Here Are The Tastiest Foods To Add To Your Grocery List If You're On The Keto Diet
Starting a brand new food program can be daunting for a few reasons. Your body needs to adjust to the new schedule, so you might feel hungrier or thirstier than usual, and maybe even a little drained, as far as energy goes. But then there’s the whole food-shopping aspect of it all. Budgeting can be tricky initially, especially if you're used to spending a certain amount each week, but experimenting with new foods can be a lot of fun. For example, there are a ton of tasty keto diet foods to add to your grocery list if you're thinking of experimenting with this way of eating. I know, at first, the whole low-carb thing might sound restricting if you’re used to stocking up on bread and pasta, but there’s actually a wide variety of delicious items to add to your cart and revamp your pantry with.
Keto has become quite the buzzword around the health and wellness industry, but just in case you haven’t caught wind of this trendy food program, here’s what you need to know: According to Jessica Rosen, a certified holistic health coach and co-founder of Raw Generation, the ketogenic diet is “a high-fat, low-carb diet based around a metabolic process called ketosis that shifts the way the body metabolizes food for energy.”
So instead of looking to glucose (aka sugars found in carbs) as an energy source, your body will get fuel from fat storage. It’s a pretty popular way of eating for people looking to lose weight, but you'll also reap a ton of health benefits from going keto, too, like higher energy levels, less brain fog, clear skin, and more.
Interested in going keto? Here are a few grocery list staples to get you started and keep you satisfied.
01Avocado
The keto diet has a heavy focus on healthy fats, so what better way to get those in by indulging in avocado everything?
Now, hear me out: I realize it's sort of a bummer to eat avo without a slice of bread underneath the vibrant, green spread, but the good news is you don't have to totally give up avocado toast for the sake of reaping the many keto diet benefits. Have you ever heard of sweet potato toast? Slice up an orange spud after washing and peeling, and slice that baby into thin pieces. Drop 'em into the toaster a few times over, and spread avo on top for a similar snack.
02Raw Cacao
Navitas Organics Raw Cacao Powder, $6.99, Thrive Market
You might not be indulging in thick slices of chocolate cake any time soon, but there's always a way around indulgences if you need a sweet treat. Raw cacao is going to be your saving grace, my friend.
Not only is chocolate in its rarest form good for your health by lowering any bad cholesterol and regulating blood sugar, it can also help curb your appetite when you're in that awkward transition phase (cutting back on carbs also cuts back on calories, causing you to feel a little hungrier than usual until your body adjusts).
03Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut Butter Keto Cookies, $29.95 for 10 packs, Keto Kookie
Rejoice, friends! Even if you go keto, you can still have cookies. Clearly, you can always find some kind of loophole in food programs.
These delicious baked delicacies from Keto Kookie are heavenly, and every bit as decadent as traditional, bakery-bought treats. They're significantly low in carbs, because they're made with almond and coconut flours, and there are zero added sweeteners, other than all-natural erythritol, which comes from fruit and monk fruit extract. Trust me, I gravitate toward these goodies over store-bought packages all the time, and I'm far from keto.
04Chocolate Treats
EatingEvolved Stevia Keto Cups, $10.99, Thrive Market
No-carb doesn't mean no-fun, friends. If you do your research, some of your favorite brands might just offer keto-friendly treats. EatingEvolved, for example, is one of my favorite health-conscious chocolate brands, and these Keto Cups are absolutely worth the slightly steep price tag.
Lightly sweetened with Stevia so you get that sugary taste, and filled with creamy, coconut butter and added MCT oil, each cup is keto- and paleo-friendly, so you can basically snack on these no matter what your eating habits look like.
05MCT Oil
Organic MCT Oil, $19.99 for 16 ounces, Nutiva
MCT oil may not sound as fun as chocolate or cookies, but this bottle is going to be your best friend when transitioning from high- to low-carb, and here's why: When your body is so used to sourcing its energy from a food group you're now eliminating, there's a good chance you're going to feel sluggish while your system first learns how to take energy from stored fats, instead.
Health and wellness practitioner, Richard Purvis, author of Recalibrate: Six Secrets to Resetting Your Age, tells me in an interview with Elite Daily that, in order to boost your energy levels, consuming "a tablespoon of MCT oil" is a great alternative to inhaling cups of coffee, because "it's a very concentrated source of energy." What's more, according to Dr. Josh Axe, a clinical nutritionist and doctor of natural medicine, it'll also boost your brain's functionality, so you can bypass that pesky brain fog.
06Fresh, Juicy Fruit
Fruit is fabulous, and should be at the tippy-top of your grocery list when following a keto diet. Negating artificial sugars might be the goal, but fruit is going to curb your sweet tooth and offer up a ton of healthy vitamins and nutrients.
Another potential downside to the keto diet, at first, is you might be thirsty, so snacking on fruits high in water content, like grapes, lemons, and watermelon, can help quench your thirst.
07Fish
Remember what I said about the keto diet being all about healthy fats? Well, say hello to fish like salmon and mackerel, both of which are super high in omega 3 fatty acids.
These sea creatures are going to be a staple in your food program because they check off good fats, protein, and offer a slew of electrolytes (magnesium, potassium, and sodium), which will make up for the loss of these nutrients when your body cleans out its glucose storage. Might I suggest adding lox to your breakfast dishes, or whipping up things like fish taco bowls minus the shell?
