Two weeks into the New Year and – for some of us – those goals we set not so long ago are already starting to seem like ancient memories. Eat healthy, exercise more, spend less money, yeah, yeah. It’s all well and good until life happens and we’re leaving the office at 8pm.. only to order take out and miss the ClassPass we signed up for. All you can (and should do) is forgive yourself and move on! It’s really no big deal.

I’m not a fan of giving yourself a hard time or making your life harder in any way. One of my goals this year is to actually make my life easier, and that’s not by sacrificing a healthy lifestyle! I’ve had a lot of people tell me it’s not so much the cooking once they’re home – it’s more the traversing the city with heavy grocery bags or that healthy food is more expensive.

That’s where what I like to call “the Costco” of healthy eating comes in, otherwise known as Thrive Market. I order tons of my pantry items from them and placed a big order to be sent to me before my cookbook shoot – both for ingredients and awesome snacks. Thrive has tons of the same brands you see at the grocery store and also some special one’s that you might not see on your local shelves like my friend Sophie’s line of superfood honey. I’m literally addicted to this stuff and put it in everything and anything, including my homemade face masks and now this granola!

This granola is perfect for the New Year because it’s filled with superfoods and feels just indulgent enough without actually being indulgent. Every ingredient can be purchased on Thrive Market at 20 – 50% below retail, meaning you’ll have more cash in your pocket and it will be delivered right to your doorstep without any effort. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me! Oh, and did I mention, I’m giving you a free month to Thrive Market and an additional 20% off your first order?! I’ve hyperlinked a bunch of the ingredients below so you can check out the types of savings you’ll get.

You can try out your free month by signing up here and I hope you enjoy making this chocolatey, decadent granola with all the new superfood goodies in your pantry!

Indian food is one of my favorite comforts foods – the spices make the dishes so rich, nourishing, and satisfying – yet I save many of my favorite dishes for when I’m out at an Indian restaurant. This fall, I was catering with my aunt and we put an Indian spin on my classic sweet potato fries, roasting them with garam masala and dipping them into a bright cilantro-mint chutney. I knew this would go perfectly with indian-style lentils, and while my take may not be super authentic, it is easy, quick, delicious.

And since it’s the season for detoxing and healing –  I made sure it was packed with immune-boosting, anti-inflammatory ingredients like turmeric and ginger. The herb heavy chutney is filled with cilantro, which is an antibacterial and helps detox the body of toxic metals, and mint, which can help aid digestion. The handful of dark, leafy greens makes this bowl fits just as well into your January plan as an ol’ salad. This is great as leftovers for lunch and dinners all week!

If you’re human you’ve probably considered some type of cleanse/reboot/health-eating kick (dare I say diet?), or whatever you want to call it over that first week of the New Year. I love my deep green juices and happily add them into my “reset” days. But, many of the juice cleanses out there are packed with sugar, ultimately causing your blood sugar to spike way up and your pancreas to pump out insulin to bring it down (crazily enough, this is the same thing that happens when you eat a candy bar!) and it can be really bad news over time. Let’s be honest, juice cleanses can make you #hangry especially coming off of a holiday bender.

So let’s go the kind route this time around– your body already knows how to detox and it can do all that while you eat real food!

Smoothies still make you feel light and are often superior because you can pack them with fiber and nutrients while balancing them with healthy fats and superfoods. The key to a filling, nutritious smoothie is to find a good balance between veggies, fruits and some type of healthy fat or protein. Adding a bit of almond butter or coconut oil will help slow down the absorption of glucose from the fruit, keeping your blood sugar from spiking aka keeping you feeling full longer! I also always add a dash of cinnamon since it’s great for regulating blood sugar too.

Now for the smoothie party! Once you hit up your grocery store, these three smoothies take only a minute to whip up. I’ve been rotating between them each morning – the green ginger is a great energy booster, the blueberry is full of protein, and the sunny smoothie helps boost immunity.

If you’re not a morning smoothie person, these recipes also serve as the perfect mid day snack or afternoon pick me up.

The past week, lunch and dinner for me have been any of my whole grain bowls and tons of warming soups. Remember to go easy on yourself this January and make food that you love to eat! xo

Recipe adapted from Food52.

This nourishing roasted butternut squash bowl has become my staple the last few weeks. It’s the fall and winter months where we become more susceptible to colds and general feelings of low energy, making it perhaps the most important time to get our veggies and healthy fats!  It’s packed to the brim with veggies but the roasted squash and curry make it so warming it works on the coldest of days. And when it comes to duel use of coconut in this bowl – it really can’t be beat. It’s a potent antiviral, antifungal and antibacterial properties that may help stop a cold in its tracks.

The dressing is a brilliant creation of Meredith Baird in her book Coconut Kitchen 🙂