Hello, week № 35.
I must admit that the pantry might be my favorite room in our house. It could be more organized and generally prettier, but it’s a functional space full of things we enjoy. So I just love it. This week I wanted to share my favorite pantry staples, because they’ve been bringing me plenty of joy as we continue to not go out because 1) lack of time, 2) last week’s hurricane, 3) the Coronavirus pandemic that is still killing hundreds of people daily.
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Here are my five pantry favorites this week:
- Organic Chocolate Chips
- Green Pepper Cholula
- Kencko Powdered Smoothies
- Stumptown Whole Bean Coffee
- Chicken Mushroom Instant Ramen
— Organic Chocolate Chips
Years ago I decided to remove added sugars and processed foods from the Jupiter House. Truth is that I was getting fluffy and thought that removing sugars and processed foods would fix it (that was half the battle! The other half was intermittent fasting).
☞ Related: Intermittent Fasting for Autophagy and Designer Denim, Month Zero
I cannot shake my sweet tooth, but I can redirect it! Way back when I was pregnant and craving ice cream I redirected with yogurt, so I at least have some successful experience redirecting cravings. Organic chocolate chips simply give me joy and I want them after every meal. Kid Jupiter wants them too – so I avoid eating them in front of him so I don’t have to share yet. But I’ll share in the future! I don’t trust him yet with small firm foods right now.
— Green Cholula Hot Sauce
I love Cholula.
On the rare occasion that I eat hash browns in public (that is, in a restaurant where the potatoes are cooked in oil – something that I super avoid) I drown my eggy-potato plate in Cholula because it’s delicious. Big cold bowl of ceviche? Also covered in Cholula. At home eating instant ramen? DOUBLE COVERED IN GREEN CHOLULA. The green variant features poblano and jalapeño – it’s not spicy to me, but spice tolerance is relative. It’s too spicy for my Kid; SO MORE FOR ME.
- Link to Green Pepper Cholula (however I found mine at my local grocery store).
— Kencko Powdered Smoothies
Remember a while back when I wrote about my love of supplements and loving green powders? TL;DR I only eat one meal a day, and once a month I feel that I didn’t get enough variety – this is when I have a green drink with a gut-bacteria-friendly dinner.
☞ Related: Daily Supplement & Light Routine, Summer 2020
Kencko Smoothies are an excellent nutrient-gap filler. Their smoothies are simply freeze dried powdered fruits and veggies – THAT’S IT. No sweeteners, nothing to enhance mouth feel, no…everything that I avoid. Most of their options include banana; the one berry that I am allergic to – but it’s super easy to avoid because Kencko is clear about the ingredients. I often use green tea as my base liquid, and add a scoop of powdered MCT oil or hyaluronic acid to my smoothie. Other people use and recommend alt milks with a lot of these smoothies, but I prefer green tea because I am me. Also I don’t really care for milk alternatives despite trying every few years.
- Want to try Kencko? Here’s $10 off your first order.
— Stumptown Whole Bean Coffee
Yum.
I don’t care if Stumptown is hipster or “bougie”, but we love it because it smells good and tastes great. We were introduced to the coffee bean brewer when we lived in Alabama. One of the cafes I visited each week only served Stumptown and I am happy they did. Each fresh pot brewed in my home transports me to muggy Alabama. In one olafactory instant Kid Jupiter is a wee babe and I’m eating a goat cheese & pear sandwich, with a side of Prosecco. Mmm. Since we moved, we buy our Stumptown online, and grind the beans just before brewing – it’s an excellent weekend treat for each weekend until the end of time.
- Handy link to Stumptown on Amazon.
— Chicken Mushroom Instant Ramen
I love Maruchan brand instant ramen. Not all flavors, but definitely that brand. I’ve tried others of course and eat with some level of disappointment. Maruchan however, rarely disappoints.
This pandemic has taken a surprising toll on my instant ramen intake; it is lowered because I can’t always find what I prefer (which is all of the chicken options apparently). Getting plain chicken ramen locally has been hit or miss, so I looked to Amazon as one does. I found this combo case of Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Chicken – and bought it one minute later. It is delicious.
I avoid ultra-processed food, and vegetable oil. Maruchan ramen is ultra-processed and made with vegetable oil.
So…instead of sweating the details about strict adherence to my preferred dietary choices – I treat this like candy; an occasional indulgence, but not every day. Notice how I avoided saying “diet?!” That’s because I don’t diet. I eat what I like, and prefer whole-foods-based everything with a keto inclination. It’s not strict. So when do I enjoy such a treat? Usually when Mr. Jupiter has a night flight and will be working during dinner, or when he’s working out of town. The only reason I don’t indulge in my instant ramen habit when he’s home is because I really do prefer to cook our meals, even if it’s just a humble pot of spaghetti.
- Here’s the link again to that Chicken Mushroom & Creamy Chicken combo pack that I love.
Looking for something specific? Scan the Picks of the Week, Index.
Otherwise, here are some previous picks if you’re feeling clicky:
Lady Jupiter 