It has never been so evident to me until recently, that I eat like a freak. What is my norm, some people might think is extreme, a little odd and maybe even crazy. I was diagnosed at a very young age with severe food allergies, what you might ask? It’s actually easier to tell you what I CAN eat then what I cannot. Protein sources of fish, turkey, rice protein and whey. I have a wide variety of fats to choose from and veggies. Carbs are pretty much oatmeal (as long as there is no wheat included), quinoa, yams, sweet potato and that is pretty much it. Spices come and go, but I won’t lie, I eat pretty darn bland. So what’s my point? I survive eating this way. I love eating this way, not only because I don’t want to end up in the hospital with a swollen shut throat, or being in fetal position nursing cramps, but because it makes me feel amazing. I am always energized, my workouts are amazing and I feel outstanding.
Questioning my sanity? Here is the catch eating clean DOESN’T HAVE TO BE BORING! You can be creative with eating healthy. It is all about finding alternative recipes and match your taste buds. Have a sweet tooth but don’t like the Buddha belly that goes along with it? Simple! Just mix things up. Use low calorie to non-calorie sweeteners, instead of high test white sugar. Try using things like brown rice flour or spelt instead of white all purpose flour. What about for entrées? Low to no sodium spices can add zip to a regular steamed vegetable stir-fry, instead of loading sugary teriyaki sauce. Eating clean doesn’t need to be complicated, nor does it need to be boring.
Here are some of my favourite recipes… my family enjoys them too!
Almond Protein Cake Squares
2 cups of quick oats
1 cups of baking Splenda
6 scoops of protein powder (vanilla)
1 tbsp. of baking soda
¼ cups of almond sugar-free syrup
16 egg whites
½ cups of almond butter
1 cups of unsweetened applesauce (or substitute 1 cups of ground apple instead)
½ cups of slivered almonds (optional)
Preheat oven to 325°F degrees. Mix first four dry ingredients together in large mixing bowl. Mix the syrup, eggs, almond butter and unsweetened applesauce in separate bowl with blender. Blend until smooth.
Gradually add dry ingredients into the bowl, blending constantly on low until completely blended. Spread ingredients evenly onto a cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 325°F for 20-25 minutes.
Turkey Meatballs
1 lb. ground turkey
2 whole eggs
2 tablespoons olive oil, MCT oil or flax
3/4 teaspoon ground celery seed
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon coriander
Couple dashes ground red chili
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1″ cube fresh ginger, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Mix ingredients together in a big bowl, then form into 2″ balls and put on a baking sheet. Sprinkle top of meatballs with black mustard seeds, then bake at 400-degrees for 15-20 minutes.
Balsamic Asparagus Mix
* I use any time of veggie for this, I find these ones work the besT
1½ bundles of fresh asparagus, ends trimmed
1 red pepper chopped
1 yellow pepper chopped
3 large stuffing mushrooms chopped
½ red onion chopped
2 cups of grape tomatoes chopped
½ oz. of cilantro cut up
1 cups of balsamic vinegar
Black pepper
Preheat oven at 400°F degrees. Place asparagus in glass baking dish. Spread peppers, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, cilantro and vinegar over asparagus. Season with black pepper to taste. Bake at 400 for 50 minutes or until desired crispness of asparagus.
Homemade Protein Bars
Mix the following dry ingredients in a bowl:
4.5 scoops of Whey Protein Isolate
1 tsp lethicin powder
2 tbsp oatmeal
1/4 tsp stevia
2 tsp carob powder
Melt 3 squares of Lindt Excellence 70% Cocoa dark chocolate in a microwave safe dish
In a blender, mix up
1 tbsp food grade vegetable glycerine
3 tbsp water
2 tablespoons no sugar added strawberry jam
Pour blended liquid into bowl of melted chocolate, stir. Pour complete chocolate liquid mixture into dry ingredients, mix thoroughly. Press sticky mixture into a wax paper lined 5″ x 5″ container and freeze. Cut into 6 pieces after freezing and wrap individually in wax paper. Keep refrigerated or frozen
Say no to the processed glorified protein bars. Just because they say “Protein” doesn’t mean they are good for you.
Want some more recipes? I suggest John Bernadi’s Gourmet Nutrition or Tosca Reno’s Eat Clean Diet Cookbook.
