Clean Diet

I am on a semi-healthy diet, and losing weight at approximately 0.5-1 lb a week. I am eating 1300 calories right now as calculated by the calorie target, and am 5 lbs away from reaching my goal weight of 149lbs (I am a 5'8 female, weighing 154.0). I really want to make an effort and try to eat as much non-processed food as possible...ok well this seems like a silly topic to post, however, I would like to try to find alternatives to items I consider staples such as breakfast cereal, soymilk, granola bars etc. I know that I might have to give them up if I really want to pursue a "clean diet", and it is definitely an effort that I am willing to make.

My motivation for wanting to do this is seeing the news articles of the mercury-ridden HFC that is found in EVERYTHING, and also all of the problems with un-fermented soy. I know there are obvious foods to eat like more veggies and fruits, grains, and beans. However, I wanted to see how much information was out there. Also if any of you are willing to share some recipes, it would be incredibly helpful.

I am also a vegetarian (lacto-ovo), and am a college student (at least for two more weeks...graduation is creeping up on me!), and am on a budget.

Thank you! Comments would really be appreciated!

I'm vegan and also try never to eat processed foods.

For breakfast I always mix 1/3 cup of rolled old-fashioned oats with 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds (for omega-3's) and some frozen blueberries. Then I add enough water to cover the mixture and microwave for 2 minutes. It's totally healthy and unprocessed.

Another great alternative to cereal and soymilk is chopped fruit (I use bananas, strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries) with a few chopped walnuts (they're calorie-dense, so not too many!), a little agave syrup if you like it sweet (agave is a low-glycemic sweetener - it's the nectar from the plant they make tequila with). Then add home-made almond milk, which is really easy to make. Just soak some almonds overnight, then mix 1 cup of soaked almonds and 3 cups of water in a food processor. Drain the mixture through a sieve, and you have home-made almond milk! You could use skim milk, too, since you are a lacto-veg.

You only eat 1300 calories? OMG, how do you do it?

Thanks Kraysler! I had no idea that almond milk was so simple to make. I do eat only 1300 calories, for most of my weight loss (since nov.) it's been 1400. The reason is that right now I am swamped with finals and am virtually getting no exercise (except for walking around school). It's not so bad, I'm trying to eat calorie dense foods (which the walnuts w/ fruits seem great) so I don't feel hungry that often. However, as soon as I get the chance to get back into an exercise routine I'm going to up my calories. I really just want to get to my goal weight so I can maintain. 5 lbs away seems so close yet so far away lol! Wow, but really thanks! You gave me some great alternatives to my beloved cereal and milk. 

I also didn't know how easy almond milk was - thanks for the recipe! I'm kind of in the same boat - vegetarian, on a budget, and really trying to stay away from processed foods. I'm also picky in that I don't like to eat eggs, wheat or any refined sugars.

For breakfast I've been cooking oatmeal with  water and adding berries (a lot of the time I take Craisins and rinse them several times with boiling water to remove some of the oil and sugar, but I'm still not convinced they're good for me).

Original Post by madeba:

I would like to try to find alternatives to items I consider staples such as breakfast cereal, soymilk, granola bars etc. I know that I might have to give them up if I really want to pursue a "clean diet", and it is definitely an effort that I am willing to make.

In the past few weeks, I've been attempting to cut down on my processed soy intake. I'm not a vegetarian but I do tend to eat at least one veg meal per day (either dinner or lunch... breakfast is always veg). I make a lot of bean dishes.

As a soy milk sub, I've been using unsweetened almond milk (vanilla or original) on cereal & in baking/cooking. Oat milk is great on cereal but the only kind I can find is sweetened with cane juice so I prefer unsweetened almond milk instead.

In smoothies, I've been using hemp milk. On its own, I don't care for the taste but hidden in a smoothie, I don't taste & and I'm getting the benefits from their omega fats. (3, 6, & 9).

For a tofu sub, I've been experimenting with tempeh. It's made with whole, unprocessed soybeans but so it's better for you.

Occassionally, I do grab a convenient granola bar (Kashi or Luna bars) but I've been trying to consume them only once or twice a week since they contain soy protein isolates. Other than that, they're fairly clean so I don't mind eating them in moderation.  A cleaner pre-packaged option are Larabars or Clif Nectar bars. They usually only have 4 or 5 ingredients with no additives. Sometimes I just make my own granola bars... there's a ton of healthy granola bar recipes online.

You don't need to give up breakfast cereal... just stick to organic, whole food brands like Nature's Path with low sugar, high fibre. Add your own fruit & stick to a sensible portion size & you're good!

Cellophane_star, Where can I find tempeh? Is it expensive?

The only other Tofu sub I've tried is Seitan and know of this recipe to make it (but have never actually tried to make it myself). Does anyone have experience with seitan?

Original Post by madeba:

Cellophane_star, Where can I find tempeh? Is it expensive?

 The only other Tofu sub I've tried is Seitan and know of this recipe to make it (but have never actually tried to make it myself). Does anyone have experience with seitan?

 I find it (pre-packaged) at my local natural food store. It looks like this & has sort of a meaty-mushroomy texture. I think an 8 oz package cost me ~$4 and I can get 2-3 servings out of it.

I'm planning on attempting making seitan myself someday. It looks super easy (based on these recipes 1 & 2) though wheat gluten could be considered a processed food & may cause digestive problems for some people.

Oh man those BBQ seitan ribs look goooooood!! My mouth is watering! lol

This doesn't really address your post about replacing cereal etc, but I just wanted to say that you can replace soy mince (and I also cut out soy long ago, wasn't dieting just didn't like what I was reading about it) with minced, mashed or blended canned kidney beans or lima beans, any sort really with the right consistency for what you're making.

Most canned beans are simply cooked in water and canned - avoid the ones in sauces.

You can then use stuff like wheatbran (my standby) or other grains, with egg to bind it, into patties and grill them like burgers, I do all sorts of stuff like that.

I try to avoid overly processed soy products like veggie burgers and all that but I read that soy milk isn't really that highly processed.  I would recommend drinking the soy over the almond because soy has so much protein and almond milk hardly has any.  But if you want to make your own almond milk I recommend throwing in some dried dates to make it a bit sweet.

Original Post by madeba:

I would like to try to find alternatives to items I consider staples such as breakfast cereal oatmeal!, soymilk how about real milk?, granola bars I make my own protein bars (recipe below) etc.

From a John Berardi article:

Ingredients:

3/4 cup almond meal (put 3/4 cup of almonds in a blender to make meal)

3/4 cup pecan meal

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

6 scoops vanilla whey protein

2 whole eggs

2 egg whites

Mix all ingredients together, place in greased pan and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Original Post by monosuki:

I try to avoid overly processed soy products like veggie burgers and all that but I read that soy milk isn't really that highly processed.  I would recommend drinking the soy over the almond because soy has so much protein and almond milk hardly has any.  But if you want to make your own almond milk I recommend throwing in some dried dates to make it a bit sweet.

 Soy milk isn't as processed as, say, fake meat, but most brands add cane sugar to make it sweeter so it should be used in moderation. I agree with you about the protein though. Soy milk has ~7g per cup but almond only has ~1g. That's why I switched to hemp milk, which has ~5-6g protein per cup. However, i get enough protein from foods & only use almond milk in my cereal 1-2 times a week so the substitution works for me.

Original Post by floggingsully:

Original Post by madeba:

I would like to try to find alternatives to items I consider staples such as breakfast cereal oatmeal!, soymilk how about real milk?, granola bars I make my own protein bars (recipe below) etc.

From a John Berardi article:

Ingredients:

3/4 cup almond meal (put 3/4 cup of almonds in a blender to make meal)

3/4 cup pecan meal

AWESOME!!! I'm definitely t

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

6 scoops vanilla whey protein

2 whole eggs

2 egg whites

Mix all ingredients together, place in greased pan and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

 

 AWESOME I am definitely trying it this weekend!! I do drink milk, just happen to like the taste of soymilk, but have no problem drinking milk (hormone free).

Thanks to everyone for all your responses!