When your focus is eating whole foods you end up cooking a lot. There is just no way around it. And despite my commitment to our new diet, I occasionally miss the convenience of ready-made store bought foods. Not only do I have to make sure I cook a healthy dinner every night, but I now also have the added responsibility of making breakfast, lunch and snack foods as well. That’s what happens when you no longer eat store-bought cereals, tortillas, hummus, or granola bars.
Ever since we made this change a few months ago I have been on the prowl for store-bought items with a simple list of ingredients. We all already know about ready-to-eat snacks such as nuts, raisins, popcorn and fresh fruit, but here are some other convenient options that I have recently become a fan of…
Triscuits
We love that these crackers have only 3 ingredients as opposed to their Wheat Thins counterpart that boast a dozen or more ingredients including multiple sweeteners such as high fructose corn syrup.
Lara Bars
These are a variety of fruit and nut bars some of which have as little as TWO ingredients! Until I came across these I never imagined a ready-made snack could exist with only two ingredients (and they are good too). Definitely choose these over options such as Nature Valley’s Trail Mix Fruit & Nut bars, which contain almost 20 ingredients including 3 different types of sweeteners. Here in Charlotte I have found Lara Bars sold at Trader Joe’s, Earthfare, and Harris Teeter.
Freeze Dried Fruits
We have always been fans of traditional dried fruits such as raisins, but I recently came across some freeze dried fruits that are similar in concept except crunchy in texture. I found the ones pictured at Earthfare, and they come in a variety of flavors such as pear, pineapple, banana, and apple. I have also seen other brands like Funky Monkey which can be purchased at Target.
Fruit Leathers / Strips
These fruit strips remind me a lot of Fruit Roll Ups although they have quite a different (and simpler) list of ingredients. Sold in a wide variety of flavors including cherry, mango, strawberry and grape, I have found them under various brand names at Target, Harris Teeter, Trader Joes and Earthfare. Despite having a very short list of 4 or 5 ingredients they do contain fruit juice concentrate (which is basically a sweetener) so we do view these as “treats” in our house. And my kids love them!
Applesauce On the Go
Even though my kids have become much more accepting of our whole foods diet they are still kids that of course love foods that come in fun packages. That is why I was so thankful to come across these Applesauce On the Go products (which again I have seen sold under different brand names at different stores). Despite these products containing fruit juice concentrate as one of their few ingredients the sugar content is not much different from straight-up applesauce out of a jar.
Sushi with Brown Rice
Sometimes I get tired of cooking all of the time and sushi is the perfect take out lunch or dinner meal for us, which can be found at most grocery stores.
Milk Boxes
If you have kids consider bringing along these “milk boxes” instead of the more traditional juice boxes the next time you are on a picnic or lunch outing with friends. I do admit that juice boxes are convenient and quick to pack, but since juice is high in natural sugars and low in fiber (as opposed to the whole fruit before it is juiced) I opt for these milk boxes when we are out and about. My kids love milk at home and think these little milk boxes are fun to drink. We save them for special occasions when I know we will be around other juice box-drinking friends.
I’ve seen a few of these items at Costco – Lara Bars, organic freeze dried fruit and fruit leather, Horizon milk boxes (and, of course, Triscuites) for a substantial savings.
Good to know Elizabeth since we aren’t members! Thanks for sharing.
Lisa, I’m totally going through your site right now, making a grocery list! 🙂 The granola and the biscuits are on it. 😉
Lisa-
Another great option for fresh and healthy sushi is eeZ Fusion & Sushi. They have the option of either white rice or brown rice. Also, you can make your own roll! You will love it, if you have tried it before! Much better than the grocery store 🙂
Enjoy!
We actually have made our own sushi before and I agree it is very fun and tasty! I have it on my list to write about b/c I think it is much easier to do than people would expect…and you can make a whole evening out of it with friends too. Also, thanks for the tip about eeZ.
Sorry for the confusion…..I meant that you can make your own roll at eeZ. They have custom sushi!!
Hi! Even though Triscuits have less than 5 ingredients, the manufacturer adds a preservative. I don’t have a box in front of me, but I think it’s BHT. Kashi has a non-BHT brand as does Earthfare.
I actually have a box of Triscuits right here and the ingredients are: whole grain soft white winter wheat, soybean oil, salt. That’s all! I will have to check out Kashi crackers too next time I am at the store.
Thank you for this great post. I shared it on Facebook so other more conventional eaters can see it. I try to eat only real foods, and it’s my requirement at the grocery store always. Unfortunately my kids (esp. DD11 who is very social) get fed a lot of junk when out of the house so especially DD11 has quite a taste for it and it’s helpful to get more ideas of what’s out there for convenient, kid-friendly foods. I personally love the Lara Bars and so does DS13, but I can’t get DD to try them.
I wish we could eat the Triscuits but I’m afraid as long as these companies use soybean oil I will avoid it. Soybeans (unless they’re organic) are nearly 100% genetically modified in the U.S., which I try to avoid. Scary stuff. We do love Kashi brand.
Thanks for your comment! And I know I haven’t even begin to tackle GM’s and am just taking things one step at a time!
Just wanted to say thank you for having a blog such as this! It also gives me relief to see you say you are taking one step at a time (in regards tot he GM foods)! I feel the same exact way!! As soon as I find something that seems like an easy fix in a pinch, I find out maybe it isnt:( I too love triscuits, but worry about the GM and also read that the packaging is treated with preservative. It just seems so hard to stay one step ahead sometimes!
Thanks for the encouragement! I live in an area where this process is difficult and lonely sometimes, but I will keep on making my small steps!!
I would be careful with most grocery store sushi you buy because it is often loaded with sugar (including HFCS) and food dyes. Though I am sure you check, your readers may just assume that brown rice sushi = healthy.
Another great option for drinks when you are out and about is to buy your kids steel water bottles with sport tops. Best to get wide mouth ones that can go in the dishwasher or easily be washed by hand, and with no plastic lining. You can fill them with ice and water and keep them in an insulated lunch container. Great in the south on hot summer days when the car is an oven. Especially if they have fun designs, or a brightly colored thermal drink sleeve, on the outside, your kids friends will all want one too, and your kids won’t even notice that they are drinking the healthiest drink of all.
Good point…I have noticed (and also heard from a mom friend) that our kids often drink so much more when it is out of a fun cup!
Good point…I have noticed (and also heard from a mom friend) that our kids often drink so much more when it is out of a fun cup!
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Hey. I’ve enjoyed reading through your blog posts. I wanted to mentioned Ak-Mak as another healthy alternative for crackers. Its’ made out of whole wheat and honey. My brother and I enjoy eating them on the occasion.