Many of us have made New Years Resolutions to better ourselves – whether that means studying a little harder, going to the gym more or learning how to cut stress out of our lives. For most of us, that means teaching ourselves how to cut out the junk food and eat healthier. Being on a college campus and eating clean is hard to do, especially when snack food is available almost everywhere we turn. A big part of eating healthy is prepping food ahead of time so you won’t be tempted to cheat. Here are five recipes – one for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and a bonus snack – that can make healthy eating a little easier on you Collegiettes!
1) Breakfast – Overnight Oats
I eat overnight oats nearly every morning. They’re so quick and easy to make, and they taste absolutely amazing, especially as the weather gets colder. It’s a cool take on regular, old oatmeal, and the added ingredients like fruits make it personal and yours to enjoy.
Ingredients: 1/2 cup rolled oats, 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt (any flavor – though I personally think honey tastes the best), 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk, 1 tbsp chia seeds, fruit of your choice, and cookie butter (optional).
Directions: In a sealable container (think mason jar or small Tupperware), add oats, yogurt, almond milk and chia seeds. Stir until fully mixed. Leave this in your fridge for 6 hours. From my experience chilling the oats overnight works best. Add cut up fruit the next day (I like blueberries and strawberries in mine) and microwave for two minutes or eat cold.
If you’re eating them warm, I like to add a tablespoon of cookie butter before I microwave the oats. Once the cookie butter softens, give it a stir and enjoy!
2) Lunch – Grilled Peach Salad
For a girl who gets depressed every time she orders a salad, the grilled peach salad makes clean eating a little more fun. I like the fruit that this salad incorporates because it’s easy to make year round, but makes every meal taste like the summertime.
Ingredients: 3 peaches, 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 bag baby spinach, 1 cup diced roast chicken breast, 1/4 cup blueberries, 3 tbsp crumbled goat cheese, 1/4 cup sliced honey roasted almonds, 6 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
Directions: Pit peaches. Cut halves into slices, and toss with olive oil. Grill peaches until tender – this will take five minutes. Toss spinach, chicken, blueberries, goat cheese and almonds. Add peaches and balsamic vinaigrette.
3) Dinner – Cobb Salad Lettuce Wraps
Lettuce wraps are my absolute favorite. While this one uses turkey and bacon, sometimes I use steak and bacon with a drizzle of blue cheese dressing to mix things up.
Ingredients: 2 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, 1/16 tsp pepper, 1 oz diced bacon, 1 head lettuce, 2 oz diced turkey, 1/2 tomato, 1/2 avocado, 1/4 purple onion, 4 tbsp crumbled blue cheese
Directions: Mix mayonnaise, vinegar and pepper as your dressing. Cook the bacon. Separate leaves from lettuce and put one leaf inside the other to create a wrap. Fill the leaf with 1/4 cup turkey, 1/4 tomato, 1/4 avocado, and 2 tbsp onion. Drizzle with the dressing, top with bacon and blue cheese and enjoy!
4) Dessert – Mango Coconut Chia Pops
Chia seeds are a power food. I’ve found different ways to incorporate them into my diet, including using them in fun desserts like this one.
Ingredients: 1 can coconut milk, 2 cups frozen mango, 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1/2 cup shredded coconut, 2 tbsp honey, 8 popsicle sticks, 8 paper cups, 8 squares of foil
Directions: Blend coconut milk and mango until the mango breaks down into small chunks. Add the mixture to a bowl and stir in chia seeds, shredded coconut and honey until fully mixed. Fill paper cups 3/4 full with the mixture. Cover each cup with the foil squares and stab the popsicle stick half way down into the mixture. Freeze for six hours or overnight. Peel the paper away when ready.
5) Snack – Coconut Water Smoothie
Coconut water, while not my favorite, has a lot of benefits for the body. I have a few friends who swear by it. This smoothie uses it in a unique way, blending it with other flavors so that those who don’t like just drinking it straight can enjoy it as well. I also like how it uses carrots – it’s a way of knocking out part of a daily serving of vegetables in a sweet drink.
Ingredients: 1 cup coconut water, 12 cut and peeled carrots, 3 strawberries, 1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks, 1/2 frozen banana, 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt, 1 tsp honey.
Directions: Blend all ingredients until smooth. Enjoy!
Happy clean eating, Collegiettes!