Day two starts with a hearty and nourishing bowl of muesli. For snacks, enjoy cucumber with hummus and sweet potatoes with tahini. For dinner, have a virtuous bowl of spaghetti squash with arugula spinach and hemp seed pesto topped with za’atar roasted tomatoes.

Muesli with Fresh Fruit and Honey

Muesli is super adaptable to what you have in your pantry and can be prepared in many different ways. Eat like overnight oats tossed with nut milk and soaked for 8 hours, cook like oatmeal, simply mix with yogurt or milk and finish with honey and fruit, or serve on top a smoothie bowl.

Muesli
4 servings

2 cups rolled oats
1 tbsp cinnamon
Pinch salt
3/4 cup of a combination of almonds, pecans, walnuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup dried unsweetened fruit (apricots chopped, raisins, cranberries, cherries, blueberries)
1 tbsp chia seeds

For serving: fresh fruit, yogurt or nut milk, honey

Preheat oven to 350. Line two sheet trays with parchment. Place the oats, salt, and cinnamon on one sheet tray and toss to combine. Spread out evenly. Place the nuts and pepitas on the second sheet tray. Toss to combine and spread out evenly. Transfer both sheet trays to the oven and bake until nuts are fragrant, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove nuts and let cool.
Add the coconut to the sheet tray with the oats, return to oven, and bake until the coconut is golden-brown, 5 minutes more. Set aside to cool.
Transfer the contents of both baking sheets to a large bowl. Add the dried fruit and chia seeds. Toss to combine. Transfer muesli to an airtight container. It can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 month.
To serve for breakfast, mix 1 cup muesli with 1/2 cup dairy or dairy-free plain yogurt. Enjoy immediately or let sit overnight in the refrigerator. Top with fruit and a touch of honey. Alternatively, mix 1 cup muesli with 1 cup almond milk and warm on the stovetop or eat cold.

Cucumber with hummus

For snack have 1 Persian cucumber with 1/4 cup hummus sprinkled with some Aleppo pepper. Feel free to make your own or purchase your preferred brand.

Massaged Kale Salad with Crispy Chickpeas and Buckwheat

For lunch have leftover kale salad from Day 1

Baked Sweet Potato Wedges with Tahini Lemon Dipping Sauce

For snack, have 4 to 5 leftover sweet potato wedges with 1 tablespoon tahini from Day 1

Spaghetti Squash with Arugula and spinach Hemp seed Pesto and Za’atar Tomatoes

Spaghetti squash has appeared on my clean up plan most years and for good reason. The squash mimics spaghetti and gives you the illusion of indulging in a decadent dish while in reality you are eating a fiber, potassium, and vitamin A rich-vegetable. In the cold dark months of January, your body craves comfort food. Swap in spaghetti squash in various dishes to healthily indulge in some belly-warming classics.

Pesto is one of my favorite ways to add nutritional mileage. Add various dark greens and protein-filled hemp seeds, and you have a powerhouse pesto to mix with warm spaghetti squash. Use leftover pesto with scrambled eggs or toss with roasted veggies.

1 medium sized spaghetti squash
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (feel free to sub in paprika)
1/4 teaspoon salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or left whole
1 tablespoon za’atar
2 cups argula
2 cups spinach
1 clove garlic, halved
1/8 teaspoon chili flakes
2 tablespoons hemp seeds + additional for sprinkling
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup kalamata olives, sliced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line two sheet trays with parchment paper. Halve the spaghetti squash length-wise. Rub the inside of both squashes with two tablespoons olive oil, Aleppo pepper, salt, and pepper. On the other sheet tray, toss the tomatoes with one tablespoon olive oil and za’atar. Spread out evenly. Roast both the squash and the tomatoes for 30 minutes. Toss tomatoes half way through. When tomatoes start to brown and get shriveled, remove from the oven. The squash will be done when you can easily pierce the flesh with a fork.
While the squash and tomatoes cook, make the pesto. In a food processor, combine the arugula, spinach, garlic, chili flakes, hemp seeds, lemon juice, a pinch salt, pepper, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust oil, salt, or lemon juice, if needed.
Once the squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to pull spaghetti like strands of “meat” from the skin. Toss with 1/2 cup of pesto (or more if you want) and top with roasted tomatoes, olives, and a sprinkling of hemp seeds.