09 May Inside the Fridge: Julie Andrews

Inside the Fridge welcomes Julie Andrews. Julie is a food blogger, self-proclaimed health freak, Registered Dietitian and stay-at-home-mom of two daughters. She lives in the quiet village of Lewiston, NY just minutes away from the majestic Niagara Falls. She enjoys creating healthy and delicious recipes for her family. When she’s not blogging at Tastefully Julie you might find her practicing hot yoga or enjoying the great outdoors. You can connect with Julie on facebook and twitter.

Below we ask her questions about her grocery shopping and food habits – with actual pictures from her fridge!

Inside the Fridge: What is the single most important thing on your mind when you are shopping for food?
Julie Andrews: The nutritional value of the foods I buy is very important. I avoid processed foods as much as possible and only buy whole grains and high fiber foods. I also try to focus on produce that is currently in season, especially during the summer and fall.

ITF: How often do you shop?
JA: Every day! Ok, maybe not every single day but I find myself running to the store for at least a couple of ingredients on more days than not. I don’t do a big huge shop for a week’s worth of food very often, but even when I do I always seem to forget something. Luckily the grocery store is two minutes away!

ITF: How many do you shop for? Ages? 
JA: I shop for 4 people; myself (the quasi-vegetarian), my husband (the carnivore), and my two extremely picky daughters, ages 9 and 11. It’s tough to strike a balance.

ITF: How many times a week do you eat out?
JA: I would say we eat out at least once a week, sometimes twice. As much as I love to cook, it is challenging to please everyone in the family and to always think of new and interesting meals. It’s nice to have a family dinner out or date night with my husband and let someone else wait on me for a change.

ITF: How do you plan your weekly meals? Create a spreadsheet of fly by the seat of your pants?
JA: I’m addicted to other food blogs and food photography sites like Pinterest and Foodgawker. I plan meals around the inspiration I find on the web.

ITF: What is the oldest item in the fridge right now?
JA: That would be all the bottled salad dressings and marinades inside the door that need to go in the trash. I never use them because I make my own healthy dressings and marinades from scratch. For some reason my husband doesn’t understand you can actually make that stuff yourself and whenever he feels like grilling or cooking he buys more.

ITF: What cooking utensil/piece of equipment/appliance do you live for?
JA: I make smoothies all the time and I adore my Ninja blender. It tastes up much less space than a traditional blender and has two sets of blades to more evenly puree the fruit and ice.

ITF: What was the last meal you cooked from scratch?
JA: Coconut curry chicken with basmati rice. We’ve recently discovered that our kids love Indian food.

ITF: What was the last meal you cooked from convenience products?
JA: Frozen ravioli and bottled marinara sauce. It takes less than 10 minutes and the kids never complain!

ITF: If one person could cook for you tonight, who would it be?
JA: Gordon Ramsey. Swoon.

ITF: What are you working on these days that you’d like to tell us about?
JA: I’m trying to improve my photography skills in order to capture more tantalizing food photos for my blog. It’s true what they say, we eat with our eyes first!

Thank you Julie!

If you would like to be featured on Inside the Fridge, please email RobinsBite Intern Laura Bartee – Laura *at* robinplotkin *dot* com