We’ve been asked to stay at home for almost two months now. How are you feeling? Is stress getting to you? If so, it might be time to examine what you’re cooking and consuming. In times of stress, your body needs nutritious ingredients more than ever.
Are you leaning toward healthy meals made with fresh ingredients that provide your body with a mix of vitamins and minerals to boost your immune system? Or are you digging into the freezer for frozen pizza, pasta, or anything you can nuke in 5 minutes or less? Or maybe you fall somewhere in between.
In the spirit of “eating to live” rather than “living to eat,” we thought we’d share a few favorite recipes that are healthy and relatively easy to make. Each of these recipes will provide a significant boost of nutrition for your body.
Here’s what we’re cooking during COVID-19:
Arugula Breakfast Salad
Ever had leafy greens with your breakfast? Well then, you’ll have to trust us on this one—they’re delicious! And, starting your day with a dose of healthy greens sets a positive tone, putting you in the mindset of making healthy choices throughout the day.
Ingredients
- Arugula – two handfuls
- 4 walnuts, chopped
- 4-8 cherry tomatoes
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon light vinaigrette dressing
- ½ avocado
Start by arranging a bed of arugula on your plate. Then “decorate it” with sliced cherry tomatoes, chopped walnuts and avocado. Next, prepare your eggs in a frying pan sprayed lightly with olive oil so they won’t stick. Cook the eggs your preferred way: scrambled is good, or, if you like them “over easy,” the egg yolk will mix with the vinaigrette to provide even more complexity to the taste of your salad dressing. Once the eggs are cooked to your liking, slide them out of the pan onto the bed of arugula, season with pepper and salt, top lightly with vinaigrette ― and enjoy.
Chickpea Mashed Toast
What’s for lunch? This quick, healthy, high-fiber lunch option is flavorful and provides nutrients to your body. Chickpeas are a plant-based protein that pack a punch of fiber and provide your body with manganese, which is essential in producing energy. Chickpeas are hearty and will give you that “full” feeling of satiety. They also help stabilize blood sugar levels and help you maintain a healthy weight.
You’ll need a food processor (or a blender) for this recipe.
Ingredients
- 15-oz can of chickpeas
- ½ avocado
- Fresh basil: 10-15 leaves
- Juice of half a fresh lemon
- Toasted bagel thin
Add 15 ounces of chickpeas into the food processor, followed by 10-15 basil leaves. Then add the juice of half a fresh lemon (be careful not to get any of the lemon seeds into the food processor – they may be hard to find among the chickpeas!). Next, add half the avocado.
Pulse the chickpea mash mixture in the food processor lightly a few times until the ingredients are roughly blended. Toast a bagel thin. Remove the chickpea mixture from the food processor with a spatula and spread it onto your bagel thin and voila! A healthy lunch in five minutes or less.
Baked Salmon with Garlic Spinach
Looking for a healthy dinner option? Baked salmon with garlic spinach has nutrients your body craves, including spinach, a dark leafy green that is rich in both magnesium and vitamin-B, plus salmon with its omega-3 fatty acids.
Ingredients
- 2 salmon filets (wild-caught is preferable)
- 6 cups fresh or 1 pound frozen spinach
- Garlic (3 to 4 cloves, chopped or sliced)
- Lemon juice
- Coconut oil (room temperature)
- ½ tablespoon turmeric (divided into ¼ and ¼)
Marinate the salmon in coconut oil, add fresh cracked black pepper and salt, ¼ teaspoon turmeric and a clove of chopped garlic.
Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes or until the salmon starts to flake. As the salmon bakes, heat 2 teaspoons of coconut oil in a pan and sizzle the remaining chopped garlic in it for about 45 seconds. Add the spinach and cook until the spinach wilts. If using frozen spinach, pour off the extra liquid when it’s finished cooking.
When the salmon starts to flake and is cooked, plate the spinach and serve the salmon filet atop the spinach. Add cracked pepper to taste and season with turmeric and freshly squeezed lemon juice.