The Youthful Body
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Healthy Dinners: More Choices Than You Think

For many of us, dinner is a very important meal. In fact, we tend to eat more and spend more on dinners. However, many health conscious individuals skip eating dinner to avoid storing fats as the body becomes inactive when sleeping and unable to burn the calories, which is actually not true. What many of […]

For many of us, dinner is a very important meal. In fact, we tend to eat more and spend more on dinners. However, many health conscious individuals skip eating dinner to avoid storing fats as the body becomes inactive when sleeping and unable to burn the calories, which is actually not true. What many of us don’t know is that our body system works best at night, while we are sleeping. The digestive system continues to process food; thus the dinner we eat is digested. Also, the liver detoxifies and the kidneys cleanse themselves from toxins while we are resting.

But like any type of meal, the amount of food we eat for dinner has to be just enough. Anything eaten in excess, except for fruits and vegetables, will become excess fats. That being said, eating healthy dinners is necessary to keep us full and healthy.

Healthy Dinners: Your Healthy Choices

There are tons of healthy dinners we could prepare at home. All it takes is time to buy the ingredients and prepare them. Here are seven recipes for healthy dinners:

Chicken Bake, Spanish-Style

CHICKEN-BAKE

If you have time to prepare healthy dinners, this recipe is very good for you.

What you need are:

  • 8 boneless and skinned chicken thighs
  • 75 grams chorizo, if at all possible, use picante
  • 500 grams quartered potatoes
  • 8 medium, quartered tomatoes
  • 8 whole and unpeeled garlic cloves
  • 1 green pepper, deseeded and cut into strips
  • 1 medium onion, wedged into 8
  • 1 medium red onion, wedged into 8
  • ½ teaspoon oregano, dried
  • ½ teaspoon smoked, sweet paprika

Cooking Instruction:

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. In a large roasting tin, put the tomatoes, garlic, onions and potatoes. Put see salt and tons of ground black pepper.
  2. Lightly toss everything together and roast for at least 20 minutes.
  3. While waiting for the vegetables to roast, you can skin the chorizo and cut the meat into 5 mm thin.
  4. Slash the chicken thighs 3 times and season them with black pepper. Add paprika and oregano and mix everything together.
  5. Remove the roasting tin from the oven and put the chorizo on top of the vegetables. Turn everything a few times.
  6. Put the chicken over the vegetables and chorizo, sprinkle oregano and paprika and add salt. Return the roasting tin to the oven and wait for another 20 minutes
  7. Remove the tin out.
  8. Using a pot holder or a cloth, hold one side of the tin and lift it so that the juice runs to the other side of the tin. Spoon the juice and drizzle it on the chicken.
  9. Tuck the pepper around the vegetables and chicken and return the roasting tin back to the oven at 220C. Wait for another 20 minutes or until the peppers softened and the chicken becomes golden and crispy.

Vegetable Pizza

Veggie Pizza

One of the best healthy dinners is homemade veggie pizza. This recipe is very easy to prepare, you only need 10-15 minutes for preparation and cooking.

What you need are:

  • 1 Ezekiel sprouted wheat tortilla
  • 4 tbsp. pizza sauce (tomato)
  • 5 black olives (sliced)
  • 1 clove of garlic (minced)
  • 1 oz. of organic cheese (this is optional)
  • ½  oz. of parmesan cheese (raw, optional)
  •  ¼ cup chopped green peppers
  • ¼ cup chopped onions
  • ¼ cup chopped broccoli
  • Crushed red pepper – for sprinkling

Cooking Instruction:

  1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Celsius.
  2. On a large pan, put thawed tortilla and place it in the oven for 4 minutes to harden the crust a bit.
  3. As soon as the edges of your tortilla start to crisp, remove it from the oven.
  4. Place sauce over the crust. Top it with the toppings you prepared, but be careful not to overload the crust.
  5. For a cheesy bite, you may put cheese on top, if you prefer that. Otherwise, you can cook your pizza with just the sauce and vegetables.
  6. Cook your pizza in the oven for 10 minutes. If you put cheese on it, it becomes bubbly when cooked.

Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

This recipe is very easy to prepare and can be served to four persons. So, if you want to enjoy healthy dinners with friends and family from time to time, this Quinoa Salad is a must-have.

What you need are:

  • 1 cup of quinoa (dry)
  • 1 large bunch of parsley (chopped and long stems removed)
  • 1 cup of cherry tomatoes (cut them in half)
  • 1 clove of garlic (minced)
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 lemon (juiced)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup of mint leaves (chopped)
  • ¼ of white onion (finely chopped)
  • ¼ teaspoon of black pepper (cracked)
  • Feta cheese, sheep’s milk or avocado (optional for topping)

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Cook quinoa according to instructions.
  2. Prepare the rest of the ingredients while waiting for the quinoa to cook.
  3. When the quinoa is cooked, just mix all ingredients together.

Barley-Stuffed Poblanos

Barley-Stuffed Poblanos

Barley-Stuffed Poblanos

A fibrous dinner is actually very good. It is very easy to digest and it helps regulating your bowel movements. For this recipe,

What you need are:

  • 6 poblano peppers (large)
  • 3 slices of Monterey Jack cheese, cut into half (it has to be reduced-fat cheese)
  • 3 cloves of garlic (minced)
  • 3 tbsp. olive oil (divide it into two parts)
  • 2 oz. or ½ cup grated white cheddar (reduced-fat is preferable)
  • 1 ½ cups of barley, which is soaked overnight and drained before use
  • 1 1/8 tsp. of chili powder (divide it into two parts)
  • 1 can of whole, peeled tomatoes (crush it for use)
  • 1 onion (large and diced)
  • 1 bunch of kale (chopped and stems removed)
  • ½ cup crumbled pasteurized cheese (queso fresco)
  • ¼ tsp of kosher salt

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Put in onions and cook until it becomes soft. Put the barley next and add 3 ¾ cups of water. Cook until the barley becomes tender. Stir in kale and 1/8 tsp chili powder. Wait until the kale wilt and then add the cheddar cheese.
  2. On a separate burner or cooking stove, heat the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook it for 3 minutes and then add the tomatoes and the remaining chili powder and salt. Bring everything to a boil. Decrease the heat and simmer the sauce. Stir it occasionally until it thickens. Turn the heat low and cover the sauce.
  3. Preheat your broiler and put a rack in the middle. Remove the stems from peppers to create a hole for stuffing. Don’t throw the stems. With a small knife, carefully remove the seeds and membranes off the peppers. You can now stuff the peppers with your barley mixture. Cover the pepper with the stem. Put the peppers in a baking dish (broiler-proof) and broil them until charred and soft. It usually takes at least 20 minutes. Turn the peppers once halfway through. Add tomato sauce around the peppers and cover each with ½ slice of Monterey Jack. Broil the peppers for 2 minutes or until the cheese melts. Put sauce on plates and then transfer the peppers. Top each with queso fresco.

Avocado and Grapefruit Salad with Parched Salmon

photo credit: la vie en fucshia|2011

photo credit: la vie en fucshia|2011

Another recipe to add to your collection of healthy dinners is this salad. Invite a friend over or prepare this for your family for a healthy and delicious dinner treat. For this recipe,

What you need are:

  • 1 ripe avocado (pitted and sliced)
  • 1 grapefruit (large)
  • 2 large bunches or 10 cups of arugula without the stems
  • 2 tbsp of lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp of olive oil
  • 5 oz. of salmon fillets with the skin (wild salmon is preferable)
  • ½ tsp ground pepper (divide it into two parts)
  • ½ tsp kosher salt (divide it into two parts)
  • ¼ cup of toasted walnuts (roughly chopped)
  • Cooking spray

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Peel and chop the avocado and set it aside. Peel the grapefruit next and section it using a knife. Reserve the juice. Toss the segments of grapefruit, including its juice, with avocado and arugula. Separate the salad onto 4 plates. In a mixing bowl, whip together the oil, lemon juice, and ¼ tsp salt and pepper.
  2. Dust over the remaining salt and pepper on both sides of the salmon. Coat a non-stick skillet with cooking spray, and put it over medium heat. Put the fish on, with the skin facing down. Cook until it becomes golden brown. Flip the fish over to cook the other side. Once cooked, break each fillet into 4 parts and top them on the salad. Drizzle each plate of salad with dressing. Sprinkle walnuts before serving.

Sweet, Savoury Grilled Chicken

Sweet, Savoury Grilled Chicken

One of the best protein-packed healthy dinners are chicken-based. For this recipe,

What you need are:

  • 2 tsp brown sugar (light brown is preferable)
  • 2 tsp dry mustard
  • 1 tsp powdered onion
  • 1 ¼ lbs of boneless and skinless breast chicken
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp ground black pepper or white pepper

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Mix together the dry mustard, sugar, salt, pepper and onion powder.
  2. Coat each side of the chicken with the mustard mixture before grilling.
  3. Preheat the grill to high heat. You can also broil the chicken if you want. When using a broiler, put a rack in the upper third of your oven and preheat the broiler.
  4. To grill, coat the grill rack with oil and put the each piece of chicken on top turning each side to cook.

To broil, line baking sheet or broiler pan with foil. Coat the foil with cooking spray and then place the chicken. Broil the chicken, making sure to turn each once to cook.

Sprouted Lentil Stuffed Red Pepper

Sprouted Lentil Stuffed Red Pepper

Finally, our 7th The healthy dinners’ recipe is red pepper stuffed with sprouted lentil. For this recipe,

What you need are:

  • 1 large red pepper
  • 1 cup arugula
  • 2 tbsp onions (chopped)
  • 1 clove of garlic (minced)
  • ½ oz of Parmesan or raw goat cheese (this is optional)
  • ¼ cup of cooked sprouted lentils
  • ¼ cup of tomato sauce for topping
  • Red pepper flakes for sprinkling

Cooking Instructions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 350C.
  2. While pre-heating, cut the stem off of the red pepper and remove the seeds inside.
  3. Mix all other ingredients in a bowl.
  4. Stuff the red pepper with the fillings your prepared. It doesn’t matter if it spills over.
  5. Top the stuffed pepper with tomato sauce, if you want.
  6. Bake it for 45 minutes.
  7. Remove from oven and serve hot.

To fully enjoy the good benefits of your healthy dinners, only buy organic ingredients whenever possible. For a guide to good nutrition using organic fruits and vegetables, you may read our previous blog at http://www.onlinehealthmag.com/nutrition/what-is-nutrition/.

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Aude Seynt Martin

Written by Aude Seynt Martin

Aude is an ex corporate Lawyer with a passion for health, self development and independence which lead her to give up her former career to help others through health.


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