Catch up TV

Series 1: 3. Special Treats

Tom Kerridge is on a mission - to help 13 people from his local area to lose weight. Among the group are a senior police officer, a nurse, a vicar, an army wife and a high-flying businessman. Tom has got them on a reduced calorie regime but being a top chef, the food they are cooking and eating isn't like any diet food they have ever had before.\n\nTom has given them comfort food recipes geared towards the emotional eaters in the group and he has given them quick and easy recipes which can be knocked up in no time, designed to fit into their busy lifestyles. So far, it is paying off. Together the diet gang have shed well over 100 pounds in weight after four weeks and one dieter has already lost a stone and a half. It is not only Tom's recipes which are working their magic. Tom has lost more than a third of his body weight in recent years, which means the dieters trust him to help them.\n\nTom is impressed with their commitment but knows that there is still a long way to go before their eating habits are changed for good. He needs to keep the group excited with new recipes and get round to see as many of them as he can - to solve problems and help them stay motivated. So this time, it is all about special treats - the kind of food you don't think you would be allowed to eat on a diet. With some serious foodies and restaurant-goers among the group, these dishes need to hit the spot and stop them from falling back into their old ways. The recipes are the kind of thing you might pick off the menu when you eat out, or cook at home when you have guests over. There is a classic Italian starter - a tricolore salad - with tomatoes, cheese and basil - but with Tom's ingenious lower-calorie dressing. For mains, there is a one-pot wonder of smoked cod, tiger prawns, fresh veg and pasta bursting with Mediterranean flavours, and a rich and creamy beef stroganoff that would satisfy the biggest appetite. For pud, Tom rustles up individual coffee and chocolate custard pots which he hopes will hit all the right buttons with the chocoholics in the gang.

Source: BBC 2