Fact: Creating a delicious, nourishing meal doesn’t have to be complicated. There are strategies that can simplify the process as you develop healthy eating habits.

Lead with foods to include more often
Start with a focus on including health-promoting foods first. For example, think Half-Plate Healthy and identify veggies and/or fruits that can fill half of your plate. Fruits and veggies are nutrient dense and typically low in calories, yet nine out of 10 Americans aren’t eating enough of them. Half-Plate Healthy makes it easy to boost fruit and veggie intake, and you can use any form – fresh, frozen, canned or dried.

Half-Plate Healthy also helps with moderation by automatically limiting how much food can go on the other half of your plate. Plus, you can be flexible when choosing the foods to serve on the other side of the plate.

If you’re looking to round out the rest of your plate, it can be as easy as 1, 2, 3.

3 Steps for a Balanced Meal:

• fill ½ of your plate with fruits and veggies
• fill ¼ of your plate with whole grains
• fill the other ¼ with protein

Having at least three different health-promoting foods ensures you’ll have a varied mix of tastes, textures and nutrients.

Look for easy wins and inspiration
Half-plate Healthy or the 3 Steps for a Balanced Meal can be applied when planning ahead or deciding in real-time “what can I eat right now?” Use them as a guide for choosing foods that deliver fanatical flavor and help you to feel your best. Many of our seasonal meal pairings are already Half-Plate Healthy:

• Cook-in-Bag Rosemary Lemon Chicken with Brussels Sprouts & Veggie Spaghetti
• Ready-to-Cook Chicken Caprese with Amore Arugula Salad

Adding a whole grain and a side salad or extra side of veggies will turn these customer favorite recipes into a balanced meal:

• Sheet Pan Salmon with Tomatoes & Capers
• Chicken Marsala
• Slow Cooked Beef Minestrone

Busy weeknight? Simmer chicken breasts in Wegmans Butter Chicken Simmer Sauce and pair with frozen veggies and brown basmati rice (3 Steps for a Balanced Meal – check, check, check!)

Snack smart. Pair cheese, fresh grapes and a whole grain bread for a nourishing nosh!

Practice to Feel Your Best

Experiment with Half-Plate Healthy and 3 Steps for a Balanced Meal. With practice, they can help you to develop a flexible approach to healthy eating. Refer to the “New from Wegmans Brand” section on the Wegmans App for a list of latest items, including ones that deliver on both flavor and health – so that you can feel your best and enjoy a healthier, better life through food.

Trish Kazacos, RDN, is the corporate nutrition manager for Wegmans Food Markets.