Rah's Top 15 Must Have's
These 15 items are a must in my pantry and fridge. If I’m out of any of these, you can be sure that I’m headed to the store! All of these items can be found at your local grocery store. Trim Healthy Mama (the healthy eating plan that I’m on) has a lot of yummy recipes and some of them call for for specialty items. I’m here to tell you, I had zero specialty items when I started. And 6 months later I’m down 64 lbs and have added a lot of specialty items very very slowly. I’ll talk about my specialty items in another post.And now my Top 15 Must Have’s.
- 1. Dannon Oikos 000 Greek Yogurt - I eat at least one of these a day! It has zero fat, zero artificial sweeteners, and zero added sugar. It comes in 10 different flavors and the salted caramel is my absolute favorite! You can have a whole single serving with an E meal and a half with an S meal. Please see my blog http://saraheveritt.postach.io/post/what-are-you-doing for the explanations of the S and E meals! They are delicious! Did I mention they have 15 grams of protein too? I have these at home and at work.
- 2. Turkey Deli Meat - I don’t always have time to cook meat. And to make sure I have the protein I need to stay on plan I ALWAYS have turkey deli meat on hand. My favorite is the Great Value Brand at Walmart. It’s thin sliced and delicious! I put it in salads, with Laughing cow cheese and Wasa Crackers and sometimes just by itself.
- 3. Light Swiss Laughing Cow Cheese - Full of creamy, yummy deliciousness. One wedge has only 1.5 grams of fat. Perfect with my turkey deli meat or green bell peppers or on plan carb balance whole wheat tortilla’s. This is a home and office must as well!
- 4. Almond Milk - I use Almond milk almost every day. Be sure you get the unsweetened kind! And I prefer the Unsweetened Vanilla. It’s perfect in smoothies! Lots of THM smoothies, hot drinks and sipper recipes call for it. I also use it to prepare my oatmeal instead of water. Makes it creamy!
- 5. Apple Cider Vinegar - ACV is a crucial part of my weight loss. Be sure to get the kind with “The Mother." There are more health benefits with this kind. It’s right on the label so you can’t miss it. I haven’t been able to find ACV with the mother at Lawton’s Target, but you can find it at Walmart and Country Mart for sure! I make a Good Girl Moonshine with ACV. At least one a day! See my blog http://saraheveritt.postach.io/post/moonshine-i-thought-you-were-on-a-diet to find out all about GGMS!
- 6. Eggs - All hail, the incredible edible egg; fried, scrambled, over easy, a tasty omelet, hard boiled. The possibilities are endless! They are super quick and easy to fix and are delicious. We go through a lot of eggs at my house. Full of protein and good fats. And when you’re having an E meal, not a problem, just use the whites!
- 7. Berries - Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries and Blueberries! All are great friends of the THM Plan! They go with both E and S meals. Now be careful with Blueberries in an S meal, cut the portion to 1/2 cup!
- 8. Protein Powder - Great for smoothies! The THM Brand is bomb! But it is not necessary. I had trouble with this one when I first started. Finding a Protein Powder that didn’t have artificial sweeteners in it proved to be tricky. The ones I found were either very expensive or the texture was off for me. Texture is a big deal for me. After all my trying I found my favorite. The THM Brand. It’s on their store and you can find it at other online stores! I’m not saying to throw out what you have. Use up what you have!
- 9. Pyure Organic Stevia - Stevia is a natural sweetener. And unlike sugar, stevia does not spike your blood sugar. And it lets you have something sweet without the guilt of sugar. Sugar is so so bad. But that is for another post. The PYURE brand is by far the BEST Stevia I have found. You can find it at Walmart in the baking aisle next to the sugar and splenda. I am NOT a fan of Truvia. This brand doesn’t have that crazy bad after taste. I use PYURE in everything I want to sweeten; coffee, tea, oatmeal, muffins, cakes, smoothies, ice cream, everything! And yes, you can have on plan muffins, cakes, and ice cream. There’s so many recipes that call for stevia and it’s always in my pantry!
- 10. Fresh/Frozen Veggies - I have found that veggies are key to my weight loss. I try to sneak them in whenever I can. I don’t particularly love veggies so I have to be intentional about eating them. Don’t be afraid to try something new! I never thought I liked brussel sprouts. I tried them the other day and guess what? I LOVE them! You’ll be surprised what you might like if you just give it a try. My favorites are broccoli, cauliflower, squash, zucchini and now brussel sprouts.
- 11. Fresh Greens - Spinach, Kale, Romaine, Cabbage, etc.. I know that fresh greens are vegetables, but I felt like they needed their own category. Kale is a superfood. Sometimes Kale gets a bad wrap, but I love it. I use it in salads, smoothies, wraps, and kale chips are amazing! Just made my first batch of Kale chips last week. I loved them! And Kale is so cheap! You can get a fresh big bunch of it at Walmart for $1.18. I may have to write another blog just on Kale! I do make sure that I always have a plethora of greens in my fridge. Spinach and Cabbage are a couple of my other favorites. They are great to cook with! You’ll be seeing lots of meals in future posts that include all these yummy greens!
- 12. Oats - A great option for an E meal and you have to try the Bust a Myth Banana Cake from the THM Cookbook. Oats are a big part of this recipe and so delicious. Oats fill me up like no other. Oats really help me on those days where I want to eat everything in sight! And have you tried overnight oats?!? Oh my! There’s another post!
- 13. Turkey Sausage - The Jeanie O Breakfast Turkey Sausage is my favorite! So tasty and a great source of protein! I pair turkey sausage with scrambled eggs, spinach an on plan carb balance whole wheat tortilla and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese for my favorite S breakfast - breakfast burritos! Mmmm! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
- 14. Light Rye Wasa Crackers - Sometimes you just need something crunchy and these Wasa Crackers do the trick! They are the shape and size of a graham cracker and are in the cracker section. I’ve already mentioned one of my favorite snacks that include these crackers with Light Laughing Cow Cheese and Turkey Deli Meat! They are also great paired with a Light Progresso Soup!
- 15. Coconut Oil - Oh man, I could go on for days about Coconut Oil! It has so many healthy benefits, including helping with weight loss! I use coconut oil everyday. In fact, I’ve read in several places that we should consume 2 TBS of coconut oil every day! I always go for the Extra Virgin Coconut Oil. Some people don’t like the taste of coconut and say they can taste it in Coconut Oil. You may have to try a couple until you find the right brand for you.
So there you go! My Top 15! I hope they help you on your journey like they have with mine!
