Most people would love to have the time to indulge in nutritious culinary fantasies, making delicious meals everyday for themselves or their families. Unfortunately, most would agree that labor-intensive meals are not practical for their hectic lives. But with quick and easy healthy meal solutions, there is no reason why a person can not have their veggies and eat them too. Below are some suggestions for simple and nutritious snacks and meals that will please the whole family.
Snacks
Choose-your-own-adventure Trail Mix: From the bulk section at Down to Earth, get a variety of your favorite organic nuts, seeds, dried fruits, and carob chips. Mix them together and this way you will always have a yummy snack to take to work or send to school.
Ants on a Log - A variation on the classic: Celery, peanut butter, and raisins is the old-fashioned treat. While this is still a good option, try a different type of nut butter, maybe almond or cashew butter, and instead of raisins, top the celery sticks with dried black figs (for extra iron and a little less sugar). If you do use raisins, make sure they are free of hydrogenated oils and organic if possible.
Also try celery or carrots dipped in tahini.
Breakfast
The Basic Smoothie: The key to an easy smoothie is to always have almonds soaking and fruit ready to blend. Soaking almonds softens the nut for easy blending, gets rid of the enzyme inhibitors present in dry almonds, decreases the fat, and increases the protein. Use about a half-cup of soaked almonds per serving, add your choice of fruit (try not to go overboard on the tropical fruits because they contain higher amounts of sugar), add any powder supplements you normally use, and then blend. If you need more liquid, add soymilk or juice. If it is not sweet enough, add honey to sweeten and then ice for a frosty treat. For extra Omega-3’s and lignans, add flax oil or flax meal. Check out down to earth for powdered spirulina, wheat grass, flax and a hundred other additions to turn your basic smoothie into a super smoothie.
Veggie toast: Toast a slice of sprouted whole grain bread, spread a thin layer of nut butter, sprinkle a little nutritional yeast, and top with sprouts and avocado.
Lunch
Take a few minutes to prepare the night before for an easy lunch the next day.
The Veggie Fiesta: Chop up any few vegetables you can think of. Leafy greens, avocado, tomato, mushrooms, sprouts, bell peppers – anything. Mix them together and add a little sea salt and pepper, vinegar, Braggs Liquid Aminos, or Nutritional yeast to flavor. Eat it as a salad or stuff it in whole wheat pita bread. You can also make a sandwich using whole grain sprouted bread. Use the left over veggies for dinner or tomorrows lunch. Instead of using a mayonnaise spread on your pita or sandwich, make your own spread by blending up organic tofu and adding seasonings (Bragg’s and Nutritional yeast works well for this also).
Dinner
The raw veggie burrito: Use the salad mix, tofu spread and some canned beans (black, garbanzo, or pinto) and roll it all up in a whole wheat tortilla. No cooking necessary, but you can warm up the beans and tortillas if you want.
Dessert
No bake cookies: Using a rolling pin on a large cutting board, grind up a package of natural graham crackers or ginger snaps. In a large bowl, add ½ cup flax and/or bran and mix with a few teaspoons of sweetened condensed milk or brown rice syrup. Add a couple tablespoons of peanut butter and/or carob powder if you would like. The mixture should be wet enough to hold together, but liquid shouldn’t squeeze out when pressed. You can add water if its too dry. Press dough into golf-ball sized balls and enjoy! Refrigerate the uneaten cookies. This is a good one for kids to get creative with. In addition to the above suggestions always try to eat a variety of raw, organic vegetables and fruits with every meal. Nothing is simpler, tastier or more nutritious than Mother Nature’s own cuisine!