Eating Healthy: My Top 10 Tools of the Trade

In the quest to eat healthier and, even more importantly, to feed my family healthier foods and drinks, I have stumbled upon one blinding fact:  If you don’t buy it, it won’t be eaten.  This fact, of course has a twin:  If you buy it, chances are good that it will be eaten.

Fancy that, potato chips left in Kroger stay in Kroger.  Soft drinks unpurchased will be unopened.

Cool!

Naturally, some “healthy” foods and drinks fall flat and my husband and daughters let me know they have no desire to ever see it again.  However, I’ve been delighted to find that 98 percent of the foods and drinks we’ve tried have become MUST HAVES in our house – and I never allow us to run out… or even low.

Below are my top 10 current healthy food/drink favorites.  Some are new to me while I’ve been enjoying others for some time now.

1. Diet Arizona Green Tea with Ginseng. This is THE miracle worker drink – the drink that got me off of my diet soft drink obsession. I used to go through  a 2 liter of Diet Dr. Pepper daily.  I tried to switch to other drinks, but to no avail. I’d always go back to “the stuff.”  Then I happened upon Diet Arizona Green Tea with Ginseng and have that was that.  I think it’s outstanding.
2. Vanilla Rice Dream Refrigerated Non-Dairy Beverage. How’s that for a mouthful?  I just call it the one way I  get my calcium.   Not only am I a little lactose-intolerant,  I’m honestly not too fond of the taste of milk.  I always wanted to up my calcium intake but didn’t know quite how to go about it… not with a smile on my taste buds, anyway.  Fortunately, Vanilla Rice Dreams doesn’t just make my taste buds smile, it makes them sing, dance, and break out in giggly fits of joy.  I love it on cereal as well as straight from the glass.  As a matter of fact, I’m enjoying every sip of a glass right now – as I do every evening.  It seems to make my sleep even sweeter.  Rice Dream is also available in Original, which is also fantastic.  Look for them both in the health food section of your favorite grocery store.  I just noticed on their website that they have non-dairy frozen desserts.  I haven’t, yet, had the pleasure.



3. Nutri-Grain Apple Cinnamon Bars. Perfectly delicious!  I keep intending to try the other flavors, but this one is so remarkable that I can’t tear myself away.
4. Butterball Turkey Bacon. I’ll admit, my husband isn’t sold on this one, yet.  However, my daughters (the two who aren’t vegetarians, that is) and I absolutely love Butterball’s turkey bacon.  I’ve tried different brands and Butterball is definitely the best.  Makes sense, right?
5. Stonyfield Farms Organic Yogurt. You can taste the quality and commitment to excellence in each bite.  This stuff is creamy and dreamy.
6. Stonyfield Farms Cream Top.  Use Stonyfield’s Cream Top in place of sour cream on bean burritos, potatoes, or anywhere else – no one will ever know the difference.  Stonyfield products are often found in the health food section of your grocery store.  Personally, I’ve never seen them grouped with the other yogurts.
7. Sargento’s Reduced Fat Cheeses. Each time I take a bite of one of Sargento’s reduced fat cheeses I think, “Nuh-huh.  No way are you reduced.“  Then, I double-check the package, and return to my sandwich, panini, or folded cheese that creates its own little sandwich – sans bread.  I’ve used the shredded reduced fat varieties in salads, scrambled eggs, on pasta, pizza, and so on.  The slices?  I’d challenge you to name one thing I haven’t slapped them on.   The reduced fat Colby Jack is stupid good.  They even offer string cheese that has been reduced in fat.  (Although the taste will make you say, “Nuh-huh.“)
8. Quaker Oatmeal Squares. I’m huge on cereal – especially now that Rice Dreams has entered my life.  For a great, eye-opening article on Choosing the Healthiest Breakfast Cereals, click the link.  I had to smile when I saw some of my favorites on the list.  Only problem is, where oh where are Coco Crispies?!
9. Truvia. Nature’s perfect sweetener, and as always – nature knows what it’s doing.  If you’re wanting to pull yourself away from artificial sweeteners (and, come on, shouldn’t we all put as much distance between ourselves and artificial anything?) – give Truvia a try.  I love it muchly.
10. Eggland’s Best Cage Free and Organic Eggs. As someone who loves making, serving, and eating breakfast food, I’m delighted with the taste and quality of these wonderful eggs.  As someone who loves animals so much it makes her head spin, I’m overjoyed that they’re Cage-Free.  From Eggland’s Best.com:Q. What does “cage free” mean?
    A. The hens selected to lay Eggland’s Best Cage Free eggs are not kept in cages and are free to roam. The hens are provided with sunlight, shade, shelter, an exercise area, fresh air, and are protected from predators.

    Q. What does Organic mean?
    A. Eggland’s Best Organic brown eggs come from cage free hens that are fed a certified organic version of the patented, all-natural, all-vegetarian Eggland’s Best hen feed.

I hope you’ll start experimenting with healthier foods in your own home.  I wholeheartedly recommend each of the above.  I would like to give an extra little push for Cage-Free eggs.  I promise you, once you start buying Eggland’s Best Organic and Cage-Free eggs, you won’t want any other eggs… ever.

EDIT: I tried the Nutri-Grain Blueberry Cereal bar today.  It’s every bit as delicious as the apple cinnamon variety!  Truly, truly delicious.  It tastes like a little blueberry pie without the scads of calories. Next up? Strawberry!

EDIT #2: The list has grown to a Favorite Top 11 Healthy Foods and Drinks List.  Click the link to see the newest member!

Related Articles:

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4. Healthy Eating: My Top 10 List Grows to a Top 12 List
5. Strawberry Banana Frosty Recipe with Organic Ricemilk
6. 125 Best Foods For Men from Men’s Health Magazine!

Tagged as: green tea, healthy food, nutrition, Paninis, Sargento Cheese