CLEAN EATING

What is Clean Eating?

Clean Eating  means revamping your diet, and stripping it of nutritionally devoid foods, meaning no processed, artificially flavored, artificially sweetened, artificially colored, fatty, fried, sugary refined unnatural items...it means eating and buying WHOLE FOODS. Clean eating is not a diet fad it is a lifestyle change. Which means you eat clean most of the time, and often times that mean you get to eat MORE FOOD. :)

Why Eat Clean?

• Stronger Immune system
• Get rid of Fog brain- More mental clarity 
• Feel GOOD about yourself
• Reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes, as well as MANY other diseases
• Have more energy 
• Get better sleep
• Decrease allergies
• Live a longer life for your family, your children, your spouse, for YOU
• Save money on fad diets that do not keep the weight off

"You are what you eat. Plain and simple! So don't be FAST, EASY, FAKE or CHEAP" :)

How to Eat Clean

Check your food labels for the above ingredients, and refrain from using items with these substances above. REMEMBER: IF you can't pronounce it don't eat it. If its made in a lab put it down. If it says LOWFAT most of the time its a chemical nightmare. 

• Drink at least two liters of water every day (8 cups) - If this is hard, try to get at least half of your body weight in ounces per day. Water is VITAL!
• Limit your alcohol consumption to one glass of red wine
• Eat every 2-3 hours, so about 5-6 small meals per day (3 meals and 2-3 small snacks)
• Get label savvy - clean foods contain 1-2 ingredients. Any products with labels of ingredients you can't pronounce are a no no!
• Avoid processed and refined foods (white flour, sugar, bread, pasta) Enjoy complex carbs such as whole grains instead.
• Avoid GMO's
• Know the enemies - steer clear of anything high in saturated and trans fats, anything fried, and anything high in sugar.
• Avoid calorie dense food that has no nutritional value e.g chips
• Depend on fresh veggies and fruit for fiber, vitamins, and enzymes.
• Consume healthy fats, try to have one per day. fish oils, coconut oil etc
• Shop the perimeter of the grocery store, that's where the cleanest foods usually are!
• Choose high quality meats grass fed, pasteurized meats and wild caught fish

Delicious Protein Packed Pumpkin Spice Waffles

I just LOVE this recipe. I always hated filling up on waffles for breakfast because it was all carbs and no protein but the cottage cheese in this recipe packs a huge protein punch at 18g of protein per serving.  Don't worry you cannot taste the cottage cheese and it just makes for a luscious richness in the batter. 

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup cottage cheese

2 eggs (pasture raised)

1/2 cup of water (plus more depending on consistency)*

2 tsp coconut oil melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/3 cup rolled oats (gluten free Optional)

1/2 cup pureed pumpkin

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder (aluminum free)

Method

Combine baking powder, spices and rolled oats into a high speed blender like a vitamix or magic bullet and blend into a powder and pour into a bowl. 

Pour water and cottage cheese into blender and blend until smooth. Add in eggs, pumpkin, vanilla and coconut oil and blend to mix. Pour into bowl of dry ingredients.

Mix dry ingredients until just combined. If the batter is too think add more water 1Tbsp at a time to desired consistency. 

Pour into heated waffle iron sprayed with non-stick spray. 

*A thicker batter will yeild a dense waffle and thinner batter will yield a lighter more airy waffle. They both are delish either way its just up to your personal preference. 

Serves 2

Container equivalents: 2 yellows, 1 red, 1 tsp, 1/2 green 

Recipe is Adapted from Ammon Woods Protein waffles