Eat Deliciously, Rockford! Set yourself up for delicious, healthy eating!
It’s Week 2 of the “Eat Deliciously, Rockford!” initiative.
How was your week?
For me, I found myself doing some stress/emotional eating. Confession: luckily there was only 1/3 of a bag of potato chips in the pantry yesterday. (Granted they were Boulder Canyon chips from Choices, so at least the ingredients were good, but still...) Ugh! Have you been there? I could kick myself. I neglected to keep healthy, appealing lunch options readily available. I even had a container of the raspberries (on sale this week) in my fridge, but still chose the chips.
I could beat myself up over this, but instead I choose to focus on a few of the good choices I've made this week. For breakfast, I've been starting my day with poached local eggs and Pekara sourdough toast or I took the time to cook my favorite banana nut oatmeal (multiple servings so it was in the fridge, ready to be heated up in minutes.) For lunch, several days I chose baby rainbow carrots and my new favorite lemon dill hummus from Ithaca. And my favorite healthy option for dinner: soup! I made a huge batch of Sausage White Bean and Chard soup using the Beyond Meat Hot Italian Sausage. Dinner for at least 2 nights, warm, cozy and filling.
I'm proud of these choices, and hope that you, too, are able to identify some healthier moments in your life during the past week.
We are all a work in progress.
Progress, not perfection.
Let's keep eating deliciously--one decision at a time.
To Eat Deliciously,
We Need to Do a Little Planning
This advice I'm actually writing for myself. Haha! Hopefully it resonates with you too.
One of the main reasons people do not cook delicious, healthy food at home is time. We get home from work, and it is easier and faster to get processed food and/or fast food or carry-out on the table quickly. But, with a little planning you and your family can start enjoying meals you have planned and prepped ahead of time. I do not love planning and organizing, but know these skills will help me save money and eat healthier. Here's how!
Getting Organized is Key
Studies show that more Americans than ever before are grocery shopping daily without planning meals. This is a sure way to buy more than you need (impulse shopping) and buy fast, processed options. You will save money and eat healthier if you have a plan before setting foot in a grocery store.
PLAN AND CREATE A SHOPPING LIST
Where to begin? The idea of beginning the process can be overwhelming. But, fortunately, help is at your fingertips.
First, pull out your favorite real food recipes and look at your week to see how they best fit, depending on your time commitments. Printed forms can often help you get things organized.
Here are a few websites that offer free planning forms and shopping list templates:
Thirty Handmade Days Printable Meal Planning Template
100 Days of Real Food: Meal Plans
Daily Burn: Printable Meal Planning Templates to Simplify Your Life
If your brain already hurts just trying to get your head around this, and you would LOVE it if someone else would just put together menus and shopping lists--Here are a few links that do just that!
The Kitchn
From their website:
"Cooking is easy. Planning is hard. You've found a recipe you love, but now what? How do you create a meal around it? What about a side dish, and what happens to the leftover ingredients? Most importantly: how do you make the recipes you love fit into your busy life? The Kitchn's meal plans help you put it all together." Click here to check out this cool website and planning tool.
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine:
Vegan meal planner
If you're looking for a vegan, meatless meal planner, here's a great resourse. They have a 21 Day Kickstart program that includes meal planning, shopping lists, and recipes. Click here to learn more.
If you're gluten-free, we've got you covered too! Thanks to the Gluten Intolerance Group! Click here for meal plans and shopping lists!
PREPARE INGREDIENTS FOR THE WEEK
You are much more likely to cook from scratch if you can put delicious meals together quickly. Time invested on the weekend will help you prepare for the week ahead.
Lindsay from theleangreenbean.com offers some simple, informative advice by sharing her weekend prep routine. You can check it out here.
If you're a visual learner, like me, maybe this video from “Downshiftology” will help inspire you to begin a meal prep routine that will keep healthy food on your family's table...even during the busiest weeks! It features meal prep of 9 ingredients for flexible healthy recipes. There are videos for winter, spring, and summer meal prep too!
My Good Food Choices For the Week
Quick Banana Nut Oatmeal!
Ready in just 3 minutes! Click here for the recipe.
Chard, Sausage & White Bean Soup
Warm soup that is easily vegan with Beyond Meat Hot Italian Sausage and using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. Click here for the recipe.
Don't forget about our upcoming class
on supporting your immune system during this cold and flu season!
Wednesday, January 29th, 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
The cold and flu season is here. Join us for this informative class on supporting your immune system using essential oils, herbal remedies, and even the food you eat!
Liz Fiorenza will lead this class. She brings a wealth of knowledge to this topic.
Bio: Liz Fiorenza is the Aromatherapy Nurse for Mercyhealth at Home Hospice and the Community Liaison/Educator. She received her BSN at Northern Illinois University and has over 35 years of clinical experience in ER, ICU, Peds and Home Health. Liz gained much of her knowledge while enrolled in the Masters in Herbal Medicine program thru the American College of Healthcare Sciences. Since developing and implementing the aromatherapy program at Mercyhealth she has focused her attention on the benefits of aromatherapy and is working towards her Clinical Aromatherapist Certification. Liz is currently a member of the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapists, served as VP on the Boone County Board of Health and is the founder of Wind Ridge Herb Farm in Caledonia. As a continuing education instructor at Rock Valley College, Liz taught classes on medicinal herbs and aromatherapy. She has written articles for multiple industry publications and has been a keynote speaker at various state and regional conferences in both the medical and holistic fields.
Space is limited, so you must register to attend.
Words to inspire a delicious life…outside of the food realm.
Gratitude, Focus on What You Have, Not on What You Lack
“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”
Guided Meditation: Gratitude and Confidence
I love the tone of Kylie's voice and the reminder that
"nothing serious is going on here." Breathe.