Lunch Edition ~ The Lazy Man's Healthy Parfait!

What you'll need:
- 3 minutes
- any apple or pear you have on hand
- Greek yogurt (6oz, with less than 15g sugar)
- Any variety of high fiber cereal or granola
      ( Kashi, Special K, Raisin Bran, etc.)

Fruit:

Before: Raw Apple

During: Chop up apple with peel into bite-size chunks

Protein:

Top the apple chunks with the entire yogurt

Carbohydrate:

Sprinkle 1/2 Cup of your cereal of choice onto the yogurt!

AFTER!!

** Make sure to still have a serving of vegetables along with your lunch, like some baby carrots or red peppers. 

, Sarah

Garlic Lemon Chicken with Chips (sweet potato style)

What you'll need:

- 45 mins

- Chicken breast cutlet (3-4 oz/serving)

- 1 small sweet potato

- Romaine lettuce leaves

-1/2 tomato and 1/2 cucumber

- Garlic cub (or garlic pwdr, lets be real here :)

- Lemon juice

- low fat mayo

- mustard of choice

- spices, olive oil, Pam

Protein

Before: Mince garlic (if using fresh) place in heated saute pan with generous amount of olive oil

During: Flatten/pound out chicken cutlet, put in pan, sprinkle with salt, pepper, onion pepper, flip chicken until cooked through (~25 mins, 10 on each side) drizzle a few squirts of lemon juice when almost done.

Carbohydrate

Before: Slice sweet potato into thin slices spread out on a piece of foil

During: Drizzle with olive oil and spray with a lil' pam just to make sure its all covered, toss on some salt, and Mrs. Dash's steak seasoning or (garlic, pepper, salt) Bake in oven on 375 for 35-45 mins until crunchy on the edges! 

Veggies

Before: Rinse and rip lettuce, quick chop to the tomato and cucumber-toss in bowl

During:1 TB low mayo, 1 tsp mustard, 1.5 TB water = dressing

After!!

* It'll help to soak the saute pan while you eat then it'll be ready for a quick clean after dinner! 

** Dessert: 1.5 Cups of caramel popcorn !

, Sarah

Fast and Furious Sandwich Night

What you'll need:
- 2 pieces of whole grain bread
- 1 slice muenster/any type cheese or 1/4 C shredded cheese any kind
- handful of fresh/frozen broccoli 
- 1/4 fresh onion
- fresh mushroom
- 1 fresh red pepper
- spices, olive oil, Pam
- sandwich maker and 30 mins

Protein

The cheese in the sandwich provides 8g/serving

Veggies

Before: Chop broccoli into small pieces, slice the onion, slice the mushrooms, core and slice pepper into thick slices

During: Throw broccoli/onion/mushrooms a pan with a lil' olive oil saute for 5 mins until bright green and soft. Place pepper slices on foil, spray with Pam, spice with generous amount of Mrs. Dash mix, place peppers in oven for 25 mins on 350.

Carbohydrate

Build Sandwich in sprayed maker: Bread, cheese, sauteed mushrooms/onion/broccoli, little bit of Mrs. Dash, top with 2nd piece of bread and close!

After!

1 Cup of Grapes for Dessert!

, Sarah

Open faced Tofu Spinach Wrap

What you'll need ( or something like it, I got em' all from Trader Joes) and 30 mins!

-Firm Tofu

-Raw or frozen spinach

-onion

-Raw or frozen green beans/broccoli

-whole grain wraps 

-tomato sauce

-spices

-Very little clean up time!

Vegetables

Before: Chop onion and spinach(or defrost) and place in bottom of sprayed lined pan

During: Spray with Pam and add salt, pepper, garlic, basil, Add green beans/broccoli and then spray again and add spices again.

Protein

Before: Raw tofu, drained, and cut into 1 inch cubes or slices

During: Top the vegetables in the pan with chunks of tofu, spray with Pam and add salt, pepper, garlic, Mrs.Dash spices etc. Bake at 350 for 20-25 mins until tofu is golden brown.

Carbohydrate

Before: Room temp whole gran wrap

During: Toast it so its crispy around the edges!

Top the vegetable/tofu dish over the wrap and enjoy!

AFTER!!!

Dessert:

1/2 Cup of Hagen Daaz Frozen Yogurt with raisins and a handful of animal crackers! 

, Sarah

Quicky Chicken with Broccoli Avocado Salad and Rice!

Time: 1 hr prior to dinner time; ~15 mins prep time 

The stuff you'll need:

-Frozen bone chicken

-raw broccoli head

-1/2 Avocado

-Brown rice medley

-BBQ sauce, mustard, spices, olive oil

Protein:

Before: Frozen chicken on the bone (Costco chicken, whatever cuts you like; I used 4 small dark meat backs)

During: Thrown in pan with parchment paper topped with a few small squirts of BBQ sauce (2TBS), and dusted garlic pepper and salt

OVEN: 375 for an hourish

Vegetables:

Before: The florlets from a head of Fresh Raw Broccoli (Traders)

During: Steam (Pot with 1" of water, a metal steamer plate over water,with veggies on top on stove, or use a steamer pot/microwaveable steam bags.) Until bright green (10 mins) Add: Cubed 1/2 Avocado and Top with Dressing: drizzle of olive oil, drizzle of lemon juice, dollop of mustard

Carbohydrate:

Before: Whole grain rice medley (Trader's whole grain brown rice and Japonica black rice mix) or any brown rice totally works!

During: 1cup rice : 2cups water Bring both to boil, cover and let simmer for 45 mins approx. When done, add salt, tomato/basil/garlic (Mrs. Dash, most of her seasonings go well on rice)

AFTER !!!

Dessert:

Handful of red grapes and handful of animal crackers 

*Granted the clean up is a tad more than super easy tonight, my apologies; but do come back again for more healthy and fast meals with me!

, Sarah

The Main Idea

Welcome Ya'll to my Blog: (Almost) As Fast As Wacky Mac!

I want to create a Blog of dinners where I have 2 main goals: 

1.) HEALTHFULLY BALANCED 

2.) FAST AS POSSIBLE (with an easy clean up too, cuz' I got your back)

There are 3 component to every dinner I devise:

 1.) Lean Protein          2.) Veggie(s)           3.) Whole Grain Carbohydrate

My ingredients mainly come from either/all of the following locations: 

1.) Trader Joes (cheap, many health items and in most towns) 

2.) Local bodega (random sales they have) that is close to my apt, for that super convenience factor I'm all about 

3.) The fruit man cart on the streets of NYC 

4.) Costco (cheapest way to buy fresh proteins)

Most of the measurements and exact brands/types of ingredients will be in a free-flowing manner to leave you plenty of room for you to substitute what you have around your kitchen that is most similar to the idea I am inventing! However, the photo of the finished product will have the ideal single portion size.

Thoughts of curiosity, confusion, aversions, or suggestions are always welcome here!

XOXO,

Sarah