Let’s be honest. Not everyone has time to whip up some elaborate gourmet breakfast in the morning (for those that do, we’re all jealous). The challenge with eating healthy is that most times you have to cook a little bit more than you normally would. So you have to find ways to eat healthy without giving up a lot of time in an already tight schedule.

Since mornings are a time of day that people tend to rush the most, you’ve got to be able to get out the door with a healthy breakfast and without waking up at 5 a.m. to do it. Enter the breakfast shake. Now, if you’re already starting to roll your eyes at the thought of drinking some nasty health shake, just hold on a second.

If you’ve been on a lot of diets and you’re used to those disgusting diet drinks, I can assure you that this is not EVEN CLOSE to the same thing. We all want food that’s delicious and satisfying and this shake won’t disappoint. Here’s why: we’re using “rich” ingredients that are still simple but taste great—frozen berries, almond or coconut milk (if you haven’t tried it, it’s awesome), and of course the meal replacement powder and/or whey protein.

Here are a few shake powders that we recommend:

PaleoMeal
Named for the traditional Paleolithic diet that is taking the health industry by storm, this powder is an all around meal replacer. You’re getting tons of vitamins, nutrients and healthy fat. Not only that, but this product is specifically designed to help with weight loss, diabetes, GI health, detoxification and the immune system. It comes in 3 flavors: vanilla, strawberry and chocolate.

Whey Cool
This product is great if you want to build muscle and recover from workouts faster. It also boosts your immune system and gives you a healthy dose of complete protein. It also combines well with the PaleoMeal or other meal replacement powders.

Vega Whole Food Optimizer (also simply known as Vega)
This product is similar to the PaleoMeal in that it’s a meal replacement as well. It’s plant based and it’s packed with essential vitamins and nutrients. The cool thing about Vega is that it comes in some pretty tasty flavors. Vanilla Chai and Mixed Berry are my favorites but you can also get chocolate and a natural flavor. This product is typically available in your local health food stores.

The great thing about all of these products is that they are the purest of their kind. They’re made from grass-fed cows which is hugely important in keeping fatty acid ratios in balance. And they’re minimally processed, with no pesticide exposure, antibiotics or growth hormone. They also taste really good and they’re a quick solution to breakfast on a busy morning.

What you need:

• 1 cup of frozen berries (I typically use assorted berries)—I must also stress the importance of using berries (a low sugar fruit) as opposed to peaches, pineapples or mangos—high sugar fruits. You want to use berries to minimize sugar intake if you’re trying to lose weight.
• 1 serving of your favorite flavor of Paleo Meal or Vega* (we like Vanilla)
• 1 serving of whey protein (optional)
• 1 cup of sugar-free vanilla almond milk or coconut milk (just make sure it’s sugar free)

Combine the ingredients in your VitaMix or blender (I recommend adding the milk first) and blend until smooth. This is a pretty thick shake, so if you want more of a liquid consistency, add more milk.
Pour this into a portable cup and you can easily enjoy a healthy breakfast during your work commute.

You can add a few drops of Stevia to sweeten it if you feel the need. But I think it’s great just the way it is. You can also experiment with chocolate almond milk or chocolate coconut milk. I find that the chocolate is a bit overwhelming for me in the morning, but if you’re a true chocolate lover (like my husband) you’ll love it!

To true health,

Erica Jones

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Our health participants often ask us for ideas when it comes to snacks. This is probably one of the areas that people struggle with the most. We often get hungry between meals throughout the day and rather than starving, it’s better just to eat a healthy snack. But sometimes it can be tough to come up with something healthy on the fly—especially if you’re just starting to make lifestyle changes.

In the past, one of my favorite snacks was Ritz Crackers. Who could resist those buttery little rounds paired with sharp cheddar cheese? They’re delicious…but a not so healthy snack. Thank goodness there are alternatives.

The recipe below is inspired by Elana Amsterdam, a truly creative chef in healthy eating. These are my version of crackers and cheese, but with a healthy twist. Made with basil and almond flour, these crackers taste amazing plain, but they are TO DIE FOR when you add a bit of cheddar cheese. And honestly, I’d venture to say that theysA taste even better than the original Ritz Crackers with cheese—and you get the health benefits of the almond flour and basil.

Try them out and let me know what you think!

• 3 cups blanched almond flour
• ½ cup of cashews
• ¼ cup of fresh basil leaves
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Cut four pieces of parchment paper to the size of three baking sheets.
3. Crush the cashews in a food processor until they are ground to a very coarse flour. You want the coarseness for texture.
4. Chop the basil leaves up into small pieces with a knife or a food processor.
5. Combine the almond flour, cashews, basil and salt in a large bowl.
6. Mix the eggs and olive oil together and add the stir into the almond flour, basil, salt and cashews. A nice dough will form.
7. Divide the dough into two to three pieces and form one of the pieces into a ball. Roll the dough out between two pieces of the parchment paper until it is about the thickness of a cracker (see the video for more details).
8. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut the dough into rows—you can make the crackers as large or small as you like. Once the dough has been cut transfer the crackers over to a lined baking sheet and bake them for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Repeat the above steps until all the dough has been cut and crackers baked.

These are SO delicious paired with a piece of sharp cheddar cheese. Don’t go overboard, though! That combination can be addicting and if you’re trying to lose weight you should really be eating cheese in moderation or not at all.

(Video Coming Soon)

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Having a strong arsenal of healthy snacks is the best way to stay satiated throughout the day without indulging in unhealthy processed foods. For some people, it can be difficult to enjoy raw vegetables. If that describes you, this nut pesto just might change your mind about how you eat your veggies. It’s so easy to make and very versatile—and did I mention that it’s absolutely delicious?

We not only use it as a veggie dip, but it also tastes great mixed in salads or over a chicken and veggie stir fry and I’m sure you can find many other ways to enjoy this tasty and healthy nut based dip.

What You Need:

• 3 Cups of fresh basil leaves
• 1 ½ Cups of walnuts
• 4 Cloves of peeled garlic
• ¼ Cup of Parmesan Cheese
• ¾ Cup Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• Half a red bell pepper, cut into slices

In a food processor, finely chop the walnuts into very small pieces leaving a little bit of texture (i.e. don’t blend the nuts to a flour). Add the basil leaves, garlic and cheese and blend well in the processor. Slowly add the olive oil blending periodically to mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste and voila! You’re finished! Serve 2 tablespoons of the pesto with the red peppers. It’s SO delicious!

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One of the best ways to get a good dose of Omega-3 is to have a piece of fish. Omega 3 fats are so important for a healthy diet, but unfortunately it’s also a fat that most people are deficient in. This is likely a result of the fact that many Westerners have a diet that’s full of a lot of unhealthy fats like corn oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil and the list goes on.

Without getting into too much detail, fats and the types of fats that we consume are important for many reasons. One of the main reasons is that fats are a pretty big component of cellular function. Our cells are surrounded by what the science world calls a phospholipid bilayer. The word lipid means fat, so that means that our cells’ outer layer is made up of fats.

Fat ratios and the types of fats are important because they literally make up the structure of the cell. Good fats help with cellular structure and bad fats deform cellular structure making it difficult for your cells to communicate with your body (i.e. telling your body to burn fat or that you are full and have had enough to eat).

Now, we won’t get into all the details of what bad fats are, but we can tell you that the proper ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 fats is 3:1 and some sources say 4:1 (1). Since Omega-6 fats are overly consumed in the average diet due to the increased use of various vegetable oils, Omega-3 ratios for most individuals are very low to non-existent. This is why getting Omega-3 fats from whole foods like fish and walnuts is so important. Supplements can also help with improving these ratios.

One of our favorite fishes—and a great source of healthy fats–is Tilapia. Personally, I don’t enjoy fish that has a strong “fishy” taste. I like Tilapia for its diversity and its delicious, but light flavor. Pairing it with fresh salsa and brown rice or quinoa makes for a pretty tasty meal—and it just might make you want to take a vacation to the tropics.

Brown Rice

Start on this before anything else, because it will take a while to cook. Just follow the package instructions. Long grain brown rice or wild rice works great with this recipe. You could also try it with quinoa.

Salsa

You can either make this from scratch using the recipe below or you can buy fresh salsa from your local grocery or health food store. Whatever you do, just make sure that it’s a fresh salsa—the kind that needs to be refrigerated. The other varieties won’t give it the same flavor. Add half of a chopped pear or apple to the salsa to give it a fresh and sweet flavor.

What You Need:

4 Medium tomatoes, cut into chunks
¼ Cup fresh cilantro (torn)
½ Medium red onion, cut into chunks
1 Chile pepper, chopped
1 Garlic clove
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp sea salt

Blend all ingredients in a food processor or blender until the mixture is at the preferred consistency. Don’t over process (because for salsa, I really think chunky is best). If you don’t have a food processor, you can easily get the same effect by dicing the vegetables and mixing them with the other ingredients in a bowl.

Tilapia

This is probably the easiest fish you could ever cook. For each Tilapia filet, sprinkle generously with an all purpose seasoning of your choice. I LOVE Costco’s Organic No-Salt Seasoning. It works well for almost any recipe, but since it is salt free you’ll need to add some to give the filets some extra flavor. Sea salt is best.

After you add the salt and seasoning, sprinkle a little pepper over the filets if you wish. Heat a pan on medium to low heat and cook each filet for 4 to 5 minutes on each side cooking the fish all the way through. I like to sprinkle the filets with a little bit of lemon juice to add even more flavor. Serve immediately with a few scoops of fresh salsa and brown rice.

References

1. Chen, L., et. al. (May 2009). Reduction in consumption of sugar sweetened beverages is associated with weight loss. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 89: 1299-1306.

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