8 Healthy Recipes Every Adult Should Know

For those who have recently become adults

Adult life isn't just about 9 to 5 and paying rent on the first of the month. In fact, the demands of today's fast-paced lifestyle even affect your kitchen. You can prove to yourself and everyone around you that you can cook like a true adult by mastering these healthy, homemade recipes from top chefs.

Don't skip breakfast

Breakfast is a must for adults. Fortunately, this filling meal is rich in cholesterol-lowering fiber. (To make it even healthier, don't peel the apples.) Most of the fat in the meal is monounsaturated fat, found in nuts.

Recipe: Oatmeal with apples and nuts in 10 minutes

Take lunch to work

Finding the opportunity to eat healthy during your lunch break won't be easy these days. The best solution is to pack a homemade lunch! Try this cold noodle dish. It's vegetarian but packed with protein thanks to the soba and peanut butter. You can double the ingredients to make enough for two days at a time.

Recipe: Buckwheat noodles and cabbage salad for a lunch box

Dinner isn't just scrambled eggs

You don't have to cook the same quick dinner every night. Freshen up your menu with this quick stuffed sweet potato. This filling dinner contains about 400 calories and is rich in protein (17 grams), plus it doesn't require much cleanup.

Recipe: Stuffed potatoes with chicken and avocado

Late night snacks

During our college years, we often snacked on a slice of pizza or a large scoop of ice cream at night, but now you need healthier options. These crispy, fiber-rich tacos are made with baked seaweed snacks. They're the perfect healthy late-night snack, filled with avocado and smoked salmon.

Recipe: Tacos in crispy seaweed

Homemade meals are better and cheaper

When you need to get to a book club, then run to the grocery store, and then to band practice, a busy schedule leaves little time for a quick meal. This salad, inspired by a popular dish from a healthy restaurant chain, will save you money. Take some time during the week to make the vinaigrette dressing: it makes enough for about five salads. Or, if you prefer, you can prep ingredients for the entire week's lunches at once.

Recipe: Green salad with chicken, avocado and corn chips

Food while traveling

If your job requires frequent travel (or you love coming home to the comfort of your parents), it's best to pack your own food. This fiber-rich vegetarian version of the classic French sandwich is perfect for traveling and will save you money at the airport food court. Plus, it's the perfect way to use up fresh vegetables you have on hand, and the sandwich itself only gets better when it's aged—assemble it the night before an early flight.

Recipe: Pan bagna sandwich with artichokes

Sometimes an evening doesn't go as you planned.

If you had too much to drink last night, cure your hangover with a healthy elixir. This smoothie softens the vibrant flavors of ginger and kiwi with coconut milk and hemp seeds.

Recipe: Invigorating protein smoothie with kiwi and ginger

You need a boost of energy

So, the long workday is finally over, and you'd rather curl up on the couch at home than hit the gym. These no-bake, nut-free bars contain dried apricots, sesame seeds, and hemp seeds—they'll provide that burst of energy that'll keep you from becoming a couch potato.

Recipe: Energy bars with sesame and dried apricots



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