Eating Clean recipes

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jes74diea
jes74diea Posts: 2 Member
I am new to this eating clean thing. I'm trying really hard. I know nothing can be processed and if need be I try to stay away from canned. They key words is try. Lol. Does anyone have any ideas? It would really help a girl out.

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  • emhunter
    emhunter Posts: 1,212 Member
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    Try www.dashingdish.com she has a ton of recipes. There's a section for clean eating. The website is really cute and she has very creative ideas.

    But outside of that, just go to the grocery and make you're own meals. Lots of lean meats and veggies will do. Or just stay away from boxed foods. For example, if you want mashed potatoes, make them. Don't buy them out the box.

  • jes74diea
    jes74diea Posts: 2 Member
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    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
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    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    If you're trying to 'eat clean' to reduce ingredients you don't want to put in your body for specific reasons, then milk is probably fine. If you're trying to lose weight, eating clean doesn't matter, what matters is making food choices that help you maintain a deficit. Use a food scale and weigh and log accurately. As you log, you will notice which choices are better for the way you like to eat. Maybe you'd rather eat 3 cups of strawberries over that half chocolate bar... etc. Then you can make choices that will fill you up but still let you eat what you want in limited amounts of course.
  • emhunter
    emhunter Posts: 1,212 Member
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    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    No worries. Everyone has a different definition of eating clean. I follow the camp that believes clean eating is eating whole foods that are minimally processed. Mashed potatoes aren't the greatest for weight loss, especially if you are insulin resistant. However, they can fit in the clean eating category thus you can eat them occasionally if the only criteria is eating clean.

    I also gave the mashed potato example because it is a simple illustration of how you can make almost any dish clean. You would use real non dehydrated potatoes. Instead of regular milk, I use unsweetened almond milk. And I do use butter but I have used extra virgin olive oil in the past instead of butter. Anyway, don't get caught up on this dish specifically. My point is that if you are cooking at home and not out of boxes, it's pretty easy to make dishes that qualify as clean. If you have a specific question, please ask. I'd love to help if I can.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    There's nothing wrong with mashed potatoes, milk or butter. All of those things are actually very good for you. As long as you keep the total calories per day under your calorie goal, you will lose weight. Enjoy what you are eating, and eat a good variety of foods, and you will be healthy and enjoy your weight loss journey.
    Buy a food scale, and weigh your solid foods. Log your calories so you know you are sticking to your calorie deficit. That's all you need to do.
  • emhunter
    emhunter Posts: 1,212 Member
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    Oh I wanted to add that yes you can eat natural churned butter and milk and it is considered clean. How healthy it is depends on you. I think milk and butter, in moderation, is still healthy. I just chose to shave calories by using some other alternatives that I think taste better and are lighter options.
  • fi_b
    fi_b Posts: 121 Member
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    jes74diea wrote: »
    I am new to this eating clean thing. I'm trying really hard. I know nothing can be processed and if need be I try to stay away from canned. They key words is try. Lol. Does anyone have any ideas? It would really help a girl out.

    Staying away from cans is a great place to start! As mentioned above a person's definiteion of "clean eating" can vary, although in general eating less refined foods is always going to be beneficial for you - especially in your sodium levels.

    I've been clean eating for a couple of years now so if you have any questions feel free to send me a message or add me. A couple of websites I found very useful when I was getting started and still use regularly are;

    https://www.thehealthychef.com/category/recipes/
    http://www.movenourishbelieve.com/category/recipes/

    I have NEVER made anything from either of these sites that I didn't love.

    If you're just looking to get started, then you are probably also changing your pantry? I would suggest finding a few recipes with similar-ish ingredients so that you're not having to go and buy 8 new, different kinds of grains - 7 of which you may never use again hahaha. Find one or two new ingredients that you enjoy and build from there. And if nothing else, dry spice rub some chicken breast (I often use cummin and paprika) and serve that grilled with a fresh salad. It doesn't get cleaner than that and changing your spices alters the whole dish. Even adding different fresh herbs to your salad!

    Anyway, have a google and good luck!
  • bclarke1990
    bclarke1990 Posts: 287 Member
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    mccindy72 wrote: »
    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    There's nothing wrong with mashed potatoes, milk or butter. All of those things are actually very good for you. As long as you keep the total calories per day under your calorie goal, you will lose weight. Enjoy what you are eating, and eat a good variety of foods, and you will be healthy and enjoy your weight loss journey.
    Buy a food scale, and weigh your solid foods. Log your calories so you know you are sticking to your calorie deficit. That's all you need to do.

    >:|
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
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    mccindy72 wrote: »
    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    There's nothing wrong with mashed potatoes, milk or butter. All of those things are actually very good for you. As long as you keep the total calories per day under your calorie goal, you will lose weight. Enjoy what you are eating, and eat a good variety of foods, and you will be healthy and enjoy your weight loss journey.
    Buy a food scale, and weigh your solid foods. Log your calories so you know you are sticking to your calorie deficit. That's all you need to do.

    >:|

    I don't understand the happy / sad / angry face?

    That said, there really is nothing wrong with butter or milk. Not sure if bclarke is trying to say they're good or bad, but I say they are good!
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    mccindy72 wrote: »
    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    There's nothing wrong with mashed potatoes, milk or butter. All of those things are actually very good for you. As long as you keep the total calories per day under your calorie goal, you will lose weight. Enjoy what you are eating, and eat a good variety of foods, and you will be healthy and enjoy your weight loss journey.
    Buy a food scale, and weigh your solid foods. Log your calories so you know you are sticking to your calorie deficit. That's all you need to do.

    >:|

    That face? Wut.
    Milk and butter have protein and healthy fats in them. There's no reason not to eat them in moderation. As far as canned food, which was mentioned in another post-fresh or frozen are always better for you, but canned foods are not 'bad' for you. Unless you have a health condition that causes you to need to keep your sodium intake low, such as high blood pressure, you don't need to worry that much about sodium, if you are eating your foods in moderation.
    Making your meals yourself from fresh or frozen foods will ensure you are doing just fine with your eating.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
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    mccindy72 wrote: »
    mccindy72 wrote: »
    jes74diea wrote: »
    Thank you. Mashed potatoes are ok? Lol Seriously....I'm very new at this. You can't really put milk in it, so what do you put in it? Or the butter. That's not exactly healthy or clean. I'm such a newbie. Lol

    There's nothing wrong with mashed potatoes, milk or butter. All of those things are actually very good for you. As long as you keep the total calories per day under your calorie goal, you will lose weight. Enjoy what you are eating, and eat a good variety of foods, and you will be healthy and enjoy your weight loss journey.
    Buy a food scale, and weigh your solid foods. Log your calories so you know you are sticking to your calorie deficit. That's all you need to do.

    >:|

    That face? Wut.
    Milk and butter have protein and healthy fats in them. There's no reason not to eat them in moderation. As far as canned food, which was mentioned in another post-fresh or frozen are always better for you, but canned foods are not 'bad' for you. Unless you have a health condition that causes you to need to keep your sodium intake low, such as high blood pressure, you don't need to worry that much about sodium, if you are eating your foods in moderation.
    Making your meals yourself from fresh or frozen foods will ensure you are doing just fine with your eating.

    Milk ...protein, fats, calcium, vitamin A, low calories ..what's not to love

    A decent butter is a food of the gods melted on white farmhouse toast ...and a teaspoon is what? 35 calories? Totally worth it ...and you get the lovely fat kick that helps your body absorb all the nutrients from those gorgeous fresh (or frozen) vegetables and fruits

    There is a reason protein and fats are minimum macros to hit
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
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    The only advice I would have to give you is don't make weight loss any harder than it needs to be. Eat foods that you enjoy and stop trying to restrict yourself because you think some food is bad. Everything is fine, unless you're allergic or have some other medical reason to avoid it.

    The key thing about lifestyle changes is they have to be sustainable to be successful. If you can't figure out what types of food fall into whatever your 'clean eating' definition would be, that doesn't sound like a great start.
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
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    I think people make nutritious eating way too complicated. Canning, drying, and freezing are reliable methods for preserving food. They do not make food "unclean." In fact, some canned foods, like pumpkin, have higher nutrition for their volume than their raw counterparts. If you are trying to avoid additives and artificial ingredients, learn to read labels. My great grandmother spent hours and hours a day cooking food from scratch. I live 120 years later in a completely different world, one in which I work outside of my home 45-50 hours a week. It is not in my ability to make pasta from scratch, make tomato paste, grind my own spices, etc. If a lifestyle plan is not sustainable, it is not going to work.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
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    I like dirty foods!!! ;)
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    I think people make nutritious eating way too complicated. Canning, drying, and freezing are reliable methods for preserving food. They do not make food "unclean." In fact, some canned foods, like pumpkin, have higher nutrition for their volume than their raw counterparts. If you are trying to avoid additives and artificial ingredients, learn to read labels. My great grandmother spent hours and hours a day cooking food from scratch. I live 120 years later in a completely different world, one in which I work outside of my home 45-50 hours a week. It is not in my ability to make pasta from scratch, make tomato paste, grind my own spices, etc. If a lifestyle plan is not sustainable, it is not going to work.

    Tomatoes, also. Buy all-natural, low-sodium varieties if you are concerned about additives. No different than if you canned your own, this way.
  • jabme243
    jabme243 Posts: 1 Member
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    Try adding a beaten egg to your mash potatoes and mix through. It's sounds awful but tastes fab.
  • Jeantelle07
    Jeantelle07 Posts: 3 Member
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    I started eating "clean" two days ago and my favourite fresh vegetable at the moment is sweet potato (apparently also called yams).

    I cut the sweet potato with skin in medallions/disks and then pop them in the oven on some baking paper. Takes 20-40 minutes depending on how thick or thin your slices are. I put the oven on bake+grill when I want it soft and just grill if I want it more crispy. I sometimes put a bit of olive oil on them and some mixed herbs. You can also add cinnamon and/or nutmeg for a different taste. If you cut them really thin and cook for longer you can also make sweet potato crisps which are delicious.

    Baked butternut squash is also great, just cut in half lengthwise, take out the seeds and place in an oven dish or on a tray for 30-50min. I put mine with the cut side up on bake+grill setting, you can also add whatever herbs or spices you prefer. Experiment, eat it just like that, add fillings/toppings, scoop it out as mashed butternut, go nuts. :smiley:

    Also, bananas, apples and strawberries are my favourites for snacking.
  • Mindfullyjo
    Mindfullyjo Posts: 40 Member
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    Am eating Tuscan Bean Stew tonight (cooked by my husband) which has two cans of pinto beans in it. These are as healthy as beans you cook yourself from dried. Make sure tinned things don't have added sugar and it's clean enough (though marginally less tasty!!). The stew also has a lot of fresh vegetables - carrot, celery, onion, green beans - a good mix for wide range of minerals and vitamins. Ah, and he's just called up the stairs that it's ready! :)