Healthy Dinner Recipes for the New Year

Feeding your family healthy and organic foods is a good idea no matter what, and dinnertime is the perfect place to make sneakily good-for-you recipes. Healthy eating doesn't mean tasteless; on the contrary, when you prepare foods properly then nobody will ever know that you substituted an ingredient or two.

Have you heard of lectins before? They are proteins that are naturally-occurring in most plant-based foods (nuts, tomatoes, grains, etc) and have no nutritional value to your body when consumed. Some argue that going lectin-free can help you lose weight, but do your research before deciding to subscribe to that school of thought.

If you do want to try some lectin free dinner recipes, there are many options. Some might include:

• Portabello mushroom "pizza," an alternative to the real thing that uses portabello mushrooms as a crust replacement. It's low in carbs and, of course, in lectins.

• Sweet potato hash. No meat, no dairy and no lectins can be found in this hearty dish.
• Omelets. Not only are eggs full of good fat and proteins, but omelets are easily customizable and can be made for every meal of the day.

Cold and blustery days call for something that's going to stick to your ribs and warm you up. Soup is a classic option, and since it's so wonderfully diverse there's no shortage of ways to prepare it. For some lightened-up soup options, try some of these:

• Butternut squash soup with coconut milk. Deliciously creamy and full of flavor, there is nary a lick of dairy to be found. To make this a whole meal, serve with half a sandwich.
• Miso soup. Traditional, classic and oh so easy to digest, miso soup is a staple in traditional Japanese cooking.

Everyone loves a steamy bowl of goodness, but it's not a good idea to eat noodles all the time. Replace the noodles in your pasta dishes with some of these tasty alternatives.

• "Zoodles," or zucchini noodles. A special tool called a spiralizer is needed to create these unique strings, but it's a great way to get an extra dose of vegetables in your diet.

• Cauliflower rice. It takes a little time and dedication to get the texture exactly right, but once you've mastered the art there's no going back. Fiber, flavor and many fewer carbs are only a few benefits from replacing your white rice with cauliflower.

• Quinoa. Come on, did you really think you could get through this list without seeing the word? Quinoa has become overwhelmingly popular in the United States for its healthy properties: Rich in iron, magnesium and protein, the super grain is not actually a pasta at all, but a seed in disguise.

Cooking a lighter dinner has a funny impact on you: You start to look and feel better. Let this be the year of healthy cooking and lighter meals not just for you, but for your family too.