Summer is here and I love me some good ole summer salads. Black beans, avocado, CORN! Eat them hot or cold, summer salads are what grilling out is all about!
Years ago my good friend, Ashley over at Wee Wander, gave me this recipe. I’m not sure if she concocted it because she’s and former chef and all, but either way, it’s amazing. It’s super simple and yet the flavors are unlike any other veggie summer salad (or corn salad for that matter) that I’ve ever tried. The secret? Apple cider vinegar.
Here’s the recipe and 21 Day Fix container breakdown, below!
INGREDIENTS
5 ears of corn, shucked
1/2 cup red onion, diced
3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
3 Tbsp. EVOO
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. basil (dried) or 1 Tbsp. chopped (fresh)
DIRECTIONS
Boil corn for 3 minutes. Remove and plunge into ice water to stop the corn from cooking. Remove kernels and toss all ingredients (except fresh basil) together in a bowl. Allow to marinate for several hours or overnight. Toss with fresh basil before serving.
So the common theme on this here blog is twofold: clean eating and easy. Listen, the minute I had a child I lost about 23 hours of my day, it seemed, to diaper changes, feedings, and now constant worrying about where both kiddos are in the house and why is it sooo quiet. (Note: quiet almost always = trouble.)
So when I came across this easy and clean chicken recipe from my girl crush Autumn Calabrese’s cookbook, FixAte, featuring 101 clean eating recipes, I was ALL.OVER.IT. What’s not to love? Chicken. Check. Tomatoes. Check. Basil. Check. And CHEESE. CHECK.CHECK.CHECK.
So here it is! I served it alongside this awesome Sesame Broccoli that’s also 21 Day Fix-approved. (If you haven’t tried this broccoli recipe, you are totally missing out! BEST.BROCCOLI.RECIPE.EVER.) It was delish! Let me know what you think!
Serves 1
INGREDIENTS
1 (4 oz.) chicken breast, boneless, skinless
1 dash of black pepper
1/2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 thick tomato slices
4 fresh basil leaves (I ended up using a sprinkle of the spice)
1 slice of fresh mozzarella (1oz)
1 dash sea salt
4 tsp. of balsamic vinegar, divided use
DIRECTIONS
Season both sides of chicken with pepper.
Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat.
Add chicken and top with 2 tsp of balsamic vinegar; cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until no longer pink.
Top the chicken with tomato slices and basil followed by the mozzarella slice.
Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, for an additional 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is melted and tomatoes are softened.
Ok, there’s a recurring theme on my blog here: easy, clean, and kid friendly. That about covers it. (Even bigger bonus if it’s 21 Day Fix approved, too! Luckily, I’d say 99.9% of the recipes I pots on here are, in fact, Fix approved! Yay!)
So it would make perfect sense that this here honey mustard-glazed chicken bake is also easy, clean, and kid friendly. Oh, and is it ever delish, too!
I pulled this recipe out of the February issue of Good Housekeeping since I am always on the lookout for recipes that are either a) clean or b) I can make clean. This is one of them. The original recipe calls for chicken thighs and drumsticks but I don’t like eating meat off a bone (I know, it’s a weird little idiosyncrasy I have) and dark meat, while it’s more moist in recipes like this, has more calories and isn’t as “clean.” Plus, those other two cuts of chicken have skin, which is where the big time calories (and not-so-clean factor) come into play.
So I switched things up a bit and used boneless, skinless chicken breasts and I gotta say, I was shocked at just how awesome this turned out! The bonus is that it’s a) 21 Day Fix approved! And b) it was kid friendly! My four year old couldn’t stop eating the parsnips and my 17 month old was hoovering the carrots! Score for Mom!
Here’s the recipe!
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. parsnips, sliced on an angle
1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and quartered
1/2 lb. carrots, quartered lengthwise, then cut into 2″ pieces
1 medium red onion, cut into 8 wedges
2 tbsp. olive oil
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch long tenderloins
3 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. whole-grain mustard
2 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. brown sugar
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In large roasting pan, toss parsnips, potatoes, carrots, onion, oil, thyme and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Roast 15 minutes.
Place chicken in single layer over vegetables. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roast 15 minutes.
In medium bowl, whisk Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard, honey and brown sugar. Drizzle all over chicken and vegetables. Roast 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked (165 degrees F) and vegetables are tender. Serve chicken with vegetables.
3 pieces of chicken = 1 red; 1 yellow; 1/2 green (I actually measure out each one by separating the carrots (green) from the parsnips and potatoes (both yellow)
The same veggie sides get really boring day in and day out. There was a long stretch there where all we ate were salads. Like, every single type of salad you can imagine. Because it was easy. And when you’re running around like a mad woman at dinnertime trying get dinner ready while your 17 month old is grabbing at your pant leg and your four year old wants to tell you a story about what happened at preschool, easy is, well, easy.
But then I saw this recipe from the one and only Martha Stewart (she’s behind this insanely delish recipe of Smoky Beef Tacos that is so good you truly must make it sometime), I knew I had to give it a go. I love roasted broccoli and I love soy sauce and sesame seeds. What’s not to like about this super simple recipe?
So I made it.
It was a ginormous hit. And for the last five or six years we’ve been making it at least once a week. It’s so good that we never tire of it. Even better: that little 17 month old tugging at my pant leg while I make dinner? She GOBBLES this up! Can I get an Amen?!
Here’s the recipe, below. Plus, the 21 Day Fix container breakdown if you choose to follow 21 Day Fix. Which, if you aren’t already following the Fix, you really might want to give it a try :). I’m hosting an online fitness boot camp starting April 4th where you can expect to lose up to 10 lbs., tone up, learn how to eat super clean, make meal prep crazy easy and torch insane amounts of calories in just 30 minutes of working out a day. Did I mention there are prizes in this boot camp? Click here to find out more about getting in my exclusive online fitness boot camp!
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
1 pound broccoli florets
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce (if on the Fix, use Braggs Aminos)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 450 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss broccoli florets with olive oil. Roast until browned, about 20 minutes. Toss with soy sauce, lemon juice, and sesame seeds.
I LOVE quick, easy, and tasty meals. I mean, who doesn’t? And when they’re also 1) kid approved and 2) healthy, it’s like you’ve won the Mom Cooks Dinner lottery! Everyone wins!
This is a recipe I grabbed while shopping at Publix, a grocery chain here in the South that is AMAZING. (Seriously, if you’ve not been to a Publix, you’ll wish that you had one where you live because they are SO nice!) Anyway, back on point, this was one of their demo recipes so I gave it a whirl. And, man, I am so glad I did.
Unlike so many meatloaf versions with lean meat, these are moist and not dried out. Bonus: they reheat amazingly well the next day so if you want something for an easy leftover night, these totally fit the bill!
I won’t say they are 100% 21 Day Fix approved (I’m pretty sure that enchilada sauce is not on the approved food list), BUT they are pretty dang close. As in, like 99.9% 21 Day Fix approved. That being said, if you have already completed a full round of 21 Day Fix or 21 Day Fix Extreme, I would say it’s totally ok to add these into your meal plan. My Fix container breakdown is at the end of the recipe.
Let me know what you think!
Serves 4, 1 loaf per serving
INGREDIENTS
nonstick aluminum foil
1 oz reduced-fat jalapeño Cheddar (or Monterey Jack) cheese
4 (3-inch long) mini sweet peppers
1 1/4 lb. extra lean, ground white turkey breast
3/4 cup enchilada sauce, divided (I add a little extra)
Preheat oven to 425°F. Line baking sheet with foil.
Cut off four slices of cheese (about 1″ x 2″ x 1/4″).
Remove tops of peppers and seeds; place cheese inside pepper. (I usually pick two smaller peppers and put two stuffed ones in the middle of each loaf.)
Combine in medium bowl: turkey, 1/4 cup sauce, onions, couscous, water, egg, and seasoning; mix thoroughly.
Divide mixture into four portions; shape around each pepper (to form a loaf) and cover pepper completely. Repeat with remaining mixture.
Place meatloaves on baking sheet (wash hands). Top each loaf with 1 tablespoon sauce. I took a little liberty here and added just a little shredded cheese on top of each one. Bake 20–25 minutes or until 165°F. Pour remaining 1 tablespoon sauce over each meatloaf; let stand 5 minutes to rest. Serve.
I LOVE chicken salad! LOVE it. Like, if I could live off Wawa’s chicken salad or the one Costco makes with its rotisserie chicken, I SO would.
But I can’t. I mean, that MAYONNAISE! It’s an absolute calorie killer–as in, it obliterates your entire calorie count for the day leaving you with only kale leaves to eat. (Yes, I like kale, too, but eating it raw? No, thank you.)
So how the heck do you make a decent chicken salad that’s oozing with flavor but doesn’t add 5 lbs. to the scale the next morning after you eat 1/4 cup of it? Well, lucky for you, I’ve got a recipe that’s not only 1) 21 Day Fix approved and SUPER clean but also 2) is SO tasty and SO flavorful you’ll have trouble not eating the whole batch. (Side note: even if you eat more than one serving, you’re STILL in MUCH better shape than devouring those mayo-heavy kinds.)
That being said, here is the recipe courtesy of my awesome cookbook FixAte. FixAte, in case you didn’t know, has more than 100 clean eating recipes–Sloppy Joes! Crepes! Brownies! Chili! Omelets!–that are so delicious options you won’t need to look anywhere else for a healthy meal.
Serving size: 1 1/4 cups
INGREDIENTS
3 cups chopped rotisserie chicken breast (boneless/skinless) *I actually poach chicken breasts instead. Or, better yet, place them in a slow cooker for 4-6 hours on high with some chicken broth and you get super moist chicken that’s easy to cut up
1/2 cup chopped green apple
1/2 cup seedless red grapes, cut in half
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 green onions, sliced
2 Tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
1/4 cup Honey Mustard Dressing (see below)
8 cups shredded romaine lettuce
DIRECTIONS
Combine chicken, apple, grapes, almonds, green onions, tarragon, and Honey Mustard Salad Dressing in a large bowl. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Serve 1 1/4 cup Creamy Chicken Salad over 2 cups of romaine lettuce per serving.
Honey Mustard Dressing:
** Serves 8 with 2 Tbsp. per serving
** 1 Orange Container
1/2 cup reduced fat plain Greek yogurt
3 Tbsp. Dijon mustard, gluten-free
3 Tbsp. raw honey
3 Tbsp. rice vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Sea Salt to taste (optional)
Directions: Combine yogurt, mustard, honey, and vinegar in a medium bowl and mix well. Slowly add the oil, whisking constantly until well blended.
I have a love affair with Martha Stewart. Every time the new issue of Martha Stewart Living arrives in my mailbox, I scour it like mad for recipes just like a kid eating cake. So when I saw this recipe and looked over the ingredients and looked over the preparation and saw how clean it was, I jumped for joy! (Do you ever get that way when you find a recipe that’s not loaded in fat and oil and, well, calories?)
Better yet, it’s 21 Day Fix approved, which, to be honest, is how I eat every.single.day. This is not a diet, people. It’s a lifestyle. And it’s how I lost 10 inches and 15 lbs. and completely transformed my body from schlumpy to fit.
But anyway, enough about that, you want the recipe, don’t you? 🙂 Here it is, below, with the 21 Day Fix container breakdown! Devour it and share it with your friends if you love it like my family does!
INGREDIENTS
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken-breast halves (3 to 4 halves)
Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing and drizzling
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
4 6-inch whole wheat pitas (we have also used whole wheat naan and it’s delish! If you use naan, a 1/2 equals 1 yellow container)
1 1/3 cups prepared hummus
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (about 4 ounces)
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced (about 4 ounces)
1/2 small head radicchio, spinach, or kale, thinly sliced and/or chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup crumbled feta (2 ounces)
1 lemon, quartered
Balsamic vinegar
DIRECTIONS
Preheat grill to medium-high. Brush chicken with oil; season with salt and pepper. Brush grates with oil. Grill chicken, turning once, until cooked through and lightly marked in spots, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, cut into strips.
Brush both sides of each pita with oil. Grill, flipping once, until lightly marked and crisp, 4 to 5 minutes. Spread 1 tsp. of hummus on one side of each pita. Top with chicken, tomatoes, scallions, radicchio, and 1/2 blue container of feta. Drizzle with oil; serve immediately with lemon and balsamic vinegar.
These chicken nuggets are oh-so tasty AND 21 Day Fix approved!
If you’re a parent, then you know chicken nuggets. You’ve likely cooked them in the oven for your little one. You’ve possibly gone through the drive-thru at McDonald’s, or, if you’re lucky, Chick-fil-A. (I’ll admit: Chick-fil-A’s chicken nuggets are da bomb.) BUT, the problem is not only that they’re deep-friend and heavily breaded, they’re all too often loaded with sodium not to mention ingredients that aren’t whole and clean. Who wants their child eating THAT?
So my girl-crush trainer, Autumn Calabrese, whipped up this recipe for her six-year-old son. I mean, if she’s going to preach to everyone else about eating clean and wholesome, then she better have her kid eating the same way, right? This recipe is not only one of the best and tastiest homemade chicken nugget recipes I’ve tried–and I’ve tried several including ones from Cooking Light, The Food Network, and various blogs–they’re also EXTREMELY clean. And a huge plus for me and my family is that they’re 21 Day Fix and 21 Day Fix Extreme approved! Boo-ya!
Here’s the recipe and 21 Day Fix container breakdown, below:
Serving size is 4-6 nuggets depending on how big you make them
INGREDIENTS
1 cup almond meal
2 Tablespoons of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon all purpose seasoning
1 lb. chicken cutlets- cut into cubes
DIRECTIONS
In a large mixing bowl combine all of your dry ingredients. In a separate small ball whisk one large egg for the egg wash. Dip the cubes into the egg wash then into the breaking mix. Make sure to coat thoroughly. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, spray a large cookie sheet with a light dusting of coconut oil, then place your coated nuggets on the pan. Bake for 25 min turning them every 5-7 min. Check to make sure there is no pink in the center of the chicken before eating.
Need something quick, easy and VERY kid friendly? Try these 21-Day Fix-approved fajitas!
We love quick, easy, and kid friendly in our house. And these fajitas hit the spot! I’m too often underwhelmed by fajitas when I get them at Mexican restaurants because the flavor is usually so-so. So I was reluctant to try these bad boys because, well, the spice ingredients, or, rather, the amount of the spices for this recipe seemed like nothing. I mean, how could 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and a teaspoon of chili powder, etc. season FOUR chicken breasts, a green pepper, and an onion and remain flavorful?
I don’t know the answer but I do know this: the flavor is bangin’! And the way it’s cooked leaves the chicken super tender and moist. So tasty is the chicken that I had to stop myself from nibbling here and there on it once it was finished! One thing we did modify was that we added a second pepper to up the veggie content.
This is just one of the amazing recipes from 21 Day Fix Extreme. (There are SO many more from the eating plan!) It amazes me sometimes that eating healthy can be THIS good AND this EASY.
Here’s the recipe and the 21 Day Fix container breakdown, below:
INGREDIENTS
Makes 4 servings, 2 fajitas each
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. Extra virgin olive oil, divided
4 (5-6 oz.) raw chicken breast, boneless, skinless, cut into 1/2 in strips
2 medium red or green red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/2 medium avocado, thinly sliced
1 cup fresh salsa
lime wedge for garnish, optional
Nonfat plain Greek yogurt for garnish, optional
Corn tortillas
DIRECTIONS
Combine chili powder, salt, cumin, garlic powder, and 1 tsp oil in large resealable plastic bag.
Add chicken, bell pepper, and onion; mix gently to coat.
Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Heat remaining 1 tsp. oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
Empty contents of bag into skillet; cook stirring frequently, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
Remove from heat. Add lime juice.
Toasts corn tortilla in skillet.
Evenly top corn tortillas with chicken mixture, avocado and salsa.
What do you make when you have pork chops and apples laying around? Skillet pork chops and apples, of course! Hubs and I had been in a pork chops rut–we were always grilling them or cooking them in our cast iron pan but only seasoning with salt and pepper. But last night we had enough! So after a little Pinterest scrolling I found this recipe by the always reliable Mark Bittman. Not only were the flavors tremendously flavorful, but it was also Fix approved! How do ya like that?
We made a a change here or there (e.g., there was no need for that much oil OR the butter the recipe called for so I’ve removed or updated those from the recipe, below, to make it fit 21 Day Fix and 21 Day Fix Extreme). Oh, and we didn’t have any onions on hand sooo you won’t see those in this pic BUT next time we will definitely be adding them!
Bonus: my three year old ate this, too! Cue, pat Mom and Dad on the back :).
Here’s the recipe and 21 Day Fix container breakdown, below:
INGREDIENTS
Serves 4
4 1″-thick pork chops, preferably bone in (6 to 8 ounces each)
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or light-bodied beer
2 Tbsp. chopped shallot or red onion
3 medium apples (we used Gala apples), peeled, cored, halved, and sliced
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1/2 cup chicken stock or water, or more as needed
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish
DIRECTIONS
Blot the chops dry with a paper towel. Put a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When it’s hot, add the chops, turn the heat to high, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. When they brown and release from the pan easily, turn the chops, season again, and cook this side the same way. The whole process should take about 2 minutes per side or 3 to 5 minutes total.
Reduce the heat to medium and add the wine—be careful here; the wine may splatter a bit when it hits the hot oil—and the shallot and cook, turning the chops once or twice, until the wine is almost evaporated, 1 or 2 minutes. Transfer the chops to a plate and return the pan to the heat.
Add the apples and onion to the hot pan and stir until they start to stick, 1 or 2 minutes. Add the stock, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the chops to the pan, along with any juices accumulated on the plate. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat so it bubbles steadily, then cover.
Cook, stirring occasionally and turning the chops once or twice, until the chops are tender, 5 to 10 minutes; add another 1/2 cup stock or water if the apples start to stick. When the chops are done, they will be firm to the touch, their juices will run just slightly pink, and when you cut into them the color will be rosy at first glance but turn pale within seconds. By this time the apples and onions will also be soft. Stir in the lemon juice and butter and taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve the chops with the sauce on top, garnished with the parsley.
Fit & Fierce Mama 