Today we continue our discussion on setting up a real food kitchen with my real food refrigerator essentials list. If you missed the Pantry Essentials discussion, make sure you click over to get caught up. The key to avoiding the fast-food lines is to fill your refrigerator with lots of real food ingredients. These are the ingredients you will be able to quickly throw together for delicious and nutritious meals and snacks for your busy family.
Having a stocked real food kitchen really helps my day to go smoother. Lots of snacks for the kids to choose from and less stress when it comes to preparing meals for my family. Running to the grocery store last minute is something I try to avoid at all costs. It drives me crazy! It takes a little practice to get the hang of keeping a stocked real food refrigerator, but with practice it becomes easier. Use the following list to build your real food shopping list.
Real Food Refrigerator Essentials
Eggs
Butter (not margarine)
Milk
Cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, Colby-jack, Parmesan, Cream Cheese)
Sour Cream: Double check ingredients
Plain Yogurt: Way more versatile and healthy than the flavored stuff
Cottage Cheese
Organic Cheese Sticks
Peanut Butter: 1-Ingredient
Jelly: All-Fruit
Leafy Greens: Baby spinach, Spring Mix, Romaine
Fresh Veggies: Carrots, Celery, Cucumbers, Tomatoes
Perishable Fresh Fruits: Berries, Grapes, Oranges, Lemons
100% Real Maple Syrup
Nitrate Free Lunch Meats: Make sure to look for real meat and not meat-like products.
If you are experienced at this real food thing, go ahead and leave me a comment with what you would add to this real food refrigerator essentials list. I’ll come back and keep updating this list as needed. I want this to be a resource for folks just starting on their real food journey. I’ll be back soon with my freezer list and information on buying meat.
For real food recipes check out my recipe index. I add new recipes all of the time so I hope that you check back often. If you are looking to plan your real food meals, you will want to check out the section of the blog that I have devoted to all things meal planning. It included advice, tips, and a free printable meal planning calendar.
Great tips, Christina. Being prepared and well stocked is about 95% of the key to eating well.
Gaye @CalmHealthySexy recently posted…Baked Applesauce – Easy, Delicious and Perfect for Fall
Stopping by from the Let’s get Real Link Party. Your fridge looks a lot like mine. We also keep tortillas, the required condiments of organic mustard, pickles, a good ketchup, good mayonnaise, low sodium soy sauce and a good quality ranch dressing in the door.
Marjie@homeagainjiggetyjig.com/wp recently posted…FRUGAL SHOPPING TIPS FOR OCTOBER
Yes! Very much the contents of my fridge… although mine has beer 😉 I only recently converted to the one ingredient peanut butter, I hadn’t really thought about it before but feel much better giving to my boys now they are on solid food. #LetsGetRealSocial
Twin Pickle recently posted…Baby Finger Food: Baked Baby Falafel
This is just about what our fridge looks like now. It used to contain a lot of junk, many of which we thought were healthy like fruit juices. Nowadays, there’s tons of veggies in there, plus yogurt, eggs and fruits.
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