Schertz/Cibolo, TX, like many towns across the country, now have restaurants that not only have healthy food options, they focus primarily on healthy eating. People are now finding out you can enjoy the taste of eating right. Healthy food doesn’t have to taste healthy. You know the type of food. It smells like vitamins and tastes like cardboard. What’s funny, is often those types of food are filled with additives, which include vitamins, but aren’t as healthy as the good tasting, often fresh from the garden, whole foods.
Whole foods are more than just a crisp salad.
Even though salads consist of healthy fruits and vegetables, eating healthy is more than just eating salads. You can even create salads that are budget friendly by using leftovers from earlier in the week. Consider marinating with a balsamic vinaigrette dressing and grilling skinless chicken breasts. Save some of the marinade for the salad. Eat some of your bounty that night, freeze some and use some for a salad made of mixed greens, cherry or grape tomatoes, basil, avocado, onion and bocconcini—mozzarella balls. You can even add a side of fresh green beans or broccoli and a quarter cantaloupe. You’ll have the chicken to freeze for other meals.
Salmon goes well with pea pods and wild rice.
It’s summer and I love healthy recipes you grill, so this one is a top favorite around our camp fire. You need 2 5-oz. salmon fillets, one tablespoon melted butter mixed with a tablespoon of lemon juice, a dash of salt and pepper and a tablespoon of fresh basil. Lay each fillet onto a piece of aluminum foil and sprinkle half the mixture over it. Fold the foil. Put it on the grill or your campfire and cook for ten to fifteen minutes. Serve this delicious meal with grilled asparagus or grilled Brussels sprouts and a salad. For dessert, consider a Greek yogurt fruit tart.
Eating a vegetarian menu doesn’t have to be boring either.
Whether you opt for a yummy black bean chili with a side salad or get more creative and make roasted cauliflower and avocado enchiladas, there’s a whole world of healthy recipes for vegetarians and vegans. Ensuring you get quality protein is the key to success. Soybean products like tofu, tempeh and edamame provide protein and are often used in vegan dishes. Lentils, chickpeas and beans are also good sources. Nuts, nut butters, seeds—including chia seeds and hempseed are on the list of protein foods. Ancient grains like amaranth and quinoa also provide protein.
- While they aren’t nearly as good of a protein source as meat, giant portabellas make a delicious burger when grilled, while providing other health benefits. Combine the portabella burgers with other sources of protein like wild rice.
- Stuffed peppers can be even healthier and vegan. You can adjust the amount of hamburger by replacing some with mushrooms, spinach or squash or make it completely meatless.
- When you eat healthy, you broil, boil, bake or grill the food. Deep fat frying is not part of healthy eating.
- Get adventurous with your food. Try spaghetti squash. It’s easy to make and tastes delicious. You can top it with sauce or toss it with a little butter and garlic.