No matter how busy you are, lunch should never be skipped because it will only lead to making poor eating choices later in the day. If skipping meals has become routine, you are doing more harm than good and slowing your metabolism so that foods you do consume take longer to turn into energy and will be more likely to linger in places you don't want. All day long, drink plenty of water or green tea. Stocking up on lots of greens to make a different salad for everyday of the week will leave you satisfied and not bored with your meals. You will also want to stock up on various veggies and beans. For tips on using dried beans check out a previous post from 3/16 "White Bean & Tomato Soup", at the bottom I walk you through easy bean preparation.
Lunch Recipe 1:
Large bunch of organic romaine lettuceLarge handful of organic spinach
1/4 C. cooked garbanzo beans
Diced red pepper
Diced carrots
Diced cucumbers
Diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp. Homemade dressing or store bought brand of your choice (Whole Foods 365 brand has a great Organic Italian and it's only $1.99 per bottle!)
Wash all veggies, spin dry. Assemble ingredients in large bowl and top with dressing. Use dressing sparingly so you don't sabotage all the cleaning your doing.
Recipe 2:
Large bunch of organic arugula
Large bunch of organic spinach
1/4 C. cooked black beans
Diced green pepper
Dice onion
Diced tomatoes
1/4 C. cooked and cooled organic corn
1/4 C. salsa of your choice
Wash all veggies, spin dry. Assemble ingredients in large bowl and top with salsa.
Recipe 3:
Large bunch of organic spring mix
Large bunch of organic spinach
1/4 C. cooked white beans
1/4 C. dried cranberries
2 Tbsp. slivered almonds
Diced red peppers
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinaigrette dressing
Wash all veggies, spin dry. Assemble in a large bowl, top with vinaigrette.
Just as with juicing, mix up ingredients and different greens, add beets or strawberries, get creative. It may seem like a huge bowl of food, but I assure you, as long as you don't drown it in dressing, you will still be consuming less calories and fat than before, but feeling full in the end.
More snack ideas to get you through to dinner:
Strawberry/banana smoothie8 oz. of plain organic soy milk
1/2 C. organic frozen strawberries
2/3 of a frozen banana
1tsp. agave
Add all ingredients, in the order listed, to a high speed blender, process until all fruit is smooth. Pour and enjoy.
Orange smoothie
8 oz. pure orange juice (if you're vegan, I suggest to skip the added calcium options as it comes from animals)
1/2 C. frozen cubed mango
1/4 C. frozen diced papaya
1 tsp. agave
Add all ingredients, in the order listed, to a high speed blender, process until smooth.
Apple with sesame seed butter
Large organic apple of your choice, cored and sliced
1-2 Tbsp. sesame seed butter (Trader Joe's has a good one)
Popcorn with coconut oil (avoid all the added butter and the store bought popcorn bags that contain some undesirable ingredients)1 C. organic kernels
1/3 C. high heat coconut oil
Salt optional
Place a large pot with handles and a securely fitting lid over medium heat. Allow pan to heat. Have two thick oven mitts nearby. Once pan is heated, add coconut oil and allow it to melt all the way. Once melted, add popcorn, secure lid. After about 30 seconds, with oven mitts on place thumbs on lid, hands on handles, start to gently shake the pan back and forth, side to side. Kernels will start popping within a minute or two. Continue shaking pan until popping starts to slow down and pan is 3/4 full of popped corn (should be about 5 minutes). Remove from heat, wait until you no longer hear popping. Remove lid, add salt if using, replace lid and shake. Pour into large bowl or separate bowls. Once cooled, you can store in a gallon size baggie to have throughout the week.
You should be feeling better already. Keep up the great work cleaning as part three will round out the menu with dinner ideas.
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