I make white bean dip (which I prefer over hummus) about once a week: cooked cannellini beans (or drained canned beans), garlic, plenty of lemon juice and a bit of zest, a bit of oregano, chili powder, maybe some rosemary or sage. I do usually use a little glug of olive oil, but have made it very successfully with a spoonful of water or with a small shot of the cooking liquid intead of oil.

It's great for snacking, with crackers or vegetables, but you can make a nice meal of it, too: a scoop of warmed white bean puree is very tasty on a bed of raw spinach and drizzled with balsamic vinegar (come to think of it), or in a sandwich with grated carrots and cucumbers. It's both cheap and easy to prepare (if you have either a food processor or a good blender).

Beans (like many foods) do have a small fat content, so it's not totally fat-free, but at least there's no added fat.

oooh I make pretty much exactly what Elsa's talking about, but as a soup. never thought about taking out the stock and making a dip. I will do that this weekend. Yummers!

Actually, gaspode, I make it a soup like that, too, but usually with lots of onions (you could just sweat them in water instead of sauteing in oil) and a shot of sherry or white wine, a couple of potatoes smashed up to thicken it, and then lots of blanched greens (spinach, kale, beet greens) stirred in at the last. It's good with fat-free milk stirred in, too. And maybe an extra can of teeny-tiny white beans added for texture. And some nutmeg. And paprika. And...

Like that.

oh wow, that sounds good Elsa! mmmmm

Here's a slightly more detailed outline of that white bean soup. In the same comment is a black bean soup. The same thing applies: sweat the onions & garlic in water instead of fat, and you have a filling, flavorful soup with no added fat.

Earlier in that thread, Mayor Curley outlines a great-sounding pea soup, too.

Man, am I hungry.

I'm sure there a millions of more inventive fat-free recipes. Here is what I can think of:


On the bean theme: Heated fat free refried beans in a fat free tortilla, topped with salsa and lettuce. You could even slow cook some chicken breasts in some salsa and green chilis. Shred the chicken and add to your tortilla.

Egg white omelets with mushrooms and sauteed veggies. I guess you can saute in a nonstick pan.

Toss veggies, like asparagus or brussels sprouts, portobello mushrooms, sliced potatoes, peppers with a squeeze of lemon, or balsamic vinegar, sea salt, and pepper. Roast in the oven. Watch closely. I've never done it without oil, but I'm thinking it might work.

Pasta with crushed tomatoes with a pinch of red pepper flakes and garlic. You probably already eat this. I love to add red kidney beans to my spaghetti. It reminds me of chili three ways, but without the fatty chili.

I make this turkey chili all the time. I use the ground turkey breast, there is virtually no fat. I don't mash my kidney beans. I think you can brown the turkey in a nonstick pot or add some tomatoes and stir constantly so it won't stick.

White or brown rice with veggies galore -- mix in cooked broccoli, peppers, sugarsnap peas, mushrooms, etc. Add herbs, a squeeze of lemon, or some balsamic or soy sauce, and spices you like. Add some shrimp or chicken breast. Even pecans. The pecans might be too much.

Oatmeal on the stove with brown sugar and raisins.

Brussels sprouts cooked with chopped apples, vinegar, even some sauerkraut, salt, pepper.

Boiled shrimp (prawns) with cocktail sauce.

Boiled shrimp in anything!

I did the "eat more weigh less" diet years ago, which is a very low fat diet. I found it pretty easy. But then, I could practically live on raisin bran and skim milk and similar fare. Note that I do not recommend this diet for people just trying to lose weight. I'm not convinced that super-low-fat diets are good for you.

What I meant to say was that you can find lots of low/no fat recipes in the "eat more weigh less" book. You can probably find a used copy for cheap.