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Below are a few of Libby's recipes that will help you prepare healthy and great tasting meals for you and your family.

For more recipes from Libby's Kitchen, follow Libby on Facebook.

NUTRITION AND WELLNESS

by Libby Collar

You've probably heard it said, "It starts with food", and it's true. Eating right is a cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle, and one of the biggest pieces of the puzzle.

I love what Michael Pollan says about how we should eat- "Eat food, mostly plants, not too much." Unfortunately, we have made eating healthy a complex matter when it should be an innate understanding of eating what's fresh, local and available to us. People living in traditional cultures have no idea what saturated fat, fiber and a calorie are, yet diabetes and heart disease are absent in their cultures. Processed food makes up about 70% of most of our diets and these foods contain an estimated 5,000 chemical additives. In short, if our great-grandmothers wouldn't recognize a food, we probably shouldn't be eating it.

With our busy lifestyles, how do we find time to cook at home rather than grabbing the quickest option that tastes good? There are lots of time-saving tips and tools to truly make it easy to incorporate healthy eating into your current lifestyle. By teaching you how to navigate the grocery store for healthiest options, meal prep, and make basic staple recipes (homemade broth, dressings, smoothies, healthy treats), you'll be well on your way to learning how to nourish yourself with real food and slowly get rid of all the junk from processed foods!

Baby bok choy and garlic frittata-great for breakfast, lunch or dinner! Any dark leafy green would be great in this (kale, Swiss chard, spinach), I just had bok choy on hand.

1 bunch baby Bok choy, washed and dried

2 T. grass-fed butter, ghee or coconut oil

1/2 C. diced white onion

1 t. minced garlic

1 t. paprika

Sea salt and black pepper

6 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350* & grease a 2 qt. baking dish.

Sauté the onions in the melted fat until soft, about 3 min. Then add the garlic, spices and greens and sauté the mix for 5 more min, until the greens are wilted. Beat the eggs in a bowl and season with S & P. Add greens mixture to prepared baking dish and pour eggs over mixture covering evenly.

Cook for 8-10 min, until eggs are firm.

Feel free toads ground meat to bump up the protein.

For individual servings-pour mixture into silicon muffin molds and bake for 8-10 min!

My tummy has been a tad "off" this morning, so I'm sipping on some homemade bone broth with my lunch. (Esp with all the sick ppl around me! ) Not only is it a super immune booster, it is packed with amino acids and gelatin that help to seal up the gut lining. To ensure mine gels, I usually add 1 scoop of @vitalproteins grass-fed gelatin.

I had planned on meeting my husband at the gym tonight, but after a long day I felt like my body was telling me to slow down. So I came home and made this yummy coconut lime chicken soup, did some restorative yoga (#legsupthewall is my fav!) and soaked in a warm bath. Time for some #selflove. and I may even do some coloring before bed... I don't have exact measurements on the soup, but here are the ingredients: cooked chicken, cut into pieces

1 can full-fat coconut milk

Homemade or store-bought chicken broth

Lime juice

Shredded carrots

Shredded parsnips (or other root veggie will work)

Curry powder

Cinnamon

Ginger

Chili powder

Paprika

Sea salt

Combine broth, coconut milk, lime juice, seasonings, chicken and shredded veggies in large saucepan. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer, covered for 15 min. Serve warm with lime wedges.

Happy FriYay! My hubby and I are both off, parents are coming to town, & I've made some of my fav coconut macaroons. These are some of the easiest & tastiest healthy treats, so I usually make a double batch and keep some in the freezer.

It's not unusual for me to have soup or meat/eggs and veggies for breakfast. It may take some adjusting your tastebuds, but you'll set yourself up for a day of sustained energy rather than a blood sugar roller coaster when you eat a carb heavy breakfast.

Love eggs? Eat the yolks and don't be afraid of them...they're a nutrient powerhouse loaded with fat soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids. "Mother Nature’s no dingbat. She didn’t package the good stuff with bad stuff so she could watch us struggle for thousands of years until the invention of Egg Beaters." -Liz Wolfe- "Eat the Yolks"

Tonight's dinner inspo was @againstallgrain Enchilada Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. I slow cooked a pork shoulder yesterday, and also baked several sweet potatoes. So all I had to do tonight when I got home was sauté some onions, bell peppers and baby Bella mushrooms! Simple, but tasty! Enjoyed a @topochicousa to round out the Mexican night.

If you're ready to start a healthy lifestyle and learn meal prep tips like this, comment below! I'm coaching a group through our 28-day program that kicks off soon. You'll learn how to develop healthy lifelong habits (more than clean eating) and start feeling your best!

Sunday night #guacburgers for my 's bday dinner. Green chile venison/beef burgers, roasted veggies and spinach salad. Sweet potatoes for dessert! Such a full weekend celebrating my favorite person.

His & her spring salads! Mixed greens, orange bell pepper, radish, pumpkin seeds, avocado. His topped with venison tenderloin and mine with lemon garlic chicken breast. Try to wash and chop your veggies after you buy them and store in the fridge. It makes it way easier to assemble the perfect salad when most of the ingredients are prepped & ready to go! I use this fruit/veggie wash, esp on non-organic produce:

Fill a bowl with 1/2 C. white vinegar and purified water. Soak produce for 10 min and then rinse several times to remove any residue.

Looking for a quick dinner that's loaded with flavor and nutrition? Homemade chicken soup is always a good option in my book. •2 C. cooked chicken (rotisserie or breasts work great)

4 C. homemade bone broth or store-bought chicken broth (I like Pacific or Imagine brand)

1 onion, chopped

1 C. of puréed tomatoes (optional)

1 bunch Swiss Chard, chopped

4 large carrots, chopped

4 stalks of celery, chopped

1 bag frozen butternut squash or 2 C. fresh

2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 inch piece fresh ginger, sliced into thin coins*

1 inch piece fresh turmeric, slicked into thin coins*

Salt and pepper to taste Sauté the onion in coconut or olive oil until soft. Add all other ingredients except chicken and garlic. Cook until vegetables are soft, about 30 min. Add chicken and garlic 10 minutes before completion. Important-using a slotted spoon, remove ginger, turmeric and garlic and discard before serving. Biting into a large piece of these is not pleasant.

*Also, dried ginger and turmeric may be substituted for fresh, start with 1/4 teaspoon.

Not sure why we haven't thought of this before... but tonight we grilled burgers and sandwiched them between two portabello caps. So good, and oh so messy! Also made some oven rutabaga fries...one of my fav sides. Try any root veggie for this-peel and cut into "fries", toss in olive or coconut oil, season to your liking, and cook for 35 min at 400*. Thankful my husband enjoys food as much as I do.

Tonight's dinner was made with just a few simple ingredients (some leftovers), and literally took ab 5 minutes, but is healthy and delicious. A lot of times eating healthy is a matter of having good ingredients in the fridge/pantry. I sautéed some baby Bella mushrooms in a skillet w/coconut oil, added the spaghetti squash and seasoned with sea salt and garlic powder. Then I heated a burger patty (we grilled several sun night) and added some sliced avocado on top.

Tip: Re-heating leftovers in a skillet vs. the microwave is a night/day difference.

Big pan of roasted veggies-parsnips, carrots and turnips-tossed in olive oil and seasoned with sea salt and a little thyme. Roasting is definitely one of my fav ways to eat my veggies! It caramelizes the natural sugars and gives them such a great flavor! What are you guys making for the week ahead?

Today's lunch is super simple and took no time to put together: made some salmon salad with @365bywholefoods, tossed in some @gr8fermentation ginger kraut, a little olive oil, and some spicy brown mustard. Sliced some cucumber and radish and of course some @jacksonshonest sweet potato chips!

With just a few simple ingredients, this freezer fudge whips up quickly and is guaranteed to satisfy your sweet tooth!

•1/2 cup coconut oil (warmed to liquid, but not hot)

•1/3 cup cocoa (or cacao)

•1/4 cup honey or maple syrup

•1 teaspoon vanilla

I added dried cranberries and shredded coconut to this batch, but you can add whatever you like in your chocolate! The possibilities are endless.

Combine ingredients in order given. Add coconut, dried fruit or nuts, etc. Pour into lined pan and freeze til firm. Store in freezer.

Anyone else love plantains? Fried in coconut oil, made into pancakes or baked into chips, sweet or savory, these oversized bananas rock my world!

Friday breakfast smoothie:

-1/2 frozen banana

-1/4 C. blueberries (fresh or frozen)

-1/4 avocado

-1/2 C. mixed greens

-3 scoops Nutrimeal free (plant based protein)

2-3 drops liquid stevia

-8 ice cubes (I like my smoothies pretty thick!)

Topped with my favorite smoothie topper-cacao nibs. I the crunch they give, plus lots of magnesium!