When you’ve been eating a lot of heavy, calorie-packed dinners, you may feel the need for a light meal. Eating a light meal can help you lose weight and avoid heartburn and indigestion.
Luckily, there are many delicious light meals that you can make for yourself without having to sacrifice taste! These recipes are easy, and they’ll satisfy even the pickiest eaters.
Seared Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce
The combination of flank steak and chimichurri sauce makes for a delicious meal that will leave you wanting more. This is a perfect dish to serve as an appetizer, or at a dinner party when you’re looking for something that will impress your guests.
A quick marinade of oil, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and red pepper flakes helps tenderize the meat. This is a great way to make a flavorful steak that’s also easy on the budget!
Before grilling, place your steaks in a resealable plastic bag and pour some of the chimichurri marinade over the top. Cover and refrigerate for about an hour.
When you’re ready to grill, preheat the grill on high heat for 10 minutes. Sear each side of your steaks for about 2 minutes. Then, flip them and cook another 2 minutes on each side. This is to achieve a medium rare steak, which will register 65C / 150F on a meat thermometer.
Whether you’re cooking for one or serving a group, this steak is an easy option to make for any occasion. The bright, fresh flavors in the chimichurri sauce are sure to please.
Chimichurri is a South American staple that’s used on grilled meats and chicken. This version of the traditional recipe combines fresh parsley with cilantro and lime juice to give it a summery twist!
It is also great on roasted vegetables. You can use whatever green herbs you have on hand, but parsley and cilantro are both delicious options.
You can also use a blender or food processor to prepare your chimichurri sauce. Just be careful not to over blend.
The chimichurri is great on chicken or fish tacos but it’s especially tasty on this steak. You can serve it with corn, potatoes or any other fresh vegetable.
If you’re making this for a crowd, be sure to double the chimichurri sauce. Then, serve the sliced steak with the chimichurri on top and drizzle some over the sides of your plate!
Flank steak is a good choice for this recipe because it is inexpensive and has a great texture. It is also a good choice for a light meal because it cooks quickly and is low in fat.
Chicken Sausage and Asparagus Pizza
There are a lot of reasons to love light meals like pizza. They are easy to prepare, healthy (no fat or calories), and quick to clean up! Plus, they are so versatile. They can be served as a main dish, side, or even dessert!
This Chicken Sausage and Asparagus Pizza is so simple to make that you can have dinner on the table in under an hour. It’s a fun twist on meat and potatoes that’s full of veggies and a killer spice blend!
The trick to this dish is staggering the roasting time. First we get the carrots and potatoes to roast (adding a bit of olive oil to help them brown). While they’re in the oven, we roast the sausage, onion and asparagus.
Next, we toss all the vegetables with a killer blend of seasonings (one you’ve made already!) and add some more oil. Once the veggies are roasted, we’ll toss them with more of the seasoning mix and a bit of minced garlic. We’ll also toss them with a bit of Parmesan cheese!
When everything is roasted, we toss it all with a little more of the spice mix and some extra olive oil. This helps keep the veggies from drying out too much and keeps them all slathered with deliciousness!
If you don’t want to use pesto, a classic tomato sauce will work just as well. Or, use sundried tomato pesto for a different take on the pizza!
Once you’re ready to bake your pizza, dust a baking sheet with flour. Stretch out the dough and place it on the dusted tray, leaving a bit of space around the edges to allow for extra thickness. Spread the sauce and mozzarella over the dough, then top with the sausage and broccoli. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake for about 5 minutes or until the dough is golden.
This light meal is a perfect way to enjoy a delicious dinner with friends and family! It’s a great addition to your summer menu and a fun way to kick off the cookout season!
Shrimp Pasta with Greens
This is a quick and easy meal that is great for the busy weeknight. It uses pantry staples such as whole wheat pasta, shrimp and vegetables to make it a tasty meal that is also packed with good for you nutrients.
This recipe has a lemony sauce that is full of fresh vegetables – mushrooms, peas, asparagus, tomatoes, garlic and basil. It’s a perfect way to use up any of those summer veggies that are ready and waiting in your fridge.
The veggies are cooked in stages allowing all of them to be perfectly al dente and tossed into the pasta as they are finished cooking which means no need for a lot of extra work or cleanup. The lemon zest helps to add more fresh flavours to the sauce too which will make it even more delicious.
You can serve this dish with a variety of side dishes that will go well with the flavor of the pasta. Some of them include steamed broccoli, cucumber salad and sauteed mushroom.
Steamed broccoli is a light side dish that goes very well with shrimp pasta. This vegetable is a rich source of Vitamin C and micronutrients that are beneficial for our health.
Another simple and easy to prepare side dish is roasted carrots that are high in fiber and nutrients. Its sweet and creamy flavors will blend with the shrimp pasta to create a perfect match.
This is a great dinner idea for any time of the year and a great way to get your family eating more veggies. Just be sure to adjust the seasoning and serve with plenty of fresh herbs for more flavour.
Buddha Bowl with Thai Sweet Chili Chicken
Buddha bowls, aka one-bowl meals, have been all the rage for years now. They are colorful, delicious, and most contain a grain base (like quinoa), protein (like chicken breast or fish), and lots of vegetables.
Buddha Bowls usually also include some type of sauce, if not a full blown dressing to make the dish more visually appealing. Today’s recipe is a spin on this trend by topping a bowl of quinoa with grilled chicken and vegetables, then adding a Thai-inspired dipping sauce to round things out.
This recipe is the perfect lunch for a busy weeknight or a light meal to make ahead for a lazy weekend. If you want to go all out, you can marinate the rotisserie chicken in a sweet chili sauce before assembling the bowl for maximum flavour.
The sweet chili sauce that is used to marinate the chicken is a very clever and tasty way to bring together all the flavours of the ingredients. It is made with a blend of Thai chilies and ginger, and has a thick consistency which makes it a really tasty dipping sauce.
You can find this jar of sauce in the Asian section of your local grocery store or on Amazon. It is a good idea to have some on hand for quick meal prep as it’s a very versatile ingredient which can be used for a variety of different dishes.