I looked at the bag of black forbidden rice in my basket and smiled. I was buying a $14 bag of rice, as opposed to the $3 bags I used to buy, because of its quality, its health benefits, and all the creative ways I could use it. It would be a part of numerous meals for my family.

One of the main mindset shifts I’ve experienced that has changed the way I grocery shop is the awareness of how much I can justify spending on food and drinks during a night out and how easy it is to bypass the better ingredients in the grocery store because they’re “too expensive”.

Perspective: a $25 entree at a restaurant that will feed me once, maybe twice if the leftovers are good reheated, is justified, but a $14 bag of quality black rice that will contribute to 5 or 6 meals for my family of 3 is too much? I’ve never been a math expert, but that math doesn’t make sense, even to me!

So, how do we get to a place where quality, possibly more costly ingredients are the norm for us, without feeling shame around prioritizing them? There are actually several steps that can help get us there, and I walk you through them here.

In this episode, we are getting to the root of why it can be so hard to choose ingredients that are better for our health and the environment, and what does mindfulness have to do with it all?