Spring into action… Flip last night’s dinner into tomorrow’s lunch!
OurHarvest is excited to continue our guest blogger series featuring Stacie Castle, a registered dietitian with over 25 years experience.
I was so taken with the recent article about OurHarvest in Newsday, that I just had to write to Scott and Mike to tell them how impressed I was with their effort to bring the most nutritious farm-fresh wholesome food to our area. After all, it’s a dietitian’s dream come true! And what’s even better is that while you’re feeding your own family, you’re also helping one in need. Upon meeting Scott at an OurHarvest pick-up location, we got to talking and he suggested that I could write a guest blog…so I wanted to tell you about a new healthy trend that can help you save money and even lose weight. If you don’t already know it, food bowls are all the rage in the city. The upscale salad spots are creating interesting combinations for lunch while instagram and pinterest are all abuzz with people posting their own artistic creations.
How easy is it to make a super (meaning nutrient packed) lunch bowl when all you have to do is use your leftovers from the last few days to create a healthy meal with lean protein, some colorful fruit and/or vegetables and a whole grain starch. This is not a recipe per se, but a great way to use leftovers from a few nights of delicious dinners based on shopping the OurHarvest way! When you do your shopping for the week plan to have extras from dinner that you can use to make your colorful and eye pleasing salad bowl. When you start with the freshest ingredients straight from the farm it’s going to taste great no matter what you do to it!
Some interesting combinations can be:
A Sweet Salmon Bowl
Use baby bok choy and spinach for the base then add:
- Grilled organic scottish salmon with a honey drizzle
- Roasted kale
- Roasted organic rainbow carrots
- Bread and butter pickles
- Momo basil dressing
Steak and Eggs Bowl:
Use Brooklyn iceberg lettuce for the base then add:
- Whole wheat fettuccine (I used quinoa to be gluten-free)
- Sliced grass-fed NY strip steak from Ste-Wan farms
- Knoll Krest Farm fresh hard boiled egg
- Grilled Phillips Farm onions
- Steamed carrots
- Momo carrot ginger dressing
Mediterranean Chicken Bowl:
Use cut mixed kale and baby romaine lettuce for the base then top with:
- Grilled organic chicken cutlets with fresh lemon
- Roasted chioggia organic beets and norwich meadow farm rainbow carrots
- A dollop of Sohha all-natural hummus
- Top off with all-natural garlic mint dip
From my salmon dinner I created this delicious looking salad bowl…
And here’s a picture of some leftovers to make a steak and eggs bowl…
It all looks so yummy, I can’t wait to eat it!
Portion sizes can be…
- ½ cup grain/starch
- 2-4 oz lean protein
- 1-2 cups lettuce/spinach/kale
- 1 oz avocado or cheese
- ½ cup assorted vegetable
- Maybe a sprinkle of nuts ~ 1-2 tsp
- 1-2 tbsp dressing or 2 tsp oil and 2 tsp vinegar or lemon juice
Our Harvest shopping list suggestions…
- Organic scottish salmon
- Grass-fed NY strip steak or filet mignon
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Baby romaine lettuce mix
- Baby spinach
- Cut mixed kale
- Organic rainbow carrots
- Local sweet potatoes
- Local yellow onions
- Bok choy
- Organic chioggia beets
- Momo basil and Momo carrot dressings
- All-natural garlic mint yogurt dip
Get creative and have fun with this, just remember that at least half the serving should be plant based, one fourth whole grain/starch, one fourth lean protein (beans would make it vegetarian) and a little fat coming from salad dressing, (or avocado, cheese or nuts as desired).
When cleaning up from dinner I immediately set aside leftovers from the meal (and what’s in the fridge too) to have a delicious lunch the next day. Pack in BPA-free containers to tote to work or school.
What are you waiting for? Start making your shopping list for a week of healthy eating.
Enjoy!
Depending on ingredients these lunches can be -
Gluten-Free * Paleo Friendly * FODMAP Friendly * Healthy Lunch Bowl
Stacie Castle, MS,RD,CDN is a Registered Dietitian in Lake Success, NY with over 25 years of experience helping people to learn how to eat well for life. In her practice she sees people looking to improve their health by lowering their blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, weight and lessening symptoms of IBS.