Quick/Easy Clean Eating

[mrs.shea]

I know I could google this but thought I'd ask here first....

Any good websites or books for quick/easy "clean eating" meals? We don't eat a lot of processed foods anyway but I'm really trying to cut them out completely. However, I still need to be able to make the meal in less than 30 min.

How about ideas for pre-packaged snacks that are less "processed"? I try to make snacks for Kelan at home but sometimes I need some grab and go items for when it's a busier week.

[lmm2391]

My kids love cashews, almonds and pistachios. I always have snack size Ziploc bags ready. And, we eat a ton of fruit on the go - bananas, apples, grapes. Annie's cheddar bunnies and the like are a better 'processed' snack selection. We also do carrots and hummus or pretzels and ranch dip (light sour cream with ranch seasoning).

I don't have a go to website or cookbook or anything, but the quick/easy/clean meal plan is pretty much my goal. I need 30 minutes or less as well. That's probably why my dinner menu isn't the most exciting. We do similar meals each week or at least similar variations. Some of our staples:

Tacos/taco salad/nachos made with ground turkey
Cheddar ranch chicken with veggies
Grilled chicken and sweet potato
Grilled cheese and tomato soup (Pacific makes a delicious organic roasted red pepper and tomato - I find it at Dierbergs and Target)
Chili
Mahi Mahi with brown rice
Chicken enchiladas
Ground turkey stroganoff
Spaghetti and meatballs (I make a large batch of turkey meatballs ahead of time to store in the freezer, so they're easy to thaw and throw in pasta sauce)
Stuffed peppers
Italian (turkey) sausage penne
Balsamic pork tenderloin (in the crockpot - it's a skinnytaste recipe)
Shredded pork BBQ sandwiches (again in the crockpot)

I wish I had a better resource to offer, but I feel like I have the most luck from a hodge podge of places, recipes that I modify, etc. They are from all over the place, and many of them I make from memory now.

[jennelled]

Snack ideas:
-hard boiled egg
-ants on a log (sort of messy - I wouldn't let Audrey eat it in my car, but would travel fine in a plastic bag to be eaten somewhere)
-dried cranberries
-raisins
-cheese stick
-cheddar bunnies / whales / penguins / fish

I'll echo Lisa; we try to keep dinner to less than 30 minutes as well. Here are some of our tried and true favorites (we have our own modifications for some of these, but I've tried to link to the original recipe):
-Stir fry (frozen veggies, chicken, quinoa, Kikkomann Natural Stir Fry Sauce)
-Stuffed peppers (chicken, quinoa, onion, turmeric, cheese)
-Beef Stroganoff
-Chicken Pesto Bake
-Crunchy Taco Hamburger Helper
-Pizza Casserole
-Crispy Gnocchi with Zucchini, Sweet Corn and Basil
-Taco Salads with Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
-Mediterranean Chicken Kebab Salad
-Three Cheese Zucchini Stuffed Lasagna Rolls
-Turkey and Spinach Lasagna

And here are a few crockpot recipes we use a lot:
-Cornbread Chicken Enchiladas
-Chili
-Chicken Lasagna Florentine

[mrs.shea]

Thanks for the ideas ladies!

Snacks at school are hard. We can't send any nuts and Kelan doesn't like cheese! He already eats a ton of fruit. I can't even send anything that has been made in a facility that processes nuts! That eliminates a lot of things!

[DaisysMom]

He doesn't like cheese?! My favorite, I wish I didn't like it.

Mikayla likes Gogurts for snack. You might try that.

[Suzn18]

My kids love cashews, almonds and pistachios. I always have snack size Ziploc bags ready. And, we eat a ton of fruit on the go - bananas, apples, grapes. Annie's cheddar bunnies and the like are a better 'processed' snack selection. We also do carrots and hummus or pretzels and ranch dip (light sour cream with ranch seasoning).

I don't have a go to website or cookbook or anything, but the quick/easy/clean meal plan is pretty much my goal. I need 30 minutes or less as well. That's probably why my dinner menu isn't the most exciting. We do similar meals each week or at least similar variations. Some of our staples:

Tacos/taco salad/nachos made with ground turkey
Cheddar ranch chicken with veggies
Grilled chicken and sweet potato
Grilled cheese and tomato soup (Pacific makes a delicious organic roasted red pepper and tomato - I find it at Dierbergs and Target)
Chili
Mahi Mahi with brown rice
Chicken enchiladas
Ground turkey stroganoff
Spaghetti and meatballs (I make a large batch of turkey meatballs ahead of time to store in the freezer, so they're easy to thaw and throw in pasta sauce)
Stuffed peppers
Italian (turkey) sausage penne
Balsamic pork tenderloin (in the crockpot - it's a skinnytaste recipe)
Shredded pork BBQ sandwiches (again in the crockpot)

I wish I had a better resource to offer, but I feel like I have the most luck from a hodge podge of places, recipes that I modify, etc. They are from all over the place, and many of them I make from memory now.

Lisa, whats cheddar ranch chicken?

[mrs.shea]

He doesn't like cheese?! My favorite, I wish I didn't like it.

Mikayla likes Gogurts for snack. You might try that.

I know, right?

His school snacks have to stay out so I can't send yogurt.

[Suzn18]

He doesn't like cheese?! My favorite, I wish I didn't like it.

Mikayla likes Gogurts for snack. You might try that.

I know, right?

His school snacks have to stay out so I can't send yogurt.

Gosh! That's really limited on what you can send. I think Annies bunnies and the cookies in that line are a good option maybe. Is that a peanut free facility?

[tiffanyandtoddmay3108]

I think there were already a lot of good ideas posted but I thought I would add a bit more...

On the weekends I boil a carton of eggs as well as grill a bunch of chicken tenderloins to eat for lunches or quick meals during the week.

if are you still on MFP feel free to check out my diary...I try to keep things fairly clean with mainly fruits, veggies, natural PB, eggs, chicken, Salmon and not many carbs besides oats... although the past week or so I have been a bit off due to my race over the weekend.

We do a lot of salads with chicken and veggies or lettuce wraps with ground turkey or chicken. When we have those the kids will eat the same but in tortillas or have grilled cheese or chicken nuggets instead. I also have really gotten into making an easy Honey soy salmon in the oven and we have that at least once or twice a week with sweet potatoes or one of the fall squashes.

[durbaa]

I think there were already a lot of good ideas posted but I thought I would add a bit more...

On the weekends I boil a carton of eggs as well as grill a bunch of chicken tenderloins to eat for lunches or quick meals during the week.

if are you still on MFP feel free to check out my diary...I try to keep things fairly clean with mainly fruits, veggies, natural PB, eggs, chicken, Salmon and not many carbs besides oats... although the past week or so I have been a bit off due to my race over the weekend.

We do a lot of salads with chicken and veggies or lettuce wraps with ground turkey or chicken. When we have those the kids will eat the same but in tortillas or have grilled cheese or chicken nuggets instead. I also have really gotten into making an easy Honey soy salmon in the oven and we have that at least once or twice a week with sweet potatoes or one of the fall squashes.

Tiffany, can you tell me how you make the Honey Soy Salmon?

[mrs.shea]

He doesn't like cheese?! My favorite, I wish I didn't like it.

Mikayla likes Gogurts for snack. You might try that.

I know, right?

His school snacks have to stay out so I can't send yogurt.

Gosh! That's really limited on what you can send. I think Annies bunnies and the cookies in that line are a good option maybe. Is that a peanut free facility?

It is hard! I know Annie's bunny grahams are ok but he doesn't really like those. TJ's cereal bars are not, the Barabara's Snackimals animal cookies I get are not...so many times I find a decent pre-packaged snack but they're made in a facility with nuts. I feel bad for those with allergies! I'm going I try to make a batch of homemade animal cookies this weekend. I really like them but haven't had the time to make them.

[jennelled]

It is hard! I know Annie's bunny grahams are ok but he doesn't really like those. TJ's cereal bars are not, the Barabara's Snackimals animal cookies I get are not...so many times I find a decent pre-packaged snack but they're made in a facility with nuts. I feel bad for those with allergies! I'm going I try to make a batch of homemade animal cookies this weekend. I really like them but haven't had the time to make them.

Wait. What?! I understand having a nut-free policy at a school, but you can't send prepackaged foods for your own son that were made in a facility that might process nuts? My point being, a homemade, nut-free snack would be okay (like your cookies), even though you could very well keep nuts at your own home, and maybe even use the same tools and utensils when handling them (a food processor to grind them, for instance)?

[mrs.shea]

It is hard! I know Annie's bunny grahams are ok but he doesn't really like those. TJ's cereal bars are not, the Barabara's Snackimals animal cookies I get are not...so many times I find a decent pre-packaged snack but they're made in a facility with nuts. I feel bad for those with allergies! I'm going I try to make a batch of homemade animal cookies this weekend. I really like them but haven't had the time to make them.

Wait. What?! I understand having a nut-free policy at a school, but you can't send prepackaged foods for your own son that were made in a facility that might process nuts? My point being, a homemade, nut-free snack would be okay (like your cookies), even though you could very well keep nuts at your own home, and maybe even use the same tools and utensils when handling them (a food processor to grind them, for instance)?

Yes. There is a child in the class with nut allergies. The snacks are placed in a snack bin at the beginning of the day and they eat the snacks in class so they're stricter than lunch time. At lunch kids with nut allergies sit at a separate table and you can send nut items for lunch (although I don't). They haven't said we can't send homemade items. They may not prefer it but we definitely can't send something that specifically says it may contain nuts.

[nicole]

I love to make no-bake energy balls/bites to have on hand for easy snacking. A lot of recipes you can find are packed with protein and other good-for-you stuff (chia, flax).

I really like both of these recipes however they do contain nuts, so that could be a problem:
Oatmeal Peanut Butter Bites] (I make these without the chocolate chips)
Walnut Oatmeal Date Balls (only 3 ingredients!)

A few more I have pinned to try:
Apple Pie Energy Snacks
Pumpkin Pie Energy Bites