“7-Day No-Added-Sugar Meal Plan That’s Actually Doable” : Day Six
Cooking

“7-Day No-Added-Sugar Meal Plan That’s Actually Doable” : Day Six

This is a continuation of my My Experience with a “7-Day No-Added-Sugar Meal Plan That’s Actually Doable.” Today’s post shall focus on Day Six, with my improvements and comments. (Want to catch up? Here’s the introduction, shopping and meal prep, and Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, and Day Five.)

I mentioned last week how I was uncertain if I should still continue this blog series during the middle of COVID-19. In the end, I decided to proceed and I am thankful that I did! I had forgotten about the “Whole Wheat Pasta with Lemon Kale Chicken” recipe. After rediscovering it on my blog, I actually made it again for dinner. Of course I got rid of the nasty kale and substituted it for spinach instead. It was delicious.

Wheat Pasta with Lemon SPINACH Chicken: my dinner from last week.

With that in mind, I shall share that the menu for Day Six involved the following items:

  1. Fried Egg Breakfast Tacos
  2. Southwestern Quinoa Bowl With Black Beans & Lime Crema
  3. One-Pot Hash with Chicken, Sweet Potato & Kale

Breakfast: Fried Egg Breakfast Tacos

No added sugar fried egg breakfast tacos
Fried egg breakfast tacos. I might have struggled a bit getting the left one from the pan and onto the tortilla.

This was a repeat recipe. I decided to try out their actual version, instead of just relying on my egg cooker. As I was following their directions for the eggs, I realized something. These are not fried eggs. Rather their instructions are for sunny side up eggs, which are distinctively different.

Yields two tacos in supposedly ten minutes.

  • 2 small corn tortillas
  • 2 fried eggs
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomato pico de gallo (previously prepared)
  • 1/4 an avocado, sliced
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste
  • red pepper flakes, to taste
  • 1 lime wedge
  1. Fry eggs by heating oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the eggs and let cook until the whites are firm, about two minutes.
  2. Warm tortillas.
  3. Make tacos.
  4. Finish with salt and pepper, to taste.
  5. Enjoy.

Note: Drain any excess liquid from the salsa before using.

Using the egg cooker (affiliate link) for poached eggs was much easier and sacrificed nothing in terms of taste. When you can cut corners cooking, you should cut corners cooking.

Lunch: Southwestern Quinoa Bowl With Black Beans & Lime Crema

No added sugar Southwestern Quinoa Bowl With Black Beans & Lime Crema
Southwestern Quinoa Bowl With Black Beans & Lime Crema

Originally, I was not going to make this for lunch as I had an appointment I had to run to. I was just going to use leftover diner from Day Five. However, when I saw how quickly it could be thrown together that morning, I decided to still take it as lunch.

Yields one portion in 5 minutes. Requires throwing things together.

  • 3/4 cup cooked quinoa (previously prepared)
  • 1/2 cup canned black beans, drained
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomato pico de gallo (previously prepared)
  • 1/4 cup lime crema (previously prepared)
  • roughly chopped cilantro, to taste
  • 1 lime wedge
  1. Throw everything into a bowl.
  2. Enjoy.

Note: If you are taking this with you to eat later, they recommend storing the lime crema separately and combining right before you eat it.

This was delicious. And once again, it took such little time to throw it together. Waiting in line for fast food would have taken more time than this.

Dinner: One-Pot Hash with Chicken, Sweet Potato & Kale

no added sugar One-Pot Hash with Chicken, Sweet Potato & Kale
One-Pot Hash with Chicken, Sweet Potato & Kale

This dinner came together more quickly because I had prepared the chicken the night before. Also, I heavily modified the recipe. My kale went straight in the trash. I used spinach instead.

Yields two portions in 30 minutes. Requires a skillet on the stove.

  • 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced (For me, previously prepared)
  • 4 TBSP olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 cups chopped curly kale, ribs removed (SPINACH FOR THE WIN)
  • 1 TBSP balsamic reduction (previously prepared)
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 3 cups roasted sweet potatoes (previously prepared)
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste
  1. Heat the 2 TBSP olive oil in a cast iron skillet.
  2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and brown it on each side in the skillet.
  3. Remove from skillet and reserve.
  4. Heat remaining 2 TBSP of olive oil in the skillet and add in garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook until fragrant, about two minutes.
  5. Add kale, water, balsamic reduction. Cook until kale (SPINACH) is tender and wilted, about three minutes.
  6. Add in cooked chicken and sweet potatoes, stirring to coat.
  7. Enjoy half immediately and save half for tomorrow.

I have decided that I am going to officially move kale into the cucumber category. Just like anything that needs a cucumber I shall sub for with a zucchini, anything that calls for kale I will replace with spinach. I probably should have used more spinach. By this point of the week, I had stopped measuring things and just started cooking how I normally do, which is by instinct.

For example, I did not use the balsamic glaze or the water. Instead, I used balsamic vinegar. I did accidentally turn my sweet potatoes into mashed potatoes, so the texture of this dish was entirely wrong (you can kind of tell that from the less than stellar photo). However, the flavor was delicious.

Concluding Thoughts for Day Six

Day Six is done! Today I made Fried Egg Breakfast Tacos, Southwestern Quinoa Bowl With Black Beans & Lime Crema, and a One-Pot Hash with Chicken, Sweet Potato & Kale.

I’ll give my standard disclaimer that this is not a diet. I want to create for myself a healthy, sustainable life-style. I want to remain Clearly Alive.

This is part of a continuing series. Here are the other Parts: Introduction, Shopping / Meal Prep, Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, Day Five

Amber Nicole is Clearly Alive