If you recently welcomed a new baby, your life has probably been turned upside down. From physical and emotional exhaustion, and the challenges of recovering from labor, to those wild hormonal shifts (seriously, why am I crying one minute and laughing the next?), your body takes a serious toll. And did we mention there’s still a tiny living creature to take care of? With all that chaos, self-care usually takes the backseat, especially when it comes to feeding yourself. But during this recovery phase, a nutritious postpartum diet is crucial, and certain foods can play a key role in helping you heal and regain your strength.
The best postpartum foods to eat are ones that provide essential nutrients to support your recovery. Not only do they nourish and give you energy, but they also offer ample calories to keep you satiated between newborn feeds (and cuddles). As a dietitian, I recommend these 7 foods to support new moms and help them feel their best.
1. Salmon
Salmon is a top pick because it’s packed with omega-3s to help reduce inflammation, and lean protein to assist in repairing stretched and torn tissues. When you’re in a pinch, try roasting it with garlic salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Or whip up some quick salmon rice bowls by baking it with teriyaki sauce, sesame oil, and fresh garlic. If you have an air-fryer, try this drool-worthy salmon bites recipe (the cook time is less than 10 minutes!).
Plant-based sources of omega-3s include chia seeds, flaxseeds, hemp seeds, and walnuts. If you follow a vegetarian diet, consider sprinkling chia and hemp seeds on cottage cheese, using ground flaxseed as a substitute for eggs in baked goods, or tossing walnuts into salads or pasta dishes.
2. Oats
Make carbs count with oats, which are loaded with protein, fiber, and iron. Keep it simple with stovetop oatmeal or overnight oats, and if you’re feeling creative, try oatmeal muffins or chunky monkey banana bread, which both freeze well too. Plus, while research is still limited, oats can potentially increase milk supply, which can be a lifesaver for breastfeeding moms.
3. Nuts and nut butter
When you’re running on fumes from caring for your newborn, spending hours in the kitchen is likely the last thing on your mind. Nuts are the ultimate no-fuss power snack, packed with healthy fats and protein. Plus, they’re calorie-dense, and postpartum moms need those extra calories to support recovery. Slather peanut butter on toast, dunk apple slices in creamy almond butter, or toss a handful of nuts into a salad for a satisfying crunch. If you’re craving some comfort food, incorporate nuts into dishes like Thai peanut curry and cashew chicken, or use this peanut butter sauce as a marinade for proteins, a salad dressing, or a dipping sauce for spring rolls.
4. Beef
Whether you prefer ground beef, skirt steak, or brisket, they’re all fantastic sources of iron which helps replenish blood loss from labor. My fave method for cooking beef is using the Crock-Pot or slow cooker—just toss it in, forget about it, and it’s ready for dinner. Try making beef stew, spaghetti bolognese, or this easy slow-cooker brisket recipe, which are all nutrient-rich options that require minimal effort.
If you’re looking for vegan foods that are iron-rich, add beans, lentils, tofu, and quinoa into your meals. I love this simple slow-cooker Mediterranean lentil stew and this stir-fry recipe that includes both tofu and quinoa.
5. Eggs
Not only are eggs one of the most affordable animal proteins, but they’re also among the quickest to prepare. They’re rich in protein, vitamin D for immune support, and choline which supports brain development in breastfed babies. Enjoy them hard-boiled, scrambled, or poached, or incorporate them into dishes like veggie fried rice or Middle-Eastern shakshuka.
With a whopping 10 grams of fiber per cup and loads of magnesium, avocados are an essential food when you’re dealing with postpartum constipation. Both fiber and magnesium promote regular bowel movements, offering gentle relief during this phase. Blend avocados into smoothies for an extra creamy texture, dip some veggies guacamole or avocado salsa, or snack on some avocado chocolate mousse for a delicious treat.
7. Greek yogurt
I’m a big fan of Greek yogurt because it’s packed with protein and serves as an excellent source of calcium, which is crucial for replenishing lost stores during pregnancy and maintaining strong bones. Opt for unsweetened varieties, and if you’re craving a touch of sweetness you can always add a drizzle of honey or maple syrup. For a quick and delicious breakfast option, throw together a breakfast parfait with alternating layers of Greek yogurt, berries, and granola. And if you find yourself with some extra time between naps, experiment with recipes like a berry yogurt bake or this creamy Caesar salad-dressing alternative.
While it may seem like there’s nothing easy about travel these days, a winter vacation to Big Sky Resort is pretty high up there on the easy living scale. Gorgeous ski slopes, ziplines through the trees and adventures in Yellowstone are just a few of our favorites. We recently got a chance to check out all that the property (and nearby area) has to offer for families and you’re going to want to check it out for yourself, we know it! Here’s the full scoop.
1. Getting there is easy (and you don't even need to rent a car). Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport is your closest airport to Big Sky, MT and it's just over an hour from the resort. Save the hassle of renting a car and book a shuttle from the airport. Once you're at the resort, you won't have to deal with the hassle of driving in the snow and you can request a pickup from the bell staff if you need to get around the property (and even into town).
2. There are so many winter activities on the property, even for non-skiers. Skiing is definitely the focus at Big Sky Resort. They have private lessons, a ski school, rental shops and a ski valet for storing your gear. There are 39 chairlifts including Swift Current 6, North America's fastest chairlift (with heated seats!). From beginners riding the magic carpet to expert-level skiers, there's the perfect terrain for your day on the slopes.
If you want more than skiing, book a guided snowshoeing adventure where you can meander through Moosetrack Gully with your crew. It's perfect for families as you can go as far as you want and take as many breaks as you need. You can then hike the same trail at night when it transforms into the Enchanted Forest (kids love this!).
3. Winter ziplining is not to be missed! Yes, that's right, you can zipline even in the winter! Big Sky Resort has two zipline options for families: the shorter Nature Zipline for those weighing in at 45lbs and up, and the Adventure Zipline for older riders with a need for speed. Suited up in your snow boots and snow gear, you'll take a chairlift up to start your descent through the trees and over the ski runs. The final run has you racing for victory against another zipliner—what a rush! Definitely put this one on your list of must-do activities.
4. Dining options galore. One of the best features of Big Sky Resort is all of the dining options that are available. Here are our favorites:
Our top pick for lunch like you've never had before is Everett's 8800. Ride the Ramcharger 8 lift up the mountain for unbelievable views served alongside Alpine-inspired dishes like French onion soup and upscale grilled cheese. Kids are totally welcome here and they'll especially love the spaghetti bolognese. The hot toddy is just what you need to experience the full aprés vibe.
Vista Hall offers the perfect ski day break with loads of options like pizza, ramen, tacos and burgers served cafeteria style.
We loved the casual dinner scene at Westward Social where plates were shareable and the craft cocktail fresh and delicious.
Hungry Moose is your on-site mini grocery store with Montana souvenirs, local brews, hot cocoa, cereal and more. In addition to the location on the property, you can place an online order for pickup at the location in town, making it easy to stock your condo's kitchen when you arrive.
We didn't get to try it during our visit, but we heard that the Montana Dinner Yurt is an experience that families love.
Big Sky Lodge
5. Accommodations at Big Sky Resort are designed with families in mind. If there's one thing that always comes with a winter ski vacation and that is all the STUFF. Make it easy on yourself and book a condominium or cabin at Big Sky Resort so that you family has plenty of room to spread out and a spot for all the gear at the end of the day. We stayed in a three-bedroom Big Horn condo during our stay and it had a full kitchen, downstairs king bedroom with bath, upstairs queen bedroom with bath and third bedroom/bath combo that had a queen plus bunk bed. It really was ideal to come back to after a long day in the snow as everyone had space to spread out and you could cook up breakfast in the morning instead of carting everyone off to a restaurant. Highly recommend!
The resort has all kinds of accommodations available from traditional hotel rooms to full houses (many with ski-in, ski-out access). Bell staff is available 24 hours to take you and your ski gear from your rental to the slopes, downtown to dinner or even to the airport if needed.
6. Yellowstone is just a short drive away. Do yourself a favor and put a winter visit to Yellowstone on your list. The park is closed to everyone except those arriving via snowcoach or snowmobile so you'll get a totally unique view of this majestic national park. During our visit we had a cab take us to West Yellowstone where we met up with our snowcoach tour. This bus with oversize snow tires took us to view all of the hot spots including Old Faithful, Biscuit Basin and lots of stops for bison and bald eagle spotting. Lunch was included and the kids absolutely loved it! The parents loved that they didn't have to plan anything and could just sit back and enjoy the day.
There's something about hiking through the snow to check out stinky, bubbling geothermal features like geysers, mudpots and fumaroles that really gets kids excited. And seeing a bison right out your window? Priceless!
For more information about all there is to do at Big Sky Resort during the winter (and summer too), check out bigskyresort.com. Additional information about nearby activities like dogsledding and additional dining options can be found at visitbigsky.com.
The days of soggy tater tots and cardboard-stiff pizza are over. From chicken tikka masala and pasta primavera to avocado rolls and barbecue chicken wraps, today’s young foodies can order made-from-scratch meals and have them delivered straight to school. Hungry yet? Read on to find out how to upgrade your kid’s school lunch.
The LunchMaster
The LunchMaster
The Big Picture: The LunchMaster’s goal is to provide healthy, from-scratch meals that’ll give students the energy to learn with more success every day. They also strive to strengthen the community, whether that means working with local farmers or meeting the specific needs of parents and schools.
Where: San Francisco Bay Area and California Central Valley
What’s on the menu: California roll, carne asada street tacos, Italian market salad.
What makes it unique: Parents can choose up to eight menu options (there are hot and cold entrees, fresh fruit and veggie sides), including a gluten-free or vegetarian meal. Each choice has been designed by a Registered Dietitian, is freshly made with local ingredients and delivered to your kids’ school every day.
How it works: Get your school to register with The Lunchmaster and then you’ll enter your school code online. All Meals adhere to strict regulations, including the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).
Average cost: One entree, fresh fruit, fresh vegetable, snack, and choice of cold beverage costs less than $6.
The Big Picture: Yumble doesn't deliver lunch to your kids' school, but instead will deliver freshly-packed, ready-to-eat meals to your house, so all you have to do each day is pull one out of the fridge, throw it in a lunchbox and go!
Where: The east coast.
What's on the menu: Presto! Pesto Chicken Sandwich Meal, Mac N Cheese & Nuggest Please, Orange-You-Glad Chicken Bowl and more.
How it works: Simply sign up for four, six, eight or 12 meals a week, and they'll be delivered to your front door on either Tues., Wed., Thurs or Fri.
The Big Picture: Founded in 2006 by two ambitious moms hoping to change lunchtime at America's schools, Revolution Foods is now one of the largest lunch providers in the nation, dishing out more than 2 million meals per week to kids K-12. All meals are made without any artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, high-fructose corn syrup, MSG, nitrates or nitrites.
Where: California, Texas, Colorado, Louisiana, Tennessee, the Mid-Atlantic states and New England.
What's on the Menu: Meals vary per region but may include Korean BBQ beef, enchiladas, chicken pesto pasta salad, jambalaya and more.
How it works: The company works directly with the schools under the National School Lunch Program, so meals are served family-style or in cafeterias for little or no cost to the students.
Average cost: Free to qualified students under the National School Lunch Program.
The Big Picture: You wouldn't feed your one-year-old the same stuff you'd give your eighth-grader, would you? Well, neither would Chefables. Originally founded with a mission to provide healthy meals to the tiniest eaters—kids as young as one in childcare centers across the San Francisco Bay Area—this lunch delivery company now provides made-from-scratch meals and snacks to kids up to eighth grade.
Where: San Francisco Bay Area.
What's on the Menu: Homemade turkey burger on whole grain roll, served with grilled asparagus and fresh strawberries; baked whole wheat pancakes with berry compote; roasted chicken chow mein.
How it works: Parents go online or use their smartphones to assemble sides, snacks, and/or entrees a la carte to their child's lunch. Meals are delivered just before lunchtime.
What makes it unique: It's not just the kinds of food that's age-appropriate; it's also how the food is served. In creating the daily menus, Chefables co-owner Lesley Kohn said the chefs consider everything from how many teeth their little eaters might have to how big the portions should be to satisfy those hungry tummies. And, everything from the bread to the yogurt is made from scratch.
Average cost per meal: Free or low cost to students/schools who qualify for the National School Lunch Program; otherwise, sides start at $1 and entrees average about $5.
The Big Picture: Organic Kids LA started in 2011 with one mom making baby food for her friends and selling it at local farmer's markets. Today, the company serves elementary, middle and high schools and four camps across the greater Los Angeles area.
Where: Los Angeles
What's on the Menu: Vietnamese spring rolls with rice and edamame; turkey sloppy joe's with cold carrots and ranch dressing plus sweet potato chips; spaghetti bolognese with broccoli. There's also a different salad every day as well as a DIY bento box with more than 40 choices.
How it works: Parents load their online account with "credits" in order to customize and buy lunches in advance, and the meals are delivered in reusable boxes to the child's school before lunchtime. Empty boxes are then collected after lunch and returned to be cleaned and reused.
What makes it unique: The company uses 100% organic fruits and veggies, grass-fed meats and free-roaming chicken. Also, if kids don't want a hot lunch, they can pick and choose cold items to create their own 4-cup bento box.
Average cost per meal: Varies depending on size (small, $6.50; medium, $7.25; large, $8). Add-ons (cold-pressed juices and extra snacks) are at an additional cost.
The Big Picture: California Pizza Kitchen at school? Yes, please! Wholesome Food Services has a slightly different business model than most other lunch delivery companies: It partners with local restaurants (including CPK, Wahoo's Fish Taco, Jamba Juice and others) to provide yummy meals to school kids.
Where: Colorado, Dallas, Chicago (with more cities to come).
What's on the Menu: Every day features a different restaurant, so Mondays could be pizza and salads from CPK; Tuesday could be spaghetti and meatballs from Noodles & Company. Click here to see some of the partner restaurants.
How it works: Parents order online up to two months in advance. Orders are sent to partner restaurants, who make the foods, which are then picked up and labeled individually for each student.
What makes it unique: Instead of making lunches in its own kitchen, Wholesome Food Services uses partner restaurants to prepare foods kids already know and love. Another cool perk? Every day, Mom or Dad can write a special note to be included on their child's lunch box label.
The Big Picture: There is a monthly menu of breakfasts, lunches and snacks that arrive daily to preschool and child care centers in six east coast states.
Where: Massachusettes, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia
What's on the Menu: Grilled chicken parm, veggie chili, pasta with turkey meat sauce and more.
How it works: Contact a Smart Lunches rep to see if your school is in an area the company serves. From there, you'll be able to see if Smart Lunches is a good fit for your kids' school program.
What makes it unique: There are gluten-free and veggie options offered every day.
Red Rabbit - Greater New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey regions
Red Rabbit
The Big Picture: This Harlem-based business was founded in 2005 and serves more than 20,000 meals per day to elementary and middle schools throughout the greater New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey regions, dishing up heritage-based, healthy favorites for little or no cost to qualified students.
Where: Greater New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey regions.
What's on the Menu: Chana Masala, Jerk Chicken, Pollo Guisado and much more.
What makes it unique: Ingredients are locally sourced and include culturally relevant ingredients that kids recognize. Everything is made from scratch. Nothing is frozen, processed, or fried and all meats are bought directly from local butchers.
Average cost per meal: Free or low-cost to students who qualify for the National School Lunch Program. In schools that don't apply for federal reimbursement, lunches are about $5 per meal.
The Big Picture: Founded by a husband and wife catering team who believed that school lunches should be "freshly prepared in a kitchen and not a factory," Choicelunch lets parents browse a selection of 16 daily entrees and up to 40 different snacks to be delivered (in a compostable box!) just before lunchtime.
Where: Over 300 schools in California.
What's on the Menu: Kid favorites like pizza, buttered noodles, plus more adventurous items like avocado sushi rolls and chicken tikka masala.
How it works: Parents can order online via the mobile app (iOS, Google Play) and an online ordering system that shows pictures of every entree. There's also a monthly meal plan that gives parents a discount and includes perks like credits for vacation or sick days and no fees for last-minute ordering.
What makes it unique: Orders can be placed months in advance—or at the last minute. Also, to lessen its environmental footprint, Choicelunch designed its meal boxes using GMO-free potato starch and uses fresh fruit baggies made of corn. There's also an allergen filter that helps put parents at ease about food choices.
The big picture: Red Apple Lunch helps busy parents provide healthy, yummy lunches for their kids without the hassle of extra prep. Everything is delivered to your doorstep!
Where: Currently serving the greater Boston area.
What's on the menu: Each lunch comes with the main item, fruit, veggies and a treat. You can opt to add a drink or a snack.
How it works: This Boston-area school lunch delivery service allows parents to choose lunches for the week and decide on a delivery day.
What makes it unique: For every lunch ordered, Red Apple Lunch provides a meal to a family in need.
Editor’s Note: Most require a partnership with a school in order to deliver lunches. If your school is not on board yet, talk to the school’s principal or food coordinator to drum up interest.
When you’re a busy parent, the hardest part about dieting is sticking to it, especially when it means making two separate dinners every night. One of our favorite things about the keto diet is that it’s actually fairly easy to make kid-pleasing dinners that still fit the low-carb, high-protein bill. While we don’t suggest putting your kids on this exclusive diet, we do think many of these recipes in rotation are yummy and nutritious enough to be home-runs. Keep reading to see them all.
This mouthwatering chicken dish from Eat Well 101 is bound to be an instant family favorite. It has a creamy, cheesy sauce that tastes indulgent, but you can also sneak in some greens to up the healthy factor. Click here to get the recipe.
Crispy breaded fish that’s still keto? It’s actually possible, thanks to this genius recipe from The Wholesome Recipe Box. Best of all, your kids won’t even be able to tell it’s not a normal breading. To find out the secret trick that keeps it crispy, click here.
If you’re dying for a Mexican food fix, you’ve got to try these yummy roll-ups from Skinnytaste. They’re filled with shredded chicken and smothered in homemade enchilada sauce and shredded cheese. Get all the details by clicking here.
For those days when all you want is a huge bowl of pasta, this keto spaghetti bolognese recipe from Stylish Cravings will keep you on track. You can pair it with zucchini noodles or cauliflower rice and whip up some pasta for your minis. Click here to grab the recipe.
Just because you’re keto, that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on dessert! This mug cake from The Big Man’s World is just the thing when you’ve got a craving for something sweet, and can be made in the microwave or oven. Click here to get the recipe.
This Mexican taco skillet from Cast Iron Keto is tasty enough to woo even the pickiest of eaters. It’s filled with ground beef, tomatoes and cauliflower rice and topped off with a healthy dose of melty cheese. To get the recipe, click here.
Spaghetti squash is one of our favorite veggies to work with, and kids love it too. If you haven’t given it a go yet, this casserole recipe from A Mind “Full” Mom is a great way to introduce it to your diet. It’s got all the flavors of spaghetti minus the heavy pasta. Grab the recipe by clicking here.
Get a little fancy with this fabulous chicken cordon bleu recipe from Mama Bear’s Cookbook. Chicken thighs are filled with ham and cheese, then breaded with almond flour. To get the recipe, click here.
We can never turn down a meatball, especially when they look as delicious as these homemade ones from Modern Low Carb. Pair them with pasta for the kids and a simple green salad for yourself. Click here to grab the recipe.
For a sweet treat, whip up this decadent strawberry cheesecake ice cream from Low Carb with Jennifer. The base is made from cream cheese and coconut cream (yum!), and chopped strawberries are mixed in. To get all the details on how it’s done, click here.
