I wrote an article recently about a flexible approach to dieting that invites, even promotes, a less restrictive way to approach food. That being said, I find that when I eat higher volume/more nutrient-dense meals I have fewer cravings and feel more satisfied; even with this revolutionized mindset and relationship with food, I still reach for the grilled chicken and fill my plate up with green stuff. But, there are ways to make that more exciting. When that piece of crock-pot chicken grew a bit too plain, I found myself throwing different foods together to make this fitness thing a bit more exciting. But times get tough; to meet my protein requirement, I once added bacon to my oatmeal. I’ve thrown a variety of foods together, and while some are worthy of a strategically filtered picture on Instagram, some, like my bacon and oatmeal crash of 2016, aren’t worthy of a second bite.

Luckily, you don't have to do that. Here are some of the gems.

Chicken + Peanut Butter + Banana + Sugar Free Maple Syrup + Cinnamon

While this may look like the strangest combination known to mankind, it is actually pretty logical if you break it down. Companies are constantly coming out with maple-infused peanut butters, and peanut butter and banana was a mealtime favorite of The King, himself. Plain chicken does nothing but add a more satiating and protein-rich source to the meal. Its subtle taste allows it to blend in gracefully. Turkey works with this combo as well. Because I aim for a specific number of grams of protein, carbs, and fats every day, this meal is one of my favorites. With the chicken providing protein, the peanut butter providing fats, and the banana providing carbs, this meal is a perfect distribution of macronutrients, and makes for the ultimate “Square Meal.”

Salsa + Lemon Juice + Tuna Fish

This one isn’t so surprising; salsa tastes good on everything, even a spoon. But the fresh taste from the salsa in junction with the tang from the lemon juice goes well over a big salad. Because Tuna tends to have a naturally fishy flavor, this “dressing” balances that out, and gives some excitement to what would normally be a boring meal without adding a ton of fat and calories that dressings carry.

Cream Cheese + Chicken

This is one of the combinations that cause some eyebrow raising. When my roommate introduced me to lettuce wraps, I cooked chicken on the pan, threw on every spice in the cabinet, added a couple of veggies, and topped it with salsa, of course. One of those evenings, when cream cheese was in my way as dug through the fridge for something to add to the same old lettuce wrap, the rest was history. The favors of the cooked chicken with the sweet and salty cream cheese taste is a complete game changer. If you’re still skeptical, think about sour cream. It’s a similar concept, but the cream cheese is sweeter.

I've also stuffed chicken with cream cheese.... Incredible.

Fish + Tacos

This one isn't my most out-landish, but people still seemed shocked at the idea. I pan-fried the flounder, and coated it with the hottest spices I could find, and threw it in a taco shell with rice, beans, salsa crease cheese (of course). The extra I threw into a lettuce wrap, and it was just as good! I could not believe how well the flavors blended with the consistency of the fish!

Pro-Tip: Sushi rice goes increibley well with the fish tacos! It is NOT just white rice. It's different!

Cauliflower + Oatmeal

Like I mentioned before, high volume foods tend to leave me more satisfied than smaller portions do. But that can get tricky when you have a limited number of carbs. Cauliflower is a best friend to lower carb diets—a savor, even. Cook your oats as you normally would, then stir in grinded up, or “riced,” cauliflower to the mix. This has allowed me to eat HUGE bowls of “oatmeal” without packing in a ton f carbs. The best part is that you don’t even notice the cauliflower.

This recipe works best with steamed cauliflower pieces, because they blend well with the oats. The raw comes out fine as well, but it makes the oatmeal a little crunchy. I suggest the frozen “riced cauliflower” from Trader Joe’s.

Rice + Eggs

This one isn’t too strange. You might’ve had rice and eggs before, BUT have you added rice to your omelet? Adding rice to your egg and cheese omelet not only completes your meal by adding a complex carbohydrate, but it makes the omelet thick and substantially more satisfying. In addition to the consistence, if you cook the rice in chicken broth, it’ll also add a hint of salt, and extenuate the flavor of the omelet!

Sugar Free Maple Syrup + Mustard + White Balsamic Vinegar

I’ll end this article with the strangest of the combinations. This one is courtesy of a Pinterest post I stumbled upon while procrastinating a research assignment. Its title was “World’s Best Crock-Pot Chicken;” I figured if it was the world’s best, I had to give it a whirl. While I can’t assure you of it’s ranking, I can say that it has been a go-to of mine for about a year now. I use a tablespoon of each ingredient, mix them together, and throw it over a chicken breast in the crock-pot. I do about a tablespoon ratio for every chicken breast I’m cooking (ex: 2 chicken breast= 2 TBSP of each).

Dieting doesn’t have to be boring. It does, however, have to get creative. It’s when I’m trying different recipes and mixing in new ingredients that I’m more likely to stay on track. Because lets be realistic; grilled chicken and asparagus can get pretty boring. These meals have been able to keep me excited about what I’m eating WHILE nourishing my body.