In February, a potential publisher really liked my Downsizing Deliciously book, and thought  the recipes looked delicious – but couldn’t quite see how they would help people lose weight.

I knew they did – I had already used them to lose 3 stone – but I hadn't tested what would happen if I ate only my own recipes.  So for 21 days, I did just that.

Each day I posted what I ate – and the recipes – plus tips on DIY Downsizing Deliciously for the times when you don’t have time to faff with a recipe.

The aim was not to lose mega amounts of weight, but to eat mega amounts of delicious food. You can read all about it in the posts on weeks 1, 2 & 3

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And if you would like to try it too, hear are some top Diva tips.

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Some Useful Things to Know

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Low-calorie-dense supplies from Borough Market

First of all, throw out of the window any idea of weight loss being about self-denial and misery.  Downsizing Deliciously recipes are based on low-calorie-dense ingredients – food that has a high volume per calorie,*  but that  – and using a teaspoon rather than a shovel to measure olive oil, butter, and sugar – is the only weight-loss thing about them. Their job is to be delicious.

*20g of Nutella has 100 calories; 100g of tomatoes has 20 calories. For the calories in 1kg of chocolate you can eat 24kg of tomatoes.

N.B. Do NOT eat 24kg of tomatoes.

Apart from tomatoes, what else is low-calorie-dense?

Any food with a high volume of water and / or fibre, and not too much fat. *

• Fruit
• Most veg – doesn’t include potatoes, sweet potatoes, and avocado
• Pulses
• Fish and seafood
• Lean meat – particularly poultry and game
• Semi-skimmed milk
• Skyr and fatless yogurt**
• Eggs

*Bacon is exempt. Because I say so.  

**Like eating nutritional chalk. Just say no.

Recipe Substitutions

If you haven’t got some of the ingredients, leave them out or substitute something you have got.  Ditto if you don’t like something.

And feel free to use different recipes on the website, if you like the look of them more.

Vegetarians and vegans

There are many vegetarian and vegan recipes on the website for the times when I include meat or fish.  

No time to cook

Low-calorie-dense food is downsizing whether you turn it into an exciting recipe or not. If you’re pushed for time, pile your plate up with vegetables – any vegetables, cooked or not – and pulses, add salt and pepper, a couple of teaspoons of olive oil, perhaps some balsamic and any other seasoning you like the look of, and it will still taste pretty good.

Eating out:

Downsizing should not involve giving up your social life, but there are a few things that make it less disastrous:

Dining with friends

Hog all the vegetables, don’t hog all the wine*, and look pained when they mention pudding.

You could tell them what you are up to and send them a link, but that is a big subject that I am not going to tackle now.‍

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In a restaurant

‍Give the bread to the dog (note to self: acquire dog). Start with soup… smoked salmon… a salad…something with lentils or beans. Order fish and lots of extra vegetables; leave the pasta and risottos for another day; avoid things with pastry (pastry very calorie dense – half fat to flour says it all), and when waiter inquires if you want pudding, do not jump up and down yelling ME, ME, ME.  

*Wine is calorie-dense as a newt – almost as bad as cake. Until somebody does something about it, be parsimonious in your sipping.

I am considering giving up for the duration.     Thoughts and prayers please.

Shopping

For suggestions as to what to put on your shopping list, please click here.

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