Top 10 Pantry Food Budget Basics Video

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Top 10 Pantry Food Budget Basics

Female Speaker: I like to know thing. Natalie Butler: Before we get started today I want to ask you, what are your most common snack foods that you typically eat, you know, if it's not meal time and you are hungry, what you reach for or what you grab? And you got to be honest, you know, if you are eating crap, if you are eating bad snack foods, we want to know because this is the sort of way we kind of see in what people respond. So just think about maybe last week, what did you snack on? So pause the video, think about last week, what you ate and then let us know. The video that I am doing today is the top ten healthy pantry staples on a budget. So I am actually doing this video because I've had some request and it was from some students, they lived in dorm rooms and they had a limited availability to have certain foods in their dorm room and they wanted to know what some healthy options were. So I developed this for them but it also works great for anyone that's on a budget. Now these aren't in any particular order, I am just going on a list that I created. Number 1 is peanut butter. Peanut butter is a great source of protein. It does have a good amount of fat in it but it is the healthy fats, so it's not going to raise your cholesterol like saturated fat will. It's actually a good source of calories too so keep that in mind if you eat a whole cup of peanut butter, that's not the greatest thing in the world because it's going to contribute to weight gain if you eat too much of it. However it is a great source of protein. Now when you are buying a peanut butter, make sure that it does not have added hydrogenated oils to it because that will add Trans fat, which you want to stay away from. Number 2; sunflower and pumpkin seeds. You might that, that was kind of strange to have that around but sunflower seeds provide really great healthy fats and the pumpkin seeds have a great source of nutrients, vitamins, all kinds of good stuff. So if you have them in your dorm room or you have them around your house, chances are you are going to reach for that as a snack food rather than go searching for something else. Number 3 is dried apricots. Now these are not the apricots that have a ton of added sugar, these are the unsweetened apricots. These are one of my favorite snacks. I keep them everywhere. They are fabulous to snack on because they are great source of iron, so especially for women when it's that time of month, this is a great snack. Then also they are very high in fiber and high in minerals and then also as a good source of antioxidants. Number 4; ground flax seed. I recently did a video on flax seed as a superfood, so watch that for more information. But flax seed is a fabulous source of very healthy fats and also it has a significant amount of fiber. So you can add this to your yogurt, you can add this to smoothies, you can put it on top of cereal, on top of oat meal. You can do a lot with it but definitely keep it around, it's a very good source of fat. It will keep your cholesterol down as well as promote health in general. Number 5; canned black beans. Now if you are in the dorm room setting, of course canned is really the only way that you can go because you can't boil beans, you can't cook raw beans in your dorm room because you don't have a stove. That preferred way of eating beans is actually to get the fresh beans and cook that yourself, but of course in a dorm room setting, you don't have that option. If you buying the canned beans, just make sure you get the low sodium ones because anything that's canned is going to be really high in sodium. But black beans in general are a great source of fiber, very good source of minerals, and they have a good source of protein as well. Number 6; sliced almonds. You can get the whole almonds if you want, but I have found that the sliced almonds, I can use those in different ways more often, so I tend to opt for this slice almonds. Now the almonds I am talking about are the raw, unflavored, natural almonds, nothing salted, nothing flavored, and you can get these at the regular grocery store. Now the sliced almonds, you can sprinkle them on your cereal, you can throw them in your blender. You can usually have a blender in your room, so this actually will work for you fine. You can put it in smoothies. It adds a good nutty flavor to anything. You can put it on your yogurt. Then you can just eat them as snacks. So it's very good to have this around. Number 7 is turkey jerky and buffalo jerky. Now because jerky is dry, you can take it anywhere. It can be in your back pack for six hours, you know, it can be in your car, it doesn't matter. So it's a great snack to have, especially in those times when you feel so hungry and it's not meal time or you can't stop and get something, are you not about to eat. Then also, you might be wondering why I am mentioning all these protein rich foods. Well, my experience in college and knowing a lot of students is that they tend to go for the non-protein foods because those are the cheaper sources of nutrients, so they just stay away from meats and meat products because those are the most expensive foods. But I wanted to give some good options, protein rich options that don't have to bust your budget. Number 8; extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Now I keep these at home and I use these as my dressing and it's fabulous. Now with the extra virgin olive oil, you do not have to buy organic, the olive trees don't actually have to have all the anti-pesticides, so you don't have to buy organic, which will keep your cost low. Then balsamic vinegar, I found that it just makes a really great quick dressing. With the other things that we've talked about, you already have the ingredients for a salad for a home, so this way you have dressing. Then also you can mix your balsamic vinegar with a plain yogurt and make a dressing as well. Number 9 is canned tuna. Now I typically don't recommend anything that's canned, but in the dorm room setting, in a college setting, or if you are on a very strict budget, this is a good food to have around, a good source of protein, you can mix it easily with the yogurt to make it creamy, sort of like mayonnaise but without all the calories and the fat. Then also you can just eat it right out of the can, I mean that's how I've eaten in the past. There is just a lot of ways you can do, you can put it on a salad, you can eat it by itself, so it's good thing to have around, and that way you are getting a little of the healthy fat they tuna has naturally. Number 10; whole grain bread. Now when you are buying whole grain bread, make sure that the first ingredient is listed as whole grain or whole oats or whole rye, whatever the grain that they are emphasizing in that particular brand because if it's not, chances are the grains are either sprinkled on the cress, you are not getting anything anyways or it's in very minute amounts. Okay, now I have two bonus items for you. One are one minute steel-cut oats. These make a fabulous very quick breakfast. You can pop them in your microwave with a little bit of milk or water, which is very handy for college students in a dorm room. If you buy the non-quick oats, they actually will take a little bit longer, which is fine either way but this is such a better option than boxed cereals. Typically boxed cereals are going to be more expensive and you are getting a lot of other crap in it too, depending on which brand you are buying. Then the other bonus item that I have is your weight protein supplement. Now I am recommending weight protein because especially if you are a college athlete, you need to get enough protein in your diet. This is a great way to be able to walk in a class, makes it with a little bit of milk or water or put it in a smoothie and you are getting that consistent supplement of protein and you are not having to eat meat all day long to replace the protein that you've broken down when you are exercising. They are not just for athletes. If you are active, if you are wanting to loose weight, build muscle, this is something that you just need to have on a daily basis. Then you don't have to depend so much on animal protein which typically does have a good amount of saturated fat, which you want to limit in your diet. My last comment is if you are in a dorm room, make sure that you have a blender if it's allowed. That is a fabulous way to have use a lot of these ingredients we've talked. Just make a smoothie, it's very quick. I've actually done a recipe video on healthy breakfast smoothie and you can really drink it anytime throughout the day. But you will be getting a power packed healthy fat, healthy protein meal and it's just so convenient and so healthy, there is no reason why even in a dorm room setting that you couldn't eat it. Thank you so much for watching. Please subscribe and I will see you next time. For more great videos like this one, check out the psychetruth channel on YouTube.

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Female Speaker: I like to know thing.

Natalie Butler: Before we get started today I want to ask you, what are your most common snack foods that you typically eat, you know, if it's not meal time and you are hungry, what you reach for or what you grab? And you got to be honest, you know, if you are eating crap, if you are eating bad snack foods, we want to know because this is the sort of way we kind of see in what people respond. So just think about maybe last week, what did you snack on? So pause the video, think about last week, what you ate and then let us know.

The video that I am doing today is the top ten healthy pantry staples on a budget. So I am actually doing this video because I've had some request and it was from some students, they lived in dorm rooms and they had a limited availability to have certain foods in their dorm room and they wanted to know what some healthy options were. So I developed this for them but it also works great for anyone that's on a budget. Now these aren't in any particular order, I am just going on a list that I created.

Number 1 is peanut butter. Peanut butter is a great source of protein. It does have a good amount of fat in it but it is the healthy fats, so it's not going to raise your cholesterol like saturated fat will. It's actually a good source of calories too so keep that in mind if you eat a whole cup of peanut butter, that's not the greatest thing in the world because it's going to contribute to weight gain if you eat too much of it. However it is a great source of protein. Now when you are buying a peanut butter, make sure that it does not have added hydrogenated oils to it because that will add Trans fat, which you want to stay away from.

Number 2; sunflower and pumpkin seeds. You might that, that was kind of strange to have that around but sunflower seeds provide really great healthy fats and the pumpkin seeds have a great source of nutrients, vitamins, all kinds of good stuff. So if you have them in your dorm room or you have them around your house, chances are you are going to reach for that as a snack food rather than go searching for something else.

Number 3 is dried apricots. Now these are not the apricots that have a ton of added sugar, these are the unsweetened apricots. These are one of my favorite snacks. I keep them everywhere. They are fabulous to snack on because they are great source of iron, so especially for women when it's that time of month, this is a great snack. Then also they are very high in fiber and high in minerals and then also as a good source of antioxidants.

Number 4; ground flax seed. I recently did a video on flax seed as a superfood, so watch that for more information. But flax seed is a fabulous source of very healthy fats and also it has a significant amount of fiber. So you can add this to your yogurt, you can add this to smoothies, you can put it on top of cereal, on top of oat meal. You can do a lot with it but definitely keep it around, it's a very good source of fat. It will keep your cholesterol down as well as promote health in general.

Number 5; canned black beans. Now if you are in the dorm room setting, of course canned is really the only way that you can go because you can't boil beans, you can't cook raw beans in your dorm room because you don't have a stove. That preferred way of eating beans is actually to get the fresh beans and cook that yourself, but of course in a dorm room setting, you don't have that option. If you buying the canned beans, just make sure you get the low sodium ones because anything that's canned is going to be really high in sodium. But black beans in general are a great source of fiber, very good source of minerals, and they have a good source of protein as well.

Number 6; sliced almonds. You can get the whole almonds if you want, but I have found that the sliced almonds, I can use those in different ways more often, so I tend to opt for this slice almonds. Now the almonds I am talking about are the raw, unflavored, natural almonds, nothing salted, nothing flavored, and you can get these at the regular grocery store. Now the sliced almonds, you can sprinkle them on your cereal, you can throw them in your blender. You can usually have a blender in your room, so this actually will work for you fine. You can put it in smoothies. It adds a good nutty flavor to anything. You can put it on your yogurt. Then you can just eat them as snacks. So it's very good to have this around.

Number 7 is turkey jerky and buffalo jerky. Now because jerky is dry, you can take it anywhere. It can be in your back pack for six hours, you know, it can be in your car, it doesn't matter. So it's a great snack to have, especially in those times when you feel so hungry and it's not meal time or you can't stop and get something, are you not about to eat. Then also, you might be wondering why I am mentioning all these protein rich foods. Well, my experience in college and knowing a lot of students is that they tend to go for the non-protein foods because those are the cheaper sources of nutrients, so they just stay away from meats and meat products because those are the most expensive foods. But I wanted to give some good options, protein rich options that don't have to bust your budget.

Number 8; extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Now I keep these at home and I use these as my dressing and it's fabulous. Now with the extra virgin olive oil, you do not have to buy organic, the olive trees don't actually have to have all the anti-pesticides, so you don't have to buy organic, which will keep your cost low. Then balsamic vinegar, I found that it just makes a really great quick dressing. With the other things that we've talked about, you already have the ingredients for a salad for a home, so this way you have dressing. Then also you can mix your balsamic vinegar with a plain yogurt and make a dressing as well.

Number 9 is canned tuna. Now I typically don't recommend anything that's canned, but in the dorm room setting, in a college setting, or if you are on a very strict budget, this is a good food to have around, a good source of protein, you can mix it easily with the yogurt to make it creamy, sort of like mayonnaise but without all the calories and the fat. Then also you can just eat it right out of the can, I mean that's how I've eaten in the past. There is just a lot of ways you can do, you can put it on a salad, you can eat it by itself, so it's good thing to have around, and that way you are getting a little of the healthy fat they tuna has naturally.

Number 10; whole grain bread. Now when you are buying whole grain bread, make sure that the first ingredient is listed as whole grain or whole oats or whole rye, whatever the grain that they are emphasizing in that particular brand because if it's not, chances are the grains are either sprinkled on the cress, you are not getting anything anyways or it's in very minute amounts.

Okay, now I have two bonus items for you. One are one minute steel-cut oats. These make a fabulous very quick breakfast. You can pop them in your microwave with a little bit of milk or water, which is very handy for college students in a dorm room. If you buy the non-quick oats, they actually will take a little bit longer, which is fine either way but this is such a better option than boxed cereals. Typically boxed cereals are going to be more expensive and you are getting a lot of other crap in it too, depending on which brand you are buying.

Then the other bonus item that I have is your weight protein supplement. Now I am recommending weight protein because especially if you are a college athlete, you need to get enough protein in your diet. This is a great way to be able to walk in a class, makes it with a little bit of milk or water or put it in a smoothie and you are getting that consistent supplement of protein and you are not having to eat meat all day long to replace the protein that you've broken down when you are exercising. They are not just for athletes. If you are active, if you are wanting to loose weight, build muscle, this is something that you just need to have on a daily basis. Then you don't have to depend so much on animal protein which typically does have a good amount of saturated fat, which you want to limit in your diet.

My last comment is if you are in a dorm room, make sure that you have a blender if it's allowed. That is a fabulous way to have use a lot of these ingredients we've talked. Just make a smoothie, it's very quick. I've actually done a recipe video on healthy breakfast smoothie and you can really drink it anytime throughout the day. But you will be getting a power packed healthy fat, healthy protein meal and it's just so convenient and so healthy, there is no reason why even in a dorm room setting that you couldn't eat it. Thank you so much for watching. Please subscribe and I will see you next time. For more great videos like this one, check out the psychetruth channel on YouTube.

Transcription by: Scribe4you Transcription Services