I was so excited when I saw this recipe! It looked so pretty yet so easy! It definitely was those two things, but it just didnt taste as fabulous as it looked. Dont get be wrong it was still good, but I guess presentation isnt everything.

Cheesy Hasselback Chicken (www.wearychef.com)

Ingredients

• 4 thick boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 4-6 oz. deli-sliced ham, cut into strips about 1" by 2"
• 4 slices cheese, cut into strips about 1" by 2" (colby jack, pepper jack, cheddar, provolone, etc.)
• seasoned salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice slits about 1" apart in chicken breasts almost all the way through, leaving the bottom surface connected. Slide strips of ham and cheese into each slit.

Sprinkle chicken liberally with seasoned salt and pepper to taste. Place on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Serve and enjoy!

Dan and I thought this meal looked pretty fancy, but sadly the chicken turned out kind of dry. Dan rated this a 3 stars out of 5.

Read More..

Yum

Veggie wraps may be one of the easiest of healthy lunch recipes to make, but do they taste good?

I felt skeptical too, but love the idea of combining healthy foods like veggies and whole grain, and decided to create my own veggie wrap. Because Im a fan of Middle Eastern flavors, I used ingredients like hummus and tahini. To balance the strong flavors, I added blander foods like beans and quinoa.

This healthy lunch recipe turned out delicious! And of course, as expected, it was simple to do as well.

If you have a chance, you should absolutely give it a try--and add it to tomorrows clean eating and weight loss meal plan.

Healthy Lunch Recipe: Veggie Quinoa Wrap

Ingredients:

- Whole wheat tortilla

- 1/2 cup of cooked organic quinoa

- 2 table spoons of hummus

- 1 tea spoon of Tahini

- 1 pinch of sea salt

- Roasted minced garlic and red peppers

- 1 cup of romain leaves

- 1 cup of cooked kale

- 1 lemon wedge (or 1 tea spoon of lemon juice)

- 2 tea spoons of Tamari soy sauce

- 1 table spoon of apple cider vinegar

Directions:

1. Lay tortilla wrap flat on a plate.

2. In a mixing bowl, add all other ingredients, and mix well.

3. Spread mix evenly on tortilla.

4. Roll tortilla into a wrap and cut in half.

5. Enjoy!

There you go.

Healthy, tasty and one of the easiest healthy lunch recipes Ive tried. See? Healthy foods dont always taste bad. I hope you enjoy this veggie and quinoa wrap as much as I did.

Thanks for visiting Clean Eating Weight Loss Meal Plan!

Again, I hope you enjoyed todays clean eating recipe.

 And please come back for more healthy lunch recipes and clean eating ideas!

See you soon.

Product Recommendation

Kevala Organic Sesame Tahini

USDA-Certified organic, kosher, GMO-free, gluten-free and made with the finest sesame seeds, this delicious spread adds serious flavor to foods. If you want to "spice" up a meal, this Tahini sauce makes a great choice!

Find it at Kevala Organic Tahini.

Read More..

The first time I cooked with quinoa I was shocked that something so tiny, with the consistency of sand and the tendency to find its way into every nook and cranny of the kitchen could be so tasty. Its an interesting little grain well suited in both sweet and savory dishes. For people cutting back on carbs its also a great whole grain substitute for in recipes that call for things like white rice or couscous. And Id be lying if I didnt mention that half the reason Ive been so keen in it lately is that its really fun to say.

Quinoa has also helped me solve one of my biggest complaints on this diet: boring breakfast. I can only do the whole grain cereal or whole grain bread with low fat yogurt and fruit so many times before Im tempted to trade meals with the dog. Enter quinoa oatmeal. Fulling and versatile. I make a big batch at the beginning of the week and eat off it whenever Im in the mood. Its good hot or cold. Sweetened with fruit and agave nectar or salty and crunchy with cashews.

Technically this recipe only works for the maintenance stage of the diet but it would be just as good without the dried fruit, perhaps adding in some other spices to give it a kick instead. Ive also started making it with half milk and half water for the liquids as the full milk makes it a little too porridge like for me in the summer. You can do whatever you want to the quinoa to make it suit your tastes but youll want a little sweetness and some flavor added in or it can be a bit too bitter.

Quinoa Oatmeal

1 cup quinoa
2 cups milk

1/3 cup dried fruit
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon agave nectar

Place quinoa in a sieve and rinse well under cold water. Tip the quinoa into a saucepan and add the milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer for 5 minutes.

Add fruit and cinnamon then simmer for 8-10 or until all liquid is absorbed.

Stir in agave nectar. Serve topped with fruit or cashews and milk.

Read More..

These last few warm days with the tease of the toasty summer to come has me itching to get out the grill. And by get out the grill I mean make sweet puppy dog eyes until the fella drags the grill out of the garage and does his manly imperative above the open flame. The grill is his territory and Im happy to let him keep it.

Its been a crazy week and our cooking schedule has been thrown into a tizzy so I settled for the next best thing to the grill on such a tight schedule. We got out the grill pan and tossed some marinated portobellos on it and reveled in the meaty herby smells filling the kitchen. These couldnt be easier and I always do at least a double batch because they taste so good I can guarantee each of us will want to eat more than one. And until the nice weather is here to stay that grill pan is going to be getting a lot of use.

Portobello “Steaks”


2 large portobello mushrooms, stems removed
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup dry red drinking wine
1/4 cup oil
1-1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. Montreal or Chicago-style steak spice
salt and pepper, to taste


The day or morning before you plan on serving these, mix together all ingredients but the mushrooms in a large glass or ceramic casserole dish with a lid. Lightly score the tops of the mushrooms in a criss-cross pattern. Place the mushrooms top-up on the marinade and swish around so the liquid fills some of the spaces in the underside, then flip over and lay them down with the tops in the marinade. Cover and let marinate until evening, or at least 4 hours, flipping the “steaks” over occasionally.


Preheat a cast-iron frypan or griddle; spray lightly with oil spray. Sear the mushrooms on each side quickly, then pour the marinade over mushrooms and sauté for a few minutes so that the marinade cooks and the steaks absorb the flavors, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove to serving dishes and spoon more marinade over top.


Original recipe from Diet Desserts and Dogs Blog.

Read More..

Breakfast

Whole Wheat Toast with All-Natural Peanut Butter, Hard Boiled Eggs and Avocado Slices

The best weight loss program consists of the macro-nutrients carbohydrate, protein and fat. Consumed in moderation and along with exercise, a balanced intake of macro-nutrients helps with healthy weight loss.

Todays breakfast is full of macro-nutrients and a delicious combo thats easy to fix in busy mornings. Hope you like it.

Mid Morning Snack

Think Thin High Protein Bar (from here)

With 20 grams of protein per bar and only about 230 calories, Think Thin High Protein Bars are about the best healthy snack bars on the market. Theyre also sweet, tasty and chewy--not much different from candy bars but better for you.

I LOVED the brownie crunch flavor (seen below), but enjoyed peanut butter chocolate flavor too.

Want to try them? Visit Think Thin Healthy Snack Bars.

Lunch

Broccoli Turkey and Cheddar Wrap

This recipe is from Clean Eating Recipes Blog, and can be found here.

Cheesy and scrumptious with all-natural cheddar and fresh turkey, this wrap is flavorful and easy-to-make. If you have about 5 - 10 minutes, please try the recipe. 

Again, its from Clean Eating Recipes Blog, and can be found at this link.

Afternoon Snack

Steamed Edamame with Sea Salt

 Edamame are soybeans harvested before beans harden. Like beans, theyre gluten-free, low-calorie and low-cholesterol, but abundant in protein, calcium and iron. 

The beans inside the shells are soft, chewy and fun to eat. Steamed or boiled hot and sprinkled with sea salt, these snack-able veggies make a great way to satisfy the munchies. If you crave something salty, bypass the potato chips and go for edamame.

By the way, if you cant get raw edamame, there are pre-packaged frozen edamame that you can pop in the microwave to heat, or dry roasted edamame that you can grab and go.

  For dry roasted edamame, I recommend Sensible Foods Roasted Edamame. They are delicious!

Dinner

Apple and Avocado Salad (recipe here)

Adding fruits to vegetables is a good way to mix flavors and nutrients.

Todays clean eating dinner is a mixture of sweet apple chunks and supple avocado. Tossed in organic poppy seed dressing and on top of mixed greens, the apples offset veggies natural bitterness. This salad was tasty, light and refreshing. I absolutely enjoyed it!

I hope you give it a try and visit Clean Eating Dinner Apple and Avocado Salad for recipe.

Cannot believe this is the 100th Clean Eating Weight Loss Meal Plan.

Thank you so, so much for your support!

I will try to make future meal plans better and healthier.

I hope you continue to visit, and continue to eat clean.

By the way, to celebrate the 100th meal plan, there will be a give-away coming soon.

Stay tuned!

____________________________________________

HEALTHY WEIGHT LOSS | WEIGHT LOSS HELPPRODUCTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
____________________________________________

Fitbit Charge Wireless Activity Wristband

What it does:

• The fitbit wirstband tracks all-day activities stats like steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, stairs climbed, and minutes youve been active
• It displays your daily stats, time of day, and exercise mode with a bright OLED display
• Also, it monitors your sleep and wakes you with a silent alarm
• All notifications are provided through a wearable wristband
• You can accesses real-time run stats like time, distance, and pace to stay on track
• The stats can be synced wireless and automatically to your computer and over 120 leading smartphones 
• Its revolutionary technology is accurate, easy-to-use and most of all, help you lose weight and keep fit
   

Advanced technology; great fitness and weight loss help.

Get it at Fitbit Charge Wireless Activity Wristband!

Read More..

This is another one of those insanely easy side dishes that would be well suited for taking to a summer picnic.  I made the quinoa earlier in the week during a cooking frenzy so when it was time prepare this recipe all I did was toss it together and eat.  Its filling, delicious, and just spicy enough to keep things interesting.  I of course made it vegan my using dairy free butter spread but Im sure its even better with the real thing.

I didnt change a thing so this very short post is brought to you by my love for 101Cookbooks where you can find the recipe for this simple salad.  Go check it out if youve been hiding under a rock and havent discovered this trove of healthy whole food recipes.

Read More..

Apparently the winter has finally gotten to me and Im starting to snap.  In the midst of my Monday cooking frenzy I realized everything on my recipe list this week leaned toward Mediterranean foods.  Not that there is anything at all wrong with that.  It was just an odd moment to realize I had totally subconsciously arranged for myself to eat delicious slightly summery light foods.  You know you need a vacation when your taste buds create one for you.

The big hit of the slew of things I made today was this salad.  Ive made it before but this time I played with the dressing and changed up the proportions to fit what I was in the mood for to make the salad just that much better.

Ive already raved about quinoa but Ill do so again for a couple seconds in case there is still anyone that hasnt tried it.  Quinoa is similar in texture to couscous and is prepared in much the same way but is a grain from a grassy South American plant rather than processed wheat.  It has an interesting slightly bitter taste that makes it a great contrast to a bright citrusy salad like this one.  And its perfect for the Montignac Method because at 35 it has the lowest GI of any of the grains Ive looked into.

I buy mine in the bulk bins at Whole Foods where its about $3 a pound which is a pretty great deal considering my mother said a couple ounces of it is around $5 at her local grocery store.  Its just nice to have around for quick salads, a rice substitute or as an oatmeal type breakfast with a much better texture.

Unfortunately not everything I made today came out as well as this salad.  Next time I will share with the world how I failed at my fourth soufflé in a row.  It wasnt meant to be I guess and I now know not to try again.   Ill stick to less high maintenance food thank you very much.

 

Quinoa Salad with Pomegranate

1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water

1 cup pomegranate seeds
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup pinenuts, toasted
1/ 4 scant cup cilantro leaves, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

Bring quinoa and water to boil in medium pot.  After allowing to cook on a rolling boil for a couple minutes, reduce heat to simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until quinoa is al dente.  Set aside off heat to allow quinoa to cool.

Add the pomegranate seeds to the cooled quinoa in a large bowl. In a small bowl whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, agave nectar, and mustard until blended. Drizzle over quinoa mixture. Add the remaining ingredients and toss. Season with salt & pepper to taste. 

Modified from Enlightened Cooking blog. 

Read More..

SHARE ON YUMMLY --> Yum

Healthy Dinner Recipe: Shrimp Avocado Quinoa Bowl

Ingredients:

- 1 cup of medium cooked shrimp

- 2 roma tomatoes, diced

- 1 haas avocado, peeled, de-cored and chopped

- 1 cup of steamed Brussels sprouts

- 1/2 cup of organic quinoa

- 1 table spoon of extra virgin olive oil

- Sea salt

- Ground black pepper

- 1 tea spoon of dry thyme

- 1/2 tea spoon of lime juice

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing bowl.

2. Mix well with spoon and toss 5 - 6 times.

Enjoy!

Read More..

Below is my own personal meal plan I wrote up in excel based on the sample meal plans and recipes in the book. There are lists of food I can eat in each phase if I cannot cook every meal which is also helpful, but I will do my best to try and cook every meal and photograph and review it here.

I will go grocery shopping later today. This is my approximate shopping list for meals MON to THURS

FRUIT

STRAWBERRY

WATERMELON

MANGOS

APPLE

LEMON

PINEAPPLE

VEGGIES

3 CUPS MUSHROOMS

3 GARLIC

3 ONION

14.5 OZ DICED TOMATO

BAY LEAF

2 CUPS ZUCCHINI

1 CUP BROCCOLI FLORETS

2 SHALLOT

4 CUPS SPINACH

4 PORTABELLO MUSHROOMS

ROMAINE LETTUCE

MISC

STEVIA

MINT

1 CUP WILD RICE

14 CUPS CHICKEN BROTH

4 CUPS VEGETABLE BROTH

1 CUP BARLEY

ROSEMARY

CILANTRO

BASIL

OREGANO

THYME

BAY LEAF

MEAT

CHICKEN 5lbs bonesless skinless breast

3 EGG WHITES

TURKEY 2lbs breast steaks

BEEF 3bs lean ground

SALMON smoked 6oz

TURKEY deli slices nitrate free

Read More..

Now that I figured out how to make it myself I cant believe Ive spent so much money on buying not so tasty rice milk in the store all these years.  To get an aseptic container of gluten free sugar free rice milk I was paying $2 or more a week.  Which isnt too bad considering how much a similar sized bit of organic hormone free dairy milk would be.  But I have left over rice at home all of the time and Im obsessed with making everything myself so I figured there had to be a more cost effective way to enjoy rice milk.  Turns out there is and  it couldnt be easier.

Surprise surprise all rice milk is made of is rice and water and a bit of vanilla makes things more palatable.  So why continue spending money on non-dairy milk products in the store that will lead to you throwing away extra cardboard containers in the land fill when you can do it yourself?   If you have five minutes and a blender you have no excuse to not do it.  Its ridiculously easy.

Homemade Rice Milk

1 cup warm brown rice
4 cups warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla

In order to get milk and not rice sludge it is important that the water and rice are warm, not boiling but heated through.  Place all the ingredients in the blender.  Just in case the water is too warm, place the lid of the blender on an angle so air can escape when you start the blender, then cover the top of the blender with a towel in case anything splatters. 

Start the blender on a medium speed and allow it to whir for 5 minutes.  You may have to run your blender for a minute at a time, agitating the mixture periodically.  When you have a uniform constancy in the blender pour the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a storage container (I keep mine in left over yogurt containers.)  There will be pulp from the brown rice in the sieve, try to force as much liquid out of it as possible.

T

This is what you want the pulp of your rice milk mixture to look like coming out of the blender after the liquid has all been forced out.  If its any courser than this put it back in the blender for another minute or so.

Allow mixture to cool then store it in a well sealed container in the fridge for up to a week.  Make sure to shake the milk before each use as the contents settle.

Read More..