Making it your own

The one plus to being sick with a kidney infection and sidelined on the couch for a few days was that I got to catch up on my magazine reading!  That, and watching "Oprah" (boy do I miss Oprah).  I pulled out back issues of "Clean Eating" magazine and re-read them.  It is my favourite "new" magazine from the past year.  I bought a few new food magazines ove the last year and some were quite disappointing.  But "Clean Eating", well, I have 5 issues so far, including February 2011.  There is also a website, at least 2 cookbooks, a facebook page and who knows what else.  While I haven't spent too much time on the website, I love the magazine and enjoy the updates that appear on my facebook wall from time to time.  Tosca Reno, the mind, body and spirit behind "Clean Eating" is quite an inspiration. 
One of my favourite parts of the magazine are the menu plans with matching grocery lists.  This has become my "go to" for the holes in our family weekly menus.  Some ideas are as easy as "Clean Tuna salad on whole grain toast with fruit for dessert".  And when the alternative was frozen pizza and popsicles?  Well then, we are ahead on both nutrition and time for those nights when it seems like everyone has to be somewhere all at the same time and we have about 7 and a half minutes to get supper into them.
So, last night, feeling somewhat recovered and hungry enough to feel inspired by my recipe reading, I set about making supper from the February issue.  The recipe, "Clean Chicken and Waffles" calls for making whole grain and grated zucchini waffles (which sounded really good), but I just wasn't up for getting out the waffle maker, so we had Kamut penne noodles with ours.  The chicken and veggies part called for Broccoli Rabe, brussel sprouts and mushrooms.  My crisper had regular broccoli, mushrooms and leeks.  The final change?  Smoked Paprika...
The kids came up from downstairs sniffing the air, "What smells so good?"  
"Your supper", I answered.
"I'll set the table!" my 9 year old grinned.  "Has the cat been fed?" asked my 7 year old.  The older girls began getting plates and glasses out of the cupboard.  Somebody made a jug of orange juice....
...Yes!  Jamie Oliver was right!  Smoked paprika is magic!  (the author of this blog warns readers that these results may not be typical and makes no guarantees that smoked paprika will have this effect on other families)
    And I was in such a good mood, I mixed the bit of leftover chicken and veggies with some leftover brown rice (from another meal) and made "Clean chicken and brown rice wraps" for today's lunches!   Yum Yum yum!  (and cut up melon and pineapple, so not local!, with mixed frozen berries and vanilla yogurt to round out the lunch box).  I love a yummy lunch!
Happy Packing!

Find more yummy clean recipes at www.cleaneatingmag.com