Clean Eating Black Bean Burgers

Makes 10 Burgers
This recipe came about because we had "nothing" in the house and a pack of hungry kids. By nothing I mean I didn't have my standard go-to protein sources of chicken breast and ground turkey. Since we're not vegetarian, we generally have some type of meat with dinner. But when I don't have any in the house it makes me realize how single-minded my cooking is in some ways. Combining whole grains and beans creates a complete protein and we have about a million cans of black beans in our house from a totally awesome sale a few months back so we decided to give black bean burgers a try. They were a HUGE success. The toddlers devoured them including my super picky nephew and Matt, Anthea, and I all got to eat ours with two hands without having to force feed anybody. That's a big success in my book :)

Ingredients:

• 3 medium carrots, grated
• Half a medium onion, finely chopped (I grated mine since I was already grating the carrots)
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup kale
• 1/2 cup packed cilantro leaves
• 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 3/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs (I used ground unfrosted mini wheats)
• 1 tsp salt

ONE: Spray a skillet with cooking spray and place over medium heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in the cumin, chili, garlic, and onion powder and continue to cook until the veggies are soft. Remove from heat and set aside in a large bowl.

TWO: Place drained beans, kale, and cilantro in a food processor and pulse several times until beans are mostly mashed but a few chunks still remain.

THREE: Add the beans, mustard, bread crumbs, and salt to the bowl of veggies and stir to combine. Scoop out scant 1/3 cup portions and form into patties.

FOUR: Heat the skillet you cooked the veggies in over medium heat and spray generously with cooking spray. Place the patties in the skillet a few at a time and cook 4 minutes a side until lightly browned and heated through.

TO FREEZE: Before cooking, form the patties and place them in a single layer on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Place in the freezer for about 20 minutes to flash freeze the outsides and then place them all together in a freezer bag. Defrost overnight and cook according to the directions above.

After cooking, follow the same directions as above and reheat in the microwave.

NUTRITION INFO:


Per Serving (1 burger) - 124 Calories (7 Calories from Fat), 1g Total Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 463mg Sodium, 22g Carbohydrates, 6g Dietary Fiber, 4g Sugar, 6g Protein, 75% DV Vitamin A, 13% DV Vitamin C, 5% DV Calcium, 36% DV Iron

:)

Clean Eating Sweet Potato and Black Bean Quesadillas

Makes 8 servings, 1 quesadilla each
When I lived in Jacksonville, my great friend, Ariana, and I used to take the kids on lunch dates to Native Sun Natural Foods Market. They had an awesome selection of the more unusual things I use in my cooking, like bulk quinoa. They also made delicious food so we could do a bit of shopping and then sit and have a light meal that the kids could eat too. You know there aren’t a lot of places where I actually let me kids eat the food, LOL. One of our favorites was their sweet potato quesadillas. This is Ariana’s version which I have to say I actually like better than the original :)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped onions
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 cups peeled sweet potatoes, grated
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• 1-2 pinches cayenne (I leave this out because I’m wimpy)
• salt and pepper
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 can of black beans, drained
• 8 8-inch whole wheat tortillas

ONE: In large non-stick skillet, heat olive oil.
Sauté onions and garlic until the onions are transparent.


TWO: Add the sweet potatoes, oregano, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. Cover and cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the black beans, recover, and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking.

THREE: When the sweet potatoes are tender, remove the filling from the heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir well.

FOUR: Spread the sweet potato mixture evenly onto the tortillas; sprinkle 2 tablespoons of cheese onto each tortilla.
Fold tortilla in half over filling.

FIVE: Either clean out the skillet you just used or get another large non-stick skillet and add a little oil; heat on medium high heat. Place the quesadillas in the heated nonstick skillet and cook on each side for 2-3 minutes, until cheese is melted and the filling is hot.
Add more oil to skillet as needed and cook in batches. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Freeze leftovers using the flash freeze method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per serving - 355 Calories (97 Calories from Fat), 11g Fat, 4g Saturated Fat, 8mg Cholesterol, 468mg Sodium, 50g Total Carbohydrates, 10g Dietary Fiber, 9g Sugars, 13g Protein, 285% DV Vitamin A, 8% DV Vitamin C, 17% DV Calcium, 8% DV Iron

:)

Clean Eating Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Pancakes (OAMC)

Makes 10 servings, 2 pancakes each
I based this recipe on my friend Martha’s mom, Danette’s, Honey Oatmeal Pancakes. Pretty much everything Danette makes ends up delicious but these are seriously awesome. The only thing that could make them better would be if Danette came to my house and cooked them for me. But no, she wants to spend all of her free time seeing her own daughter and grandkids. The nerve ;-) Thankfully, these freeze ridiculously well so I can pull them out any old time and have delicious homemade pancakes without having to even look at the griddle. (But Danette, if you decided to come visit and wanted to make me some pancakes I certainly wouldn't stop you!)

My boys chow them down without syrup or anything. I quadruple the recipe and make 4 batches at once. I’m not going to lie, it takes a while. But most of the time is just waiting around for them to cook instead of doing anything hands on. I’ll make the first batch and we’ll eat them as we go and then, for the rest of them, I’ll set a timer and do other stuff while they’re cooking.


In the end we have 80-90 totally awesome pancakes which means lots of super fast, easy, and healthy breakfasts that the boys will feed themselves relatively quickly (why do toddlers eat so slowly?!?!?!). This is my go-to breakfast to give them when we need to get out of the house quickly in the morning and I’m rushing around getting all of our stuff ready. For the boys I pop them into the microwave or toaster oven quickly but Matt literally eats them frozen in the car on the way to work. He says it’s like a big, cold cookie. Better than stopping for donuts, right?

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup wheat germ
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup honey/sucanat/agave
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 1/3 cup oil (I use Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Coconut Oil)
• 1 egg (could do 2 egg whites)
• Chocolate Chips (I guess technically chocolate chips aren't Clean since they tend to have white sugar in them. You could use carob chips or blueberries or bananas or something instead. I'm okay with the little bit of sugar from the chocolate since the rest of the pancake is so healthy and my boys think it's a really special treat. But I'm kind of obsessed with chocolate so I'm a little biased)

ONE: Combine all ingredients except for chocolate chips in large bowl. Mix well.

TWO: Pour batter by the 1/4 cupful onto hot griddle (I have an electric griddle and I set it to 350. Regardless of what type of griddle/pan you use, a good rule of thumb is that it's preheated when you flick a drop of water onto the surface and it imediately sizzles and dances around).

THREE: Drop 6 or 8 chocolate chips on each pancake in a circle with one in the middle. (I do it this way instead of mixing them into the batter because then I can space them out so each bite has just enough chocolate to seem indulgent. Plus everyone’s pancake has the same number of chocolate chips and no one fights for a particularly chocolatey one… Matt.)

FOUR: When the top is bubbly and almost set, flip and cook another minute or so until both sides are golden brown. (I could NOT make pancakes until after I had kids because I was never patient enough to wait for the bottom to be set before trying to flip them. Same thing with omelets. Apparently having two kids has made me more patient. Go figure.)

Freeze leftovers using the flash freeze method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per Serving (2 pancakes) -  267 Calories (109 Calories from Fat) 12g Total Fat, 4g Saturated Fat, 23mg Cholesterol, 210mg Sodium, 34g Carbohydrates, 2g Dietary Fiber, 16g Sugar, 6g Protein, 2% DV Vitamin A, 1% DV Vitamin C, 14% DV Calcium, 11% DV Iron

:)

Clean Eating Classic Vegetarian Tacos (OAMC)

Makes 4 Servings, 3 Tacos Each
I'm not kidding when I say this is one of the top 5 things I have EVER eaten. I first tried this recipe when I was recipe testing it for Clean Eating Magazine. You can find it in the April/May 2011 edition with a quote from yours truly on page 58 :) I made it again a few months ago for some other moms at my MOMS Club's Fit and Frugal Meeting. All the moms loved it but the best part was that literally every child there ate it happily and asked for more. It's almost completely vegetables and they all scarfed it down!

The first time I made it for Matt and the boys, Matt had already finished his second one when he asked me what type of meat I used since it was so moist and tender. I wish I could have taken a picture of his face when he found out it was mushrooms and cauliflower, two of his least favorite foods. Priceless.

The other absolutely phenomenal thing about this recipe is how well it freezes. I triple or quadruple the recipe and freeze it in individual portions (3 tacos worth). It is so quick to heat some corn tortillas in a dry skillet for a few seconds while microwaving the filling. SOOOO GOOOOD!!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced small (1½ cups)
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed, roughly chopped into small pieces (I use Portabella)
• 1 cup cauliflower florets, roughly chopped into small pieces
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp chile powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 12 small corn tortillas
• 5 large Romaine lettuce leaves, sliced into ¼-inch strips
• ½ avocado, pitted, peeled and cubed
• ½ cup grated low-fat cheddar cheese
• ¼ cup low-fat sour cream

ONE: In a large, high-sided skillet, heat oil on medium-high. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes, until it begins to soften. Stir in garlic and sauté for 30 more seconds.

TWO: Add mushrooms and cauliflower and stir constantly for 2 minutes, until vegetables start to release water and shrink. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally until mushrooms are about half their original size and cauliflower is fork tender, about 15 minutes.

THREE: In a small mixing bowl, whisk together tomato paste, ¼ cup water, chile powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Add to mushroom mixture along with corn. Stir to combine, then cover. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.

FOUR: Warm tortillas over the flame of a gas stove or in a warm oven (I plop them in a dry skillet over medium high heat and warm them for about 20 seconds a side one by one). To assemble tacos, fill each tortilla with ¼ cup mushroom filling. Top with lettuce, avocado, cheese and sour cream, dividing evenly.

Freeze leftover filling in 3/4 cup portions using the medium/large portion method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per serving, 3 tacos each including garnishes - 379 Calories, 12g Total Fat, 3g Saturated Fat, 58g Total Carbohydrates, 10g Dietary Fiber, 8g Sugars, 15g Protein, 394mg Sodium, 11mg Cholesterol, 37% Vitamin C, 45% Riboflavin

:)

Clean Eating Cauliflower Pizza Crust (and Cauliflower Bread Sticks!)

Makes 4 servings, 1 slice each
When I first saw this recipe HERE I thought, “No way! How could that possibly work?” But it totally did and let me just tell you it is AWESOME. I think this might be the ultimate veggie sneak :) Matt hates cauliflower. He calls it albino broccoli. But he loves pizza so he now loves something primarily involving cauliflower (insert evil cackle… and then remember that Matt reads this blog every day to find out what we’re having for dinner so he now knows that his pizza crust is made of albino broccoli… oops). Whatever, Matt, you know you’ll still eat it anyway.

This is seriously a bread stick made out of cauliflower!!! How cool is that?!

Ingredients:

• ½ a head of cauliflower
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 tsp fennel
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 tsp parsley (you can use Italian seasoning or garlic or any spice combination you like instead of these three)

ONE: Wash cauliflower and remove leaves. Grate it until it is the size of rice. I use the shredder blade on my food processor but you could use a hand grater or a chef knife as long as you chop it VERY finely.

I literally took a bag of frozen cauliflower, shoved it into the top of my food
processor fitted with the shredding/grating blade, and turned it on.

TWO: Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe dish and cover. DO NOT ADD WATER because the cauliflower will absorb it all and turn to mush. Microwave on high 4-5 minutes until tender but not mushy.

THREE: Preheat oven to 450. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray. Scoop out one cup of the cooked cauliflower rice and mix with the egg and mozzarella.

FOUR: Press evenly onto the pan in a pizza dough shape and sprinkle with spices. Bake at 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes (15-20 minutes if you double the recipe).

TO USE IMMEDIATELY: Spread pizza dough with a little bit of sauce and sprinkle with toppings and some mozzarella cheese. Place under the broiler on high heat and grill just until the cheese is melted.

TO FREEZE: Freeze leftovers or whole plain pizza crusts using the flash freeze method to feed your freezer stash.

TO MAKE BREAD STICKS:
ONE: Double the recipe. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of a cookie tray. Take that same piece of parchment paper and line an 8x8 baking dish with it. Don’t cut it. (Or use a single batch and put it in a loaf pan... but it doesn't make as many breadsticks and I PROMISE you you'll want more... immediately)

Single batch in a loaf pan

TWO: Spread the unbaked “dough” into the baking dish, pressing down with a spatula to cover the bottom evenly. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven 20-25 minutes until dough is set, just starting to brown around the edges and not wet on top.

THREE: Remove pan from oven and increase temp to 450. Transfer the parchment and set dough to the baking sheet. Cut the dough into strips and separate carefully. Sprinkle with garlic powder and a little parmesan or shredded cheese if desired (I did).

FOUR: Bake another 15 minutes in 450 degree oven until top is slightly browned and bottoms are crispy. Cool on a wire rack.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per serving (1/4 of the recipe) - 121 Calories (62 Calories from Fat), 7g Total Fat, 4g Saturated Fat, 62mg Cholesterol, 188mg Sodium, 5g Carbohydrates, 2g Dietary Fiber, 2g Sugar, 10g Protein, 6% DV Vitamin A, 60% DV Vitamin C, 24% DV Calcium, 5% DV Iron

:)

Clean Eating Healthy Green Bean Fries

Makes 8 servings
Are you excited?!?! I'm excited :) I'm not a big fan of green beans and they are one of the only veggies my kids won't eat. This never bothered me all that much since they're not really one of the powerhouse veggies.... except they are SUPER cheap here in Florida during the summer. Not only are they usually on sale at the grocery store but you can get huge piles of them for an obscenely low price from local farm stands. Now, if you already like green beans and so do your kids, then this will be just one more (totally awesome) way for you to enjoy them. But for us, it opens up a whole new inexpensive side dish option. The boys call them Dinosaur Fries :)



Ingredients:

• 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• 2 cups whole wheat bread crumbs (I made my breadcrumbs with unfrosted miniwheats and they were AWESOME for this because they grind into really fine crumbs and are very dry so they stick really well)
• 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp parmesan cheese (optional)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour

ONE: Fill a big bowl halfway with water and lots of ice. Set aside.

TWO: In a medium saucepan, combine the green beans and water, cover, and bring to a boil. Cook until the beans are bright green, about 4 minutes. Drain and dump into the bowl of ice water. Set aside.

Cooked, cooled, and drying

THREE: In a bowl, whisk together the egg whites and milk. On a plate, mix the bread crumbs and seasonings. Dump the flour into a gallon-sized ziploc bag.

FOUR: Drain the green beans and pat them dry with paper towels. Throw them into the flour bag and toss to coat, shaking off excess flour. Dip the beans into the egg mixture and then into the bread crumbs, coating thoroughly. (I put the breadcrumb mixture into a gallon bag. Then I dip the beans and drop them in one by one, shaking the bag a little each time. Once I have about 8 coated beans in there I pick them out and lay them on the baking sheet. I repeat this until all the beans are coated. This gives them more of a complete coating and makes the process go faster.)

FIVE: Preheat the oven to 375. Spray a large cookie sheet with olive oil spray and lay the beans on it so that they aren't touching. Bake for 25 minutes.

Freeze leftovers using the flash freeze method and reheat in the oven or toaster oven.

Theron grabbed a Green Bean Fry and ran....

...Right over to Colwynn who was hiding around the corner
eating a stolen Salmon Patty. This is his "innocent" face.
It might work on Daddy but Mommy knows better :)
Colwynn on the other hand is too busy inhaling his
salmon patty to bother trying to look innocent. LOL

NUTRITION INFO:

Per Serving - 172 Calories (17 Calories from Fat), 2g Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 375mg Sodium, 28g Total Carbohydrates, 5g Dietary Fiber, 6g Sugars, 7g Protein, 9% DV Vitamin A, 15% DV Vitamin C, 14% DV Calcium, 13% DV Iron

Super Fast Clean Eating Peanut Sauce Stir Fry

Makes 4 servings
This is my go-to meal when I really don't have time to cook because I know my kids will eat it without complaint and I can basically throw whatever random veggies and protein I have lying around into it. This is more of a method than a recipe so you can easily make it your own. I’ve added 12 oz of cubed extra firm tofu, cooked diced chicken, or cooked diced pork and used brown rice or quinoa from my freezer stash instead of pasta. This meal is plenty filling with just the veggies and peanut sauce but, if you have a lean protein readily available, go ahead and throw it in. 

This was included in my weekly meal plan for THIS week and baby portabella mushrooms were on sale so I threw a package in with my stir fry veggies and used leftover Pineapple Pork Tenderloin as my protein.

Ingredients:

• 1 box whole grain spaghetti 
• 1 16 oz bag stir fry veggies (about 4 cups)
• ½ cup chicken/vegetable broth (can use frozen cubes from your stockpile)
• 1 cup Perfect Peanut Sauce 

ONE: Spray a large wok or non-stick skillet with cooking spray and dump the veggies in. Cover and cook on medium-high heat for about 10-12 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so to prevent sticking.

TWO: Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside.

THREE: If the peanut sauce is frozen, microwave it for a minute until mostly defrosted. Once the veggies are tender, add the chicken broth and peanut sauce to the pan, turn the heat to low, cover and cook until warmed through.

FOUR: Once the spaghetti is done, place individual servings into bowls (about 1/2 to 1 cup each, you should have a little bit left over). Stir the peanut sauce-veggie mixture and divide it evenly amongst the bowls. 

Freeze the remaining spaghetti in ½ or 1 cup portions using the medium/large portion method to add to your freezer stash.

:)

Joan's Clean Eating Healthy Homemade Hummus

My family lives on this. In fact hummus was one of Colwynn’s first words… Dada, clock, hummus… not Mama, even though Mama was the one MAKING the hummus, but anyway :)


This recipe comes from another one of my great friends, Joan. She runs this amazing workout class for moms in Jacksonville called Stroller Strength and I’m proud to say I was one of the original members. If you live anywhere near Jacksonville, FL you should definitely check it out. When I was pregnant with Colwynn, I gained 34 lbs and could barely walk at the end. It took me almost 6 months to feel like myself again. I started Joan’s class when Col was a year old and got pregnant with Theron a few months later. Fast forward nine months and I gained 18 lbs, ran 2 miles the day before he was born, was only in labor for 2 hours (I’m not kidding, Theron was almost born in the car), and ran an 8 ½ minute mile 3 weeks later. Her class is that amazing.


So what does this have to do with hummus? Well this is Joan’s recipe and everything she touches is magic, that’s what :) I usually triple or quadruple it and make a huge batch. It’s a very sad day in our house when I reach into the freezer and find out that the hummus is all gone. This is also great to whip out for unexpected guests.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground cumin
• Pinch cayenne
• 3 Tbsp juice from 1-2 lemons
• ¼ cup water
• 6 Tbsp tahini, stirred well
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

ONE: Put chickpeas, garlic, salt, cumin, and cayenne in a food processor; process until fully ground. Scrape down sides with a spatula.

TWO: With the machine still running, slowly add the lemon juice and water and continue to process for one minute. Scrape down the sides with a spatula again.

THREE: In small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the tahini and 2 Tbsp oil. With the machine still running, add the oil-tahini mixture in a steady stream through the feed tube. Continue to process until smooth and creamy, scraping down sides as needed. Transfer to a bowl and, if desired, top with some reserved chick peas and drizzle with olive oil.

Freeze using the small portions method. 2 cubes equals one serving. Reheat in the microwave for 30 seconds on full power, stir, and heat another 5-10 seconds. If it seems a little dry, just stir in a tiny bit of olive oil.

Clean Eating Healthy Crockpot Pork Chops and Fruit Salsa over Citrus Quinoa

Makes 4 - 6 Servings
We LOVE quinoa in our house. It cooks fast, is fun to eat, and it’s a complete protein all by itself so it’s very filling. This is a very versatile recipe that takes full advantage of fresh summer produce and pairs well with a variety of different proteins, meat or otherwise. This can easily be made into a vegetarian recipe.

My kids love this dish because they are getting to eat fruit for dinner and I love it because I can throw it in the crockpot and forget about it and it doesn’t heat up my whole kitchen. You can even prepare a bunch of it ahead of time and freeze it to make what I call a dump-n-go meal; dump the frozen raw ingredients into the crock in the morning and cook on low all day. This is especially good for me when I’m teaching 40 lessons a day in the middle of the summer and I don’t have any time for prep work.

Ingredients:
Pork Chops and Salsa

• 1 lb boneless pork loin chops (or boneless skinless chicken breast, turkey cutlets, or cubed firm tofu)
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
• 2 mangos, chopped
• 2 peaches, chopped
• ½ cup diced red onion
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup coarsely chopped/torn cilantro
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 small can chopped green chiles, drained (optional; this makes it pretty spicy so I of course don't put it in. You know I'm wimpy about spicy)

Citrus Quinoa

• 1 ½ cups quinoa, rinsed until water runs clear
• 2 cups broth (chicken or vegetable)
• 1 cup orange juice
• ½ cup chopped onion
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ c fresh parsley, minced (or 2 Tbsp dried)
• ¼ cup fresh mint, minced (or 1 Tbsp dried)
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ¼ c chopped walnuts
• 1/3 cup dried unsweetened cranberries
• 1 cup finely chopped carrots or sweet potatoes
• Generous handful of fresh spinach, chopped (optional at end)
• 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed (optional at end)

ONE: Spray a large sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray. Lay the pork chops on the foil. In a small bowl, combine the salsa ingredients and pour evenly over meat. Seal the foil into a pouch (instructions HERE).

TWO: Combine all of the Citrus Quinoa ingredients except the spinach and beans in the crockpot. Lay the foil pouch on top.

THREE: Cover and cook on low 4-6 hours or on high for 2-4. The quinoa is done when most of the water is absorbed and the grains (or actually seeds, did you know that?) have started to uncurl like ribbons. If the quinoa is uncurled and tender but there’s still too much liquid in the pot, vent the lid of the crockpot for the last 15 minutes of cook time with a chop stick or the handle of a wooden spoon.

FOUR: Fluff the quinoa with a fork and add the spinach and garbanzo beans (if using). Replace the lid and cook on high for 20 minutes until the spinach is wilted. Stir to distribute. If the pork chops aren’t fully cooked when the quinoa is done, you can reseal the foil pouch and pop it in the oven at 375 for 10 or 15 minutes.

DUMP-N-GO INSTRUCTIONS: Combine all of the quinoa ingredients and dump into a gallon freezer bag. Assemble the foil pouch of meat and salsa as directed above. Put the sealed pouch in another freezer bag (or you could try freezing it resting on top of the quinoa ingredients. It might require some finesse as your putting it into the freezer. Or you could freeze them separately and then throw the foil packet on top of the quinoa stuff after it’s frozen).

On cooking day, dump the frozen solid quinoa mixture into the crockpot and place the frozen solid foil packet on top. Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours or on high 3-5 hours. Just make sure that when you freeze the quinoa ingredients, you are freezing it into a shape that will fit into your crockpot. Otherwise you’ll have to chisel away the sides to jam it in there… not that I speak from experience or anything ;)

NUTRITION INFO:

Per Serving (pork chops and salsa) - 212 Calories (67 Calories from Fat) 7g Total Fat, 2g Saturated Fat, 41mg Cholesterol, 173mg Sodium, 20g Carbohydrates, 3g Dietary Fiber, 16g Sugar, 18g Protein, 22% DV Vitamin A, 48% DV Vitamin C, 4% DV Calcium, 6% DV Iron

Per Serving Citrus Quinoa (1/6 of recipe without spinach or beans) - 259 Calories (72 Calories from Fat), 8g Total Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 237mg Sodium, 39g Carbohydrates, 5g Dietary Fiber, 10g Sugar, 8g Protein, 70% DV Vitamin A, 51% DV Vitamin C, 5% DV Calcium, 16% DV Iron

:)

:)

Clean Eating Honey Glazed Carrots

Makes 4 servings
I’m actually not a huge fan of carrots unless they are mixed into things. Shocking, I know, since we all know I LOVE vegetables. However, I am a huge fan of honey and ginger and so are my kids, so when I make these glazed carrots we all lick our plates clean. These are so ridiculously good that Matt and I secretly hope the boys don't want to finish all of theirs so that we can eat the leftovers, LOL. I never thought cooked carrots would become my favorite side dish of all time but these are seriously that delicious :)

Looks so simple yet tastes soooooo decadent :)

Ingredients:

• 1 16-oz. bag of baby carrots, cleaned and trimmed (or 4 big carrots, peeled and cut into baby-carrot-sized pieces)
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1Tbsp lemon juice
• Dash of salt
• ½ tsp ground ginger

ONE: Place carrots and 2 Tbsp water in a microwave safe baking dish with lid (I use a small corningware dish with a glass lid). Microwave on high, 4 minutes. Stir and microwave on high an additional 3 minutes until carrots are fork tender but not mushy. (Alternatively you could steam them in one of those Ziploc Zip ‘n Steam Bags).

TWO: Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat 2 minutes. Stir in honey, reduce heat to low, and cook, stirring constantly, until it has dissolved. Add the lemon juice, salt, and ginger and stir to combine.

THREE: Add the steamed carrots to the skillet and stir gently to coat. Increase the heat to medium and cook another 2 or 3 minutes until carrots are heated through.

Freeze leftovers using the medium/large portion method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per serving - 162 Calories (91 Calories from Fat), 10g Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 113mg Sodium, 18g Total Carbohydrates, 3g Dietary Fiber, 14g Sugars, 1g Protein, 309% DV Vitamin A, 7% DV Vitamin C, 4% DV Calcium, 6% DV Iron

Clean Eating Healthy Homemade Baked Beans (OAMC)

Makes about 10 servings, ½ cup each
Matt LOVES baked beans but it’s just against my nature to buy the ones in the cans. Now I can make him a big pot every now and again and he can have them whenever he likes. The boys love these too but they call them candy beans. That’s fine with me as long as they eat them :) There are surprisingly no vegetables hidden in these… but if you put them on whole grain toast (a British tradition that Matt has happily adopted) the grains and beans together form a complete protein which makes for a very filling meal. This can easily be made into a vegetarian dish by using a non-meat product, like tofu bacon, in place of the meat

Ingredients:

• 3 cans navy beans, drained and rinsed (can substitute cannellini, white or kidney beans)
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• ½ cup sucanat (can use brown/turbinado sugar)
• ¼ cup molasses
• 1/3 cup ketchup (read the label! not all ketchups are created equal)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 ½ tsp dried mustard
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ½ pound of natural savory meat sliced or diced (I’ve used all natural chicken and apple sausages, tofu “bacon”, cooked Italian turkey sausage, and even all natural ham deli meat)

ONE: Throw everything into the crockpot, cover, and cook on low for about 6 hours or high for about 4 until the beans are softened but not falling apart. Stir well and serve over toast (Matt made me put that toast part in).

Freeze leftovers in ½ cup portions using the medium/large portion method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per ½ cup serving - 221 Calories (21 Calories from Fat), 2g Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 15mg Cholesterol, 905mg Sodium, 38g Total Carbohydrates, 6g Dietary Fiber, 9g Sugars, 13g Protein, 2% DV Vitamin A, 6% DV Vitamin C, 8% DV Calcium, 17% DV Iron

Clean Eating Crockpot African Peanut Soup

Makes 12 servings, 1 cup each
I got the idea for this soup HERE and made a few modifications (you know I can never just follow a recipe LOL). The first time I made this it was for my friend, Martha. I made a double batch and canned it all using my pressure canner to bring to her as a Congrats-On-Your-New-Baby Present (yes I canned it even though it has peanuts in it and no they didn’t die of botulism). I was so focused on packing up meals for her that I totally forgot to save some for us and had to make a whole other batch the next day because it smelled like HEAVEN while it was cooking.

You could easily make this a vegetarian recipe by using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. It tastes even better the next day after it’s had more of a chance for the flavors to blend. My family is wimpy when it comes to heat so I used barely any chili powder. Adjust the heat according to your own family’s tolerance.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped (about 2 cups)
• 2 large red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and shredded
• 2 medium carrots, shredded or diced small
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tsp)
• 1 28oz can crushed tomatoes, with liquid
• 8 cups chicken broth (can use veggie broth)
• 1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder (optional, I used 1/8 tsp)
• 2/3 cup creamy natural peanut butter
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro plus extra for garnish
• Chopped peanuts for garnish (optional)
• Plain non-fat yogurt for garnish (optional)

ONE: Swirl the olive oil around the bottom of the crockpot. Dump in all of the veggies, garlic, tomatoes with juice, broth, brown rice, pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and chili powder. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours (high for 4 hours) or until veggies are tender.

TWO: Stir in peanut butter and fresh cilantro and cook on high an additional 20 to 30 minutes or until heated through. Serve sprinkled with extra cilantro, chopped peanuts, and a dollop of yogurt.

THREE: To thicken the broth before serving, use an immersion blender (seriously the coolest tool ever!) and blend everything right in the crock for about a minute or until it’s how you like it. If you don’t have an immersion blender, scoop out 2 cups of the soup and CAREFULLY (because it will be really hot) puree it in a regular blender and then add it back to the soup.

STOVETOP DIRECTIONS: Heat oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat. Add veggies and cook until lightly browned and tender. Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds or until fragrant. Stir in tomatoes, chicken broth, brown rice, pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and chili powder. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Stir in peanut butter and fresh cilantro, cover, and simmer another 15 minutes or until rice is tender. Serve sprinkled with extra cilantro, chopped peanuts, and a dollop of yogurt. If desired, thicken according to instructions in step three above.

Look at all those brightly colored veggies :)

Freeze leftovers in 1 cup portions using the medium/large portion method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per 1-cup serving (without garnishes) - 218 Calories (98 Calories from Fat), 11g Fat, 2g Saturated Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 153mg Sodium, 23g Total Carbohydrates, 4g Dietary Fiber, 4g Sugars, 10g Protein, 92% DV Vitamin A, 73% DV Vitamin C, 5% DV Calcium, 11% DV Iron

Clean Eating Portobello Mushroom Ragu

Makes 6 servings, ¾ cup eachThis is from Clean Eating magazine and I love it because it’s meatless but still really filling and is a nice change from regular pasta sauce. Plus it’s really fast to make so it’s great to throw together on a busy night.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp Olive oil
• 1 medium red or sweet onion, diced (about 1 cup)
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 12 oz sliced Portobello mushrooms, diced
• ½ tsp dried thyme
• 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes
• Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

ONE: Heat olive oil in a large skillet and saute the onions until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often.

TWO: Add garlic, saute for 1 minute, then stir in mushrooms and thyme. Continue to cook over high heat until the mushrooms have softened and given off their juices, 2 to 3 minutes.

THREE: Add tomatoes and cook until the mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve over cooked whole grains or whole wheat pasta.

Freeze leftovers in ¾ cup servings using the medium/large portion method to feed your freezer stash.

NUTRITION INFO:

Per 3/4 cup serving: 92 Calories, 5g Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 10g Total Carbohydrates, 3g Fiber, 5g Sugars, 3g Protein, 238mg Sodium, 1g Cholesterol