This week Plan A is going to be gut makeover friendly! Plan B will be vegetarian because I haven’t quite mastered a whole weeks worth of vegetarian options that are gut makeover friendly from my recipes… I’ll get there! This also means that plan A will coincidentally be dairy free, gluten free, sugar free and paleo. And Plan B is where the noodles are at 😉

Not becauee I’m eating that way for life (no one can take pasta from me permanently) but for the first 2 weeks of this plan I’m not eating grains, legumes, dairy, sugar, caffeine or alcohol, so it fits all the above diet needs!

The first week has been really good. I’ve eaten a similar mix as below (but made a lamb curry recipe instead of the ribs, it’ll be ready to share next week). I’m not having to prep lunches as I’ve just been eating my leftovers from dinners instead. And sometimes elements of the dinners end up in breakfast too. Breakfasts have been a mix of green smoothies or eggs and sautéed vegetables. I’ve cooked everything but that sweet potato curry in good quality olive oil and used it as a base for dressings too.

At dinner time I’ve been starting with a simple rocket and fennel salad. I dressed the fennel in lemon juice and olive oil and added a little to a cup or so of rocket each night. I usually pay attention to my food presentation so the salad plus eating with my eyes first is surely getting the digestive system going before I eat.

Things I’ve found hard: no grains! I love them but it’s only a month. I’ve also found not mindlessly snacking quite hard. But I’m trying to make sure I’m full after each meal and that’s helping. No sugar, caffeine or alcohol hasn’t been too bad but passing up on delicious desserts at restaurants is a test of self control.

Speaking of restaurants eating out hasn’t been the easiest, mostly cos I hate being that person with dietary restrictions at a restaurant. I went for a lovely lunch yesterday but the only thing on the menu I could eat was steak and a side salad… It was an amazingly great steak though. Just way more meat then I needed and not enough vegetables.

I’ll update you on the positive effects I’m starting to see, next week!

Now you’ll notice that there’s lots of different veg this week. Don’t worry you won’t waste it! When you’re not filling your plate with grains it leaves lots of room for veggies. There’s over 20 types amongst the 5 meals in Plan A but they’re all used more than once or your using the whole vegetable in one recipe. I’ve put tips in with how to adjust the recipes to make them fit the above diet types and this Gut Makeover thing. I’ve also made suggestions for those of you eating whatever you like!

Plan A

Day 1: Sweet potato, spinach and cashew curry I’d have this with a side of stir fried broccoli and two eggs! Or a side of cauliflower rice or just rice if you’re not off grains!

Day 2: 15 minute pesto baked salmon and Pesto, Broccoli and Baby potato salad.

Day 3: Orange and Maple Lamb Ribs on Pumpkin purée – replace the maple syrup with pomegranate molasses and even sprinkle some pomegranate seeds over the top! Serve with the fennel slaw on the side from this recipe. This is a more time consuming recipe but you could make lamb cutlets and marinade them in Orange juice and pomegranate molasses etc for a quicker idea!

Day 4: Turkey and zucchini meatballs on cauliflower purée. I added an extra zucchini to these, and they still held together… Just. Have the leftover slaw from last night on the side. Because WASTE LESS!

Day 5: Sweet Potato and Kale Fritters. Sub almond meal for the flour and serve with sautéed spinach (3 cups of baby spinach per person) and mushrooms to add more bulk. You could also serve it with an egg to increase the protein.

Plan B

Day 1: Tofu and Ginger creamy curry: I love this curry, it’s the perfect winter night meal.

Day 2: Pesto, Broccoli and Baby Potato Salad so delicious and the soft boiled eggs and seeds in the pesto give you a protein hit.

Day 3: Sweet Potato, Spinach and Cashew Curry – simple and quick to make serve with brown rice and some broccoli stirfried with ginger and garlic.

Day 4: Roasted Eggplant Ragu Penne – this pasta source feels super hearty, swap your usual pasta for a pulse based one to up the protein.

Day 5: Vegetarian Nasi Goreng – I’m really craving noodles at the moment… Clearly.

I’ve also been throwing crispy kale chips on most of my meals for extra texture and goodness. I sometimes just add salt and no other spices, the flavour is still amazing with a good quality olive oil.

HH. x