How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salary

— -- intro: We all know it’s healthier to “eat clean”—but convenient packaged foods, and weird ingredients seem to lurkeverywhere. Just ask Megan Kimble. The Tucson-based food writer spent an entire year avoiding all processed foods, a daunting challenge she chronicles in her new book, Unprocessed.

As a busy grad student living on an annual salary of $16,780, Kimble discovered creative and affordable ways to trade packaged staples for a real-food diet. It wasn’t easy, she told Health: “But I found that once I got going and formed new habits and figured out favorite meals, it became automatic.” That said, she doesn’t recommend going cold turkey. “Start small,” she said. “Try unprocessing one kind of food, see how it feels, and take it from there.”

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quicklist: 1category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Read the label on everything you buyurl:text:

“If the ingredient list contains a word you don’t really know, the food is probably processed,” Kimble advises. Think additives like modified food starch, soy lecithin, and xanthan gum, and added sugars and artificial sweeteners such as dextrose and high fructose corn syrup. Mustard, marinara sauce, and salad dressing are often surprising sources, she notes, adding, “Luckily these foods are easy—and cheaper!—to make at home.”

quicklist: 2category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Pick up single-ingredient foodsurl:text:Buying products with only one ingredient (like milk, oats, honey, and fruit) is the simplest way to avoid emulsifiers, preservatives, and other additives. Says Kimble: “These whole foods are 100 percent real.”

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quicklist: 3category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Create versions of your favorite unprocessed treatsurl:text:

Rather than trying to conquer your cravings, satisfy them with healthier options. “I personally have a raging sweet tooth,” Kimble notes. “But instead of chocolate chip cookies, my former snack of choice, I’ll reach for a banana with almond butter, or some yogurt with honey and fruit.” Do you crave salty foods? Try homemade kale chips or roasted sweet potato fries.

quicklist: 4category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Seek out brands you trusturl:text:

“I carry Cherry Pie Larabars in my handbag in case of hunger emergencies: They’ve got nothing but dates, cherries, and almonds,” Kimble says. “You’ll start to recognize—and appreciate—food companies that don’t add wonky ingredients to their products. Another one of my favorite brands: Food for Life, which sells bread, tortillas, pasta, and cereal made with only whole, sprouted grains.”

quicklist: 5category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Join a CSAurl:text: “I found that Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs offer the best organic and local bang for your buck,” Kimble notes. “My produce conveniently comes with a newsletter featuring recipes that incorporate vegetables from that week’s box.”

quicklist: 6category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Prepare food in bulkurl:text:It saves money and time, and ensures you have unprocessed options at the ready, Kimble says. Roast veggies at the beginning of the week, make a big batch of grains, cook dried beans in your crockpot, or keep cornmeal on hand for quick polenta.

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quicklist: 7category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: When traveling, plan aheadurl:text:“I’ll map a route to the local natural food store when I’m away from home,” Kimble says. “Their prepared foods tend to be simpler, healthier, and cheaper than restaurant meals.”

quicklist: 8category: How This Woman Gave Up Processed Food for a Year—On a $16,780 Salarytitle: Make deliberate exceptionsurl:text:

“During my year-long experiment, I learned how to make my own chocolate since I didn’t think I could survive a year without it,” Kimble admits. “But today, chocolate bars are a wonderfully convenient exception to my nearly unprocessed diet.”

This article originally appeared on Health.com.