Dinner Recipes

VEGETARIAN

1. Healthy Burrito (modified from Pump Nutrition Guide)

Ingredients: Whole Wheat Tortilla, 1/4 cup low sodium black beans, 2 Tbsp. grated reduced fat cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup red and green bell peppers, 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes, 1/4 cup fresh salsa (optional).

Directions: Top tortilla with beans, cheese, peppers, and tomato.  Roll up and microwave for 1 minute or until heated through.  Serve with salsa if desired.

2. Farfalle with Mint Walnut Pesto (from cleaneatingmag.com)

3. Quinoa and Black Bean Tacos

4. Bikini Bolognese – You need a spiralizer for this one!  Can sub lean ground beef or chicken for ground turkey if desired.

CHICKEN

4. Chicken Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats (from www.skinnytaste.com)

5. Chile Chicken Tortillas (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

6. Orange Chipotle Chicken with Cilantro Rice (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)4. Chinese Chicken Stir Fry (from Pump Nutrition Guide)

Ingredients: Olive oil cooking spray, 4 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into cubes), 1 cup broccoli, 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms, 1/2 cup snow peas, 2 tsp reduced-sodium soy sauce, 2-3 Tbsp low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth, 1 tsp peanut or sesame oil, 1/3 cup cooked quinoa (can substitute brown rice).

Directions: Lightly coat skillet with cooking spray.  Cook chicken, then remove from pan and add broccoli, mushrooms, and snow peas.  Cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 6-8 minutes.  Add chicken back to skillet with vegetables and season with soy sauce, broth, and/or oil.  Serve over quinoa or rice.

7. Chicken Rollatini Stuffed with Zucchini and Mozzarella

Note: Substitute all natural, whole wheat bread crumbs for Italian breadcrumbs

8. Baked pasta with Chicken Sausage and Spinach (from www.skinnytaste.com)

Note: Use whole grain or whole wheat pasta.

9. Chicken Ropa Vieja (from www.skinnytaste.com)

Note: Serve over brown Cilantro lime rice (or lettuce) and top with Southwestern black bean salad, sprinkle withreduced-fat shredded cheese (if desired).

10. Baked Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients: 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to ½ inch thickness; 1 egg; ½ cup low or nonfat milk; whole wheat bread crumbs (no sugar added); 2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil; 4 slices reduced fat mozzarella (or shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese); 1 jar no-sugar added marinara sauce; parmesan cheese

Directions: Wisk together egg and milk.  Dip chicken breasts in milk and egg and then in whole wheat bread crumbs.  Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat and brown chicken on both sides until golden, about 2-3 minutes.  Set chicken in baking dish.  Top each chicken breast with mozzarella cheese and marinara sauce.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and a little more mozzarella.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.  Can serve over whole wheat pasta and/or with a side salad.

11. Chicken Cordon Bleu (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

12. Chicken, Spinach, and Ricotta Quesadillas (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

13. Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad (from www.halfbakedharvest.com)

14. Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas (from www.realmomkitchen.com)Note: I used diced tomatoes with jalapenos or habanero peppers and add cayenne pepper and chipotle pepper to the chicken and veggies for added spice.  Also, sub whole wheat tortillas (such as Flat Out Light tortillas with 0 grams sugar) for flour tortillas. Top with reduced fat cheese (I use cheddar jack), light sour cream, and/or all natural guacamole.

15. Healthy Pad Thai

Scroll down to bottom of the page for recipe.  You can use low sodium soy sauce in place of liquid aminos.  Fish sauce is a Thai sauce that can be found with the International foods in the grocery store.  My husband likes this with regular rice noodles, but to make it “clean” use whole wheat noodles or quinoa noodles.  Add Sriracha for added spice – this gives it a kick!)

16. Roasted Potatoes, Chicken Sausage, and Peppers (from www.skinnytaste.com)

Note: Also good for breakfast.

17. Sweet and Sour Chicken (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

Directions: Serve over brown rice and top with Sriracha sauce for added spice.

18. Chicken Taco Soup (see recipe below)

1 onion, chopped

1 (16 oz) can chili beans
1 (15 oz) can black beans
1 (15 oz) can whole, kernel corn, drained
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 can chicken broth
2 (10 oz) cans, diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 package taco seasoning*
3 whole, skinless, boneless chicken breasts
Shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
Sour cream (optional)
Crushed tortilla chips (optional)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.

Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

* Instead of taco seasoning you can use the following spice mix – which gives a better flavor (adjust to desired spice level)

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

19. Slow Cooker Southwest Chicken

This can be served over rice or modified to make into chicken enchiladas.  To make the chicken enchiladas, I add 1 tsp of thyme and some cayenne pepper (to taste) for the seasonings, some extra green chilis and chopped jalepenos, and then cook it on low for about 8 hours. If it’s a little soupier than I would like you can turn it up to high at the end and take the lid off to let some of the water evaporate.  Instead of serving it over the rice, I added the rice in, along with a can of fat free refried beans and some shredded cheddar, mix it all up, and rolled it up in tortillas.

Pour a thin layer of any enchilada sauce in a 9X13 dish, lay the enchiladas on top, pour the remaining enchilada sauce on top, sprinkle with shredded cheddar and top with additional green chilis or jalepenos if you want. Bake on 350 for ~25 min until the cheese is melted.

20. Caprese Chicken

21. Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad – super simple and hearty enough for a meal!

22. Clean Eating Chipotle – marinade the chicken using THIS RECIPE.  Serve the chicken over Romaine lettuce with tomato, corn, avocado, etc. and add Chipotle Lime Rice, beans, and/or peppers and onion if desired.  This one is great as leftovers too – either as a salad or wrap (use a whole grain wrap).  When making it with chicken, use naturally raised chicken (can be found at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, or any other store that specializes in natural foods).  If you can’t get boneless whole chicken, de-bone a whole chicken yourself or get boneless thigh meat.  This recipe works for steak too!  Use naturally raised, free range, grass fed beef.

TURKEY

23. Pasta Roll Ups with Turkey and Spinach (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

24. Teriyaki Turkey Burger

Ingredients: 1 can pineapple slices, 1/2 cup all natural, no sugar added, teriyaki sauce (such as Trinity Hill Farms Teriyaki Sauce & Marinade), 2lb. lean ground turkey, 1 tsp grated fresh ginger (can add a little more), 1/2 cup all natural, whole wheat breadcrumbs (such as Ian’s All Natural Whole Wheat Panko breadcrumbs), reduced fat cheddar or Monterey jack cheese

Directions: Mix teriyaki sauce and 1/2 cup pineapple juice together in a separate bowl.  Mix turkey, ginger, breadcrumbs and teriyaki sauce mixture together and shape into patties.  Grill burgers.  Top burgers with pineapple slices if desired.

25. Clean Eating Lasagna Soup

Ingredients: 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, 1 pound Italian turkey sausage (can substitute chicken sausage) casings removed, 1 onion, chopped green bell pepper, 3 cloves garlic, minced, 1 (32-ounce) container low-sodium chicken broth,  1 (15-ounce) can no sugar added tomato sauce, 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, 4 ounces whole-wheat pasta (I use shells but any shape will do), 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (I sometimes sprinkle dried basil), 1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded mozzarella cheese.

Directions: Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large nonstick saucepot or Dutch oven. Add the sausage, onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is crumbled and browned, 8 – 10 minutes. Add the broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, salt, and crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the flavors are blended, about 20 minutes. Add the noodles; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the soup thickens slightly and the noodles are tender, 10 – 12 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in mozzarella and basil.

26. Spicy Turkey Lasagna

My modifications:  I sauteed green pepper, mushrooms, and onions and added them to the sauce instead of buying a sauce with them already in it.  I mixed the sauce with turkey, then layered meat sauce, no bake noodles, cheese mixture, more meat sauce, noodles, cheese mixture, etc. in a 9X13 dish.  Instead of using the slow cooker, I baked it in the oven at 350 for 30 min with foil on top, then 15 min uncovered.  THIS WAS A REALLY GOOD RECIPE AND A HEALTHIER ALTERNATIVE TO YOUR TYPICAL BEEF LASAGNA.

27. Mexican Lasagna

It’s from the 21 day fix workout program, so some of the ingredients are listed with the number of colored containers instead of actual measurements. I use 1 lb lean ground beef or ground turkey, 1 1/2 cans of fat free fried beans (one spicy and one regular), and a cup of shredded cheddar cheese. The recipe for the southwest seasoning is as follows:

1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried paprika
1 tsp sea salt

This makes a 9×13 pan of lasagna. It freezes well too, so instead of eating it for three days in a row you can always cook and eat half and freeze the other half.

28. Turkey Stuffed Peppers– makes enough to fill 5-6 peppers

29. Turkey, Veggie, and Oat Mini Meatloaves with Marinara Sauce– easy to prepare and kid-friendly!

30. Buffalo Turkey Burgers with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw

31. Clean Eating Zucchini Lasagna – gluten free and NO added sugar!

FISH

32. Asian Salmon (from www.bodybuilding.com)Note: Sub a natural sweetener, such as honey or maple syrup, for the Splenda and brown sugar.  Click HERE for a PDF file of the recipe.

33. Keep it Tight Tilapia (from www.theeatcleandiet.com)

34. Chipotle Fish Tacos (from www.allrecipes.com)

35. Pan Seared Salmon with Garlic, Tomatoes, and Basil (from 400 Calorie Fix by Liz Vaccariello)Ingredients: 4 salmon filets, ½ tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. pepper, 1 onion, 2 cloves garlic (minced), 3 cups halved grape tomatoes, 3 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil, and 1 cup dry whole wheat couscous

Directions: Spray skillet with olive oil spray and heat on medium-high.  Sprinkle salmon with ¼ tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper.  Cook filets in skillet, turning once, until the fish is browned and flakes easily, about 9-10 minutes.  Transfer to a plate and keep warm while you cook the onion and garlic until softened, about 4-5 minutes.  Stir in the tomatoes and cook until wilted, about 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat, stir in basil and remaining salt and pepper.  Meanwhile, prepare couscous.  Serve salmon and veggies over couscous.

36. Grilled Fish Tacos with Citrus Cabbage Slaw
Click HERE for the Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing recipe to go with the tacos.

37. Tilapia with Spinach (or Kale) and Tomatoes

38. Toasted Sesame Salmon Nuggets – great for kids too!

39. Never Be Bored Again Salmon– I love #3 – Asian salmon – but use honey instead of Splenda

40. Salmon with Avocado

41. Clean Eating Manicotti – This one is made with Tilapia!

SHRIMP

42. Super Simple Shrimp Tacos (from www.cleananddelicious.com)

43. Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp and BasilNote: Use whole wheat pasta instead of regular.

PORK

44. Slow Cooker Carnitas (from www.allrecipes.com)

Note: I serve the pork on a whole wheat tortilla and top with a Tomato and Avocado Salad, such as this one:http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/tomato_onion_avocado_salad/)

45. Crock Pot Asian Pork with Mushrooms (from www.skinnytaste.com)

46. Pork Loin Roast with Onions

Ingredients: 4-5 lb. pork loin roast, 1 clove garlic Sliced, 2 medium onions, 2 bay leaves, 1 whole garlic clove, 1/2 c. Hot water, 1 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce

Directions: Rub pork with salt and pepper.  Make tiny slits in the pork and insert garlic slices.  Place meat in broiler pan and broil for 15 minutes.  Slice Onions and put 1 sliced onion in bottom of crock pot.  Add browned pork and remaining onions, then add remaining ingredients.  Cover and cook in crock pot on high for 5-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours.  Remove meat.  Blend 2 Tbsp. cornstarch and 12 Tbsp. cold water to make a paste and then stir into gravy.

47. Adobe Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Black Bean Pico De Gallo (from the Eat Clean Diet).

48. 21 Day Fix Friendly Pork Carnitas – this is my family’s favorite slow cooker pulled pork recipe!  Serve it on tortillas with a tomato, avocado, and onion salad; on a whole grain roll; on it’s own; etc.

LEAN BEEF/STEAK

49. Steak and Farfalle Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce

50. Barbocoa Beef (from www.skinnytaste.com)Note: Serve over cilantro lime rice or lettuce with corn salsa.  Can also use for beef tacos or as a burrito bowl.

51. Beef and Spinach Lasagna (from cleaneatingwithkids.wordpress.com)Note: Check out http://cleaneatingwithkids.wordpress.com/ for other kid-friendly recipes.

52. Sirloin Beef Wraps (from www.cleaneatingmag.com)

53. Burgers and Fries – Yes, you read that correctly!  You can eat clean and still get your Burger fix!  (This one is also 21 Day Fix friendly!)

54. Orange Peel Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry