We have some good food ideas discussed in various threads. I thought I’d start this thread to encourages others to list off NUTRITIOUS FOOD IDEAS.
Good tip from @abasket - KODIAK WAFFLES. I tried one of my newly purchased blueberry Kodiak waffles this morn, and it was really good. One waffle has 6g protein, 2g Fiber.
As discussed in Calcium thread, SARDINES are my favorite non-dairy source of calcium (250mg per can).
For Fiber, I like PEARS (6g fiber) and newly found food - Chia seeds (1tsp=1.5g fiber).
I think avoiding processed foods (including waffles) is the primary step towards nutrition. We are all horribly susceptible to marketing. I did try chick pea flour pancakes though, (you can make your own flour from the beans) and as a savory bread option, I thought they were great.
^^^ This is true but @colorado_mom was eating Eggo waffles so the Kodiak if you need the convenience is more bang (and I think flavor) for her nutritional buck.
Costco had the Kodiak waffles in bulk not long ago and I quickly snatched them up. Great quick meal option - add some minimally processed nut butter and sliced banana or other fruit - filling and relatively healthy.
Another quick option for chia seeds - Mamma Chia “squeeze”. 70 calories, 4 grams of dietary fiber. Gluten free, vegan and actually tastes good. 7 grams of sugar which may be a concern to some. A portable snack item good for when a boost is needed.
I have been eating a lot of mushrooms lately. I am not big on soy products which are often promoted as part of a vegetarian diet, but fresh shiitakes have found their way into my diet more frequently. The anti-inflammatory diet I follow really promotes them as effective in cholesterol reduction. I figure it can’t hurt to try.
^ I’ve been eating a salad made with kale and shredded brussel sprouts with chopped apple, nuts and dried tart cherries, very tasty! Also in regular rotation now are quinoa patties from a NYTimes recipe. Eating more sweet potatoes lately, especially like a recipe out of Plenty for sweet potato patties.
I don’t eat them anymore but when I was growing up my mom used to make us an open faced sandwich with french bread, butter, sardines and a little red wine vinegar sprinkled on top. It’s still a favorite of my sister.
The asparagus is really good right now. Tonight’s meal is a giant salad with loads of asparagus, plus cottage cheese, tomato, red cabbage, romaine, cucumber and carrot. Whole Foods balsamic vinegarette
I use very little in the way of short cut foods. Canned beans (which is silly because they are so easy to cook), canned tomatoes (worth it in the winter), canned tuna are staples. For short cuts - occasionally a tomato sauce or Indian style simmer sauce. I don’t make my own English muffins or bagels.
I cook at least enough for two meals of everything and I try to only cook vegetarian during the week. Most of my daily fair is mediterranean or middle eastern, we eat Indian pretty regularly too.
I try to avoid processed foods. My breakfast rotation is: granny smith apple with almond butter, eggs, smoothies, grass fed plain Greek yogurt, and steel cut oats. I use fresh or defrosted fruit as a sweetener. Lunch is a salad almost every day, with a wide variety of greens and veggies, sometimes I’ll include quinoa. I will often include chicken or tuna or some other leftover protein. Sometimes I’ll make soup or zoodles with sauce or pesto. I try to make at least two veggie dinners a week and a night each of fish, beef, chicken/turkey, pork, and lamb. I try to prepare them in a healthy manner and serve them with two veg or a veg and salad. Sometimes I’ll swap in sweet potatoes or brown rice as a side. I love to cook, but I get bored cooking the same thing over and over so I’m always trying new lunch and dinner recipes. Tonight I developed a stuffed portobello recipe based on things I had in the fridge and pantry; it actually came out really good!
We don’t eat many processed foods but I buy a lot of convenience foods: For example, last night we had chicken stir fry over brown rice. Chicken was bought at grocery already deboned skinless and cut into strips. Veggies were pre-cut and washed from grocery. The marinade Was soy sauce combined with this dressing. https://products.wholefoodsmarket.com/product/cindys-kitchen-sesame-ginger-dressing-883dc6. Trader Joe’s frozen brown rice.
No cutting, no chopping, no mess. Took minutes to make.
I still eat plenty of processed food, but a lot less than in the past. Once retired, I hope to do more home cooking.
@mathmom - Eating more LENTILS and BEANS is high on my wishlist.
@taverngirl - I will have to try ALMOND BUTTER with apples. I used to do a banana a day (easy snack and the potassium seems to prevent leg cramps). Now I often do a half banana with 1T almond butter or peanut butter. Almond butter is pricier, but I like it better. Both are decent options (IF you keep in mind the calories add up) - https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/almond-butter-peanut-butter#2
AVOCADOS - I love them on salad. (It was a happy surprise that they have so much fiber). Usually I have a half and store half for next day, which is not as good as fresh. This week I decided to also get frozen avocado chunks, handy to have around.
The thing I’ve really had to cut back on (to reduce sugar intake) is granola bars, nut bars etc. Sometimes for evening snack I’ll do a slice of CHEESE instead, especially if my daily food total is low on calcium and not too high on fat. Or plain yogurt with berries and/or nuts (plus chia seeds).
I have a rice cooker that works well for us for rice (usually brown rice). But I really like the frozen CAULIFLOWER RICE options from TJ, Green Giant etc because when we make it ourselves it does make a bit of a mess.
For a few years we’ve been doing “ZOODLES” (zuchini pasta, made with a vegetti device availabe at Walgreens or online, about $10). Once in a while we still have traditional pasta, but our tastes have changed… we sometimes comment " this might have been better with zuchini instead"). This week I bought some frozen butternut squash pasta - have not tried it yet.
If you have a food processor, you put cauli in it and press the button and you have cauli rice. I am amazed they sell it processed in bags. I have a lot of trouble with brown rice in my rice cooker (i takes ages) but it is pretty quick in the instant pot. Quick farro is 10 mins to cook.
I’d stay away from the Kodiak waffles as it is not made from clean ingredients. One of the things listed is canola oil which is bad news. It is very inflammatory and leads to higher reading of cholesterol. It’s also made from oats which are not organic. I would buy Birchbenders keto pancake mix.
“If you have a food processor, you put cauli in it and press the button and you have cauli rice. I am amazed they sell it processed in bag”
You’re “ amazed” that people would prefer not to have to wash the cauliflower, cut it up (those little parts make a mess when cutting) and then have to clean the processor???
This is exactly why many people turn to really processed foods. They think it’s either/or. But buying it pre-riced is NOT the same as buying “ processed” food. It just takes all the hassle out of it !
I used to rice my own cauliflower but I’ve gotten lazy and I buy it frozen. I like the Boulder brand. Sure it’s not hard to do it yourself but the frozen makes it a quick addition to a meal. The same with cauliflower mash, I sometimes make it, but I keep a few boxes of frozen in my freezer for times I need an easy side. The Alexa brand of cauliflower mash is good and doesn’t contain extra ingredients. I’ve tried a few cauliflower risottos but I wasn’t impressed. Here is a new product I’ve been keeping in my refrigerator https://www.outeraislegourmet.com/pages/about-us the sandwich thins are nice to have. I toast them in a traditional toaster and they come out nicely. A quick lunch with mashed avocado. Add toppings like radish or an egg and it is delicious. I haven’t tried the larger size but my friend uses them for wrap sandwiches.
I like to make roasted potatoes & onions ahead of time and use throughout the week.
Same with Trader Joe’s Quick Cook Farro. I make a batch in the Instant Pot. One carton of chicken stock added to 2 bags farro, click on the rice setting.
A cookbook I really like is “Nutritious Delicious “ from America’s Test Kitchen. The book starts out by highlighting 50 “superfoods” that are actually foods and not unusual ingredients like spirulina etc. and discusses the nutrition benefit associated with each food. Good recipes that don’t require hours to prepare either!
