My Nourishing Food Guide + How to eat clean

Eating clean isn’t rocket science, however when transitioning to a plant-based diet it can be overwhelming to know which foods to purchase and what to consume daily. It can be hard to determine which nutrients you need, what to avoid and how to incorporate a variety of nourishing foods into your meals. To make matters simpler, I’ve determined that through a little soul searching, planning, organizing, and understanding yourself, you can better determine what foods you wish to incorporate into your diet, and what foods you should eliminate.

When you purchase and consume whole foods such as, fruit, raw-veggies, and sprouted grains, you can ensure that you’re eating food in it’s simplest form, since these foods have the least amount of processing. When creating a food guide, it’s important to remember that eating should nourish our bodies, not harm our bodies, so as long as you stick to simple ingredients, a variety of color, and a plethora of herbs & spices it should be easy to create a vibrant list that you can always rely on when shopping. In order for you to get clear on what to purchase, I’ve created a few simple steps on how you can create a sustainable & nourishing food guide, so you can easily consume cleaner, simpler, plant-based foods on a daily basis.

Tips for creating your Nutrient-rich Food Guide:

• The first step toward consuming a clean-healthful diet is to establish a staple grocery list. If you don’t buy healthy food in the first place, it will be hard to eat healthy simple as that. So to get started I recommend creating a list consisting of every nutrient-rich food you enjoy & that you can rely on to give your body energy. Include your favorite staple foods that are versatile and easy to cook with, or any healthful ingredients you enjoy cooking with the most. Your list should consist of foods that are vibrant and colorful, so try incorporating a wide variety of nutrients by selecting foods from each food group.

• Once you’ve created your list, you can organize your list into each nutrition category, consisting of; fresh produce, protein, legumes, super-foods, healthy fats, grains, and supplements. Once you’ve categorized each food and essential nutrient, it will be much easier to determine what you’d like to cook and how you plan to prepare your healthful meals. If you enjoy eating dessert every day, try finding a healthful alternative, such as almond butter with apple slices and incorporate those items into your list. Separate the almond butter to the healthy fats section of your list and the apples to the fresh fruit section. By organizing and categorizing your list, it will help you to easily determine what you enjoy cooking, and what foods your body feels the best eating.

• It’s also important to note that consuming foods that are in season is one of the best ways to ensure that you’re eating intuitively and healthfully. There are many benefits to eating the food that nature intended us to eat over the differing seasons. Seasonal food is much cheaper, fresher, and nutrient dense. If you’re looking to spice up your meals every few months, I recommend adding a few seasonal food items to your list so you can experience the new flavors and added nutrients.

• With a little planning and organization, these steps will help you create a nourishing food guide and allow you to implement the freshest, most nutrient dense plant-based ingredients and food items into your daily meals. You will gain a clearer vision as to what foods are right for your lifestyle and how you can nourish your body on a daily basis.

  I’ve provided my personal nourishing food guide of the many foods I rely on to nourish my body & what I enjoy incorporating into my meals. My list is meant to serve as a guide or a starting point, since everyone’s preferences and dietary needs are unique & different. Feel free to use my guide as inspiration for creating your food-essentials list & go-to shopping list! -Happy eating

Fruit & Veggies

My must have veggies:

• Leafy Greens:

  Kale (all types), Rainbow chard, & Spinach.

• Green Veggies:

  Broccoli, Green beans, Brussels sprouts, Cucumbers, Asparagus, & Celery.

• Bright Veggies:

  Carrots, Sweet potatoes, Red potatoes, Peppers, Cauliflower, Butternut squash, Zucchini, Tomatoes, & Beets.

Fresh Fruits:

• Tropical Fruit:

  Mangoes, Pineapple, Kiwi, Coconut (fresh or frozen).

• Essentials:

  Bananas, Green apples, plums, Grapes, Pomegranate, & Avocado.

• Berries: (frozen & organic when not in season)

  Raspberries, Blackberries, Blueberries, & Strawberries.

• Citrus:

  Grapefruit, Oranges or Mandarins & Lemons.

Grains & Legumes

My go to gluten-free grains:

• Quinoa, brown rice+wild rice, & whole-rolled oats or steel cut oats.

• Buckwheat

• Ezekiel granola

• Sprouted grain gluten-free Ezekiel bread

• Coconut wraps

• Brown rice noodles or zucchini/veggie noodles

• Brown rice cakes

• Flax-seed crackers

• Coconut flour (baking).

Legumes:

• Black beans, Chickpeas & Lentils.

Teas & Beverages

• Unsweetened almond, cashew, or coconut milk

• Herbal tea: turmeric+ginger, rose+hibiscus, or chamomile

• Chlorophyll water

• Chai tea

• Coconut water

• Organic cold-pressed green juice from a local juice shop (occasionally).

Nuts & healthy Fat

My healthy fat essentials:

• Almonds and cashews,
  chia seeds, hemp seeds, and flax-seed (milled).

• Coconut oil, olive oil, and avocado oil

• Almond butter

• Hummus.

Snacks & Treats

• Coconut yogurt

• Grain free granola with activated nuts & seeds

• Dried Mulberries

• Flax seed chips

• Raw nut & date bars with coconut

• Medjool dates

• Dried fruit: coconut, mango, banana chips, strawberries, and raisins

• Chaga mushroom hot cocoa mix

• Dark chocolate (cocoa 85% or higher)

• Pink Himalayan salt popcorn

• Coconut & mango energy balls.

Herbs & Spices

Seasoning:

• Nutritional Yeast

• Pink Himalayan salt.

Herbs & Spices:

• Turmeric, Ginger, Cinnamon, & Fennel.

• Cilantro, Basil & garlic (fresh).

Sauces & dips:

• Apple cider vinegar

• Coconut aminos

• Organic salsa & guacamole

• Avocado oil+garlic salad dressing.

SUPPLEMENTS & SUPER-FOODS

My go-to supplements & powders:

• Vitamin B-12

• Turmeric (anti-inflammatory)

• Spirulina powder

• Maca, Acai, and Cacoa powder

• Wheatgrass + greens powder

• Plant-based collagen powder

• Plant-based protein powder with hemp & pea-protein.