Eat a medly of fresh fruits
Some people have a hectic schedule and simply don't have time to cook, but this should not stop them from adhering to a healthy diet. As recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture, foods from five food groups should be consumed daily for good health. The information below will guide you towards a healthy 2,000 calorie a day, and under, no cook diet.
Grains
Include six ounces of grains a day in your no cook diet, and eat no more than three slices of whole grain breads in one day. Good bread choices are cornbread, whole wheat or rye. For breakfast eat two slices of bread spread with a tablespoon of butter, or prepare a bowl of cold cereal for breakfast with milk. Have some whole grain crackers or tortilla chips with two ounces of cheese as part of your lunch or dinner.
Vegetables
Make yourself a salad for lunch or dinner with vegetables such as romaine lettuce, spinach, watercress, bean sprouts, shredded red or green cabbage, sliced cucumbers, mushrooms, sliced red onion, slices of tofu and/or sliced tomatoes. Add canned chickpeas or canned red kidney beans to your salad and dress your salad with two tablespoons of low-fat salad dressing. You can also slice raw vegetables and dip them into a vegetable dipping sauce. Some good dipping vegetables are broccoli, carrots, asparagus, cauliflower, celery, bell peppers and zucchini.
Fruits
Grate a fresh apple to make no cook applesauce, or mash a banana for no cook pudding. Chop up different fruits to make a fruit cocktail you can have for breakfast or lunch. Fruits to include in your no cook diet are apricots, berries, cherries, grapefruit, grapes kiwi, mangoes, melon, nectarines, oranges, peaches, pears, papaya, pineapple, plums, prunes, raisins and tangerines. For lunch you can make guacamole by mashing up an avocado to which you have added a tablespoon of chopped red onion, a small chopped garlic clove, a slice of minced jalapeno pepper and a squeeze of lime juice. For a beverage, drink spring water to which lemon juice has been added.
Calcium
Drink milk (lactose free if you are lactose intolerant). Eat cottage cheese topped with fruit, or yogurt for breakfast or lunch, or have an American cheese sandwich for lunch. Cut cheese such as cheddar, Swiss or provolone into cubes and add it to a salad with two tablespoons of low-fat salad dressing for dinner. Another option is to slice up two ounces of mozzarella cheese and place it on a plate with a sliced tomato and drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil and a teaspoon of wine vinegar over it. Garnish with a basil leaf and eat as a salad.
Protein
Combine one ounce of cashews, filberts (or hazelnuts), peanuts, pecans, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds or walnuts with two ounces of dried fruit to make trail mix you can have as part of your breakfast or lunch. Have a cup of yogurt with it. Slice up cold cuts such as ham, chicken or turkey and mix them into a salad with two tablespoons of low-fat salad dressing, or eat a sandwich for lunch made with two ounces of sardines, four ounces of tuna fish, four ounces of ham, or four ounces of turkey. If you prefer, you can make a Greek salad with torn Romaine lettuce leaves, sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, an ounce of feta cheese and some dill. Dress salad with a tablespoon of olive oil, two tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and a pinch of oregano.
Tags: salad with, breakfast lunch, four ounces, low-fat salad, low-fat salad dressing, salad dressing
