Living an Exceptional Life #67

By Rhonda Jones

So, my last column was a bit of a downer talking about all the ultra-processed food and how bad it really is, and most can’t even be considered food. Yet, I think most of us have become used to grabbing a bar, bag of chips, or cookies and rushing on with our lives. The truth is, most of us barely have time to open a can, much less make an outstanding meal.

Well, thankfully, there are some very innovative people who realize how hard it is to maintain a healthy plant-based lifestyle and have offered us some great solutions. I have written before about how important it is to keep your meals simple so that you don’t encounter frustration at trying to get food on the table and still deal with all the everyday stresses that life brings.

I like baked potatoes, steamed veggies, and salad, but sometimes, we want a little more than potatoes and broccoli, so here are some delicious, convenient foods that are still compliant with a healthy plant-based, low sugar, salt, and oil diet but will make a great meal quick and easy. Some I have mentioned before but it is worth mentioning again as their products constantly change and improve.

Wellyourworld.com is a company started by a young man named Dillon Holmes and his wife, Rebecca. They offer a world of salt-free spices and mixes to make life simple. I love the cheese sauce mix, and I use it almost exclusively now because I can make a small batch quickly. They also have a mushroom gravy mix, pancake mix, and more. My favorite is their soup mixes, and I am now hooked on them. Just pour the mix into an Instant pot, add 3 ½ cups of water, and pressure cook for 20 minutes. I can go do something else and come back to a hot, delicious soup. You can also make this in a pan on the stove; it just cooks a little longer. Check out these products.

Plantstrong.com is another website with wonderful products. Originally, Rip Esselstyn started a food line called Engine 2 that was sold at Whole Foods. When Amazon bought Whole Foods, the food line eventually went away, and Plantstrong Foods was born. Rip has perfected some great soups that are ready to eat, along with cereals and mixes for cornbread and pancakes. There are many other delicious products, so try some. He even has his own almond milk now.

Drfuhrman.com is another place to find great products. He has developed great multivitamins, omega oils, vinegars, salad dressings, and food bars.

Goleafside.com has some really good, dehydrated meals. Just add hot water and wait about 10 minutes, and you have a great meal. These are good for travel, as they can be easily made in a hotel room; just bring a bowl with you.

Dr. John McDougall has had a line of soups for a while now. I used to take the dehydrated soup on vacation and just add hot water to make a meal. These were lifesavers. You can find his products on Amazon or at Whole Foods. Healthy Choices also has this dehydrated soup.

For the ultimate in convenience, both Plant Pure and Forks over Knives have now started offering frozen dinners. Of course, there have been vegan frozen dinners for years, but both companies offer plant-based meals with little sugar, salt, and oil, so they are delicious, compliant with our diet, and not filled with additives and preservatives. You can find Plant Pure at Healthy Choices and Forks over Knives at Albertsons.

So, there are processed foods that are also healthy foods. Now, if it were just this simple to eat in a restaurant.