Healthy, simple meals that don’t take 4 hours to prepare are possible!! I promise. I often hear the ‘I don’t have time to prepare something elaborate,’ or ‘How long did that REALLY take you to prepare?’ or ‘Healthy meals are boring and tasteless!’ Ok, I don’t really hear the latter, but I know that’s a general misconception.

I stopped eating land animals (chicken, pork, beef, lamb, quail, bunny, venison, buffalo…if it walks or flies, I don’t ingest it!) almost 2 years ago and have expanded my culinary palate to new heights. I’ve had to! To make sure Mike and I are getting the correct nutrition, I’ve incorporated legumes, plant protein, nuts, whole grains in a variety of ways. It’s fun to think about food not only as delicious and comforting, but as fuel our body needs to function correctly.

So, what the heck does all this mean for the time-deprived, busy, multi-tasking, I need something quick, average person?! Well, here are two super simple, super healthy, super quick meals you can make for dinner. Let me know how un-boring healthy can be afterwards. The below recipes are portioned for 2 adults.

Pesto Spaghetti Squash with Balsamic Marinated Tempeh and Kale

Pesto Sauce

3 tablespoons pine nuts or walnuts
1 1/2 cups of spinach
6-10 basil leaves
3-5 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons of Romano Cheese

Blend all in cuisine art till well mixed

Cube Tempeh – put in bowl and add 4-5 tablespoons of balsamic. Put in fridge and marinate for 20-40 minutes.

Halve a spaghetti squash – de-seed & microwave for 10-12 minutes until tender. Shred squash using a fork into a bowl & mix with pesto sauce – keep warm.

Saute 2 cloves of garlic in pan with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add 2 cups of kale – saute for 3-5 minutes. Add marinated tempeh, sauteing until brown on all sides.

Voila! Scoop the spaghetti squash onto a plate, then top with kale & tempeh. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato & Kale flat bread Pizzas

1/2 red onion minced
1 garlic clove
1 large sweet potato
1 heaping cup of kale
4 tablespoons of fresh Parmesan or Italian cheese
2 pieces of Flat bread of your choosing (I actually used garlic naan!)

Toast flat bread for about 5 minutes. Saute onion & garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 3-5 minutes. Throw sweet potato in the microwave for 3 minutes to soften. Chop potato into tiny cubes then add to the pan, along with the kale, for an additional 5 minutes (until potato is slightly brown). Linea a baking sheet with parchment paper and top toasted flat bread with all the sauteed goodness (there will most likely be overflow). Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Happy Cooking!