
Mix avocado and lemon juice in a bowl until you get a smooth consistency.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Spread the mixture onto both tortillas and set aside.
Heat a skillet over medium heat and add olive oil for frying the eggs.
Place warm eggs onto the tortillas and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
6. French Toast Casserole
This French toast casserole is your typical rich and sweet breakfast treat. But, it’s healthier and a lot easier to prepare. Enjoy as either breakfast or brunch by yourself or with friends.
Ingredients:
- Whole eggs, 2
- Egg whites, 2
- 1% milk, 1.5 cups
- Honey, 2 tablespoons
- Vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon
- Cinnamon, ½ teaspoon
- Whole grain bread, 9 slices
- Diced apples, 3 cups
- Honey, 3 tablespoons
- Lemon juice, 1 teaspoon
- Diced raw pecans
- Cinnamon, ½ teaspoon
Directions: Mix the first six ingredients in a bowl and spray a little non-stick cooking oil onto the slow cooker.
In another bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients until apples are coated and set aside.
Slice bread into halves and layer at the lowest part of the slow cooker.
Add ¼ of the second mixture as asecond layer and rehash until you have three layers. Pour in the extra filling on the top.
Pour the egg mixture on top of the bread and cook for 2 to 3 hours. Serve when the liquid has fully saturated the bread.
7. Blueberry Banana Smoothie
With three superfoods in one smoothie, you get a healthy and refreshing skinny smoothie for breakfast. Plus, blueberries have fiber, potassium, and phytonutrients that keep your heart healthy.
Ingredients:
- Tofu, ¼ cup
- Plain soy milk, 1 cup
- Frozen blueberries, 1 cup
- Raw spinach, 1 cup
- Banana, 1 large piece
Directions: Toss all ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth. Serve.
8. Garden Salad
There are many benefits to eating a salad full of fruits and vegetables as they contain various antioxidants including vitamins C and E, folic acid, and lycopene.
Ingredients:
- Spinach, bite-size pieces
- Avocado, ½
- Red onion, ⅓
- Cucumber, ½
- Carrot, grated
- Sliced almonds, 8 pieces
- Beans sprouts, 1 cup
- Fresh parsley, ½ cup
- Diced tomato, 1
- Roasted chicken breast, 1 cup
- Lemon, 1
- Extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon
- Dried oregano, 1 teaspoon
- Black pepper, ¼ teaspoon
- Salt to taste
Directions: Toss all salad ingredients except the last five into a bowl and combine. Whisk together the last five ingredients in another bowl and drizzle over the salad mix for the dressing.
9. Chicken Salad
Ingredients:
- Cubed skinless and boneless chicken breasts, 2
- Chopped celery, 2 stalks
- Chopped red onion, ¼ piece
- Quartered red seedless grapes, ½ cup
- Greek yogurt, ½ cup
- Garlic powder, 1 teaspoon
- Freshly-ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon
- Sea salt to taste
- Halved whole-wheat pita, 2 pockets
- Romaine lettuce, 2 leaves
Directions: Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl. You can also have the chicken breasts either eaten as is or added to a pita sandwich.
10. Vegetable and Pesto Sandwich
Eating a variety of mixed vegetables is a great way to diversify your diet and maintain healthy eating habits. Add some flavor with a touch of pesto and light mozzarella cheese to make a healthy and delicious sandwich.
Ingredients:
- Sliced white mushrooms, 8 ounces
- Extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons
- Red bell peppers, 4.25 pieces
- Whole-grain bread, 8 pieces
- Shredded mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup
- Thinly-sliced Roma tomatoes, 2 pieces
- Packed arugula, 1 cup
- Pesto, ¼ cup
Directions: Set your oven to 375 degrees.
Drizzle your bell peppers with olive oil and roast for 20 minutes.
In a small skillet, add olive oil and saute mushrooms for 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, you can proceed to toast bread.
Add mozzarella until cheese melts.
Remove bread and top with bell peppers, mushrooms, pesto, tomatoes, and arugula.
11. Chicken Noodle Soup
What makes this chicken noodle soup special is the rotisserie chicken. It’s also low in sodium, so you can enjoy the spices instead of those salty canned broths. Serve hot.
Ingredients:
- Olive oil, 1 tablespoon
- Chopped carrots, 2
- Celery, 3 stalks
- Diced white onion, 1
- Chicken stock, 4 cups
- Black pepper, 1 teaspoon
- Garlic powder, 1 teaspoon
- Dill weed, 1 teaspoon
- Rotisserie chicken, 1 whole
- Whole-wheat egg noodles, 1 cup
- Freshly-minced parsley, 3 tablespoons
Directions: Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a big pot.
Saute diced vegetables until onion is soft.
Meanwhile, remove skin and pull out as much chicken meat as you can. Throw away bones.
Boil chicken stock, dill weed, garlic, and pepper in a pot for 5 to 6 minutes.
Toss in the extra chicken skin, chicken meat, and whole-wheat egg noodles and boil for 10 minutes.
Scoop out the foam and the skin. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the minced parsley.
12. Chickpea Salad Bowl
A chickpea salad is a fresh and filling way to get all your nutrients into one delicious bowl.
Ingredients:
- Mixed greens, 5 cups
- Chickpeas, 1 cup
- Figs, 2 halved
- Edamame, 1 cup
- Olive oil, 1 tbsp
- Greek yogurt, 1/4 cup
- Olives, 1/4 cup
- Diced tomatoes, 1/2 cup
- Diced cucumber, 1/2 cup
Directions: Add mixed greens into a large bowl. Combine tomatoes, olives, and cucumber. Layer ingredients into the bowl. Drizzle with olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
*Note: You can make many variations of this to create morehealthy weight loss meals!
13. Zucchini Hummus
Zucchini is a great source of antioxidants and is rich in vitamins. Enjoy your zucchini hummus with raw vegetables and enjoy this nutritious and satisfying healthy weight loss treat for lunch.
Ingredients:
- Zucchini, 2
- Tahini, ½ cup
- Lemon juice, ⅓ cup
- Olive oil, ⅓ cup
- Garlic, 3 cloves
- Cumin, 1.5 teaspoons
- Sea salt & pepper to taste
Directions: Toss all the ingredients in a food processor and mix until smooth.
These are just a few of the healthy weight loss meals. They are nutritious, tasty, and easy to whip up. If you couple these healthy weight loss meals with regular exercise, you’ll be that much closer to your weight loss goals.
Do you know any other healthy weight loss meals? Let’s share recipes in the comments section below!
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