Committing to Healthy Eating? Read This First

When it comes to making a lifestyle shift in the kitchen, everything can seem so exciting and incredibly overwhelming. You stock up on recipe books, go Pinterest-crazy and start adding every single kitchen gadget to your Amazon cart. With a mile-long shopping list in tow, you head to the grocery store embarking on a new chapter. Everything is going great until you get to the towers of bulk bins or try to determine if chickpeas are the same things as garbanzo beans.

Never fear – eating healthy doesn’t have to involve a military-level of strategy. Our friend Cassandra Zywiec, food enthusiast, cooking gadget wizard and healthy eating queen is here to help you conquer the kitchen. She’s a veritable encyclopedia of food knowledge, so read this blog somewhere you can open some browser tabs – you’re going to want to save these.

Her top four healthy eating tips. All you need is a little bit of meal planning, some basic staples, a few go-to cooking techniques and breakfast (always). If you focus on these four areas, you’ll be off to a great start in your healthy eating journey.

Her must-have kitchen appliances. Cassandra recommends these items not just because they are tried and true, but because she’s found that they can literally do anything she needs, and she doesn’t need to clutter her cupboards with a whole bunch of gadgets and appliances that only have limited uses. They are not cheap, and are certainly investment pieces. However, they are all high quality and she says they will last a lifetime.

• Food Steamer:  Aroma 20 Cup Digital Multicooker, Find it at Target for $39
• Food Processor:  Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor, Find it on Amazon for $193, Cassandra says, “I prefer the 14-cup because of the capacity, it is perfect for prepping meals for the week. There are attachments that will do everything a mandolin will do, but I do still have a mandolin on hand for small jobs.” 
• Kitchen Stand Mixer: KitchenAid Artisan Series 5 Quart with Pour Shield, Find it at Target for $229
• Vitamix, Find it at Target for $359, Cassandra says, “I adore my vitamix, and have used it to make all of my baby food, homemade almond milk, my smoothies and SOOOO MUCH MORE!  I bought mine from Costco, I also opted for the 64-ounce container, so that I only needed one.”

Her recipe inspiration and some next-level advice. Get inspired with these healthy meals and snacks and stop by the bulk bin while you shop for ingredients (here’s how). Learn how to add flavor naturally, master a few new techniques and figure out ways to stay on track in your new journey.

The most important thing about making a healthy lifestyle change? It’s a goal. You won’t be perfect every day, but take your victories where you can and build on small successes.