7 Healthy Foods YOU NEED in your Kitchen
Add these foods to your grocery list next time you go shopping and eat smart to stay healthy this holiday season!
1. Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt makes a great breakfast or snack option. With twice the protein of regular yogurt, greek yogurt is filled with probiotic cultures that keep you full longer, and keep your digestion system running strong. This food makes a delicious, healthy and portable snack or meal – and tastes great topped with nuts or dried fruit.
2. Bananas
Bananas are one of my favorite fruits. They are very affordable, full of potassium and make the perfect after workout snack. Throw one in your gym bag while you are heading out the door. Bananas also help lower blood pressure, and protect against heart attack and stroke. Bananas are naturally free of fat, cholesterol and sodium and provide a huge amount of healthy vitamins and minerals that we need on a daily basis. Eat you banana raw, slice on top of a bowl of oatmeal, or have with a tablespoon of peanut butter.
3. Frozen Veggies
Buy bags of frozen veggies in bulk to keep in the freezer and make with dinner for a healthy side dish. Vegetables can be expensive, and frozen vegetables are an affordable and an easy way to get the recommended 2 1/2 – 3 cups of vegetables per day. You can also stir fry the vegetables with some lean protein for a simple and quick dinner.
4. Chicken Breasts
Chicken breasts are the perfect lean protein. Freeze chicken breasts in individual freezer bags, take one out in the morning before work and put it in the fridge so it will be ready to cook when you get home.You can also cook a large amount of chicken on Sunday, separate into individual containers and pre-packaged dinners or lunches for the week.
5. Nuts
Nuts are a great way to snack healthy and get protein and healthy fats into your daily diet. Almonds and walnuts are delicious as snacks and also sprinkled on top of salads, oatmeal and Greek yogurt. The mixture of omega-3 fatty acids, protein and fiber in nuts will help keep you full longer and suppress appetite. The lowest calorie nuts are almonds, cashews and pistachios. Avoid nuts roasted in oil and opt instead for dry roasted or raw.
6. Egg Whites
Egg whites are an amazing food to keep in your kitchen. I always keep a carton in my fridge to make lean, protein rich breakfast omelets. Skipping the egg yolk reduces cholesterol and calories and still provides a great source of protein. More than half of the protein in an egg comes from the egg white, with 4 g of protein per egg white. Egg whites also have no fat compared to a yolk which has 5 g of fat, 2g of which are saturated.
7. Kale
Kale is one of my favorite super foods. Full of vitamins A, C and K and as well as many important minerals, this leafy green is a must have in your healthy kitchen. Kale makes delicious salads, and also blends great in green smoothies. A cup of kale has only 40 calories but packs in 3g of protein! Kale is high in fiber which promotes healthy digestion, and high in iron which helps avoid iron-deficiency. Try kale raw in a salad, or sautéed with some olive oil.