As a doula and holistically minded individual I firmly believe nourishing foods are one of our most powerful healing tools. We know nutrition can play a key role for mama's postpartum recovery and breastfeeding journey. Unfortunately access to nourishing meal can be limited by time, money, skill, and so on.
In an ideal world every new mother would have the opportunity to be nourished by friends, family, and/or a doula, with home cooked meals. However I know this resources isn't a reality for everyone. This blog post provides some easy steps and tips parents-to-be to prepare nourishing meal while pregnant to enjoy postpartum.
Gather your storage supplies:
Before picking recipes and writing a grocery list it's important to figure out how you are going to store the food you're making. Personally, my favorite storage option for frozen food are these soup cubes and gallon Ziplock bags. You can freeze your food, pull them our of the mold, and store in Ziplock bags for enjoyment later.
Pick your recipes:
Look for recipes with either no or low gluten and dairy. Soups and stews are easier to digest, which make them perfect for postpartum. We want to make sure to incorporate a rainbow of fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains. Here are a couple delicious recipes I've cooked for postpartum families and my own: Hot and Sour Cabbage Soup, Mediterranean Split Pea Soup, Borscht with Meat, and Wild Rice Chicken Soup.
Double it!
Pick 3-4 recipes and then double each recipe. It's so much easier to make twice as much of something that it is to make 8-9 recipes.
Make your grocery list
Review your recipes and make a thorough grocery list. I recommend shopping a day or two before you want to cook so you're not exhausted.
Cook and freeze!
Pick 1-2 days to spread out your cooking. I love utilizing Insta Pots, Dutch ovens, and stock pots. Don't forget to stay hydrated and nourished.
* Hot tip: to make your food extra nutritious add extra herbs and use/make bone broth as a good base for soups and stews.
Happy Cooking!
Katya
