matchingmoonheads requested some meal ideas, so here you go :)
We try to buy organic, sometimes we don't. We buy our bread from the bakery at our grocery store since it is fresh and has less preservatives in it. We make sure it is made from whole wheat flour. Did you know that you can have the bakery slice the bread if it is not already pre-sliced? We like a bread called Seedalishious and a Rye bread. We store it in the fridge so it doesn't mold before we can use it all.
We make our own pesto every week to add to dishes and use instead of mayo on our sandwiches. We make ours with Basil leaves, Olive Oil, Almonds, Salt, Pepper, and Nutritional Yeast Flakes in a food processor, you can use a blender too!
Nutritional Yeast Flakes - Ever heard of them? Neither had I until I discovered a recipe that called for them. There is 8g of protein in 2 Tb Spoons! You can find more information about them
HERE. I buy them in the bulk isle at our grocery store.
Beans - We don't use canned beans anymore. We make our own with dry beans. You will not have as much gas if you
make your own. If you have to use canned, rinse them really well so that none of the canning juice is put into your meal.
We use Olive Oil for our cooking oil. For butter, which we rarely use, we like Earth Balance.
Drinks - I only drink water and orange juice. On the rare occasion, I'll have tea. We cook with almond milk but my husband likes to drink it. I only drink it if I eat something chocolatey :)
So here's some typical meals:
Breakfasts:
Oatmeal - Old Fashion Oats
2 Eggs & Toast
2 Egg Omelet with different veggies, I like to use the following:
mushrooms, spinach, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, potatoes (I typically use three)
Lunch:
I eat throughout the day (during the work week) so it's like I eat what one would consider a whole lunch over the span of 6 hours. I typically eat the same sandwich everyday but use difference veggies to mix it up a bit.
10 or 11am
1 of the following items:
one piece of fruit
one Kashi granola bar
one hand full of nuts - cashews, peanuts, or almonds
one hand full of raisins
one soy yogurt (with or without granola)
one hand full of granola (bought in the bulk isle)
one small ziploc bag of popcorn (made using the kernels in a pop corn popper made with olive oil and a little salt)
12:30 or 1pm
2 slices of bread, one slice has goat cheese spread on it and the other has home made pesto.
The filling options (I use 3 or 4):
grilled portobello mushrooms
bell peppers
tomatoes
sprouts
baby spinach
thin slices of squash (summer or zucchini)
3 or 4pm
this is a repeat of one of the snack items listed above.
Dinner Ideas
Soup & Cornbread- We have a Vitamix that came with all kinds of soup recipes. I use Vegetable Broth instead of Chicken broth if called for. Sometimes I throw a whole bunch of veggies/beans in a pot and create my own soup. Cornbread - No, it's not Jiffy Mix :) We buy cornmeal and make our own using wheat flower and honey instead of sugar. It's super delicious!!!
Corn Hash
-Frozen Corn
-Zucchini Squash
-Black Beans
-Onions
-Sometimes I throw in Shrimp (wild caught, not farm raised)
-Side of Cornbread
Potato Hash
-Red Potatoes
-Zucchini Squash
-Spinach
-Onions
Big Salad
-Spinach
-Romaine
-Tomatoes
-Carrots
-Cucumbers
-Raisins
-Sunflower Seeds
-Vinaigrette Dressing
Eggplant with Tomato Sauce
-Thinly slices Eggplant
-Homemade Tomato Sauce
-2 cans tomato sauce
-1 Tb Spoon of our homemade pesto
-Chopped up portobello mushrooms
-Chopped onions
-Nutritional Yeast Flakes
-Sometimes I throw in bell peppers
-Served with whole wheat pasta & a side Salad
(This makes a lot so we have it two nights in a row)
Catfish & Veggies
When my husband catches catfish
2 Veggies
Veggie Wraps
Whole wheat flour tortilla filled with some of the following items:
Guacamole (made with avocadoes, salt, pepper, onion powder & garlic powder to taste)
tomatoes (not cooked)
bell peppers (not cooked)
spinach (not cooked)
black beans or refried beans
If you want details on how I cook things, I'd be more than happy to share :) One tip I do have, when cooking veggies, like squash, bell peppers, spinach, don't cook it too long so that it's really mushy. You want them to have a little crunch to them still. When cooking spinach, keep in mind you are just getting it hot enough to wilt. You can use frozen spinach, we prefer fresh.
