Although this isn’t a foodie blog, I’ve had a couple of requests (Hi Mom1 and Mom2!) to post a few of the meals I’ve been putting together to stay within my Pure Food criteria.  While I’m not sure these are terribly creative, they are tasty, some of them are pretty fast, and they are satisfying, which helps.  No sense in eating right and still being hungry all the time!  It’s really been a change for me to cook only this way, instead of occasionally this way, but so far, so good.  And because I am not publishing a cookbook, I apologize for not having measurements of things, but I rarely ever cook that way, and these are fairly simple ideas.  You can add whatever spice you want if you decide to make any of them. You’ll also notice heavy use of “sauté”.  Yeah, well, that’s how I roll most of the time.

Breakfast

• Protein shake – for me, that’s Almased, soy milk, a spoonful of natural peanut butter, and perhaps half a banana.  The brand really isn’t important, as long as it’s got lots of protein and the carbs are very low-glycemic.  (I’m not paid by Almased to promote them, but if they’d like to toss an extra can my way, I sure wouldn’t say no!)
• Eggs – scrambled, hard-boiled, whatever floats your boat, but NOT loaded with cheese, sorry.
• Spoonful of natural peanut butter – this is in a time-crunch emergency, and I don’t recommend it, but I am here to be truthful, and this has occasionally been my out-the-door breakfast.

Lunch

Half the time, it’s leftovers from the night before.  The rest of the time, I make a salad with spinach and whatever chopped up veggies I’ve managed to prepare ahead of time, along with some kind of protein like chicken or canned tuna or salmon.  My absolute favorite so far is:

spinach
grape tomatoes
tiny pre-cooked salad shrimp (I pack them in a separate bag, frozen, and they thaw through the morning, so at lunchtime I just pat them on a paper towel and toss them on the salad)
half an avocado scooped out in chunks
home-made vinaigrette – I take a tiny lidded container in the morning and pour in a glug of extra-virgin olive oil (splurge on the good stuff, it matters) along with a splash of whatever vinegar sounds good – rice vinegar works with the shrimp.  Shake in a little sea salt and some pepper and seal.  At lunch time, shake it a few seconds and drizzle over the salad.

Dinner

Here’s where the theme really takes over: protein, veggies, some sort of “starch”.  It helps tremendously to make a big pot of brown rice early in the week and put it in the fridge for use all week long. Also, when those steamer-bags of frozen veggies go on sale for $1 each, STOCK UP.  Of course, cheap frozen vegetables in their non-steamer bags can simply be dumped into a microwave-safe pot, pour in water while you count to 3, cover, and microwave for about 5 minutes.

• Turkey meatballs:  Mix up 1 pound (there – a measurement!  It’ll be the last one!) lean ground turkey with an egg, a big handful of chopped fresh flat-leaf (italian) parsley, a goodly amount of pre-cooked rice, a shake of onion flakes, a little garlic (minced or powdered, whatever), some pepper and some sea salt.  Form into medium (golf-ball) sized balls and bake on a cookie sheet at 350 for somewhere around 15 minutes, or until they look golden brown on the outside.  I always sacrifice one to cut in half to be sure they’re done.  I recommend putting a baking rack on the cookie sheet and putting the meatballs on that so what little fat they do have drains nicely.  Serve with sautéed greens or whatever steamed colorful veggies are handy and a salad.

• Fried rice:  Scramble an egg or two very dry.  Move the eggs to a bowl, wipe out the pan, add a little olive oil, and sauté chopped onion along with whatever else you like (for me, it’s small-chopped carrot, mushrooms, and peas, although I usually just steam the peas in the microwave and add them last minute to the finished dish).  When they’re good and cooked, add them to the eggs in the bowl.  Now dump cooked rice into the skillet, add a dash of olive oil if it looks like it needs it, and toss it around until it’s warmed through.  Add the veggies and eggs back in, and use the spatula to chop up the eggs well.  Drizzle with low-sodium soy sauce and stir for a minute or so, and it’s done!  Serve this alongside turkey patties or chicken breasts, or for a meal in a bowl, add diced cooked chicken or freshly sautéed shrimp straight in to the rice.  This makes a great second-day lunch too!

• Chicken with quinoa (keen-wah) pilaf:  Gently pan-cook boneless skinless chicken breasts (seasoned however you like) in a small drizzle of olive oil in a skillet.  Butterfly them if they’re too big to cook through nicely.  Meanwhile, cook the quinoa according to package directions.  If it’s new to you, quinoa is a grain, or more accurately, a seed.  It cooks just like rice and has the benefit of lots of goodness and no gluten.  In a separate skillet, sauté some diced onion and whatever else sounds good (I had set aside chopped carrot and mushrooms from making fried rice the night before).  When the veggies are cooked and the quinoa is done, add the quinoa to the skillet with a small sprinkle of seasoned salt. Serve with the chicken and some steamed broccoli splashed with a little lemon juice.

• Turkey Un-burger:  Buy or form lean ground turkey patties.  Cook them in a skillet like hamburgers.  Slice cooked, chilled polenta and, in another skillet or when the turkey’s done, warm up a drizzle of olive oil and put in the slices of polenta.  Cook until lightly golden brown, flipping halfway through.  Keep the heat to medium and be patient, because they will definitely burn if it’s too hot.  To pre-prepare the polenta yourself, cook it the night before, take any leftovers while they’re warm, and smooth them into a cookie sheet.  Chill overnight in the fridge and cut into cubes or blocks the next day.  Or, buy pre-cooked polenta in a tube like cookie dough, and slice out of the package like I do.  Serve the turkey patty over a couple of slices of the now crispy polenta, with a side of whatever veggies you’re in the mood for.  Sprinkle with a small amount of seasoned salt or other spices.

And the list goes on.  I bought several types of frozen fish fillets this week, so we’ll go more seafood.  I’m thinking salmon with a balsamic glaze!

Tomorrow is Easter Dinner at Mom1 and Dad1’s, and I can’t wait.  M1 was a little nervous about cooking for us now that we’re in the heart of the revolution, but I think I’ve managed to convince her that it is really easy.  We LOVE roasted leg of lamb, especially at Easter, and that will be the main dish.  Instead of the crispy roasted potatoes soaking up the drippings, we’ll have a roasted mix of sweet potatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, and carrots, which we all love.  Peas for the green veggie, crisp pan-seared polenta cubes for the starch, and a tossed salad on the side.  The only item left to question is the mint jelly.  I don’t know who ever thought to spoon minted apple jelly over roasted lamb, but it is essential to the experience.  I realize jelly is made with lots of sugar, but I will still have a small spoonful because crushed mint leaves just will not do.  That sounds like a celebration dinner to me!

And it is a celebration.  Tomorrow is Easter, a day my family holds very sacred and holy.  And JOYFUL.  Christ died so you and I don’t have to offer sacrifices any more.  So we can stand pure and blameless in front of God, without the pollution of our sin fogging the view.  So we can live in a relationship with Him.  So we can live peacefully, free from the guilt and shame of bad choices, free from debilitating anger, free from addictions and fear and bondage. Because the more we exercise our choice to follow Him, the less enjoyment we find in living for self.  The more we seek Him out, the more delight He takes in our relationship and the more fun it is to serve someone who finds joy in us.  The more we follow His directions, the more satisfying and productive our outcomes.  The more we are filled with His spirit, the more we learn how to truly love our neighbor as ourself. And the more time we spend getting to know Him, the more exciting we find the prospect of eternity with not a distant rule-based God but a loving, holy Father who cherishes us enough to have paid for our sin.  May each of you have that peace and freedom in the love of Christ this Easter. He is Risen!