A child of the 1980s and 1990s, I was a huge Laura Ingalls Wilder fan. I read all the “Little House” books and caught every episode of the simple life of living on the prairie in the late 1800’s. The idea of working in the kitchen or fields during the day and singing by the fireplace at night warmed my heart. By no means, can I now compare a pioneer life without electricity to our techno-centric world with “social distancing” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, somehow I’ve found a calm in preparing simple foods in the kitchen, like the Ingalls’, for our family dinner around the table. We don’t have a garden and we’re hibernating due to my compromised immunity, so our grocery deliveries are minimal. I’ve had to focus on a few simple foods and ingredients that I have in bulk and here is how I’m doing it.
If you’re following @PrettyWellness on Instagram, you know that I’m baking more and finding fun simple foods in my freezer. Here are some tips on how I make due with what I have right now. My WTNH-TV wellness segments are now coming to you from my house via Skype.
How to Eat Healthy With Less – Using Simple Foods
USE BEANS
- Add to soups, rice or pasta for hearty and bulkier meals.
- Make bean burgers using a few simple ingredients.
- Take soybeans or other white beans and make milk. We use the Nutramilk machine but there’s plenty of recipes online that make a simple bean milk from boiling, blending and straining beans.
- Create fun foods – aka Caryn’s Creative Cookie Dough made with white beans. (Sign up for our newsletter down below – we are working on an e-cookbook for our smoothies and snacks – coming soon!)
WHOLE GRAINS
- Buy in bulk – try to use other non-white wheat pastas (brown rice, chick pea, whole wheat, etc.)
- Add veggie purees into pasta sauce adding more nutrients without a strong vegetable taste.
- Use spices – combine spices and to make a variety of healthy sauces for the pastas.
FROZEN PRODUCE
While groceries stores freezer sections are bare, I’ve heard there are still some greens and berry packs:
- Veggies – There are lots of spinach / kale combinations that can be used for smoothies or even sautéed for a side dish.
- Berries – Use for smoothies or or add into homemade breads. (I have a few recipes for simple flour, baking powder, alternate milk and berries, bananas or carrots – blueberry muffins and carrot cake bread.)
- Make your own frozen fruits/veggie packs from fresh produce.
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Other resources that are helping us stay healthy at home right now include:
- Daily Harvest – I love this service. They provide real flash-frozen, veggies and fruit combinations in smoothie cups, harvest bowls and more…delivered to your door and with minimal prep. Use the PRETTYWELLNESS code at checkout for $25 off your first delivery. My favorite is the Brussels sprout lime pad Thai.
- Misfits Market – I’m a new found fan of this subscription produce box service. I’m getting a delivery once a week for around $25.
Amazon Food Pantry Items
Trying to keep some variety in our pantry items. Vegan Orgain protein powder and Pacific Oat Milk with frozen veggies and medjool dates make a sweet smoothie. Plus, our new favorite switch up on pasta is the shirataki noodle and we love Miracle Noodle options.
What are your favorite simple finds right now? My healthy-ish beer bread recipe inspired by my college roommate is adored by our family. I bet Laura Ingalls Wilder would have loved this one, too!
Want to host a webinar on finding a little happiness and stress reduction techniques during hardship? Hire me to present or facilitate a seminar on resiliency, positivity and wellness. Check out my business website and demo reel at CarynSullivan.com.
This post may contain affiliate links meaning I may receive a commission with no costs to you. I pro-actively try various products and then affiliate myself with these items that I already use and love.
