The best low calorie grilled cheese

A grilled cheese is one of those foods everyone knows how to make, is it even worth sharing a recipe on it? The answer is yes and I’ll tell you why. This low calorie grilled cheese is for all of the people on a weight loss journey who want to enjoy the taste of a delicious, ooey-gooey, melty cheese toastie whilst still losing weight!

I know what you’re probably thinking, ‘who needs a recipe for grilled cheese?’. After all, it is just cheese sandwiched between two slices of bread. But let me just say, this is no ordinary grilled cheese, this is the ULTIMATE low calorie grilled cheese! There definitely is such a thing as the PERFECT grilled cheese and this is it. The bread is perfectly toasted and the cheese just oozes out. It is the perfect comfort meal for weight loss.

Although a grilled cheese is arguably one of the simplest recipes to make, I always get requests to make a low calorie grilled cheese! There are a few ways in which you can make a delicious and low calorie grilled cheese. You just need to switch up a few ingredients and voila, you have yourself the most perfect low calorie grilled cheese!

Okay so first things first, I need to mention that this grilled cheese pairs perfectly with this low calorie tomato soup for one. If you’re looking for a warm, cozy and filling low calorie meal, this duo is the ultimate comforting meal for weight loss!

Low calorie grilled cheese

There are very few things better than a freshly made grilled cheese. The warm toasty bread paired with the super gooey cheese makes the perfect comfort meal. You only need a few simple ingredients to take your grilled cheese to the next level.

Why you’ll love this recipe:

• Super simple to make requiring just 3 ingredients!
• Perfectly toasted bread oozing with melty, cheesy, goodness!
• Ready in under 10 minutes!
• This recipe can easily be made dairy-free, vegan and gluten-free!
• Only 306 calories for the ultimate grilled cheese.
• The BEST low calorie grilled cheese recipe ever!

Ingredients

Exact ingredient quantities can be found at the bottom of this page.

To make this low calorie grilled cheese you will need:

Bread – The type of bread you go with here is very important as the bread is where most of the calories for a grilled cheese come from. Most slices of bread are around 80-100 calories each. There are actually quite a few low calorie breads that you can choose from that are available at most grocery stores. I went with Warburtons no added sugar wholemeal bread with 55 calories per slice! There are tons of options to choose from and they’ll differ depending on where you live but most wholemeal and danish breads are usually pretty low in calories! The thickness of the bread is also quite important, thicker sliced bread will have more calories than thinner breads.

Cheese – This is definitely the most important part of this recipe, it is a grilled cheese after all! I went with a 50% reduced fat mature cheddar cheese. It has a very strong cheesy taste whilst still reducing the calories by quite a lot. Grating your own cheese will definitely elevate this recipe but sliced cheese works just as well and is much easier to work with. Opt for light vegan cheese if possible to make this recipe vegan and dairy-free.

Butter – A little butter to toast the bread. I went with ‘light butter as it has the lowest amount of calories. Margarine is also a great option as it tends to be a lot lighter and lower in calories whilst still having that buttery taste, which works great for this recipe. Opt for a light vegan butter to make this recipe vegan or dairy-free.

How to make a low calorie grilled cheese

1. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Spread 10g of butter or margarine onto each slice of bread.
2. Place one slice of bread onto the heated pan, buttered side down. Add the cheese and top and sandwich with the other slice of bread, butter side up.
3. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until nicely golden before flipping and cooking the other side for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Serve and enjoy!

Top tips

Drizzle with a little honey – Honey is the perfect little addition to a grilled cheese to give a deliciously balanced sweet and savoury meal. I like to drizzle with about 10g of honey which only adds an extra 30 calories!

Low heat for the perfectly toasted bread – To get the classic, golden-brown toasted bread, make sure you’re using low-med heat. Anything higher will cook the bread too quickly leading to burnt bread without the classic melty cheese!

Serve with tomato soup – I am convinced there is no better combination than tomato soup with a grilled cheese. The two together make the ultimate comfort food that is under 500 calories, perfect for weight loss!