5 Light & Easy Day-After-Christmas Lunch Ideas

I hope you’ve had a lovely Christmas, enjoying some quality family time. I for one would like to take this opportunity and apologize for not posting much lately. There are times in everyone’s life where the deck is stacked against you – you know what I mean, right?! Sometimes, it just seems like every single thing that can go wrong in your life does.  So then all you want is a break. From everything! But now that I am slowly and surely back into business, I have a bunch of special and exciting things for you in 2016, so stay with me.

Now that Christmas is ALMOST out of the way and tomorrow is Monday, I’m guessing you’re also ready to get back to being healthy and exercising. I know I am! 🙂
Therefore, today I’d like to share with you one of my favorite light and easy-to-prepare meals that might save you some time on what to make the next few days after Christmas. There are quite a lot of ways to pull together a HEALTHY last-minute meal using either ingredients that you keep stocked in the pantry or leftover from your Christmas meals.

1. Couscous with Lentil and Yoghurt Paste If you have yoghurt and lentils in your pantry, then you’re halfway there making this amazing delicious dish. Once the lentil stew is done, transfer it to a bowl, in which you add the yoghurt and mix them thoroughly with a stab mixer until the paste is smooth. Serve the lentil yoghurt paste on couscous (or brown rice, multi-grain bread or crackers) and garnish it with thin slices of cucumbers. Sprinkle it with fresh chives or another herb of your choice.

2. Brussels sprouts and Pomegranate Salad with Prawns Looking for a crowd-pleaser? You can’t go wrong with this Brussels sprouts, pomegranate seeds and goji berries salad served with prawns curry – just light enough not to knock you down quickly, but spiced enough from the prawns to awaken your appetite and more … 🙂

3. Spinach and Walnuts Pesto with Pasta Even if you’re out of spinach and walnuts, you can still make it with broccoli or kale or basil leaves and pine nuts or almonds. By also adding lemon/lime and a splash of maple syrup or honey if your like, you give it a whole new texture and flavor. I think your kids will love it too.

4. Spinach Salad with Quinoa & Chicken Looking forward to finally use that quinoa bag from your pantry? By the way, have I ever told you why I love using quinoa in many of my salads? ’cause it’s loaded with fiber, minerals and protein. Besides that, it’s a food that contains all the essential amino acids, being seen as a “complete protein”. SHOWTIME! 🙂

5. Avocado Millet Salad with Minute Steaks This savory bowl combines beautifully the minute steaks, avocado, and cherry tomatoes with millet and makes for a perfect light dinner! Don’ have millet? No worries, use couscous or rice or quinoa. The possibilities are endless, really.

Did you like my recipe? Share them with your friends too.

Stay healthy & happy!
Xoxo, Cris