Not sure what you’re going to serve for the holidays this year? Holiday feasts are something we all look forward to and enjoy. The company, the savory, seasonal foods, the atmosphere — it’s all a part of the equation.

If you need some inspiration on what to serve this year, I’ve got just the ideas for you. Most of all, these ideas can help you add more superfoods and hidden veggies into your holiday meals to shake things up. Nutritious can be delicious when you think outside the box and use the seasonal bounty of foods to create something that tastes so good that everyone will be shocked to learn it’s good for them.

Here are some suggestions to round out your meal with healthier options without sacrificing flavor.

Hors D’oeuvres and Appetizers

• Add healthy toppings to crisp crostini with kale and white beans
• Stuff tomatoes with feta, fresh herbs, and quinoa
• Turn brussels sprouts into sliders for an easy grab n’ go appetizer
• Make a healthy dip by offering hummus with spiced sweet potatoes
• Give pumpkin soup a makeover with roasted garlic and sage
• Put out a bowl of spicy roasted pumpkin seeds for everyone to munch on

Sides

• Make a kale salad base with fresh apple and roasted cauliflower
• Go for beets in a salad with avocado and ginger dressing for an exotic twist
• Try fresh cranberry sauce with ginger, pomegranate, and a little lime
• Roast cauliflower and black lentils with cumin
• Replace that heavy stuffy with an herbed wild rice and quinoa blend
• Bake sweet potatoes with ginger and cardamom
• Serve a roasted butternut squash seasoned with turmeric and smoked paprika

Desserts

• Make tarts with acai berries
• Use pumpkin and carob for a sweet baked treat
• Bake pears or apples and add a crushed walnut crust for crispness
• Enjoy healthy dark chocolate bark with cranberries and pumpkin seeds

Drinks

• Create a pretty, pink cranberry ginger spritzer with club soda
• Add lemon and ginger to your homemade apple cider
• Infuse club soda-based cocktails with rosemary and bunches of other fresh herbs

If you put some thought into it, there are so many ways to twist the traditional standby dishes we serve for the holidays into something healthier.

We were on the right track with sweet potatoes and pumpkins, and loading them up with fresh herbs and seasonal spices adds more flavor while keeping things healthy.

Love yourself and your family even more by dishing up more superfoods and veggies into your holiday meals and feasts. What’s your favorite holiday dish?

Want a delicious and nutritious plant-based breakfast to start your day but don’t want to work hard for it? It’s easy to make something healthy and vegan for your morning meal, all while your coffee brews.

Whether you’ve just switched to plant-based eating or just want to make more meals meatless, try these super-fast and super-delicious plant-based breakfasts that you’ll have ready in minutes.

Berry Blissful Oatmeal

Oatmeal might seem bland, but you can jazz it up. Use those gluten-free steel-cut oats, mix with plant-based milk (or even plain water), and add ground flaxseed into it for a more filling experience. And then, top it off with some fresh or frozen berries that will add sweetness, flavor, and nutrients that take this old breakfast standby to the next level.

Awesome Avocado Toast

If you have whole-grain bread and avocados, you’ve got a quick breakfast on your hands. While the bread toasts away, slice up your avocado. Add a little smear of Dijon mustard on your toast first if you like, then pile it high with avocado, a little bit of red onion, and some arugula for a brunchy good time any morning. Alfalfa sprouts are a great addition to this, as well.

Green and Creamy Smoothie

Even if green smoothies don’t seem like something you’d like, you’ll be a big believer in them when you try this one. Blend one ripe frozen banana, a handful of spinach (or kale, or you could also mix them 50/50), about 2/3-cup of dairy-free milk (like almond milk or unsweetened coconut milk), and two tablespoons of natural nut butter (peanut or cashew works great). Blend this and enjoy.

Vegan Sausage Breakfast Sandwich

If you’re a meat-eater that’s trying to cut down but wants those same flavors, grab some of the vegan veggie sausage patties. Cook them as directed and then seal the deal by putting them between 2 pieces of whole-grain toast. Avocado goes great with them, but if you’re missing cheese, add a vegan cheese slice, and you’ll be amazed how delicious it is.

Quick Quinoa Bowl

If you don’t have oats, try using your quinoa in a breakfast bowl. Cook it with plant-based milk and add cinnamon, seeds, nuts, and chopped dates for sweetness.

Berry Blast Antioxidant Smoothie

Another smoothie that will have you out the door in no time while being entirely plant-based is perfect for berry lovers. You’ll need a cup of frozen blueberries, which will add a nice chilled texture, as well as one banana that you’ll need to put in the freezer overnight.

From there, it’s a cup of your favorite unsweetened almond milk, a cup of raw spinach, and half an avocado. It’s so full of antioxidants, and it will keep you feeling pleasantly full and energetic until lunch.

With these quick and easy recipes, now you have no excuse not to try more plant-based things, especially when these tasty breakfast items can be made in under 10 minutes.

No doubt you’ve heard about antioxidants before, but have you ever wondered what they are or how they help you?

Over time, high concentrations of free radicals in your body can cause oxidative stress. This damages your cells and is what researchers believe is causing the illnesses & chronic conditions we’re all fervently trying to avoid.

When you get enough antioxidants in your diet, they go on the hunt for free radicals. The human body does make some antioxidants naturally, but we need more from what we eat to get enough. There are many antioxidants in fruits and vegetables that you’ve probably heard of like vitamins A, C, and E, lycopene, and selenium. The antioxidants are released during the digestive process, go into the bloodstream, and then to the cells.

Experts agree that it’s better to get your antioxidants through food rather than supplements. The more colorful your plate, the better off you will be. You’ll be getting a wide range of antioxidants and other nutritious compounds that will give your body everything it needs to stay healthy.

Here are some excellent antioxidant-rich picks to fill your plate with:

Berries

Pick your favorite berry or make a berry mixture. It doesn’t matter which ones you pick, as all of them have superfood status thanks to their antioxidants and fiber. They’re also naturally sweet and refreshing, so enjoy berries on rotation throughout the year.

Tea

Keep the cream and sugar out of it, and the antioxidants you get from green tea, and black tea are a great way to drink your way to better health. Even if you are an avid coffee lover, you can fit in one cup of tea a day for the benefits.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes have the antioxidant known as lycopene. While they certainly are great fresh (and tasty too!), you’ll make them more bioavailable if you heat them a little. Try making a fresh sauce with fresh tomatoes. Other foods high in lycopene include guava, watermelon, pink grapefruit, and papaya.

Nuts and seeds 

Snack on walnuts, almonds, pecans, sunflower seeds, and pistachios to get more antioxidants. Raw or roasted is wonderful — just watch out that they don’t have too much added salt.

Dark chocolate

The higher the cacao content, the more antioxidants in your chocolate. You could seek out some antioxidant-rich dark chocolate nibs to mix with your nuts and seeds for a handful of homemade trail mix to satisfy your sweet tooth.

There are plenty more antioxidant-rich foods to try. Stone fruits, artichokes, pomegranates, and kale all win big in that department. There are also many herbs and spices from your spice rack that can do the trick.

For example, cloves, cinnamon, oregano, rosemary, thyme, and sage are some popular herbs and spices with high antioxidants levels. These are incredibly delicious this time of year in soups and stews.

Luckily antioxidants are lurking everywhere, and it’s not difficult to find foods and beverages to add to your daily routine.  

There’s no reason to ditch those favorite foods when you’re embarking on your mission to lead a healthier lifestyle. Adapting the foods you love in new and healthy ways is quite simple, and before long, you’ll end up liking your healthier version more — I guarantee it! These tricks help keep the flavors you love while also adding in more veggies while ditching the ingredients that typically cause bloat and digestive upset.

So you’ll still be getting the foods you love, without any of the discomforts that came with them. See? This healthy eating thing isn’t so bad. It’s even more enjoyable!

Here are a few of my favorite hacks to recreate my favorite meals into delicious, nutritious alternatives that leave me feeling energized and satisfied.

Swap noodles for veggie versions

Pasta dishes are one of the most beloved comfort foods around. If you miss spaghetti Bolognese, try making it with zucchini noodles (zoodles) using a food spiralizer. Lasagna can be made using zucchini ribbons, and mac n’ cheese can be made with cauliflower. You’ll soon realize it’s the flavors we have grown to love so much, and the “pasta” part can be quite flexible without missing any enjoyment.

Change the way you eat burgers

You can’t go to any American restaurant without a list of burgers. The bun often takes away from your patty and toppings anyway, leaving it messy and difficult to eat. Instead, wrap it up in crisp lettuce along with fresh tomato and onion slices, and you won’t miss a thing! (If meat-free – speak about black bean or veggie burgers)

Get creative with tacos and burritos

Generally, the fillings in your tacos and burritos are tasty and healthy. If you’re craving something south of the border, lettuce comes to the rescue again, serving as the perfect vessel for these fillings. You can wrap your taco ingredients with a large leaf of lettuce, or deconstruct your tacos into a taco bowl with a rice, bean, and lettuce base. Cauliflower rice is another excellent option to add even more veggies to the mix.

Create healthier mashed potatoes and fries

Mashed potatoes are one of the most popular comfort foods around. If you’ve never tried to recreate mashed potatoes with cauliflower, give it a try. With the right seasonings, you honestly cannot tell the difference. You can either blend it with a little potato or use all cauliflower. And for fries, you can bake up butternut squash or zucchini for the same incredible effect without the bloat. Parsnips and turnips also make for great fry alternatives.

Replace your rice

Are you missing your favorite burrito bowl? Cauliflower comes to the rescue again. It’s so easy to turn it into rice with your food processor. You can also buy it ready-made in the freezer and cut your prep time down fast.

Cauliflower saves the day again with pizza too

And finally, who doesn’t love a slice of pizza every once in a while? Fortunately, you can make a cauliflower crust and solve your pizza problems in an instant. You can also find ready-made cauliflower crusts in the frozen section, but the best ones are homemade.

When you start thinking about healthier approaches to your favorite foods, you get the flavors you want without discomfort. That’s exactly how life should be, and I’m here to assure you a healthy lifestyle is enjoyable, doable, and simple.

This year, experts have warned us to be ready for cold and flu season amid the coronavirus concerns. Ideally, the best thing you can do is boost your immune system to minimize or even prevent your chances of getting sick with any illnesses floating around.

The sooner you start boosting it, the more prepared it will be to take on intruders and keep you healthy.

Here’s what to do to be ready!

Fill your plate with nutritious foods

It’s so easy to fill our plates with tempting treats for the upcoming holidays. And indeed, while a slice of Mom’s best pie is worth the splurge, focus on filling the rest of your plate full of things that do your body good. Make use of seasonal fresh fall foods like winter squashes, pumpkins, nuts, and seeds. All in all, practice balance, so you still enjoy your favorite seasonal goodies while still eating nutritious-dense foods to keep your immune system healthy.

Focus on gut health

The more gut health is studied, the more obvious it becomes that we should be taking extra care to keep it healthy. Your gut and immune system work together, so keep your good gut bacteria thriving, and your immune system will stay healthier. You can eat naturally probiotic foods like yogurt or kimchi, or you can take a probiotic supplement. Be sure you’re eating enough fiber too, though, so that good bacteria can really thrive.

Sleep well

It’s not always easy, but when you make time to get deep sleep each night, it supports your body’s overall health. Your body completes restoration and cleansing rituals within your cells through these crucial hours. Plus, as you sleep, it can build up its army of white blood cells should it detect an intruding pathogen.

Get your exercise

Exercise boosts immunity, too, so don’t let colder weather get you down. Also, you’ll get the stress relief you need so you can strengthen your immunity in 2 ways. You don’t need a gym either — you can do exercises at home or, even better, get out there in the fresh air and enjoy the calming spirit of nature as you walk, jog, or run.

Find proper ways to handle stress

Along with exercise, letting go of tension in other ways is encouraged. Try meditation, yoga, journaling, or talking to friends and family to release that stress in a healthy way. The holidays bring a lot of pressure for many, so be proactive about this before the season hits.

Take care of your other conditions

Underlying health conditions can make it much worse for you should you get sick — whether it’s a cold, the flu, or even COVID-19. It’s time to make sure you get your checkup with your doctor to monitor your blood pressure and how all other health markers are looking. If you have an underlying condition, your doctor will advise you on protecting yourself in your particular situation.

Take care of your health every day, starting now. Doing so can help you from getting sick. And remember, if you do get sick, stay home and get better first!

When you’re trying to be intentional about living a healthy life, you might think fast food is entirely off the table — but it doesn’t have to be. Even registered dieticians and nutritionists zip through the drive-thru lane or order fast-casual eats sometimes. The difference is in what they order, though.

While it’s best not to make a habit of eating quickly prepared foods, sometimes it’s necessary. Whether you leave your healthy packed lunch on the counter instead of taking it with you to work or don’t have time to cook something healthy when you get home, these five options will help you make the healthiest decision possible.

Here are five healthy options at fast food restaurants when you’re on the go.

1. Bowls from Chipotle

Chipotle isn’t all carb chaos. In fact, it’s very easy to have a healthy and fast meal made for you just the way you like. If you choose the burrito bowl, you can create quite a healthy meal. You can have it made with the sofritas (seasoned organic tofu), fajita veggies, black beans, and a dash of brown rice. A little guac will add a pop of flavor, too. For low-carb eaters, get the keto bowl, which lets you pile up your ingredients on a bed of lettuce.

2. Healthier Options at Starbucks

No matter if you’re traveling or at home, you can be sure to find a Starbucks or seven in your general vicinity. This helps you know you’ll be able to find a quick, healthy bite on a moment’s notice, no matter where you are. Between several protein box options, pre-packaged salads, wraps, and snack boxes, you’ll be sure to find something that catches your eye. They have many vegan & vegetarian options, too, so you won’t be left out if you aren’t a meat-eater.

3. Impossible Burger at Burger King

Pair the Impossible Burger with a side salad, and you’ve got a meat-free delight that will keep you satisfied until dinner. You can even ditch the bun and top a larger salad with your Impossible Burger for a bigger meal.

4. Panera

Next time you’re in a time crunch and need a quick meal, try Panera. There are endless types of salads, soups, and bowls to choose from. Most Panera’s even have a drive-thru option, if you are really in a time pinch.

5. Winner Anywhere – Grilled Chicken Salad

And regardless of where you find yourself, perhaps in an unfamiliar city while traveling for work, you can’t go wrong ordering a grilled chicken salad. Every fast-food menu tends to have one. If you prefer to skip the chicken, a large salad and a soup side will pair well together.

No matter which drive-thru you find yourself in, avoid anything labeled ‘crispy’ and stick with roasted, grilled, or steamed options instead to find your healthiest meals on the go!

If you love sweet potatoes, I have some good news — sweet potatoes love you back with their robust nutrition profile. They’ve got everything you need to round out a healthy meal, including fiber and loads of vitamins and minerals.

Orange and purple varieties give you even more antioxidants that help stop oxidation and keep you healthy and youthful, inside and out. While you might know they’re a good-for-you option on your fall plate, you may learn a thing or two about sweet potatoes with these five benefits I’m going to share with you today.

Here are five benefits of eating sweet potatoes and tasty ways to enjoy them.

1. They help your gut health

With plenty of fiber and antioxidants, your gut is happy when you eat sweet potatoes. With both types of fiber (soluble and insoluble), the good bacteria in your gut ferments it to create short-chain fatty acids and keep your intestinal lining strong. Antioxidants encourage more healthy gut bacteria to proliferate too, so enjoy those sweet potatoes.

2. They could help prevent illness

While more tests need to be conducted, the antioxidants in sweet potatoes, particularly anthocyanins, may be the key to slowing down the occurrence of illness. It’s not confirmed, but science does know that these antioxidants have other beneficial health benefits for you, so it surely can’t hurt to eat more of them.

3. They help you keep your eyes on the prize

Filled with beta-carotene, sweet potatoes help you keep your eyes healthy. Your body turns that beta-carotene into vitamin A so your eyes can stay healthy and youthful. Even the purple variety of sweet potatoes can be beneficial for your eye health.

4. Your brain will thank you

If you want to keep your mind healthy and young, eating more sweet potatoes could be the key even as you age. The anthocyanins that are so plentiful in the purple variety are ideal for reducing inflammation. All the antioxidants you get can help you reduce your cognitive decline chances, and sweet potatoes are an excellent way to get more of them.

5. They can help boost immunity

Remember what we said about vitamin A? Your immune system really needs it, and your gut does too. Taking care of both is easy enough by eating more sweet potatoes.

There’s nothing like a baked sweet potato with just a dash of cinnamon sprinkled on top. Even with a little butter, it’s still nutritious enough. You can make sweet potatoes in so many other ways too. Try mashed sweet potatoes, spiralize them to take the place of your noodles, use them in baked goods to add moisture without the fat, use your air fryer to make them into fries, or create a vegetarian stew that warms you up when it’s cold outside.

Sweet potatoes are delicious, nutritious, and very versatile. Pick some up the next time you stock up your kitchen essentials!

Winter is just around the corner, but before the frigidness sets in, let’s enjoy the crispness of autumn. Make something warm to cozy up with when the wind whips around the corner, sending a cascade of colorful autumn leaves swirling around.

While we all tend to fantasize about those fall favorite warm drinks we love, you can stay on track with these five options. Each one will give you the warm fuzzies with zero guilt — and they’re even beneficial for your health!

Here are five of the healthiest warm drinks to cozy up with this Fall:

1. Lemon Turmeric Water

Lemon and turmeric are star-studded ingredients in the health world. Combine them in hot water along with red chili powder to help give your metabolism a boost, and you’ll have a tasty and healthy drink to enjoy all autumn long. With a pinch of both coarse sea salt and raw honey, the flavor is lovely and unique.

2. Apple Cider

One of the best things about fall is the apple harvest. A simple warm glass of apple cider with a real cinnamon stick is something you can enjoy often. If you’re not making your own, avoid any brands that add gobs of sugar. Stick to natural stuff, and you’ll get plenty of vitamin C and pectin. The cinnamon stick helps blood sugar control while encouraging proper digestion — something that can help you after any meal.

3. Ginger Tea

Ginger is a beloved anti-inflammatory that has been used for centuries in many cultures. Simply making thin slices of fresh ginger root and adding them to boiling water creates a ginger tea. Strain out the ginger, and you’ve got the perfect ginger tea that helps digestion, encourages bone health, and even can relieve coughing. While it’s delicious as it is, if you need sweetness, add in some raw organic honey, which has plenty of benefits of its own.

4. A Healthier Pumpkin Spice Coffee

No fall drink list would be complete without the iconic PSL. Yet it’s not exactly a healthy option, even if pumpkin itself IS good for you. At home, you can make it in a flash. Simply brew your favorite coffee with pumpkin pie spice added to your coffee grounds. Then, add nonfat almond milk to get that creamy and rich feeling. It’s delicious – I assure you!

5. Low-Cal Hot Chocolate

You can easily cheat by heating up a glass of chocolate almond milk. But if you’d prefer a more indulgent affair, heat nonfat milk and then stir in a tablespoon of unsweetened raw cacao powder. You’ll get that warm, chocolatey feeling from head to toe.

Personally, my favorite drinks to keep warm with are herbal teas and golden milk.

What are yours?

Unless you were a germophobe before the pandemic, you probably didn’t think of your way of life as unhygienic. Soap flew off the shelves, and we started asking ourselves, hmmm… why wasn’t soap as popular before?

While much has changed since the beginning of the outbreak, experts have still continuously touted many healthy habits that we should have been doing all along. But the more we know, the better we become. Let’s hope that this cold and flu season is the healthiest we’ve seen in a while, with everyone’s newfound propensity for handwashing and immune boosting!

Here are five long-lasting healthy habits we should carry on even after the pandemic has cleared up.

1. Wash your hands often

And don’t just rinse them with water or quickly wash with soap — wash them thoroughly. The experts say at least 20 seconds of vigorous scrubbing with soap is required to remove any lingering germs. Even if you always wash up before eating or after a trip to the bathroom, you should be cognizant of washing throughout the day, especially when you come back into your home.

2. Stay put if you’re sick

We’re all probably quite guilty of still living life as usual when we’re mildly ill, which leads to community spread quite easily. Perhaps we’ll take this quarantined mindset into the future when we become sick. Stay put, rest, and get well before you go back into the world. Of course, this isn’t always possible, but decreasing the spread of illness as much as we can will help one trip out in public at a time.

3. Use that face mask if you’re sick

I’ve often seen masked people in the pharmacy section of the department store during the cold and flu season. When diagnosed with the flu, we’ve been given masks to use when shopping for immune boosters and any necessary medications. And this was many, many years before the COVID-19 pandemic. This can be seen becoming more popular throughout the flu season each year, which would help reduce spread if you have to leave the house for some essential items.

4. Don’t spray coughs and sneezes everywhere

Even if you’re home alone, get in the habit of coughing and sneezing into the crook of your elbow. As kids, many of us were taught to cover our coughs and sneezes, but we often used our hands. The elbow is a better place to catch your sneeze or cover your cough, especially when you’re in a situation where you can’t get to a sink to wash your hands right away.

5. Keep your hands off your face

Because we’re always touching something, try to eliminate touching your face unless your hands have been freshly cleaned the right way. If you have germs on your hands, you’ll risk spreading them in your eyes, nose, or mouth if you don’t form the habit of not touching your face. This can be challenging, but with awareness, you can at least reduce how often this occurs.

What new healthy habits have you adopted during this time?