Create Easy, Delicious Clean Eats All Day

We all need inspiration sometimes. And, I received just that in the kitchen when I reached for Clean Eats, a book I reviewed here. All of the dishes below come directly inspired by Dr. Junger's book. I have not enjoyed a cookbook as much as this one in a long time.

You can find the original recipes in the book. (See the page number next to the adapted recipe below.) But, I made a several changes and adapted them based more than anything on what I had already in my kitchen or my family's preferences.

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner with Clean Eats

Wouldn't it be fun to have breakfast, lunch or dinner with Dr. Junger and his program staff to learn more about the clean eating approach? Or . . . we can create a bit of it right here at home.

Here we go -- a day of Clean Eats: breakfast, lunch and dinner!

First up, a great way to start your day . . .

The original recipe calls for pumpkin, which I think would be delicious, too.  However, I used plain mashed sweet potatoes I had from dinner the night before. I also took liberty with changing a few spices and the amounts around and used almond milk instead of coconut milk as that is what I had as well. I also warmed the blueberries in with the porridge to soften them a bit rather than creating a topping with them.

Overnight Quinoa and Sweet Potato Porridge With Blueberries

Adapted from recipe on page 43 of Clean Eats
Serves 2

Gather

• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 cup sweet potato puree
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of pink salt
• 2 tablespoons raw honey or maple syrup
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• Chopped pecans or walnuts, raw pumpkin seeds

Now do this

• Soak quinoa in 2 cups of water with 1/2 teaspoon lime juice overnight covered.
• In the morning, strain and rinse well.
• Combine quinoa with next six ingredient on list.
• Simmer for 15 minutes and stir frequently to prevent sticking.
• Add blueberries and cook an additional five minutes.
• Once cooked, stir in honey or maple syrup.
• Adjust seasonings and garnish with nuts or pumpkin seeds.

Second, let's move on to lunch . . .

Technically, this second dish was dinner AND lunch for my daughter and me.  It is a vegetarian main dish I made for us one summer evening when it was just the two of us at home for dinner that night. It made a great packed lunch the next day, too! Mediterranean food is a favorite at our house.  I wrote about the many benefits of that diet here and here.

I adapted this recipe quite a bit as well.  The original recipe calls for rice noodles, which I think would be nice but I used a gluten-free pasta that we like at our house (and we have tried many now). I also added quite a few more vegetables and cooked them a bit to soften them.  I also threw in some more fresh herbs I had and added a bit of cheese.

Mediterranean Noodles

Adapted from recipe on page 200 of Clean Eats
Serves 2 with leftovers

Gather

• 1 package Tinkyada Pasta Joy, spirals
• 2-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil - perhaps more
• 3 small organic zucchini, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 cups or more organic cherry tomatoes sliced in half
• 1 organic yellow pepper diced
• 1/2 cup pitted and chopped olives of choice
• 10 - 12 fresh basil leaves slivered
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano
• zest and juice of 1 large lemon
• 1 teaspoons pink salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh Parmesan cheese

Now do this

• Cook the pasta to package directions al dente .(So important, especially with gluten-free pasta)
• While pasta is cooking, saute zucchini, pepper and tomatoes and garlic in saute pan on low in 1 tablespoon olive oil to just soften a bit  - maybe10 minutes.
• When pasta has cooked, drain well.
• Toss pasta with 2 tablespoons olive oil in large bowl.
• Add vegetables and fresh herbs. Toss well. 
• Squeeze lemon juice and zest over the pasta as well as salt and pepper. 
• Sprinkle with chopped olives and cheese. 
• Taste and adjust seasonings.  Add more olive oil, if needed to moisten.

And, now dinner . . .

The third and last in the trio is a recipe that I think would be great for a fall evening as it has all those warm, fuzzy flavors that we seem to start craving right about now. You can make the chutney ahead if you like.  I adapted this recipe by using thin turkey cutlets rather than duck and added some vinegar to the chutney and substituted some fruits and spices. I also added some parsley and lemon to the mix.

Turkey Cutlets with Dried Cherry and Pear Chutney

Adapted from recipe on page 165 of Clean Eats
Serves 2

Gather

• 2 4-6 ounce pastured raised turkey scallopini cutlets
• 1 teaspoon pink salt
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• ground fresh pepper

Chutney

• 1 pound ripe organic pears, chopped into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 cup dried organic cherries
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 and 1/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (I had a cherry balsamic vinegar but regular is fine)
• pinch of pink salt
• 1/4 cup raw honey or more

• 2 teaspoons minced parsley
• half a lemon

Now do this

• In heavy saucepan, place all chutney ingredients except for honey and simmer over medium heat until fruit begins to break down.
• Continue to simmer for 15 minutes or so.  Add water by the tablespoon if it gets dry.  You want this to be saucy.  
• Once fruit has softened and the flavors had melded, add honey and warm for a minute or two.
• Taste and adjust seasonings.
• Keep warm.
• Place coconut flour and salt and pepper in Ziploc bad and add turkey cutlets one at a time to flour.
• Saute each cutlet in heavy skillet with 1-2 tablespoons high heat oil like avocado oil until browned on each side.
• Serve each cutlet with several tablespoons of chutney on top and sprinkle with parsley and a squeeze of fresh lemon.

Have you tried any recipes from this book? If so, what was your favorite?




number 1 photo credit: photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/38840453/">Leo Reynolds</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>
number 2 photo credit: photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/46039833/">Leo Reynolds</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>
number 3: photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/109143709/">Leo Reynolds</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/">cc</a>