For the last few weeks I’ve asked you to skip the drive-thru, avoid crunchy chips, cut back on the burgers & steaks, and all together give up sugar in your coffee. So who’s up for a pledge where we simply add something to our diets instead of take something away? That’s what I thought. 
As we all learned from the very first mini-pledge, when you add something good to your diet it might kick something out that shouldn’t be there in the first place. And, in my opinion, that is one of the easiest ways to reduce your intake of highly processed foods.
Kale Chips
So here is next week’s pledge that officially starts on Monday:
Mini-Pledge Week 5: April 11 – April 17 – Try a minimum of two new whole foods that you’ve never had before.
A whole food is something that has one ingredient and is not refined. Some examples that you’re hopefully familiar with are apples, potatoes, brown rice, whole-wheat flour and spinach. Some other whole foods that are a bit less common are as follows:
- Quinoa (pronounced “KEEN-wah”)
- Barley
- Parsnips
- Kale
- Collard greens
- Steel cut oats
- Papaya
- Brussel sprouts
- Black-eyed peas
- Chickpeas
- Bok choy
- Swiss chard
- Radicchio (pronounced “rah-DEE-kee-oh”)
- Spaghetti Squash
- Watercress
- Dates
- Kiwi
- Eggplant
- Pomegranate (and having the juice in a martini does not count!)
- Fava beans
- Lentils
- Spelt
- Pine nuts
- Star fruit
I admit I have not even tried all of these things myself. And this is by no means a complete list, but just something to get you started. During the challenge it does not matter how you eat these foods…they can be raw, cooked, or even ordered at a restaurant. You simply need to try at least two new whole foods by the end of the week and that is it! Easy enough?
To take the pledge: Please leave a comment below with the number of adults and kids in your household that will participate. There is no denying that trying something new would be good for everyone (including us!). Put it in writing and make it official.
Good luck!
My husband and I already eat (and have tried all of these foods) but that just means we will have to try and find others. So… 2 adults. Bring on the pledge to find new whole foods.
We’re in – family of 4. We do all of what’s on the list already, so I think we’ll try chia seeds and, hmmm… sunbutter – we’ve never had it! Seed theme!
Thanks for all you do. I’ve noticed you mentioned coffee a few times in your posts. I’d like you to do some research on coffee or maybe Food Babe. Since you are both health advocators it would be a good thing to look into. Coffee has caffeine in it (yes even the natural stuff). Many people have to have their daily cup of coffee in order to face the day. In other words, they need their daily dose of caffeine. This is a lot like those who rely on energy drinks and soda for the same thing. I realize coffee is not the equivalent of those but it still has a similar effect. Sadly people are unable to function without their caffeine and go through withdrawals with out it (Yes- it’s a drug!). Wouldn’t it be great if people had energy the natural way? Whole foods and exercise. Thanks Again!
We are a family of five my husband and I and three kids we already eat or have tried most of the stuff on that list it should be intrestingon what we come up with and what I can get my 4 year old to eat
It was supposed to say intresting
Thanks for the great advice. We are a family of three. My husband and I have a 6 year old boy.
Taking the pledge! My farmer’s market just had some new items come in (I tried their quinoa for dinner and it was awesome) so I will have a few things to try! 2 adults, 1 child, 1 infant – here we go!
We are in. 2 adults, 2 teenagers.
We have tried almost all of these. But with my family of 6…4 kids…it has been slow going having them actually enjoy these new foods. But I will incorporate eggplant and bok choy into my dinner menus this week. Ill try not to disguise it too much.
2 Adults. We are switching the fast food week to next week because we are going to a music fest that sells food out of food trucks. Lol. Not only that, but we can’t bring any food in and we are going to be there all day Friday and Saturday. So, we will be doing this challenge this week!! I can’t wait to make your granola bars with steel cut oats and find a few fruits we have never tried!
I’ve already tried all the foods listed and vary my produce as much as possible for our household of 2 adults so my challenge will be to find a way to enjoy the one veggie that doesn’t cross our threshold, okra! Thanks for the challenges, it’ll be great to find a healthy eating habit I don’t already practice!
After coming back from vacation last week, I’m ready to get back on track! I thought this challenge will be a little harder because I’ve eaten all of the foods mentioned on the list; however, after visiting the farmer’s market this week, I found some new produce I’m going to give a try this week: red kuri squash, persimmons, lemon cucumbers, and pattypan squash. I’m excited for this new adventure!
We did this challenge three weeks ago. We discovered that we are not big fans of acorn squash, but do really like barley. Who knew? We are ready to get back on track and tackle next week’s challenge!
just wanted to suggest harukei turnips… got these in our csa pick up this year and fell in love!! slice thin, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. roast. most delicious chip!! also… we love parsnips in stew or soup. adds a surprise sweetness. my husband put them in a veggie stromboli last night. perfect!! enjoy!!
[...] Week 5: Try two new whole foods – Try a minimum of two new whole foods that you’ve never had before. [...]
Two here taking the pledge. We’re trying kumquats and farro!
2 adults. This past week was pretty easy overall, except the fact that we were bombarded with fried foods this week when are normally not. But we did very well. This week won’t be too bad. We do eat a number of items on that list already. This week we will be trying butternut squash and brussel sprouts.