A perfect family recipe for low-fat carbonara with chicken and bacon that includes vegetables but as it is so creamy and tasty you won’t even realise they are there.
Just Average Jen is an independent blog and in no way connected with any weight loss plan and no contributors have been trained by them or worked for them. It is the reader’s responsibility to check Slimming World syn values, WW points and any other allowances themselves as those given are approximate.
How to make fussy children eat vegetables in this low-fat Carbonara
The best way to encourage fussy children to eat more vegetables is to include them gradually in a favourite meal. Add in small pieces and make sure they are hungry so they are more likely to just eat their favourite meal with the added vegetables too!
This recipe is perfect for bacon and chicken fans and kids who do not like green vegetables. If you cut the onion and mushroom small enough they may not even notice their presence! You could always blend them with the stock if you prefer.
Why you need vegetables to lose weight
Everyone knows vegetables are good for you, don’t they? They are healthy and filling for very few calories!
The best vegetables are those with low-calorie density. Basically, we are talking about healthier vegetables – potatoes don’t count but butternut squash is much healthier for example!
This means if you eat 100g of spinach, for example, it is just 23 calories and obviously, 100g of anything would fill you up significantly. On the other hand, 100g of crisps, which would be just as filling, is around 536 calories!
Find more tips about the best vegetables for weight loss.
How is this Unofficial Slimming World carbonara recipe good on the plan?
Whilst this unofficial Slimming World carbonara recipe is not strictly syn free as it contains some cheese they are small amounts that fit perfectly with your healthy extra allowance.
If you use one healthy extra a choice (hex a) per person then could be syn free and delicious.
Why is this low-fat carbonara great for weight loss?
This is a good family recipe that is perfect for losing weight if one person in the family is dieting and wants to cook just one meal for everyone.
So many people would not even notice they are being given a healthy meal so it truly works for everyone.
There is no reason you should have to cook a separate meal with recipes like this! This unofficial Slimming World carbonara recipe is perfect for the whole family.
If you follow Slimming World, Weight Watchers (WW), Noom or any other weight loss plan this is a great recipe to try. It is of course important to check yourself any plan you follow and remember all nutritional information and ingredients are found in the recipe card below.
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There are so many great food diaries too so you can record your meal plans and track your weight loss to keep a record of the good and bad weeks. Click the photos to have a look for yourself.
Why not have a dessert too?
After you have enjoyed this why not leave space for a dessert too? I have lots of low-fat recipes for tasty desserts so you don’t even have to miss out on that!
Tips for making this low-fat carbonara
Any shape of pasta works well for this recipe whether you prefer spaghetti or fusilli or something else the recipe is just as tasty!
If you do not follow Slimming World or are happy to use a few syns then Philadelphia Light is a great alternative.
If you want to add extra vegetables to the recipe then it is perfectly fine to add extra mushrooms and onions. We sometimes add peppers too if they need using up!
This makes quite a runny sauce, if you prefer a thicker sauce simply add a tablespoon of cornflour about 5 minutes before the end of cooking. This has not been included in the nutritional information or syns mentioned in this recipe, however.
Using frozen chicken
Chicken for this or any other chicken recipes should never be cooked from frozen, there are so many issues with this that risk food poisoning. If you have just realised you only have frozen chicken there I have lots of tips to safely defrost chicken check them out in my defrosting chicken guide.
Plan ahead and check out my unofficial Slimming World chicken breast recipes to help you to use this lean chicken more often.
Other recipes you may enjoy
If you love this low-fat carbonara then why not check out my other recipes with chicken here including chicken and mushroom curry.
There are so many tasty recipes you can make with a packet of pasta, I have compiled a huge list of my favourites pasta dishes and recipes including cheese and ham pasta which is also popular with children.
We all love dessert, don’t we? I have a long list of low-fat desserts you can find here.
Do you use your microwave very often? Check out this post of some amazing things you didn’t know your microwave could do!
Weight loss and Exercise Support
I have a lot of weight loss guides and support if you want to exercise including if you have a condition like fibromyalgia.
Have a good look around and see how I can help you achieve your weight loss goals. Request my free resources to get you started too!
Low-fat Carbonara with chicken and bacon unofficial Slimming World recipe
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 26 Minutes
- Total Time: 31 minutes
- Yield: 6 Portions 1x
- Category: Main meal
- Method: Hob
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Low Calorie
Description
A delicious family meal with sneaky hidden vegetables and full of flavour but a great healthy carbonara
Ingredients
350g Pasta shapes
8 rashers of bacon trimmed of all visible fat and then cut into small pieces
300g chicken breast pieces
300g Mushrooms (quartered)
2 large onions (finely diced)
300ml chicken stock
2 x 150g tube of Primula light
80g Reduced-fat cheddar cheese (grated)
Instructions
Cook pasta in a large saucepan according to packet instructions.
Meanwhile using a large frying pan fry chicken pieces over medium heat for 10 minutes stirring to stop sticking.
Add stock, garlic, bacon and onion and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Add mushrooms and cook for another 4 minutes then add cheese and Primula. At this point you may like to season well as the dish benefits from a good amount of black pepper. Of course, this is down to personal taste though.
Stir to combine and cook for a further 2 minutes then add in the strained cooked pasta, stir through the sauce and serve.
Notes
This makes quite a runny sauce, if you prefer a thicker sauce simply add a tablespoon of cornflour 5 minutes before the end of cooking. This has not been included in the nutritional information mentioned in this recipe, however.
Keywords: pasta, family meal, healthy carbonara
Really creamy sauce – the mushrooms got left by the kids, but everything else was devoured. Will make again next week.
★★★★★