Hey guys! I hope your January has been off to a great start. I don’t know where you live, but it has been FRIGID in CT. Perfect weather for sipping fresh homemade hot chocolate and blanket cuddles, which is basically my favorite thing about winter. ☺️
A couple of weeks ago I shared the tools and resources I use for working out at home. This week I am keeping with my 2019 goals theme and sharing the pantry staples I keep on hand to cook clean and healthy meals for my family.
I shop at Trader Joe’s for the most part, but you can find all of these things at other grocery stores such as Aldi’s, Stop & Shop and Whole Foods. (One thing I will add is that going forward I want to start checking out bulk bins at stores like Whole Foods or local health food markets because the cost is usually cheaper, AND you can cut down on plastic waste.)
So, here are most of the items you can always find in my pantry:
(DISCLAIMER: I am not a nutritionist or expert on nutrition by any means, although I do love the topic. This is just what works for me! Always ask a professional or do your own research to decide what works for you!)
Grains: I am not against grains, but I do buy whole, unrefined grains such as brown rice, quinoa, brown rice & quinoa or lentil pasta, and Trader Joe’s has even started selling sprouted brown rice and quinoa. I buy those when I can, but you can easily sprout grains, nuts, seeds and legumes at home. If you haven’t heard of the benefits of sprouting take a few minutes and look it up! It makes those items more easily digestible and also allows us to absorb more of the nutrients! I also buy gluten free rolled oats or steel cut oats, which you can soak for ease of digestion and decrease the phytic acid, which allows you to absorb more nutrients. I buy organic whole wheat bread for my kids and husband, but at home I only ever eat sprouted-grain bread such as the Trader Joe’s brand pictured above or Ezekiel bread. The difference is the Trader Joe’s brand contains honey, while Ezekiel bread has zero grams of sugar. (Also not pictured: I buy organic mac n cheese for my kids and keep that on hand for quick meals for them. Also also, I use whose wheat flour or sprouted spelt flour for baking.)
Nuts, Seeds & Legumes: We almost always have almonds, peanuts, cashews and walnuts on hand. I use them for snacking, Joe makes trail mix every week to keep at work, and I make nut milk from time to time. I keep various kinds of beans on hand because my kids will eat them, they are quick and easy for fiber and protein, and I love to make veggie chili or veggie tacos with them. Lentils are another legume I use for protein, fiber and iron when I want to go meatless. All of these items are great substitutes for meat and dairy (cashew cheese, taco meat, veggie burgers, etc). I also have almond meal or flour on hand to use in place of breadcrumbs, and I use it to bake my favorite fruit crumble and chocolate chip cookie recipe (from @laurmcbrideblog).
Condiments & Spreads: The only oils I typically buy are olive oil, coconut oil and avocado oil. If I buy a spray oil I make sure if it is one of those 3 oils with no other fillers in it. I prefer these oils because they are cold pressed and not exposed to high heat to extract the oils which make the oils go rancid and reduce any nutritional value. Other good oils are flax, hemp and sesame. I almost never buy mayonnaise but stick to avocado or an oil that I can emulsify on my own if I want to add a fat source. I stick to various kinds of mustard, hot sauce or homemade sauces (like BBQ sauce or honey mustard) when I want a condiment. I do buy ketchup for my kids, and we rarely use it. I also typically make all my own salad dressings but if I do buy one, I make sure it’s not made with highly processed GMO vegetable oil such as canola, or soy, and has minimal sugar if any. Nut butters are a must in our house, and I typically always have peanut butter, sometimes almond butter and I have made my own sunflower seed butter. I only buy a nut butter with the ingredients of “xyz nut, sea salt.” Coconut aminos is what I use in place of soy sauce, and tahini is not pictured but I love having that on hand for yummy sauces or making my own hummus. My weakness is tortillas chips and salsa, and I typically buy organic corn chips, but they usually don’t have the best oils. Sometimes I will dip cucumber in salsa for a healthier option. I love Trader Joe’s salsa verde in the jar for cooking recipes like chicken salsa verde; but for eating fresh, I buy Trader Joe’s fresh salsas: salsa verde, salsa especial, and pico de gallo, all of which have no added sugar. For butter I buy ghee or kerrygold cultured butter from grass fed cows.
Snacks: I mentions tortilla chips above, which we usually buy, and I will also buy plantain chips (Joe especially loves these), and brown rice cakes. I always have Trader Joe’s “Just Mango” which is dried mango with no added sugar. I always have popcorn kernels for air popped or stove top popcorn, pretzels for the kids, crackers, and usually some form of Cheerios or Joe’s Os. My kids also love apple sauce pouches and bars. I do buy the typical fruit filled cereal bars because my kids love them, but I hate how much sugar they have. When we buy Lara bars or Rx bars they will always choose those instead, but they are expensive so we ration them out or buy them when they are on sale! If I snack I try to make it a fruit or veggie with nut butter or hummus, or smoothie, or a “healthy” bar. I don’t buy things like cookies from the store, I will make my own for a treat.
Sweeteners & Extras: Call my crazy but I refuse to buy white sugar. Occasionally I will buy pure cane sugar around the holidays for certain recipes, but typically the only sweeteners I like to buy are coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup and dates. Some extras I always have in my fridge or pantry are chia seeds, hemp seeds, flaxseed meal, nutritional yeast, cacao powder, and maca. These are things I keep on hand to add nutritional boosts to our foods or smoothies! I love making chia seed pudding as a breakfast or snack alternative, I sprinkle hemp seeds or flax meal over anything I am eating (flax meal is also great to make egg substitutes when baking), and use the cacao in smoothies, baking, and making my own home made hot chocolate.
Speaking of hot chocolate, I think I’m going to make some right now to warm up from this cold weather! Did you like getting a sneak peak into my pantry?! Do you like to keep similar things on hand? Are there any other items you would like to know about or curious about other products I buy? Feel free to ask away!
