If you feel like it’s time to reset your body, you can start by trying these three recipes.
So you've gotten through the holidays and now you are ready for a detox. Maybe you made a new year's resolution to start eating healthier and need a boost to help you get started.
If you’re not familiar with detox diets, essentially, they’re a systematic way of eating to avoid consuming toxins or any substance that may put stress in your body's digestive or endocrine systems. Most detoxes are meant to be temporary and may restrict the amount of specific foods you consume, for example, sugar, processed foods, and hydrogenated oil.
If you feel like it’s time to reset your body, you can start by trying these three recipes. All three avoid processed sugar and oils and stick to fresh ingredients to help you optimize your health.
Recipe #1 Detox Chia Seed Pudding
When you hear pudding, you might immediately think of a sugary dessert. However, when you soak chia seeds in a liquid, they swell up and make a pudding-like gel.
Foods that are high in fiber, like chia seeds, trick your body into thinking it’s fuller than it actually is and can help with weight loss by reducing your appetite. For example, a slice of cheesecake and 25 carrots have about the same number of calories, but which do you think is more filling?
It’s a good idea to avoid buying flavored milk-substitutes because they’re often filled with sugar or artificial sweeteners. If you want to make a chocolate pudding instead of vanilla, blend a pinch of cocoa powder together with the milk. You can make strawberry by blending a small handful of fresh strawberries.
If you want an extra nutrition boost, try adding a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg.
Why You Should Eat This Recipe:
- Chia seeds are high in heart-healthy omega 3 fatty acids that support heart health.(1)
- A tablespoon of chia seeds contains 11g of fiber to keep you full long after your meal. (2)
- A tablespoon of chia seeds contains 30% of your DV of manganese, 27% of your DV of phosphorus, and 18% of your DV of calcium. (2)
Makes 2-4 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 cups of unsweetened non-dairy milk (almond, coconut, rice, oat, etc.)
- ½ cup chia seeds
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- *Optional: 1 tbsp maple syrup
- Optional: blueberries, pineapple, pomegranate seeds or mango
Step 1: Mix the milk with vanilla extract and maple syrup.
Step 2: Add the chia seeds and mix well until all the seeds are covered.
Step 3: Let the mixture sit in the fridge for at least two hours until the seeds have turned into a pudding-like consistency.
Step 4: Optional: serve over the fruit of your choice.
Recipe Notes: The recipe above provides you with a basic chia seed pudding, but if you want something spicier, try making gingerbread chia seed pudding. You can make it by adding the following: ½ a teaspoon of cinnamon, ¼ of a teaspoon of cloves, and a tablespoon of freshly grated ginger root.
Recipe #2 Toxin-Reducing Mango Salad
Besides being delicious, mangoes are also a great source of vitamin C. Vitamin C boosts your immune system and may also help your body's natural tissue reparation process. (3)
Vitamin C also protects your body against ‘free radicals’, which are naturally occurring by-products of your body’s metabolism that steal electrons from your cells. Vitamin C and other antioxidants prevent this by giving the free-radicals something to bind to.
Why You Should Eat This Recipe:
- 1 cup of Mango contains 76% of your vitamin C DV. (4)
- A cup of mango contains 25% of your vitamin A DV, 9% of your copper DV, and 11% of your vitamin B6 DV.
- A cup of cilantro contains 64% of your vitamin K DV. (5)
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 peeled and pitted mangoes
- ¼ red onion
- ¼ red bell pepper
- 3 sprigs of cilantro
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- *Optional: ¼ cup walnuts or peanuts
Step 1: In a small bowl mix together lime juice, sugar, and fish sauce.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, mix together the mangos, red bell pepper, and cilantro
Step 3: Combine the dressing over the mango mix.
Step 4: (Optional) add walnuts or peanuts on top.
Recipe Notes: Stick to using recently ripe mangoes that are easy to cut. If your mangoes become overripe, they’ll be more difficult to dice. You can also try mixing in ataulfo mangos for a slightly sweeter taste.
Recipe #3 Vitamin-Rich Fennel and Yam Detox Salad
Do you know the difference between a yam and a sweet potato? For the sake of this recipe, they’re essentially the same, but in general, sweet potato is a deeper-orange color when you cut it open. Both are delicious and both are incredibly healthy.
Yams are one of the best all-around foods you can eat. They are a lower glycemic alternative to white potatoes that contain high amounts of several key vitamins including beta-carotene. Your body can convert beta-carotene to vitamin A or it can be used as an antioxidant.
If you crack open a stem of fennel you may recognize the distinct smell of black licorice. Like most green vegetables, fennel is essentially calorie-free but contains a myriad of vitamins that keep your body running smoothly.
Why You Should Eat This Recipe:
- 1 cup of sweet potato contains 769% of your DV of vitamin A (beta-carotene). (6)
- 1 cup of sweet potato contains 65% of your vitamin C, 29% your vitamin B6, and 50% your manganese.
- 1 cup of fennel contains 14% your vitamin C and 10% of your fiber. (7)
Makes 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 4 yams (about 10oz each)
- ½ cup of quinoa
- 2/3 cup of chickpeas
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 6 cups Romaine lettuce
- 4 sprigs fresh fennel
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
Step 2: Peel the sweet potato and cut it into cubes.
Step 3: Place the sweet potato on a baking tray with tin foil. Bake for about 30 minutes.
Step 4: In a medium-sized pot, mix the quinoa with a cup of salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the water is absorbed.
Step 5: Put the romaine lettuce into a large bowl and put the quinoa, chickpeas, olive oil, and fennel together
QUICK DISCLAIMER
We don’t recommend using maple syrup or other sweeteners. Even though they’re often advertised as ‘natural’, they still have an insulin-spiking effect and can lead to the same problems as refined sugar. We recommend eating mango sparingly because it’s high in natural sugars. Mango is a better option than eating processed foods filled with refined sugar because it’s high in nutrients. However, you may want to make it an occasional food rather than an everyday food.
This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of medical advice or treatment from a personal physician. Readers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. Neither the author(s) nor the publisher of this content takes responsibility for possible health consequences of any person or person reading or following the information in this educational content. All readers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement or lifestyle program.
Sources
2. Chia Seeds. Nutrition Data. https://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3061/2
3. Moores J. Vitamin C: a wound healing perspective. Br J Community Nurs.2013;Suppl:S6, S8-11.
4. Mangos, raw. Nutrition Data. https://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/1952/2
