Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring. It’s still possible to indulge in your favorite foods, while nourishing your body at the same time. Here we share clean versions of delicious recipes that will leave you feeling and looking incredible and not to mention, incredibly satisfied!

Name: Angela Privin

Instagram: @doityourselfhealth

Job description: Digestive health coach and superhealer

Eat this for: As a digestive health coach I understand the close connection between a healthy gut and healthy skin. Health issues in the gut can manifest in the form of skin problems. The key to a healthy gut is a healthy and diverse microbiome. 

While good fats from salmon, walnuts, flax seeds, coconut and avocados are nourishing for the skin, for a diverse microbiome and well functioning liver, we need plant food.  Plant fiber feeds beneficial bacteria, so eating as many varied fruits, veggies, gluten-free grains and beans as possible translates into a happy biome. And bitter greens, like kale and arugula, are very supportive for the liver, which produces bile for digestion and helps balance hormones. 

Where do you find recipe inspo? I improvise with savory dishes, but I learned to bake by following Paleo recipes. With experience I understood the techniques and how ingredients interact so I could create my own treats. I don’t love the rigidity of following other people’s recipes, but it provides a solid foundation to fuel intuition and creativity. Recipe experimentation is my form of play. 

Top 3 Instagram accounts for inspiration: @Zenbelly, @PredominantlyPaleo, @Myheartbeets

These were the bloggers who I followed while learning to bake and cook Paleo style. 

Dream dinner guest to cook for: My grandmother loved to cook and was very good at it. She died before I fell in love with cooking and baking. It would be amazing to cook her a beautiful meal, as she spent her life feeding everyone. 

Favorite skin food ingredient and why: It is a toss up between green tea and hydrolyzed collagen powder (which comes from broth and gelatin). Green tea has anti-aging benefits and tons of antioxidants to nourish and protect skin against sun damage and collagen boosts skin elasticity, erases fine lines and builds youthful collagen. I enjoy the best of both worlds by mixing a tablespoon of collagen into my Matcha green tea latte.   

Must-have cookbook: I recently wrote a cookbook called Treats That Heal, full of low sugar, biome-building treats that are good for digestive health. I make recipes from my cookbook all the time because I find other Paleo and Vegan are too sweet for me. I wrote the cookbook for people with food allergies and digestive issues, but it’s good for anyone trying to kick their sugar addiction. You can still be healthy and "treat" yourself well. 

Go-to quick, healthy meal: Salmon and sauteed frozen broccoli with feta cheese. Veggies frozen at peak freshness are as good as fresh produce, and no worries about spoilage. 

 Fresh salmon is foolproof, a sprinkle of salt and 15 minutes in the oven. As the salmon is baking, I saute frozen broccoli florets with ghee, chopped onions and crumbled feta cheese, which melts and creates a salty, savory sauce. I opt for goat dairy which is easier to digest and less inflammatory for my body. 

A sprinkle of smoked paprika and dinner is served. Broccoli florets have less fermentable carbs than the stems. When I was sick with IBS (I recovered 15 years ago with diet and supplements) this was the only meal I could eat that did not bloat me. Now bloating is a distant memory and I am able to enjoy a variety of foods. 

My second favorite meal is spaghetti squash tossed with basil pesto, chopped tomatoes and canned tuna. This is a quick meal only if the spaghetti squash is already roasted 

Skincare mantra: Less is more. My skincare routine is minimalist. I have a good cleanser, an organic day moisturizer with SPF and a nourishing night cream. The majority of my skin care revolves around sweating (detox), hydrating, eating well and getting enough sleep. I go for high quality, natural products to support my aging skin, but there’s no product that can substitute for solid self care. 

Recipe:
Pumpkin bread pudding bars

Seasonal flavors of pumpkin meet creamy bread pudding. This recipe calls for 4 tablespoons  of sweetener, but if you are used to treats that are not that sweet, start with 1 or 2 tablespoons. 

Ingredients

2/3 cup of pumpkin seeds ground up in a food processor to release the oils. Grind for 2 minutes, scrape the sides and repeat about 4 times.

2 eggs

¼ cup or 4 tablespoon of maple syrup for a very sweet dessert and 2 tablespoons for a less sweet treat

2 sliced bananas

1 teaspoon of vanilla (powder or extract) 

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1 cup of pumpkin puree

1/2 teaspoon of Pumpkin Pie Spice (a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice)

optional: 1/4 teaspoon of cardamom

1 Tablespoon of lemon juice

1/2 cup of tapioca flour

3 Tablespoons of apple butter or applesauce

2 teaspoons of baking powder

3 Tablespoons of butter or ghee or coconut oil or shortening (your choice)

1/3 cup of chocolate chips (optional) 

1.5 apples, diced into small chunks

optional: 1 Tablespoon of coconut butter (pulverized and sprinkled on top of the batter)

How To:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Grind the pumpkin seeds in the food processor for 8 minutes, stopping every 2 minutes to scrape the side (or just use store bought nut butter). If you want the pumpkin seed butter to be creamier, process for longer but this will still work great if the texture is still a bit crumbly/grainy.

Melt your oil of choice (I used butter)

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl with a hand mixer or a spatula/fork

Bake for one hour. I used a 9 by 13 inch pyrex to bake mine. If you are using a smaller container the dough will be thicker and needs to be baked longer.

Let cool, slice into bars and enjoy