For the last few weeks, John and I have been working together on some healthy habits, such as eating in moderation (calorie counting) and being more active. This attempt at becoming healthier feels different because I have John pursuing it with me, which I am SO thankful for. This journey toward a healthier life has led me to some amazing new recipes, and I am excited to share two of them with you today!

I’ve been wanting to try a green bean recipe for a while now, so I was happy to find this one on Pinterest recently. Look at these beauties! We used shredded parmesan instead of my go-to grated cheese, and I liked it a lot this way. Note: the beans needed to cook a few more minutes than the recipe called for, but that might just be because of my old oven.

I FINALLY got to try cauliflower rice after wanting to find a healthier substitute for rice and quinoa for quite some time! Making it couldn’t be easier. Because my food chopper is very small, I opted for cauliflower florets which were already broken down somewhat. If I had a bigger processor, I probably would have bought a full head for cheap. I chopped the pearls for 20 seconds, until they were about the size of couscous. The pieces weren’t very even in size, but for the purposes of what I was making it didn’t matter. I then browned the cauliflower slightly in the oven at 350 Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes (though I can’t tell you I noticed a difference in any way when they were done). I made this earlier in the day and stored it in the fridge until I began to cook. I reheated it in the microwave for 1 minute and it was perfect.

I was truly so excited about this rice substitute working out that I talked far too much about it tonight. Something I was happy to find was that this food is filling while being SO LOW in calories. Get ready, this next stat deserves a block quote:

One cup of cauliflower is 25 calories, while one cup of brown rice is about 250 calories.

The most exciting part of this meal was the last part… I love ground turkey. This recipe, also found on Pinterest, includes bell pepper (I chose red), onions, green onions, garlic, ground turkey, and chili powder. John and I decided that it might need a little more seasoning next time, but what it called for wasn’t bad. I am a huge fan of how easy and delicious this mix was! Before I was even done cooking I was thinking about other ways I could use it: in tacos, in lettuce wraps (another fave), and on a salad. Another appealing note about ground turkey is that it is so versatile. Mix it with whatever vegetables you have, try it with different seasonings, and stick it in other foods!

All in all, this is probably my new favorite meal. It was very simple and easy to cook. It was full of flavor (and could be even better with more chili powder), and it was light in calories, yet filling.

I should also mention that the recipe definitely held up as leftovers for lunch the next day!

What is your favorite healthy recipe? What tips do you have for me from your own experiences of living healthily?

-Haley