Trader Joe's Healthy 8: The Easiest Veggies Ever

Trader Joe's Healthy 8: The Easiest Veggies Ever - Holistically Whole School is full swing, and (at least in my house) that means total chaos. There is homework, activities, sports – a total whirlwind of hectic.

Just finding time to eat together can be a challenge – making a healthy dinner is even harder. You know I’m all about easy (which, yeah, doesn’t sound right) so … Enter the easiest veggies ever!

Trader Joe’s Healthy 8

What is it?

Well, since you asked … Trader Joe’s Healthy 8 Chopped Veggie Mix it is a healthy blend of 8 vegetables already chopped for you and put together for about $3. It’s a mix of broccoli, carrots, green cabbage, red cabbage, jicama, green bell pepper, radish, celery and nothing else. So you can get an awesome assortment of veggies for your meal without any effort.

It’s super versatile and can be used for any meal. Try some of these easy ideas to make the easiest veggies ever into an awesome healthy meal with hardly any prep time. As you know, my ideas are grain-free and Paleo, but since they are so simple, they are easy to adjust to most diets.

Just Add Eggs

Fold into an omelet, stir into a scramble or bake in a frittata. Boom – veggies at breakfast! Or brunch. If it’s brunch you can reward yourself for your healthy breakfast with a mimosa 😉

Cheater Beef Stew

You can use the Healthy 8 for the veggies in your beef stew for simple comfort food. Just melt some onions in the crockpot in oil or ghee (you can cheat on this as well by using Trader Joe’s already diced onions). Then add your stew meat and broth (if I don’t have broth on the stove, I just pour in a container of Trader Joe’s organic chicken or beef broth) and cook on low for 6 hours. About halfway through just pour in the Healthy 8 and you’ll have a delicious hearty, healthy meal.

Healthy Hot Dogs

I already wrote about cooking hot dogs with the Healthy 8 here: You just simmer hot dogs in a big pot on the stove top with the veggies and a little chicken broth. And if you use Trader Joe’s organic uncured all-beef hot dogs, you are actually getting a nutritious meal.

Sauteed Salmon

So, so easy. All you need is two skillets. Melt some oil or ghee in the heated pans. Cook some salmon fillets on one, and the Healthy 8 on the other. Put the cooked salmon on top of the heated veggies. Done!

Turkey stir fry

Similar to the salmon meal, but you can cook this in one large skillet. Just brown some ground turkey (seasoning with salt and pepper or whatever you like), and then stir in the Healthy 8 veggies and cook a little longer. If you want to be a real gourmet, you can put this over rice or Trader Joe’s riced cauliflower (then you will need that second skillet or a pot…). Maybe add your favorite hot sauce or coconut aminos to spice it up.

Easy Veggie Bake

You can toss the Healthy 8 in oil and season and then bake in the oven. Heat the oven to 400°, spread out on a baking sheet, and maybe add some meat (I like to slice sweet Italian sausage). Cook for 10 minutes, flip everything, cook another 10 and – done!

Tacos Tacos Tacos

I love tacos and I am a huge fan of Trader Joe’s Fully Cooked Pork Carnitas. They are really delicious and I use them in everything. The pork is already cooked, so for the pork and veggies you can use one skillet. Just shred the pork as you heat everything. But this isn’t about you, Pork Carnitas, this is about the Healthy 8! So, you can of course use any other meat you like, or shimp (Trader Joe’s has cooked and deveined wild caught shimp!) or fish. Then, add your favorite taco stuff (like taco seasoning, guacamole, salsa, whatever) and put in your favorite shells (if you are avoiding corn, my favorite grain-free taco shells are Siete brand, which has delicious soft shell tortillas, and newly added hard taco shells!). Yummy!

Quick Chicken Salad

For a quick, healthy lunch I love to mix Trader Joe’s Simply Roast Chicken Breast, which is already cooked and sliced, with some Paleo mayo (my favorite brands that use avocado oil are Primal Kitchen and Chosen Foods) to make chicken salad. Then I stir in the Healthy 8 to load it up with veggies.

Vegan Salad

There are so many veggies in Trader Joe’s Healthy 8 that it is filling without any meat or animal products added. Just add the veggies to your favorite salad mix (I like bagged organic kale) and add your favorite dressing (for a sugar-free, vegan option, try Trader Joe’s Green Goddess Dressing in the refrigerated section).

Simple Soup

Chicken soup is great for the soul, but so is a little extra time. The Healthy 8 and some TJ’s Organic Chicken Bone Broth make it a breeze. Most chicken soup starts by cooking chicken parts, then heating them in water (to make their own broth) with veggies. But if you use TJ’s chicken broth or bone broth and throw in TJ’s already cooked Simply Roast Chicken Breast and the Healthy 8, you barely have to do anything at all. Just heat everything and season. Voila!