Your Pantry

Here is what you need:

Make cooking meals easy by keeping the right foods in your pantry.

Packaged Vegetables

Today you will find that many grocery stores have pre-cut & packaged vegetables in the produce section. It is not unusual to see sliced zucchini, mushrooms, onions, chopped Brussels sprouts, carrots, butternut squash, etc. This way you can simply add your vegetables to any dish.

Frozen Vegetables

In the frozen section of the grocery stores you can find your favorite vegetables rinsed, chopped, diced, and ready to go.

Canned Vegetables

You can store your favorite beans, lentils, chopped tomatoes, corn, tomato sauce, etc. This allows for faster cooking. Just make sure that your foods are low in sodium, oil free, and have no added sugar.

Marinaras, Salsas

Store marinara sauces and salsas for quick meals.

Liquids

Keeping a carton of vegetable broth in your pantry can save the day. Rather than using oil to saute your vegetables, you can use a couple of tablespoons of the broth. Again, make sure it is low in sodium.

Spices

Keep a variety of spices in your pantry such as black pepper, cayenne, paprika, red pepper flakes, turmeric, cumin, coriander, sea salt, onion powder, garlic powder.

Keep Healthy Snacks

Make sure to have apples, bananas, oranges to snack on when you are hungry. By keeping healthy options in your home, you avoid eating the wrong foods.

Easy Meals

Oatmeal Breakfast

Ultimate Sweet Potato

Oatmeal Breakfast

One of the easiest meals you can begin with every morning is oatmeal. Top with sliced bananas, berries or nuts.

Buddha Bowls

Ultimate Sweet Potato

Oatmeal Breakfast

Buddha bowls can be made with a mix of grains, legumes, and raw veggies. You can have brown rice or quinoa mixed in with lentils or beans, topped with spiralized zucchini or carrots.

Ultimate Sweet Potato

You can now find individually wrapped sweet potatoes that only require 5 minutes in the microwave. Slice the sweet potato open and stuff with various toppings such as: black beans, lentils, roasted chickpeas, avocado, salsa.

Mexican Burrito

Mexican Fiesta Salad

Ultimate Sweet Potato

Once again, there are variety of delicious ingredients that can be added to a burrito such as: brown rice, black beans, lentils, cilantro, tomatoes, corn, bell pepper, tofu, salsa. Make sure your use a whole wheat tortilla.

Quick Pasta

Mexican Fiesta Salad

Keep a low sodium jar of marinara sauce and whole grain pasta for a quick meal. You can always top with steamed broccoli or add mushrooms to your sauce.

Mexican Fiesta Salad

Canned black beans, canned organic sweet corn (rinsed), tossed in a bowl. Add chopped cilantro, onion/chives, chopped tomatoes, chopped avocado, squeeze in some lime, black pepper, cumin, sea salt.

Managing situations

Meal Planning

The key to success is to plan your meals ahead of time. This will ensure that you always have a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner. Cook your meals in large batches and then freeze or refrigerate for the week.

Eating With Family/Friends

You can still dine with your loved ones. Just specify that your veggies need to be steamed and prepared without oil. Remember that you can always bring a long a few dishes for everyone else to try.

Eating Out/Traveling

Traveling will require a bit of planning. Did you know that if you travel by plane you can actually travel with your own food? Yes you can!! You can make your sandwiches, burritos, potatoes or pasta ahead of time. You can also carry fruit as long as you are not traveling internationally. A few exceptions that airlines will not allow: pudding, yogurts and of course liquids. When traveling, use the Happy Cow app to find restaurants that offer vegan options.