Eating healthy isn’t nearly as hard as everyone assumes – especially when you have experts sharing their best tips and tricks with you!
We have asked three of our partners who are dedicated to eating well and living healthy lifestyles to share their knowledge and highlight some of their best practices – meet them below!
We asked these three healthy lifestyle leaders to share their top tips and most creative ideas for maintaining a balanced, wholesome diet and getting their families to follow suit – keep reading to discover some of the best (and easiest) practices to add to your healthy eating routine today!
Top Healthy Eating Tips
Amanda Keefer – Meal Prep
“Planning out meals and prepping a few things ahead of time is a life-saver on busy weeks. My girls have tennis, dance, or other activities most nights after school so already having veggies chopped for a quick stir-fry, starting a slow cooker meal in the morning, or cooking extra chicken at the beginning of the week for quick and easy weeknight meals is the difference between eating a healthy meal at home or ordering take-out. Check out this video for 4 easy ways to use shredded chicken for easy meals!”
Snezana Paucinac – Building Your Plate
“Eating properly balanced meals is very important – especially when it comes to breakfast and lunch. These two meals really set the tone for the rest of the day! Balancing our blood sugar levels is crucial because that directly affects our mood and our energy. Always strive for the rainbow effect on your plate no matter what. Veggies always lead, followed by protein (animal or plant-based), and then some good fats (avocado, olive oil, nuts and seeds).
Meal 1: Arugula, broccoli and carrot slaw, NatureFresh™ Farms Long English Cucumbers, roasted chicken, walnuts and vegan feta, and dijon balsamic dressing to top.
Meal 2: Arugula (olive oil and lemon dressing to top), avocado, TOMZ® Cherry Tomatoes, homemade tuna salad, and Marconi almonds.”
Noelle Martin – Cook Once, Eat Twice
“One of the biggest challenges when making healthy eating choice is lack of time. One way to help with this is to cook once, eat twice as often as possible. Here are three examples of how to put this into practice:
1) Bake extra chicken breasts and make personal pizzas or wraps with the leftover chicken the next day for lunch or supper;
2) Make extra pasta and roasted veggies and the next day make them into a cold pasta salad by adding your favorite dressing and some black beans or tuna;
3) Make a big pot of soup, chili, or stew on the weekend and serve the leftovers as a sweet baked potato topper after a busy Monday!”
Amanda Keefer – Kids in the Kitchen
“I can’t stress enough – get your kids into the kitchen! More than just learning to cook, kids can develop reading, math, and science skills in the kitchen, and you get the opportunity to spend more quality time as a family. From washing fruits and veggies, to chopping ingredients for a salad, there’s something for each age group (check out this list for more kid-friendly kitchen task ideas).”
Snezana Paucinac – Unique Ways to Incorporate Veggies
“As a mom of 2 growing kids, I am always trying to find ways to bring more veggies into their diet. These can include making pasta sauces with blended veggies inside, doing a taco night for dinner where I prepare a lot of different veggies so the kids can make their own tacos, or making omelets or egg muffins. Snack times are also an easy way to sneak in some extra veggies because kids love buffets! I find that exposing kids to healthy foods daily will eventually make it a habit for them. Set the good example and they will follow!
Meal: Egg omelet with onions, mushrooms, NatureFresh™ Farms Red and Green Bell Peppers, sheep feta cheese, and fresh parsley.”
Noelle Martin – Healthy Snacking Before Supper
“Does your child gobble up their pasta and leave their veggies behind? Try offering more vegetables BEFORE supper. Leave a veggie tray out with hummus or your child’s favorite salad dressing or dip while you are making supper. Not only will this increase their veggie intake, but it will also cut down on their cries of hunger in those last minutes before supper is served.”
Bonus: Fresh Recipes!
Feeling inspired yet? Embrace and run with that feeling – straight into your kitchen!
Keeping the above healthy eating tips in mind, try preparing one of the fresh recipes below (or all of them – the sky’s the limit and you can never eat enough fresh).
Long Sweet Pepper Boats
This appetizer uses our Ontario-grown Long Sweet Peppers as a vessel to serve a hearty helping of fresh veggies and creamy feta cheese. It’s an hors d’oeuvre full of color, crunch, and character – what more could you want from your food?
Cherry Tomato Pizza
Nothing beats a flavorful pizza prepared on the barbecue – other than the feeling you get when you realize barbecue season has officially begun! At your next family dinner, fire up the grill and serve this classic with a healthy twist!
Energy Boosting Buddha Bowl
Fresh overload! This easy Buddha Bowl recipe can be put together in minutes and features your favorite leafy greens, colorful veggies, high-quality proteins, and hearty grains. If you’re looking for the ultimate pick-me-up meal after a busy day, you’ve found it.
Related Resources
If you’re looking for more tips and tricks for eating well and making healthy lifestyle choices, check out these other fresh resources from our team:
11 Ways Your Family Can Build Healthy Eating Habits
The Ultimate Guide to Snacking Healthy On-The-Go
12 Tips for Healthy Meal Planning *On A Budget)
Your Guide to Eating Fresh On All Your Summer Adventures
12 Tasty (And Healthy) Alternatives to Your Favorite Junk Foods
