'I lost 9lbs in a week after trying the new Slimming World recipe book'

As summer draws to a close, many of us are looking at the toll that weeks of holiday indulgence and sun-soaked relaxation has taken on our bodies. Like many others, my usually balanced diet had been derailed by barbecues and social gatherings with family and friends, and I was struggling to regain control.

It was time for a drastic change. As a former member of Slimming World, I knew their plan promoted a healthy diet filled with lean proteins, fruits, and vegetables, all prepared in simple yet delicious ways.

However, I needed something more focused, so when I received the new Slimming World's Out and About cookbook, I decided to challenge myself to live solely off its recipes for an entire week. The book offers over 60 recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but would this be enough variety for 21 meals?

I also questioned how much time I would need to dedicate to preparing and cooking everything from scratch. Would I constantly be running to the shop for herbs, spices, and other obscure ingredients not typically found in my pantry?

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So, I began devising a meal plan, spending a good half hour with a coffee, perusing the book to see what appealed to me. While I'm not overly fussy, I do have a dislike for most fish, which can sometimes pose a problem.

I was keen to avoid splashing the cash on a plethora of ingredients that would only be used once before being relegated to the back of the cupboard, eventually destined for the bin. I've fallen into this trap too many times and am determined to learn from my past mistakes.

At first glance, I was sceptical about whether I'd be able to rustle up the 21 meals, as I wanted the lunches and dinners to cater to my entire family's dietary preferences, which are quite varied. However, after a quick flick through the book, I found recipes that covered most meals, so I decided to press ahead.

I put together a meal plan and set a start date for the following Monday, giving me the weekend to gather any necessary ingredients to hopefully last the week. Fortunately, I already had a few herbs and spices in my pantry, which gave me a head start.

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I chose not to alter the rest of my diet significantly but made a conscious effort to revert to snacking on fruit, ditching the crisps and chocolate that had slowly crept back into my diet over the previous weeks. Everything else remained unchanged.

The first day went off without a hitch! I planned the week strategically to ensure I used the ingredients that were likely to spoil first.

Day 1 - Pushing the boat out

I kicked off with a Strawberry and Melon Sunday - a delightful blend of frozen raspberries, melon and strawberries all mixed into fat-free Greek yogurt. It was a quick and tasty treat that took just 10 minutes to prepare.

Lunch was equally straightforward, featuring a German bacon and potato salad which, although it required 45 minutes of preparation time, could be made the night before, as I did. The only extra purchase was cider vinegar, but everything else was part of my regular shopping list.

The dinner menu introduced me to some new ingredients. We enjoyed mini meatball soup, which included not just the usual carrot, garlic and onion, but also celeriac and caraway seeds, both of which were new to me.

Despite this, the dish was absolutely delicious, and I can confidently say that my £2 jar of caraway seeds will be put to good use, as this dish is set to become a regular on our menu.

Day 2 - 'I'll never have those again'

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I'd always heard rave reviews about banana pancakes and was keen to try them out, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity. The recipe called for a simple mix of banana, egg and cinnamon to create the batter.

While I'm usually quite adept at making traditional pancakes and their American-style counterparts, these banana pancakes were far from a success.

Despite their simplicity and minimal ingredients, my pancakes tasted as bad as they looked in the picture - although my husband seemed to enjoy them. While I found them edible, they're definitely not something I'll be revisiting.

Lunch was a different story. The Hasselback potatoes and salsa were well worth the 50-minute preparation time, made with just Charlotte potatoes and paprika, plus the salsa ingredients of red onion, tomato, fresh dill and cider vinegar. This is definitely one to repeat.

For dinner, we opted for the Farmhouse Turkey stew, another tasty choice with simple ingredients like turkey, vegetables and pearl barley. Having bay leaves and dried thyme already in the cupboard made it easy and cost-effective to prepare - I estimate the total cost was about £1.70 per serving if you're feeding four, but there was enough for six hearty meals.

Day 3 - impressive and affordable

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Today was a breeze, and we enjoyed every meal. We kicked off with cheesy breakfast muffins - essentially eggs and cheese with spinach.

I had run out of spinach so substituted spring onions, which worked just as well. They were so satisfying that I didn't even think about lunch - or snacks - until after 2pm.

Lunch was a prawn Caesar salad - a delightful variation on the traditional chicken version with a homemade dressing that was tangy and absolutely scrumptious. By dinner time, I was starting to tire of cooking, so I handed over the reins to my 14 year old son.

He managed to whip up some truly impressive Chinese Pork Noodles, which were fantastic and have already been requested again. Once more, they cost around £1.50 per serving as I had most of the ingredients in my pantry.

Day 4 - mixing things up

I had initially planned to have a Peach Melba yoghurt pot for breakfast, but I opted for the leftover cheesy muffins instead. Lunch was also a bit of a deviation from the plan.

The original recipe called for a Bloody Mary Prawn sandwich, but I wasn't in the mood for bread so I transformed it into a prawn salad - it was lower in calories and absolutely delicious.

We ended the day with a dish of pulled chilli chicken. It was simple, healthy, and didn't break the bank.

Day 5 and 6 - 'fakeaway' better than takeaway

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Knowing that I would be pressed for time on Friday and Saturday, I was thrilled to find several recipes for overnight oats in the book. The book promised: "Get ahead. Go to bed. Grab on your way out", which sounded perfect.

The process involved mixing various ingredients - in my case, apple, blueberry, Greek yoghurt, and blueberry wheat biscuits - and leaving them overnight. You then stir everything together when you're ready to eat the next day.

I've made these many times over the years and they never disappoint. I had them both days and they kept me full all morning.

Since I knew I'd be busy both days, I also prepared lunch in advance. I made the layered Coronation chicken salad pot, which included homemade curried mayonnaise.

This was an absolute revelation - frying finely chopped onions with curry powder, adding water and cooking before mixing with yoghurt, chicken and coriander. If there's one thing I'll take away from this recipe book, it's this incredible trick.

Friday night was traditionally takeaway night, but we decided to make our own Massaman Beef Curry instead. The dish, which included beef and vegetables seasoned with garlic, curry powder, and a few other spices, cost less than £10 for four people, even after purchasing some new ingredients like star anise and Thai fish sauce.

It was just as delicious and healthier than the takeaway version. We served it with rice to make it more filling and estimated that we saved over £20 compared to our usual takeaway.

Saturday night was another treat night, so we prepared Greek chicken skewers with Tsatziki. Although this is typically a lunch dish, it was easy to adapt for dinner by adding Slimming World chips - potatoes cut into chips and baked in the oven - and a large salad.

The rest of the family also had pitta bread with their meal, but I found it to be plenty without it.

Day 7 was pure indulgence and quicker than a roast

We kicked off the day with breakfast pizzas - muffins topped with tomato puree, egg, bacon and mushrooms. They were so tasty that I could have kept going back for more, even though one serving was enough to satisfy even the hungriest member of my family.

Instead of our usual Sunday roast, we enjoyed a late lunch of smoked salmon hash, which felt like a real treat. My husband prepared the dish, which was packed with salmon, potatoes and vegetables.

Like many of the recipes we tried, it was ready in 45 minutes, much faster than a roast, and resulted in far less washing up.

We usually enjoy a traditional 'picky' tea on Sundays, so we decided to end the week in our usual style. Our menu included a variety of dishes such as antipasti skewers - beef, cheese, tomato and gherkins - along with Spanish scotch eggs and broad bean, courgette and feta fritters.

It felt like a grand feast and was the perfect way to wrap up the week.

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The outcome

I never imagined that I could have such a diverse range of meals in a week with minimal effort. Yes, it required more work than simply tossing chicken nuggets and chips from the freezer into the oven, but the result was much healthier and tastier.

There are still numerous recipes in the book that we want to try but haven't had the chance to yet - probably enough for another week's worth of meals. The final result on the scales made every minute spent in the kitchen worthwhile.

I stepped onto the bathroom scales with a sense of apprehension. I genuinely didn't know what to expect and didn't have high hopes since we had eaten so well throughout the week.

So, I was astounded when the scales showed a loss of 9lbs.

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Would I do it again?

While it required more effort than a typical week, each recipe was simple, mostly inexpensive, and quick to prepare. I wouldn't commit to a full week again as I did tire of spending so much time in the kitchen, despite my love for cooking. However, I will certainly be using the recipes to aid my weight loss journey.