Imagine this for a moment- you arrive home after a long day at work, you’re exhausted and still have a to-do list the length of your arms tinkering around inside your head. You open the fridge door, feeling overwhelmed and uninspired, you reach for the easiest option, knowing far well that it isn’t the best option!
How common in this scenario?! Add children, pets, partners, second jobs, finances, piano lessons, tennis practice and a gamut of other possible elements to the mix and the need for a quick, easy and nourishing food options multiplies!
By having an organized kitchen with some simple go-to’s means healthy food choices, less stress, a saving of money and additional time for you!
Healthy eating comes down to a little bit of good old organization! Making sure that your kitchen is well equipped and you have healthy food on hand is one of the biggest hurdles to overcoming poor food choices.
Although it may be a little extra effort at first, you will soon be rewarded with the ease of eating well, snacking well and saving a few hard-earned pennies too!
Let’s go through a handful of possible options you can easily incorporate into your weekly routine:
Overnight Breakfasts
Overnight Oats and Overnight Chia have become very popular- and rightly so! They are full of nutrients, easy to eat on the run and taste amazing! You can customize your overnight breakfasts to include your favorite nuts, seeds, superfoods and grains. Here is a recipe I love:
Overnight Superfood Oats
Find yourself a small to medium size clean glass jar and begin layering
Layer the bottom section with oats
Top with a layer of goji berries
Top with a sprinkle of almonds
Top with another layer of oats
Top with a layer of sliced banana
Add a dollop of coconut yogurt
Top with a sprinkle of cacao nibs and coconut.
Keep layering until your jar is full and then pour in as much almond/soy/rice/oat milk as you can to cover the ingredients.
Place the lid tightly on the jar and then place the jar in the fridge to soak overnight.
In the morning, your breakfast is ready to go! The milk will have soaked and softened the contents, a little like a fancy style of bircher muesli!
Sauces, Dips and Dressings
Taking an hour or two one day a week to whip up a couple of dressings or dips can go a long way to keeping your meals inspiring for the week ahead! Try wizzing up a quick pesto with any nuts and herbs and greens I have on hand- get creative and try basil and hempseeds, walnuts and coriander, cashews and rocket or pistachios and baby spinach. Having a few simple dressings are also wonderful to add flavor and zing to your meals.
For a simple tasty tahini dressing
Blend up
1/4 cup Tahini
2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup of lemon juice
2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of tamari
4 tbsp water
This dressing will keep in the fridge for a week.
Healthy Snacks On The Run
Having a batch of bliss balls in the fridge or freezer that you can grab when I’m walking out the door is great. Keeping a batch of healthy raw chocolate in the freezer is also a great idea for when your sweet tooth sings!
An easy, energizing bliss ball recipe
1 cup of almonds
½ cup of hazlenuts
¼ cup soaked dried apricots
¼ soaked cranberries
1 teaspoon of acai powder
½ teaspoon of fresh powdered ginger
1 teaspoon of maca powder
¼ cup of soaked dates
¼ cup of desiccated coconut (plus extra to roll the balls in)
Mix everything together in a food processor and then roll into small balls.
These will store in the fridge or freezer for at least 3-4 weeks!