Are you slightly envious of the foods you see on social media? The foods in your feed are always so vibrant, colorful, and health-conscious. Many of the foods look heavenly! If you’d like to learn more tips on how to make foods more nutritious and instagrammable, read on.
Add Color
What really makes the foods in your feed eye-catching is the wide array of colors, textures, and shapes they incorporate. The many pigments in our fruits and vegetables have immense health benefits, such as, improving cardiovascular health and protecting our cells which can prevent many illnesses including various cancers. Not to mention, the colors make the foods appealing and photogenic. One way to take an ordinary meal and turn it into a mouthwatering feast for the eyes is by adding color. This month there are many colorful fruits and vegetables in season like:
This month might be a good time to try fruits and vegetables that you haven’t tried before or haven’t liked in the past. Our taste change over time, and sometimes its not the food you didn’t like, but how it was prepared. Its always good to try foods a few different ways to see which is your favorite. One colorful and interesting tuber that’s in season is beets! Beets are a good source of essential nutrients like potassium and folate. Fun fact: the rich, deep red color in beets is the result of a powerful antioxidant called betanin. Try the salad recipe below to celebrate fresh fruits and vegetables this month.
Add Texture
Another captivating feature of the food selfie is the various textures of the food landscape. A creative way to instantly improve the nutrition of a plain meal is by adding a variety of garnishes to dress it up. This could be as simple as topping some of your favorite breakfast foods with chopped fruits and vegetables, along with chia, hemp, or flax seeds for extra protein, fiber, and healthy fats. You can add these foods to your morning oatmeal or sprinkle them on the ever-popular avocado-toast. Elevate boring scrambled eggs with a serving of diced vegetables to change up the mouthfeel. Not only is a change in texture appealing to the eye, it also improves a one-note dish’s dimension; this may make staple foods more nutritious and desirable.
Adjust the Portion Size
Many times on social media, we’re overwhelmed with heaping portions of food. It wouldn’t be a food selfie without a mason jar filled to the brim or ample servings that you would have to take to-go. It’s important to remember when portioning meals at home, that we should strive to consume portion sizes that satisfy our hunger, but don’t leave us feeling stuffed. What may look appetizing on your feed, may just be over-nourishing. Over-indulging in the long run can lead to undesired weight fluctuation. This month, take some time to look at the nutrition facts label and compare the serving size listed to the servings you’re actually consuming. In this way, you’ll be more mindful of portion sizes.
A Final Thought on Social Media
Social media can oftentimes promote comparison between the images we see and our actual lives. The meals and menus we see on social media often appear perfect and flawless. It’s important not to compare our real-life meals to the ones we see on our feeds. Food can be both fun and nourishing. In real life, our meals may not look as beautiful as the ones on social media, but it’s important that we give ourselves room to experiment and find what foods are both visually appealing, nutritious, and delicious.
Tips to add more fruits & vegetables to your meals:
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