You Need to Try These Delicious Summer Recipes!

As we move toward summer, our meals get lighter. Here are 3 recipes – one for breakfast, lunch, and dinner – to get you inspired for the season!

Breakfast: Strawberry Smoothie (makes 1 serving)

Ingredients:

1-2 cups frozen organic strawberries

1 cup frozen cauliflower (I promise you can’t taste it!)

1 serving of vanilla protein powder

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Pinch of sea salt

1 tbsp. flax seed or chia seeds (optional)

1 tbsp. melted coconut oil or nut butter

~12oz. of water (enough to cover all of the ingredients)

Directions:

1. Place all of the ingredients in a high-speed blender (I use a NutriBullet Rx) with enough water to cover everything.
2. If you’re using a smaller blender or a blender cup, be sure not to exceed the “max” fill line. Blend well; if it’s too thick just add more water.
3. Sip over the course of 30 minutes and enjoy!

Lunch: Homemade Chicken Salad (makes 4 servings)

This chicken salad is great because it uses Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise, which is a convenient way to get in extra protein! Plus, with this homemade recipe, you don’t have to worry about any weird ingredients that you might find in store-bought chicken salads! Also, you can make it taste exactly the way you like it by adding different sweet or savory options.

You are welcome to bake your own boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but for this recipe I keep it simple and use rotisserie chicken!

Ingredients:

~ 4-5 cups shredded rotisserie chicken

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/3 cup celery, diced

1/3 cup apples, diced

1/3 cup red onion, diced

1/3 cup grapes, halved

¼ cup chopped almonds, walnuts, or pecans

¼ cup dried cranberries or raisins, optional

Salt, to taste

To make it SWEET, add 1-2 tbsp. lemon juice and 1-2 tbsp. honey.

To make it SAVORY, add 1-2 tbsp. Dijon mustard, 1 tbsp. fresh dill, and ¼ tsp. black pepper.

Directions:

1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Add plain Greek yogurt to create your desired consistency.
3. Mix in additional ingredients as desired.
4. Serve on a high fiber bread like Ezekiel bread, in lettuce wraps, or on a warmed corn tortilla if you are sensitive to gluten. You can also serve with apple slices, celery sticks, cucumbers, tomato slices, or avocado. Feel free to get creative if you don’t want to eat bread or crackers!

Dinner: Burger Bowls (Makes 4 Servings)

Who doesn’t love a good burger on their patio when the weather is nice? These burger bowls satisfy my cravings without the bun and the unhealthy fats that come with French fries. (And you don’t even have to fire up the grill… unless you want to, of course!)

Ingredients:

3-4 small (or 1-2 large) russet potatoes; washed, peeled, and cut into ~1 in. pieces

1 lb. ground turkey or lean ground beef

1 head of Iceberg lettuce or 1-2 large heads romaine lettuce, chopped

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder for seasoning the meat

Burger toppings of choice; for example:

• chopped tomatoes
• chopped red onion (raw or sautéed)
• pickles
• shredded cheese
• mushrooms
• avocado
• bacon
• ketchup, mustard, mayo, etc. (I recommend the brand “Primal Kitchen”)

Directions:

1. Place the cut potatoes on a greased baking dish and sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Bake at 425F until crispy, about 30 minutes (flip halfway through).
2. While the potatoes are baking, cook the ground meat in a pan and season generously with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.
3. Chop up the lettuce and place in 4 large bowls to create the “base” for the burger bowls. When the meat is done cooking, separate it into 4 portions and place one portion on top of each bowl of lettuce.
4. Add any and all burger toppings you wish to the bowl – that’s right, even the condiments!
   Mix it all together.
5. You may top your bowl with the roasted potatoes, or you can eat them separately with your condiments of choice!

There is nothing more powerful for your health than eating real, whole food! These recipes are a great place to start.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Which is your favorite summer recipe? How often do you prepare it? Have you discovered a new recipe that you’d like to share?