100 lb. Club - 400 calorie meal ideas, please!

Hi y'all: I am looking for ideas for 400 calorie meals. I am eating three 400 calorie meals a day (1200) plus three 200 calorie snacks (600 calories) for a daily total of 1800 calories.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Hello??? Bueller? Bueller?

I eat oatmeal with dried cranberries plus a tbsp of protein powder and 1/2 tbsp agave syrup for a calorie count of 318. If you add some nuts and some milk, you could get it up to 400. It's quite filling, too.

For lunch you could have two slices of low-carb bread plus a veggie burger (or some protein), condiments, an apple and some baby carrots for probably a bit under 400 cals.

Dinner would be some protein, lots of veggies and something like spicy sweet potato fries or stir fried veggies with a protein.

There are just so many different options for 400 calories. What do you like to eat? Is there anything you don't like to eat? Are you looking for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or all of the above?

:)

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I just made a fritatta that is fabulous--the recipe is on the Egg Beater's website. Search spinach recipes.

Also, Google WW recipes. You will find a wide range of ideas.

Breakfast:
1/2 cup oats cooked with 10 grams protein powder, pumpkin pie spice and 1 tbsp of brown sugar. After cooking, stir in 1/2 cup canned pumpkin. Top with 1/3 ounce of nuts = roughly 300 calories.
On the side have 1 cup of milk. That makes around 400 calories total.

1/2 cup whole wheat pasta, 1 cup homemade meat and veggie sauce, 1 cup broccoli 400 calories

1 3 oz salmon fillet, 1 slice cheese, 1 large salad with lots of veggie and low fat dressing, 1 large hard boiled egg 400 calories

Do you have a calorie site in your favorites so you can look up calories on foods? If you have that, you can create any meal you like and make it balance out at 400 calories. The varieties are endless. You just adjust each ingredient to get what you want.

Cooking Light, and other cooking magazines, feature calorie counts on their recipes. Cooking Light puts out annual collections of all their recipes, plus of course, many of them are online. Might be easier to get the calorie counts of what you like and then put together a meal. :)

one slice of your favorite whole-grain wheat bread - toasted
two eggs, a 1/2T of 1% milk, 1-1.5oz deli turkey, and a pinch of cheddar cheese - scrambled in a small amount of olive oil.

just under 400 calories. I used to do atkins, so minus the bread, this is what i used to eat every morning. With the bread, it's a whole lot more satisfying, is good to eat every other morning, and you get your fiber! ;)

Thanks y'all....I got some good ideas from your posts.

My main concern was to have reasonable dinners. I really don't want to eat grilled chicken and steamed veg every night. I think I've got breakfast handled. Lunches can vary depending on work schedule.

Thanks again for your help!

My favorite, hands down, is roasted vegetable lasagna. I use three loaf pans which yield 2 (370 calorie) servings each. I freeze two so that I always have something easy on hand. The recipe reads as if it is more work than it really is...
9 oven ready lasagna noodles
2 medium zuchinni
1 small yellow squash
(each sliced about 1/4 inch thick)
1 small red onion
1 yellow bell pepper
(each coursely chopped)
2 T. Balsalmac Vinegar
2 cloves minced garlic
1/2 t. rosemary, crushed
15 ounce ricotta cheese (skim)
10 frozen, chopped spinached thawed and drained well
1 egg white
1/4 t. red pepper flakes
26 ounce spaghetti sauce (I use prego traditional)
1 cup Mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan

Add vegetables to a shallow pan which has been brushed with olive oil and drizzle with mixture of vinegar, garlic, and rosemary. Roast at 425 for 15 minutes, toss and roast another 8 minutes.
Mix spinach, ricotta, egg white, and red pepper.

Pour sauce in bottom of loaf pan, add one lasagna noodle and spread additional sauce on top. Drop spinach mixture by spoonfulls over noodle, and fill in spaces with vegetables. Continue layering, ending with noodle and sauce (no vegetables or spinach). Cover and bake for 30-45 minutes. Uncover top with Mozzarella and Parmesan, return to oven until melted. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

I eat a large bowl of chicken noodle soup (From can LOL) 200 calories With a grilled cheese sandwich 170 Total of 370 Then 3 servings Of sugar free jello(Which is a lot of jello!) equalls 400 calories Total. GOOD LUCK

oh ,Like to add that not all canned chicken noodle soup is 200 calories as same as everything else.everything differs a bit sometimes depending upon brands ect.

Thanks again y'all...

Shorty, that lasagne sounds so awesome!!

Taste of Home also has a "light"/healthy version of their original magazine out as well. They have some pretty easy recipes and calorie counts listed with the recipe so that you know what you are getting.

I thought of a few more recipies I use regularly that are in the 400 calorie range and are fairly simple to prepare.

Black Bean Soup
1 can Black Beans
1 beef boullion cube
onion, tomatoes, jalapeno slices - all diced up
Tabasco (I like the smoked version in this soup)
1 T. Benefiber (optional)
1 T. Sour Cream

Cook the beans and beef cube until beans are tender. Mash the beans with a fork and add the vegetables and Tabasco to taste. Stir in enough water to make the soup the consistency that you like and simmer until warmed through. Stir in benefiber if desired and top with sour cream.

Stuffed Peppers
Spanish Rice Mix, prepared (or make your own)
1/4-1/2 cup black beans (canned, rinsed and drained)
1/4-1/2 cup whole kernal corn (drained)
Pablano Peppers 94-5)

Roast peppers under broiler until charred on all sides. Place in a sealed plastic bag to sweat and then peel (or you can just let them cool if you prefer the skin on). Slit peppers along one side and remove the seeds. Stuff with a mixture of the rice, beans, and corn. Top with cheese and sour cream, if desired (I use Monterey Jack or sometimes just a couple of tablespoons of Tostitos Salsa Con Queso).

Lemon and Garlic Pasta (base recipe)

1 t. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 c. dry white wine
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 medium tomato, chopped (I use one can of drained diced tomatoes instead)
8 oz. angel hair pasta (mix of spinach and wheat if desired)
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil (dried works fine)
Parmesan (2 T)
Pepper to taste

Saute garlic in olive oil just until it begins to brown. Remove from heat and pour in the wine. Return to heat and cook for 1-2 minutes and then stir in lemon juice and tomato. Toss in cooked pasta, basil, and pepper, top with parmesan.

If i am making this for dinner I usually add some cooked chicken or grilled shrimp and I sprinkle a tablespoon of toasted pinenuts too.

Hi,
I just started a blog, it's very simple, but it might give you some ideas for 400 calorie meals. I too started eating 400 calorie meals and I started taking pictures and posting what I eat at every meal with a description. I thought you might enjoy it.
Thanks
It is on blogspot, titled my 400 calorie experience, unfortunately, I can't submit the link in this post...

2 cups of spaghetti squash, 3 oz extra lean ground beef sauted with onions, garlic and a bit of olive oil, 1 cup of marinara sauce and a splash of wine is 400 calories (and was delicious, I just ate it for dinner! lol!)

Most of my dinners are 400-500 calories.

I like:

Veggie tacos
3 shells (70 calories)
Ground turkey with spices
A tiny sprinkle of low fat cheese
Tomatoes, lettuce, veggies
+/- cheese/turkey to get to 400

Home made pizza
1/2 boboli whole wheat crust
spicy marinara
spinach leaves, veggies
+/- fat free/low fat feta to get to 400

Stir fry over brown rice
Rice - 170 calories (I split one of those Trader Joe's nuke brown packages)
some lean protein
Veggies veggies veggies
Various stir sauce (I make one from scratch with chicken broth, soy sauce, a little honey, garlic, red pepper flakes and a little cornstarch that is pretty good)

Veggie burger
Bun - 200 calories
Lean burger (Turkey, lean beef, veggie)
Mustard, veggies
Steamed snap peas or roasted brussel sprouts on the side

Maple glazed salmon
Salmon fillet (marinate in 1/4 cup of maple syrup, a little soy, garlic powder)
Bake at 400 for 20 minutes
Serve over brown rice, with a veggie side