Hands Cutting Sweet Potatoes

Quarantine Cooking with SFC

During these uncertain times, it’s great to keep up with any healthy habits that you can. Try to put together balanced meals with whole grains, lean protein, and lots of fruits and vegetables. Limit added sugars and sugar-sweetened beverages. Take walks and explore your options for at-home exercise. However, this is probably not the best time to be lingering in the grocery stores, reading labels, and debating the healthiest options.

We don’t want anyone to feel guilty about the food choices that are available to you right now. If you’re feeding yourself and your family, you’re doing a great job. And if you’re having a hard time doing that, there are resources that can help.

One of the tips that we share in our Happy Kitchen classes is to cook from scratch more: buy more fresh ingredients and less prepared foods. From what we’re hearing, some stores are temporarily low on packaged foods, but most are still stocking plenty of fresh ingredients.

You can also find fresh ingredients at the SFC Farmers’ Markets (Downtown and Sunset Valley on Saturdays from 9 am – 1 pm).

We know cooking can feel intimidating amongst everything else happening, so we would love to help you cook more from scratch using whatever you have available! Check out our Instagram, blog, and Facebook over the coming weeks for Quarantine Cooking with SFC to learn tips and tricks to using both fresh produce and pantry staples to create simple, hearty recipes.

Until then, here are a few ideas from our archives to get you started:

Roasted Veggies

Roasted Vegetables

For breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, remember our favorite roasted vegetables! This recipe can be adapted for whatever vegetables you have on hand. Serve them over grains like pasta, rice, bulgur, or couscous. Fold them into an omelet, frittata, or scrambled eggs. Wrap them up in a taco or add them to a quesadilla.

Any Green Pesto

Homemade Sauces

If you can’t find your favorite pasta sauce, make your own pesto! Substitute pumpkin seeds for sunflower seeds, pecans, walnuts, or peanuts if needed. If you don’t have the greens it mentions, try basil, cilantro, or parsley.

Spoonful Of Dry Oats

Whole Grain Breakfasts

Instead of breakfast cereal, consider oats! Former SFC intern, Noelle Buttery, shares several of her favorite oat-based breakfasts in this blog post.

If you can’t find oats, see if other whole grains, like wheat berries or farro, are available. You’ll want to pre-cook these grains due to their longer cooking time, but you can flavor them like you would oats and enjoy our own homemade breakfast porridge with the grains available to you.