8 Great Foods You Are Probably Missing
Posted on 24 January 2010
Sometimes we just turn a blind eye to some great produce. Not because we don’t like them, but just because we are in the habit of buying the same groceries week after week. It becomes routine. Time for that to change, and for you to start trying out some of these healthy often overlooked products….
1- Beets I love these for their versatility. Superb in salad or with some goats cheese, or nice to snack on. They pack a real anti-oxidant boost and are rich in Folate. Try to eat them raw or cook lightly to keep the nutrients in-tacked.
2- Canned Pumpkin While anything canned should not be a staple, these are great to keep around the house. Add some butter and cinnamon plus a scoop of whey protein and you have a tasty high fiber snack. The stuff is low in calories and full of Vitamin A in the form of Beta-Carotene which is very healing for the spleen and helps with circulation. Pumpkin and other root vegetables are known as a “Chi” restoring food,
3- Sardines Both tinned and fresh. These are great, packed with protein, calcium and Omega 3′s plus cheap and easy to prepare. I always keep a batch of tinned ones in my pantry and try to eat them fresh when they are in season.
4- Frozen Berries Recently I have been keeping a pack of frozen blueberries around. They are cheap and pack a high ORAC score (total anti-oxidant count) plus they are packed with fiber and phytonutrients. Great to throw over some hot porridge or in some good organic yoghurt or cottage cheese.
5- Fresh Mint We often overlook fresh herbs and Mint is a favorite. Great to brew a herbal tea after dinner to aid digestion. Simply hand-wash a bunch and pour boiling water over, leave to steep for 5+ minutes. I also like chopping up a big bunch and throwing it in a salad, Makes for a refreshing twist.
6- Salsa People normally go for Ketchup (which is packed with sugar) when trying to add a zing to their food. Salsa is the ultimate healthy alternative. It is normally packed with vegetables, spices and lemon which makes for a much more beneficial side to your chicken or burger. Try and find a brand that is low in sugar and uses natural salt. These will normally cost a bit more but its worth it….
7- Coconut Flakes Most health food stores carry these and they are a real jem. Packed with good fats and anti-bacterial properties, coconut is truly a superfood. Make sure you find a variety which has no added sugar and feel free to throw them over pretty much anything from breakfast to curries. Or just grab a handful as a hunger killing snack.
8- Tomato Passata A good organic Tomato passata is something we should all keep in the pantry. It can make home cooking so simple and pack loads of flavor plus lycopene, which is one of the most potent anti-oxidants about. This great post at Everyday Paleo shows exactly what I am talking about…
Hope you got some ideas for your next shop, plus don’t forget #9 in the picture Carrots always keep them handy….
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29 comments so far
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Comment by Grok
24 January 2010
Excellent list, and thanks for the reminder about beets. I haven’t bought any of those for a while.
Salsa:
Also an excellent salad dressing! Surprisingly it’s easy to find cheap & organic when it comes to salsa. Costco is your friend here, or discount/closeout stores often have the bigger containers of Pace which generally have no extra junk.
Addition:
Frozen spinach. Very cheap and an easy way to get in a lot of greens. Fast easy dish that would make great grandma proud…. Heat a package of frozen spinach on the stove, top with a few tablespoons of your favorite pastured butter. Yum!
Comment by Brandon
24 January 2010
Pretty interesting list. Other than salsa, most of those items are far from my daily menu.
some random healthy things i love:
-pomegranates (loaded with antioxidants and taste great)
-peanut butter (sweet and full of fat and protein)
-avocado (all around miracle food)
@ Brandon: Avocado truly is a miracle food! Peanut butter is also a staple at my place, I love making my own with freshly roast organic peanuts and blending them up with some coconut oil, flax and sea salt.
Comment by Hugh
24 January 2010
Great list of all natural foods here.
I particularly love frozen mixed berries in my hot oatmeal in the morning – unbelievable.
Salsa is one of those things that you can put on anything – eggs, chicken, fish, canned tuna, etc… to spice it up. It’s so tasty and low-cal, which makes it guiltless.
A couple here that I’m not into yet, but I’ll try: beets, canned pumpkin, and coconut flakes.
@Brandon I second you on the peanut butter and avocado – both staples in my diet that make me feel very satisfied.
Comment by Adam
24 January 2010
Love pumpkin…add it to oatmeal…use it in smoothies. Heat it up with butter, salt, and pepper. Good stuff.
@Grok Couldn’t agree more about frozen spinach. I have bags of it in my freezer. I use it in smoothies. Or just as you recc’d heated up (with garlic and sundried tomatoes for a treat). Throw it into an omelette. No end of ideas for using frozen spinach to get quick and healthy greens.
Will work on beets and passata. Cheers!
Comment by Lanette
24 January 2010
Interesting list. It is helpful that you gave ideas on how to use the foods. I’ve not had sardines (by choice) or coconut flakes (new to me) but I may just try them both. I could relate to your comment about ketchup being high in sugar. I’ve been trying to cut down on sugar and I am amazed at how much sugar is hiding in our food.
Comment by David
25 January 2010
Glad to see some new items and not the standard run of the mill stuff.
Unfortunately, I can never enjoy beets – tastes like dirt. Everything I’ve tried and enjoyed.
@ David: try chopping up the beets and throwing them in a mixed salad. Or marinating them in a mixture of Lime Juice, Chopped Chilli’s and a dash of honey. Amazing!
Comment by John
25 January 2010
Sardines, yummy,find some light weight mayo and some pepper, thats a sandwich stuffer!!!
Comment by Kirsten
25 January 2010
If you want to ditch the can on the pumpkin, something that I do every year is buy a pumpkin way before Halloween (to get a good deal). I cook it down and use part of it for eating that week and freeze the rest. Cooked pumpkin, when sealed well, retains its color and flavor. Freezing works quite well, and if it’s not too dense, you can scoop out what you want to use and throw it back in the freezer. Since it’s already been cooked soft, it’s pretty much ready to use. (If you are afraid of it freezing too hard, just freeze it in individual-servings and thaw as needed. It may not last all year, but it’s nice to have a little fresh-tasting pumpkin when you want it.
@ Kirstin: Great tip especially as they seem to sell off pumpkins dirt cheap after Halloween. This is obviously way healthier than the canned stuff….
Comment by Richard Nikoley
25 January 2010
Chris:
Among a good many of the others, I always keep frozen blueberries, sometimes frozen raspberries, and frozen cherries around.
Toss a half handful of either — or a mix — into a bowl, add a few heaping tbsp of full fat FAGE, wait 20 minutes and you’ve got an amazing snack / dessert. Sometimes I’ll toss in a thumb & three finger helping of nuts, mixed or whatever I have on hand. Pecans are delightful, as are macadamias.
Another variation is what I call “nut soup” or, nut & fruit soup. Same as above, only less fruit, more nuts. If you have some cottage cheese on hand, then same as the yogurt (you can add a tsp of yogurt for the pro-b’s too), then enough heavy cream to give you a soup.
Try it. If you survive the pleasure, let me know hoe you liked it.
Anyone fermented cottage cheese with a yogurt starter? I’m thinking about that.
@ Richard: Thanks for the tip, Nut soup looks like a goer. Will give it a try this week and report back…
Comment by Greg
25 January 2010
Interesting that beets made the list. My wife and I were talking about them just the other day. When I was a boy growing up, my grandmother used to make canned beets. I loved them, but somehow I lost track of them over the years. Great reminder.
Comment by Per
25 January 2010
Berries are probably the one of the most underrated food there is, probably since a lot of people don’t know about the benefits of antioxidants.
I use to mix frozen blueberries with my oatmeal, together with coconut flakes – an amazing combination.
@ Per: True that, berries and coconut seem to be the ultimate combo. Try a coconut milk and blueberry smoothie!
Comment by Hans Hageman
25 January 2010
Winter is a great time to try new things since fresh produce is limited. Frozen berries, coconut flakes, and avocados are great in smoothies.
Comment by IPBrian
25 January 2010
You can keep the beets, but I am with you on the coconut. I have been meaning to get more coconut in my diet, and it fits in with my currently bulking attempts. Thanks for the suggestions! I have been meaning to also say awesome site design!
IPBrian
Comment by Jen-JensFitnessTips.com
25 January 2010
Love this list post! Very interesting to see some of those make it into the top 8! I can imagine sardines are good because of all the omega-3! What about tuna? I had no idea coconut was a superfood! I’ll have to remember that
Love carrots and yes, they are always around to snack on in my house! Thanks for sharing 
Jen
Comment by Trainerpack
26 January 2010
I loooooove avocados!
Comment by EnglishGuy
26 January 2010
Hi,
Great website! I am overweight and trying to change my life I want more to life then what I have now. Today was my first day. I am taking it slow so far in the last 24 hours no soda’s and I went to bed at 10 and got up at 6 which is a big thing for me because normally I am going to be at 1 and getting up at 7:40 running to work.
I am going to try and get better everyday I’ll keep you posted.
Cheers,
@ Cameron: Great stuff and keep on truckin….. The initial stages will be tough but give it a week and things will be far far easier. Stick to whole unprocessed foods and eat well!
Comment by Raza
28 January 2010
What about quinoa? My wife’s a dietician and made it for dinner last night instead of rice. It’s actually a seed (not a grain) and has protein, fiber, etc. I’m pretty convinced that it’s another killer food you’re probably missing.
@ Raza: Quinoa is great stuff, very nutritious and nourishing if prepared correctly so definitely a gem in terms of healthy foods!
Comment by kathleen
28 January 2010
I’ve been eating the same breakfast, more or less, daily for the last year or so and have yet to tire of it:
full-fat yogurt,
crushed walnuts, fresh as I can get them,
coconut flakes, unsweetened,
cinnamon, 1/2-1 tsp,
a little sweetener to taste,
berries–usually blue.
Lunch is an abundant salad with a spinach base, tomatoes, red peppers, avocado, cottage cheese, blue-cheese full-fat dressing, garnished w/cheese, bacon bits, etc.
Often don’t eat dinner–I eat lunch late–or snack on whatever healthful choices appeal–my favorite: butternut squash and red onions and sausage, sauteed in butter and EVOO, dolloped w/sour cream–hard to feel sorry for yourself eating like that!
Rare day when I don’t eat dark chocolate and walnuts.
Never limit my quantities, never feel deprived. I’m 54, work a desk job, single-parent of teens, God help me, and fought overweight since I was 13 years old, mostly with low-fat diets of one kind or another. I’ve lost 85+ pounds doing this, and I know I can easily eat like this for the rest of my life and be happy about it.
Nutrition–who knew?
@ Kathleen: Amazing stuff and looks delicious. If it works for you and you feel good then keep on going!
Comment by Crumple it Up
30 January 2010
Great post! I’d be willing to go out on a limb that 99% of the population would have no idea that Mint or Canned Pumpkin would be great for their diets! It’s amazing how simple and actually fun nutrition can be if you just break it down. It doesn’t have to be some crazy Wizard behind the curtain. Thanks for highlighting this!
Comment by Carole
30 January 2010
I make tuna salad w/ salsa instead of mayo. So much more flavorful and fresh.
Comment by Rajiv
30 January 2010
I think the reason why we’re missing these choices is because they tend to be pricey. And the routine is relatively inexpensive, or sustainable for people on a budget. As a college student working to shed weight, I can definitely attest to the difficulties of financing a healthy diet.
Still, some variety every now and then shouldn’t put a dent in one’s bank account.
Comment by Fuschia
6 February 2010
I agree that blueberries are delicious but, frozen fruits & veggies are hardly ‘zen’ or simple. Formaldehyde which is used to retard corpse decomposition is added to disinfect frozen vegetables and fruits before packaging. Ick.