Clean Eating Lifesavers!

I will fully admit that I can be lazy when it comes to cooking. Unfortunately laziness and eating clean are not the best of friends. Some nights it's much easier to pop in a frozen pizza than to make a clean one from scratch (which I'll be posting a recipe for soon- clean pizza is AMAZING)!

Thankfully there are some lifesaving products and tips that allow for some very yummy and EASY clean meals and snacks! I don't like how healthier products are often very expensive, but most of my picks aren't too pricey (a few are, but they are worth it I promise).

The Food Items

1. Quinoa Noodles

 I am obsessed with these and my fiance (aka the pickiest person on the planet) even loves them. That's a win in my book! These are about $3/box, which is fairly affordable

2. Rick Bayless Frontera Sauce

This sauce has no preservatives, is low calorie, low sugar, low sodium, and low fat. Oh and it tastes AMAZING! I use it for clean enchiladas and clean taco rice bowls. It's so much better and healthier than the canned sauces. Also it's relatively inexpensive ($2/pouch). 

3. Justin's Nut Butters

As a former Nutella addict the chocolate hazelnut butter is my favorite thing on the planet when I have a nutella craving and don't want to feel guilty. It's clean and the sugar is relatively low. The price is a bit ridiculous ($10/jar), but a little goes a long way and it's SO worth it!

4. Mario Batali Pasta Sauce (vodka sauce, arrabiata, and the tomato basil are my faves)

This is my favorite pasta sauce on the planet. I fully intend to make homemade pasta sauce and freeze it, but I get lazy and buy this instead since it is so delicious. It's $8/jar full price, but it's often on sale at our local grocery store so I stock up. I know that is expensive for sauce, however it is all natural and healthy and beyond delicious! I use this for many of my pasta dishes that I am going to post tomorrow.

5. PB2

PB2 is dehydrated peanut butter that is has 85% less fat. I use this only in shakes and recipes. I don't eat it plain. It's about $4/jar which is pretty good. If you make recipes with peanut butter or put it in your protein shakes I highly recommend using PB2! It will save you quite a bit of calories :)

The Nonfood Items

1. Small Ramekin Dishes

My fiance and I do not have the same eating habits (he thinks beer and bacon are food groups). Sometimes this makes dinner challenging, because I want to make something clean and healthy, but at the same time I want him to enjoy it. He grew up eating his mother's cooking and his mother cooks like she's Paula Deen (before the diabetes). Anyway, these little dishes allow me to make portion controlled mini casseroles, but I am able to modify them based on our preferences. These are a blessing to couples or parents who have different tastes than the rest of their families. You can omit ingredients or substitute ingredients easily! Buy some- they are inexpensive and sooooo worth it.

2. Noodle Maker
I won't go into too much detail, because this is what my post tomorrow will be all about. You can use this baby to make noodles out of vegetables. I eat carrot and zucchini noodles and am in clean eating heaven. This is my favorite product on the planet! It was $30, but I would have paid double! It's changed my life.

3. Triple Lasagna Pan
I use this to make modified lasagna and larger casserole recipes. I like my lasagna with zucchini strips instead of noodles, so I'll make two rows of lasagna. One the way I like it and one the way Jeff likes it. This lets us also have a good amount of leftovers for lunch also.

4. Jello Shot Cups
I use these to hold salad dressing for lunch and for condiments on the go. I also use these to portion out peanut butter and almond butter for snacks. So easy for convenience and portion control (and awesome to have on hand for some jello shots if the mood strikes you)

Tips

1. Make Your Own Taco Seasoning
There is absolutely no excuse not to make your own taco seasoning. Did you know that the packets (even the reduced sodium ones) contain the same ingredient as those little packets that say "do not eat" that come in new shoes? That's not only very "not clean eating friendly", but it's also pretty gross.

Homemade taco seasoning is:
1. Cheaper than the packaged stuff
2. Super easy to make
3. Healthier
4. Tastier

See, no reason not to make it. I made a big batch 4 months ago and I've used about 1/4 of it (and I use it a few times a week)!

Recipe:
Use equal portions of the following:
Chili Powder
Ground Cumin
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
1/2 amount of Crushed Red Pepper

Put it in a mason jar and shake it up! See- totally easy!

I just bought equal size spices so there was no measuring involved, except to put in 1/2 the amount of the red pepper. You can add more or less red pepper to adjust for how spicy you like your taco seasoning.

2. Use Olive Oil and Coconut Oil Instead of Butter
Both of these are super foods and are much better for you than butter (clean butter does exist but there aren't really any nutritional benefits). I make everything from clean mashed potatoes to stirfrys with olive and coconut oil and it makes everything delicious! Pam also has chemicals in it so buy an oil mister and use it instead of buying Pam or cooking spray.

3. Cook Oatmeal and Rice Ahead of Time for Quick Meals
I make a batch of brown rice and steel cut oatmeal for the week on Sundays. I use the brown rice for quick rice bowls, as a side, or as a base for stir fry meals and homemade clean "fried" rice. It's always good to have it on hand.

Steel cut oatmeal is great for quick grab and go breakfasts. It's good for you and keeps you full. I switch it up by adding different fruits/nuts to it or by mixing in PB2 and dark chocolate chips with 70% cocoa in them when I'm craving a sweet breakfast.

I could go on and on, but I'll save the rest for another post :)