FOOD REVIEWS
I've decided to make an ongoing list of the foods I've tried with reviews and tips for making them nicer.
Green = Yummy
Orange = OK
Red = Blurgh
Shakes
Strawberry and banana - Much more to my taste but still not my fave. Always make shakes with a blender, or a shaker at least, stirring isn't enough!
Lemon and Raspberry - Creamy, filling, but I don't like flavours this sharp.
Mint choc chip - Only tried in my coffee so far but didn't need any syrup so it's nice and sweet
Vanilla shake – great with coffee or on it’s own, it’s a staple for this diet as you can’t fault it.
Cherries and Berries smoothie - not my fave. Just not a fan of the manufactured fruity tastes!
Blueberry shake - YUK. I did not like this. For me it tasted like parma violets which I hate.
Bars
My boyfriend ate a lot of my bars and promised to buy me more – but hasn’t yet
Lemon and Yoghurt Bar - Not keen at all. Texture was fine, yoghurt was a welcome addition but far, far too lemony for my mouth.
Soups
Mushroom - Made it up with 200ml of water and in the blender. It was soooo creamy and yummy. Added onion flavour, salt and pepper. The salt was what made this for me otherwise maybe a bit too sickly with the creaminess.
Tomato - not a fan, don't hate it either. Tastes quite manufactured if you know what I mean. Kinda like spaghetti hoops.
Thai chicken – this was really creamy and really yummy, but just chicken soup to me, couldn't taste anything that i’d say made it Thai.
Meals
Sweet and Sour Noodles - I'm not sure if this is my favourite, it could well be, it was so delicious. I added some 5 spice as others recommended - I think it tasted like peanut satay rather than sweet and sour. Loved it.
Shepherds pie - again LOVE! I think I just love the meals more than other people do. This is a good one for a sunday, feels like a wholesome sunday lunch
added salt and pepper.
Mousakka - This wasn't half bad
added a load of salt n pepper, maybe a bit less pepper next time - similar to the pie in a way, just a big bowl of brown yummyness haha
Diet Pizza - I really enjoyed this, it was my first meal back to exante after 3 years so it was a welcome change from the old soups, shakes, bars plan. I definitely made the base too thick as it was kind of soggy in the middle. I even turned half way to try and cook it a bit better and it was still not right. In future I want to make it nice and thin and hopefully it will crisp up a bit better. The grease-proof paper worked a dream and it slid right off the tray.
Carbonara - Carbs by name, but not by nature this time, can't believe they have my on of my all time fave foods on Exante! Made it with cold water by accident so heated on the stove, took quite a while to get it creamy but worth the wait. Flavoured with garlic granules. YUM!
Ham and Pasta pack - yummy like the carbonara, creamy white sauces are my favourite kind
Breakfast eggs - I only tried these with extras (ham, bacon, mushroom) Judging by the smell, I'd not like them alone, they seem quite dull. I will keep these day days when I'm adding a bit of food but give them a thumbs up as they make a nice omelet.
The exante burger in a bun - by far the best thing I've eaten on exante. More info & recipe
here
Spag bol - I think this was kind of similar to the mousaka - still quite yummy, added garlic granules and a cheeky bit of parmesan (naughty)
(This list is updated as I go and re-posted later in the diary)