Healthy Food Fast

Recently, two of my coworkers and I decided to do The UltraSimple Diet detox. If you've been following this blog, you know that we've been here before.

One great thing about detoxing is that it always reminds me just how easy it can be to prepare healthy meals. One of my favorite dishes from the week was also one of the easiest.

All in all, that beautiful plate took me about 15 minutes (using a leftover sweet potato -- it'll take a bit longer if you need to bake one). Here's how I did it:

Mashed Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes

1 Small sweet potato, baked
Cinnamon

Bake a sweet potato (about 40 minutes at 450 degrees F). Mash the whole thing (skin, too!) with cinnamon. I imagine this would also taste good with a bit of rice milk or butter mixed in -- experimenting is encouraged!

Baked Cilantro Chicken

1 organic, boneless skinned chicken breast
Fresh cilantro
1 tbs. of extra-virgin olive oil
Half of a lemon
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Put chicken in a baking pan. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Add cilantro and salt and pepper. Bake for about 10 minutes at 350 to 400 degrees F. Add more fresh cilantro after the chicken is cooked.

Sautéed Collard Greens

1 Garlic clove, minced
2 tbs. of extra-virgin olive oil
Variety of dark, leafy greans
Half of a lemon

Mince a clove of garlic. Wash a variety of dark, leafy greens and tear into pieces (compost the tough stems). Heat the olive oil and garlic in a large pan.  Add greens and sauté until soft (but still bright green). Drizzle with lemon juice before serving.

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Cook the sweet potato first, then throw the chicken in the oven and sauté the greens while the chicken and sweet potato finish baking. Then put everything on a plate and marvel at the beautiful meal you've just prepared. Then eat it. Double, triple or quadruple the recipe as needed.

BONUS: For dessert, snack on a handful of frozen organic cherries (my new addiction). I find, however, that the mashed sweet potatoes are dessert enough for me.