12 Grocery Store Staple Items
Posted on August 19 2020
A major part of living a healthy, balanced lifestyle is the food that we eat in our own homes. Obviously my shopping list changes from week to week depending on what I’m cooking, but there are 12 Grocery Store Staple Items that are ALWAYS on the list because we can’t live without them!
Making sure you have all the necessary nutritious ingredients on-hand is really essential so you’re not tempted to grab the first thing that comes your way when you’re starving…
So here goes – Our favourite 12 Grocery Store Staple Items:
1. Bananas
Don’t make me go a day without them, I won’t be a happy human, lol. We have a banana in our breakfast smoothie almost every morning. Bananas make everything better – I’ll top a rice cake or oatmeal with nut butter and some banana slices. Or for a quick snack, I’ll have half a banana with nut butter or a small handful of walnuts or almonds.
Bananas are also great for putting in healthy pancakes like my Healthy Oatmeal Bran Banana Pancakes which we love to have on weekends – they feel like such a treat!
Fun fact: Research shows that 1/2 banana with 8 – 10 cashews and a pinch of Himalayan pink salt before bed can help you go to sleep, and keep you sleeping peacefully through the night. If you’re someone who tends to wake up in the night feeling tired but wired, you should try this, it works for me!
2. Apples or pears (usually both)
I buy apples year-round, and pears when they’re in season.
My favourite apples by far are pink ladies, my love for them runs deep – they’re so crisp, juicy, sweet and a tiny bit tart. When I can’t get pink ladies I’ll opt for golden delicious.
1/2 an apple is a staple in our morning smoothie, and I love them for a snack with some nuts or nut butter mid-afternoon. If we have pears in the house then I’ll probably reach for a pear and a few walnuts – such a great combo.
3. Spinach + Kale
Two items, I know, but they go hand-in-hand. I’ll put a huge handful of spinach or kale in our morning smoothies, one day I’ll do spinach, the next kale.
We also love to fry them up together in some coconut oil, garlic and Himalayan pink salt as a super healthy side with dinner.
4. Nut butter + raw walnuts, almonds or cashews
I make sure we ALWAYS have nut butter in the house – it’s great on rice cakes, in smoothies, with banana, apple, pear or celery for a snack. I also keep a jar of walnuts, almonds or cashews, or a mix of all three, in the fridge for snacking.
5. Eggs
Michael has scrambled eggs on rye for breakfast every day before his smoothie, and I sometimes make myself Mexican scrambled eggs (fry onion, red or yellow bell pepper and peas in coconut oil until tender, scramble in 2 eggs and some black beans and enjoy – it’s SO good), or I love boiled eggs for lunch or dinner, not to mention all the baking that goes on around here!
6. Hummus
My absolute favourite way to have a delicious light lunch that is still satisfying and provides all 3 macronutrients.
I’ll have 2 brown rice cakes with 2 tbsp hummus, 1/2 a small avocado sprinkled with Himalayan pink salt and ground black pepper. YUM. Often I’ll add some cherry tomatoes or salad leaves on the side. You can also add tuna or roast chicken if you like.
I also love hummus with carrots for lunch or a healthy snack!
7. Avocados
Similar to bananas, we struggle to go a day without avos in our life!
We have avocado with scrambled egg, on rice cakes, in salads, in smoothies, as guacamole and sometimes I’ll even mash avocado into brown rice to make the most delicious chicken salad or as a side dish with roast chicken and veggies – It’s amazing!!
See how it’s done here – Avocado Rice And Nectarine Chicken Salad.
8. Herbal Tea
I stopped drinking coffee a long time ago as it gave me headaches. Since then I’ve realised even caffeinated tea is a bit strong for my delicate-ness, lol. SO…I drink herbal teas of all kinds, and recently I’ve fallen back in love with Rooibos and Spicy Chai.
9. Honey
A great natural sweetener in moderation. I love to add 1/2 tsp Ceylon cinnamon and 1/2 tsp honey to my Rooibos – it tastes amazing, you should try it!! We also sweeten our hot cacao in the evenings with honey.
You can see how I make our cacao every evening in my Instagram stories – follow me here -> @berry_sweet_life
10. Sweet potatoes
How I ever lived without these wonderful root vegetables I will never know…
We have sweet potatoes every other day, and some weeks EVERY day. They’re great sliced into fries and roasted (skins on) in coconut oil and spices, chopped into cubes and roasted with other veggies, or used in stews, curries and chilli.
I also love to bake them whole, slice them in half and eat them with guacamole for a really easy meal or side dish.
11. Brown Rice Cakes
I try to stay away from bread and refined carbs as much as possible and rice cakes are a great alternative.
They make a healthy light lunch with hummus and avocado, or a snack with nut butter and sliced banana or berries. Brown rice is such a healthy complex carb and rice cakes are filling, satisfying and delicious!
12. Coconut oil + coconut milk
Coconut oil is a wonderful healthy fat that stays stable at high temperatures, making it ideal for cooking. And coconut milk is just the most delicious way to achieve a creamy texture and delicious flavour in curries, casseroles, bakes and sauces.
You will love my recipes using coconut oil and coconut milk – Garlic Mushroom Chicken Casserole, my Baked Chicken Pasta With Coconut Sauce and my Mustard Chicken Quinoa Red Pepper Casserole.
I feel like I could keep going as there are so many healthy grocery items that we buy regularly, but these 12 Grocery Store Staple Items are definitely some of our most loved staples that we buy year-round and never seem to get tired of.
What do you find yourself buying every single week regardless of what’s on the menu? Let me know in the comments.
