Tag Archives: healthy

Frozen meals: a necessary evil

Posted on March 27, 2013 | 5 comments

Since starting my new job, I’ve had some growing pains figuring out what I can eat for lunch. My old job was smack dab in the middle of downtown DC, so there were tons of options around me, including a Whole Foods within walking distance.

Now that I’m working in more of a business district, there are only a few restaurants that are close by enough to quickly get something healthy (and gluten free, of course) to eat. So, I’ve had to get creative and rely more on leftovers, canned soups, and frozen meals.

I’ve found a couple that meet my requirements, which are: low in sodium (relatively, they’re all ridiculous), contains some vegetables, and as high in protein as I can get it.

1. Evol bowls

All four Evol bowls are gluten free, and they also sell three gluten free frozen burritos. While it’s definitely not the same as making it from scratch, it’s definitely a good option if you want something hot that’s made out of better ingredients.

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2. Cedar Lane Natural Foods Egg White Omelette

I was admittedly skeptical of microwave eggs, but I’ve gotten about five of these so far and I kind of love them. The filling is cheesy and I always end up feeling satisfied when I’m finished. While it may not look very pretty, it tastes way better then you’d expect. They also sell three gluten free frittatas (mmm roasted chile and cheese) and a three-layer enchilada pie.

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I’ve vowed to start making meals ahead of time more, but until that day comes I’m happy to have found these two companies!

Any one else resort to frozen meals during the work day? Any suggestions for ones you like?

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Beanfields Chips: move over Doritos!

Posted on January 9, 2013 | 3 comments

It’s a miracle that most Doritos are gluten free. They’re available everywhere, and bring you right back to pizza parties in the 3rd grade. However, no one feels great after eating a bag of Doritos. Your tongue turns bright orange and you haven’t eaten anything with nutritional value. 

But what if you could have a chip that tasted eerily similar to a Dorito, only made out of beans and rice? With a good dose of protein and fiber? AND they’re low in sodium, low in fat, and gluten free? 

Enter Beanfields!

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The good people at Beanfields sent me samples of all of their flavors to try, but I think that the Nacho or Pico De Gallo ones are my favorites. They’re light and crispy, and completely snackable. The Sea Salt and Unsalted are more suited to dipping in hummus or salsa and would make a great alternative to the less-healthy corn tortilla chips.

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The sad thing is that when i looked in this box I thought, “Wow! I have a lifetime supply of chips!” Then two weeks later they were all gone. 

Use the store locator on Beanfield’s website to find them at a store near you! 

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My four favorite “secret” gluten free bloggers

Posted on March 24, 2012 | 4 comments

I follow a lot of blogs – some gluten free, some healthy living, some fashion/lifestyle, and some that are a mix of all of them. I’ve found that some of the blogs that I get the most out of, or like the best, are ones that aren’t explicitly focused on gluten free living/recipes, but are “secretly” gluten free. By “secretly” I mean that they often have recipes that are gluten free or give easy substitutions to make them gluten free.

I think what I like so much about these blogs is that, while I love reading about Celiac Disease and the gluten free community, sometimes it can get to be too much (or too depressing). These blogs are just fun, plus they all have easy and healthy recipes to boot!

These are four of my favorites!

1. Clean Eating Chelsea
Not only is Chelsea totally hilarious, but she’s gluten free! I’m always getting ideas from her on new ways to make my morning oatmeal, and totally appreciate that her recipes are made with whole foods and are heavy on the veggies!

Must make recipe = the perfect bowl of oatmeal. This is basically exactly how I make my oats in the morning, except I let them soak overnight and then microwave them in the morning. Chelsea gave me the idea to put jam in my oats, which revolutionized my breakfast – a spoonful of sugar-free raspberry jam in oatmeal makes the whole thing burst with raspberry flavor!

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2. Chocolate Covered Katie
Katie somehow is always coming up with ingenious recipes and healthy twists on classic desserts. While most of her recipes are very close to being gluten free from the start, if they aren’t then she always makes sure to put in instructions on how to substitute ingredients to make them gluten free. Awesome!

Must make recipe = chocolate chip cookie dough dip! I use gluten free oats in mine and it’s one of my favorite healthy indulgences.

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3. The Wannabe Chef
I love this guy. He has tons of simple recipes for quinoa, tempeh (one of my staples), and is notorious for delicious brownies.

Must make recipe = banana pancakes! With only five ingredients these are as simple as can be (because I don’t know about you, but early in the morning the last thing I want to do is measure out 7 different kinds of flour).

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4. Dashing Dish
Katie’s blog has a ton of creative recipes. While they aren’t all gluten free, she’s great about putting substitutes in – not to mention pumping up her recipes with protein and keeping them low in sugar! Any girl who can actually come up with a recipe for “chocolate protein frosting” is a miracle-worker in my book!

Must make recipe = rich chocolate cake with chocolate protein frosting. (You should also check out her strawberry protein pancake roll ups)

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Thanks to Chelsea, Katie, Katie, and Evan for all of your great recipes!

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5-minute collard greens

Posted on October 10, 2011 | Leave a comment

Now that I’m living in the semi-South, I feel like I should learn how to cook more Southern food. I always thought that collard greens were something that took a really long time to cook so they weren’t tough, so I hadn’t attempted to put them in anything besides soup.

Then I saw this recipe for “5-minute collard greens” from Whole Foods. It’s meant to bring out the nutrients in the greens. So, while it’s not exactly a classic Southern recipe, at least now I have a way I like to eat them and is super quick to boot!

Ingredients:

  • About 4 cups of collard greens, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • Clove of garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 t. Bragg’s liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
  • 1/2-1 T. olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • Dash of cayenne pepper

  1. Chop collard greens and garlic and let sit for 5 minutes while you prepare the dressing (apparently this magically brings out their health-promoting properties?)
  2. Get steamer on the stove to start heating up.
  3. Put all other ingredients in a bowl.

4. Steam greens for 5 minutes.

5. Transfer to bowl and toss with dressing. I served mine topped with an egg.

So simple! Next time I’ll add in some olives or seeds, but this definitely will make it into my “quick meal” repertoire.

Speaking of random greens with dressing – the cilantro dressing from Trader Joe’s is so good! I topped some spinach with it and crumbled blue corn tortillas, and it was addicting.

You should get it.

Now concluding the greenest post ever.

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