Moderate-Calorie Recipes

The moderate-calorie recipes are what I refer to as “level 2” in the recipe notes. These recipes may help those who have met their weight goal and are transitioning to their maintenance calorie level. Some smaller and/or less active folks may maintain here.

On the other hand, some individuals may succeed with weight loss using mostly moderate-calorie recipes.  These calorie levels are for people who eat three meals per day (plus possibly 1-2 snacks). Those who prefer to eat fewer meals will likely need to bump up to higher calorie dishes.

Meals in this category contain 501-700 calories per serving. Snacks in this category provide 101-200 calories per serving. These dishes usually contain no flour and no dried fruit (though I have made some exceptions).

During weight loss, women should not go below an average of 1200-1500 calories per day without consulting with their medical provider. Men should not let their daily average intake dip below 1500-1800 calories without approval from their doctor or dietitian.

For those with higher or lower energy needs, you will find ideas to modify these dishes in the recipe notes. These tips will help you to reduce the calories without removing the most satiating foods in the dish. It’s also fine to adjust your portion if the serving size listed is not right for your needs.

The high-calorie dishes are not the only delicious dishes on this website. We think that the recipes listed here are just as tasty as the higher calorie dishes. To get you started, here are a few of my family’s favorite moderate-calorie meals on the site:

• Unrolled Cabbage Rolls
• Pork Shoulder Carnitas Salad
• Salmon with Lemon Cream Sauce

And here are the most recent recipes in this category: