The best part of a salad in a jar you can add anything you would like. Follow these steps for a delicious 17 day diet approved taco salad-in-a-jar or substitute any ingredients to create the salad of your dreams. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO. 

Start with a clean 32oz glass jar or a couple.
Layer 1: Salsa or any other 17 Day Diet approved dressing you prefer
Layer 2: Ground Turkey or ground chicken
Layer 3: Tomatoes, bell peppers, or any 17 day diet approved cleansing vegetables
Layer 4: Lettuce, kale, spinach, or your favorite leafy green
Layer 5: nonfat cheddar cheese.

Place each layer in the jar staring with the dressing and ending with the cheese. Place the lid on the jar and store in the refrigerator. Make multiple salads at a time to save time during the week.

http://www.dailybitesblog.com/2012/09/13/taco-salad-jars/

• 1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt or cottage cheese
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I love BSN Vanilla Ice Cream)
• Zest from 1 key lime
• 1 tablespoon key lime juice (about 3 key limes)
•  5-10 ice cubes
• 1 cup almond milk, water, or coconut milk, unsweetened
• 1/2 teaspoon stevia
• 1 teaspoon sugar-free vanilla pudding mix
• 1 cup spinach (to make it green)

Blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour into an large glass or mason jason and top with a crushed graham cracker and nonfat whipped cream (optional).

On the 17 Day Diet? Use water not milk and Greek yogurt in your smoothie.

On the Flat Belly Diet? Add a tablespoon of chia seeds before you blend to get your MUFA’s in.

Photo courtesy of skinnymom.com

Cauliflower Crust Garlic Breadsticks

Ingredients:

• 1/4-1/2 a head of cauliflower (about 2 cups) (Beneficial)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil (Beneficial)
• 1 clove garlic, minced (Beneficial)
• 1 large egg (Beneficial)
• 4 oz low fat mozzarella cheese, grated (Beneficial)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
• 1 pinch each salt and pepper
• Cooking spray
• Optional for dipping:Marinara sauce (Neutral)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and line a loaf pan with parchment paper so that paper hangs over the sides.
2. Lightly spray parchment paper with cooking spray.
3. Rice the cauliflower. To “rice,” grate the cauliflower with a cheese grater.
4. Cook “rice” in the microwave until soft, about 6-7 minutes, stirring every two minutes.
5. While the cauliflower cooks, beat the egg, garlic, 3 ounces of the cheese, 1/4 teaspoon dried italian herb seasoning, and salt and pepper.
6. Add cooked cauliflower to cheese mixture and combine.
7. Spread “dough” into your loaf pan.
8. Bake 30 minutes, remove from oven, flip over and bake an additional ten minutes on the other side. The bread sticks should be golden brown when you remove them from the oven the second time.
9. Cut the breadsticks into sticks, you will get about 8. Sprinkle with the remaining one ounce cheese and 1/4 teaspoon seasoning. Place back into oven for 3 minutes or until the cheese melts.
10. Serve with marina sauce or as an accompaniment to spaghetti made with whole wheat noodles for a full meal.

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 cup Agave sweetener
• 1 tablespoon stevia
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup egg white subsistute or 3 egg whites
• 1 ½ Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil, melted
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Toppings: fresh berries, Maple Bananas, or apples

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Spray liners with coking spray to prevent any sticking.
2. Combine oats, cinnamon, stevia, and baking powder in a bowl and mix together.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together Agave, egg, egg whites, water, coconut oil, and vanilla extract.
4. Mix the wet and dry ingredients together.
5. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop the mix into the muffin tins. **The ice cream scoop ensures that all your muffins will be the same size and cook evenly.
6. Sprinkle the desired topping over the cup and press the topping into the mixture slightly.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes just until the edges turn golden brown and the cup no longer looks wet.
8. Remove from the oven and enjoy. **Store leftovers in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for 2 months (they wont last that long) and reheat in the microwave or toaster oven.

Photo Credit www.pamelasalzman.com

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons grated lime zest
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup quinoa, washed
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 4 scallions, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

1. Whisk together first four ingredients with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Bring 2 cups water and 1 cup quinoa to a boil in a medium pot with 1 tablespoon salt. After it reaches a boil reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 10-15 minutes.
3. Remove pot from heat and remove lid. Let stand for about 5 minutes.
4. Add quinoa to dressing and toss until dressing is absorbed, then stir in remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste.

Optional: Beef this up with a little extra protein. Dice up a block of firm tofu and add it to the mix.

Delicious 70 calorie Protein-Packed Lemon Bars 

Clean eating lemon bars – that taste just like the naughty lemon bars you love!!!

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 2 egg whites
• 8 oz fat free cream cheese
• 1/2 cup instant nonfat dry milk
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 3/4 cup low-fat vanilla protein powder
• 3/4 cup stevia
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. whisk egg and egg whites in a small bowl
3. combine cream cheese and all the remaining ingredients in a Ninja Professional Blender .
4. When mix is smooth, add eggs and blend.
5. With nonfat cooking spray, spray a 8 x 8 Pyrex Square Baking Dish.
6. Pour batter into pan and place in preheated oven
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick come out clean

Looking for more clean eating recipes? Try this clean eating meal plan. 3 meals + 1 snack planned each day. Hundreds of extra recipes to swap with, too!

Making your own popsicles is an easy and healthy option to store bought products with artificial ingredients, colors and sweeteners. Check out this awesome cookbook for making many different types of popsicles at home. All you’ll need usually is some Popsicle Molds and a freezer. You might also need a Ninja Blender, it’s the best – most powerful blender you’ll ever own! The best investment. I promise. Check out the book here for tasty & healthy Popsicle Recipes
.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk 
• 1 scoops chocolate protein
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (optional)

Instructions:

1. Blend all ingredients in a Ninja Blender (it’s the best!). You must blend them otherwise you will have cocoa and protein chunks. 
2. Pour mixture into Popsicle Moldsleaving about 1/2 inch room (as the mixture expands it will expand).
3. Freeze or at least eight hours.
4. Enjoy

Follow these steps to create a more environmentally friendly diet. 

Eat Less Meat

Eating more plants and less meat is possibly the single best thing you can do for the environment. Livestock accounts for 20% of greenhouse gases according to the United Nations. That is more then all the cars, SUVS, trailers, planes, ocean freighters, and any other transport activity combined.

Eat Real Food (minimally  processed foods)

The less processing a food undergoes the less energy and resources are required to manufacture, package, and ship the item.
Read more on how to eat foods that are best for the planet here in this book The Planet Friendly Diet.

Buy Local 

Or at least close to home. Clearly, the closer you source your produce from home the less travel is required. This also applies to super foods. The Acai berry is sourced from the Amazon and is rich in anthocyanins, fiber, potassium, and magnesium. Blueberries and pomegranates found in America are also rich in those nutrients. The closer we get to home the better.  Visit www.localharvest.org to find a farmers market near you.

Eat Foods that are In-Season

Eating in-season foods means eating fresher foods. They have just been harvested and have spent less time traveling and in storage.

Learn to Preserve 

Preserve fresh fruits and vegetables by canning, drying, and freezing them for future use. That way when you crave strawberries in the middle of December, you have access to local and “in season” produce. Do your own canning at home with this Canning Kit and Set of Canning Jars .

Buy in Bulk

Buying in bulk means less packaging. 30% of consumer waste is packaging material. Buy meat, cheese, fruits, and vegetables in bulk and preserve what can’t be used in reusable containers.

Use Reusable Bags 

Replacing cloth bags for your grocery needs, reduces the amount of paper and plastic bags found in landfills each year. In New York City, one less grocery bag per person would reduce waste by 5 million pounds. Try these Mesh Reusable Produce Bags for your produce, and these Colorful Eco Shopping Bags for your groceries.

Buy Organic 

The largest green benefit from eating organic is the elimination of fossil fuels needed to produce, manufacture, ship, and apply fertilizers and pesticides to crops.

Drink Smart 

Use a reusable water bottle and drink from a tap or filter. It is estimated that only 20% of water bottles were recycled and the rest ended in a landfill. The production of plastic bottles also requires 50 million barrels of oil annually which doesn’t include the transportation. I like these Soft Squeeze Filter Bottles by Brita or this Reusable 24-Ounce Cold Tumbler for when I am just around the house or want to go to Starbux or Jamba Juice for a smoothie – don’t be shy to bring your own cup to these places.

Plan, Plan, and Plan 

Save time, energy, and gas. Planning meals ensures less trips to the grocery store and less food waste.

During exercise, our muscles and carbohydrate stores break down. The muscle tissue rips and prepares itself to be rebuilt. However, without the proper nutrition, your body can’t rebuild and will never reach its full potential.

What do I eat post workout?

After a workout, you want to fuel your body with carbohydrates and protein, which are essential to the rebuilding process. Fat is not necessary and it may even derail your progress as it slows digestion. If you calculate your needs, you will need .8 grams of carbs per kilogram and .4 grams of protein per kilogram. Keep in mind that it is also best to consume your post workout meal ASAP for the biggest benefits. Check out these ten quick meals to fuel your body after training.

Ten Quick Post Workout Mini Meals

1. Protein Creamcicle: Blend 1 scoop Vanilla protein powder and 1 cup orange juice.
2. Yogurt Parfait: ½ cup nonfat Greek yogurt, ½ cup fresh blueberries or strawberries, and ¼ cup low fat granola or whole grain cereal.
3. Banana Snack: 1 banana and 1 cup nonfat milk.
4. Cottage Cheese Pick up: 1 cup nonfat cottage cheese, I teaspoon honey, and ½ cup fresh or frozen berries
5. Omelet: 3 egg whites and 1 cup sautéed veggies.
6. Tuna Toast: 4 oz water packed tuna on a slice of whole wheat bread
7. Oats & Eggs: Stir ¼ cup dry oats, 2 egg whites, and 1/3 cup nonfat milk. Place in the microwave for 2 minutes stirring half way.
8. Turkey Wrap: Spread hummus on turkey slices, place carrot inside, and roll up for a crunchy protein snack.
9. Pom Shake: Blend ½ cup pomegranate juice, ½ cup ice, and 1 scoop Vanilla protein powder. Pomegranate juice helps relieve muscle soreness.
10. Did you say Chocolate: 1 cup chocolate milk.

Ingredients:

• 1 cupKashi GOLEAN Crunch Cereal(low fat granola will work too)
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup nonfat milk
• 3 teaspoons sugar free vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups vanilla nonfat Greek yogurt (or any flavor you like)
• 1/2 cup fat free Cool Whip, thawed
• Caramel Sauce  or chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

1. For the crust, place Kashi cereal, almond flour, egg, and olive oil in a food processor and pulse until well blended. 
2. Line a muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners.
3. Place a tablespoon of the crust mixture into the lined muffin tin and press flat.
4. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 13 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
5. Remove crusts from oven and cool completely.
6. Whisk milk and pudding mix until there are no clumps. Place in the refrigerator until firm, about five minutes.
7. Remove pudding mix from the fridge and stir in yogurt and Cool Whip until well blended.
8. Place a heaping tablespoon of yogurt mixture on top of each crust and smooth over crust.
9. If you are using caramel drizzle the caramel on top of the yogurt mixture and then cover caramel with another tablespoon of yogurt mixture. If you are using chocolate chips, add 1/2 cup to the yogurt mixture and skip the caramel step.
10. Place tray in the freezer until hard, about two hours.
11. They will last in the freezer for months. Remove five minutes before eating to thaw out. I suggest eating on a plate with a fork.

Here you go!

Fill muffin liner with crust and bake.

Ater cooled, place one spoon full of yogurt mixture and smooth out.

Drizzle yogurt with caramel.

Top with another spoon of yogurt, Freeze and enjoy.

TA-DA!