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Hello! Iā€™m Anjali. Iā€™m a board certified health coach, author, wife, mom and food lover from the SF Bay area (now living in Seattle, WA!); with a passion for delicious food and a desire to make healthy eating easy, tasty and fun! Learn more about me here and stay for a while!

Anjali Shah

About Me

Hi! I’m Anjali. I’m the Nutritionist and Health Coach behind The Picky EaterĀ®. I’m so happy you found me! Here you will find healthy, family-friendly and kid-friendly recipes that are easy to make and taste GREAT!

About Anjali Shah

I am a board certified health coach, wife, mom of two, cookbook author, and self-taught chef who develops all of the recipes on The Picky EaterĀ®, and investigates the truth behind food products on grocery store shelves, so you can find the healthiest options for your family.

I received my undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley (Go Bears!) and my nutrition certification from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. I absolutely LOVE food and I am passionate about healthy living for the whole family ā€“ including picky eaters!

More About Me! I am…

My husband and I live in Seattle, Washington (by way of Ann Arbor, MI and San Francisco, CA) with our two kids – Layla and Ayan.

About The Picky EaterĀ®

The Picky EaterĀ® is a place where you can browse hundreds of plant-based recipes covering all types of courses, diets and cuisines. In addition, I provide healthy tips, insights, and resources for parents and kids of all ages. 

Youā€™ll see nutrition information provided for my recipes, but my philosophy around food isn’t focused on calories. Instead, I prioritize eating lots of plant-based foods with a little indulgence here and there. I am vegetarian, and have raised my kids to be vegetarian, so those are the type of recipes that youā€™ll see here. (Although I have to say, meat-eaters love my recipes too!)

The Picky EaterĀ® is a place of no-judgement and no-diets. I believe in healthy eating, but I do NOT believe in deprivation. I believe you can have your cake (in moderation!) and eat it too!

The Huffington Post CookingLight Reader's Digest Women's Health BuzzFeed Glamour Whole Foods Oprah Winfrey Network CNN Food Network Healthline Shape

Why “The Picky Eater”?

I grew up a ā€œwhole wheatā€ girl: I was raised in the healthy-eating, organic-obsessed, farmerā€™s market-driven culture of the San Francisco Bay Area. My childhood was filled with fruits, vegetables and home cooked meals; I was raised to be ā€œpickyā€ about what I put into my body and to eat junk food in moderation.

I always thought of myself as a picky eater in the non-traditional sense of the word: that it was all about being choosy about finding healthy options to put into your body.

Then I got married and ended up with a family of TRUE picky eaters ā€“ in the traditional sense of the word! I realized that the only way I could convert my family into healthy eaters would be to cook healthy versions of the foods they loved: pizza, pasta, and fast-food.

My Blog Was Inspired By:

  • My journey teaching myself to cook, and using my “picky eater” philosophy to help my whole family eat healthier.
  • Expanding my family’s palate to enjoy just about every healthy food out there.
  • My ability to transform my kids into veggie-loving, sprouted-wheat-bread-eating, health conscious little ones!
  • Making healthy food taste good for families all over the world!

What started as a way to catalog my own journey cooking healthy meals that my picky-eating family would love has since turned into an online destination visited by millions of people a year. I’m so grateful for the community we’ve built here, and the connections I’ve built with all of you!

Our Medical Reviewers & Dieticians

While The Picky Eater is mostly focused on healthy recipes that kids and adults alike will enjoy, you’ll find that I also have a section on my blog called “best for kids” – where I recommend some of the healthiest products for your child including vitamins, baby formula, snacks, baby food, cereals, granola bars, and more.

To ensure that any product recommendations I’m providing are 100% accurate and align with current dietary guidance for kids, I have three pediatric dieticians on my team who fact check, review, and sign off on my articles in my best for kids section. You’ll see them mentioned on any articles they have reviewed and fact checked. Here’s more about them!

Linzy Ziegelbaum, MS, RD, CDN 

Photo of Linzy Ziegelbaum, MS, RD, CDN.

Linzy Ziegelbaum is a New York based pediatric Registered Dietitian and the owner of the private nutrition practice LNZ Nutrition LLC. She has her Masters in Nutrition from Lehman College and her bachelors from Syracuse University, did her clinical dietetic internship at NewYork Presbyterian Hospital, and formerly worked as a clinical nutritionist at Hospital for Special Surgery and as a Pediatric Dietitian at Northwellā€™s Allergy/Immunology office. She specializes in areas such as: helping families remove stress from meal times, helping children with food allergies and intolerances meet their nutrition needs through diet, and helping youth athletes learn how to fuel their bodies for sports. Linzy has frequently been quoted as a nutrition expert, and recently started a youth sports nutrition blog

Katie Drakeford, MA, RD, CSP, LD, CLC

Photo of Katie Drakeford.

Katie graduated from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center with a Masterā€™s in Dietetics and completed her Dietetic Internship through OU. She has over a decade of experience helping people of all ages meet their nutritional needs but found her passion in pediatrics. She currently holds a Board Certification in Pediatric Nutrition and is a Certified Lactation Counselor. You can learn more about her on her LinkedIn page here.

Christina Badaracco, MPH, RDN, LDN

Photo of ChristinaĀ Badaracco.

Christina Badaracco is a consultant, author, and educator focusing on elevating the role of nutrition in healthcare and better aligning our food and healthcare systems. She regularly writes, teaches, and presents about nutrition, culinary medicine, and sustainable agriculture – including publishing The Farm Bill: A Citizenā€™s Guide in 2019. She earned her MPH from the University of California, Berkeley, and her bachelorā€™s degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, with a minor in Italian Language and Culture, from Princeton University. She completed her dietetic internship at Massachusetts General Hospital and was selected as a 2021 Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year and 2023 Emerging Dietetic Leader by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. You can learn more about her on her website and LinkedIn page

Getting Around

Keeping In Touch

I love hearing from my readers or anyone who is interested in learning more about the world of healthy living and flavorful eating. Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, comments or feedback. I respond to every message I get!

154 responses to “About Me”

  1. I wish I could be more health conscious. In my case, I’m a picky eater as well but not a good picky eater. I stay with foods that I’m familiar with which pretty much include hamburgers, pizza, pasta, fries…etc everything bad. I HATE THAT!! I want to change but I know so little about food that its intimidating. I am overweight but before I become obese I want to make a lifestyle change. Any advice?

    • Hi Shannon! Thank you so much for reaching out to me! I can totally understand where you’re coming from – there’s so much information out there and a lot of it is conflicting that it CAN be intimidating to try to figure out how to eat healthier! I’m happy to help you move towards a healthier lifestyle. My initial advice is to start small – like pick two things you’re going to do every day (for example: eat a healthier breakfast and walk at least 30 minutes a day). Then start making healthier versions of the foods you like – you can find healthy and delicious versions of burgers, pizza, pasta, and fries on my blog! You’ll still get all of the flavor but none of the unnecessary calories. I hope this gives you a good start – and I’m more than happy to give you more detailed advice over email! Feel free to email me at pickyeats@gmail.com if you have any other questions. Good luck! I know you can do it šŸ™‚

  2. Loved reading your about page..landed here from pinterest. Hopping to browse some of your kitchen creations now..

  3. I love this blog! I especially like the donut story where your dad cut the donut into 8 pieces hahaha! šŸ™‚

    • Thanks so much Pragya! Haha! Yeah – that was our “dessert” šŸ™‚ And the best part is, I thought that was totally normal until I saw my friend’s mom give her a whole donut to eat!

  4. Great blog and some fantastic tips for getting my (very very picky) son to eat vegetables. Please come and check my blog out šŸ™‚

    • Aw thank you so much!! So glad my tips are helpful! šŸ™‚ Just stopped by your blog too – it’s great!

  5. Hi Anjali, wow it looks like you’re definitely an adventure seeker. I personally wouldn’t go near a snake let alone put one around my neck but I give you dibs girl. You Go girl. I see that you went to Chianti in Tuscany, nice. My family and I went to that region a couple years on a wine tour and loved it. It was pleasant and relaxing. I love your setup.

    • Hehe, thank you so much Jahnavi! Isn’t Chianti the best?? Completely pleasant and relaxing. So nice to meet you!

  6. Hi Anjali, It was so nice to have met you at the festival. I must apologize, I haven’t been able to go around and say hi to everyone yet! I love all your travels, all of those places are on my must see list eventually! Look forward to keeping up with you! I’m a Bay Area girl myself.
    -Gina-

    • It was nice meeting you too Gina! It’s always fun to meet fellow Bay Area Foodies šŸ™‚ So glad you enjoyed the summary of my travels! Please do stay in touch!

  7. Just had to say that I’ve enjoyed reading through your blog while having my tea this morning. You’ve done some very fun things. Makes for a fun blog read. Glad to have “found” you. šŸ™‚

  8. Wow! You are fearless! One look at that snake was enough for me! Hang gliding looks like so much fun! I have been enjoying your blog. I know you had a blast at Food Buzz Fest!

    • Haha yeah, to some extent I am. Hang gliding really was fun! You should try it if you haven’t already. Was nice meeting you at FoodBuzz!

    • Aw thanks Belinda! And omg – the hang gliding was absolutely amazing. But nothing beats bungee jumping in New Zealand (which I don’t have a picture of, but I wish I did!)

  9. I loved loved loved reading more about you. Many bloggers often forget to make a good About me page. It’s actually the first one I read! And from time to time it should be updated. You inspired me to do that soon!

  10. I’m so glad that you posted this! You have had some amazing experiences. I really do enjoy reading about the bloggers that I like to follow. Puts a “person” to the blog! Nicely done!

    I grew up in the Bay Area as well, now we are in San Diego, but I still miss my City.

    • Thanks Kim! I visited San Diego a while back – it’s beautiful but I agree, nothing compares to the Bay! Hope you have an opportunity to make it back here soon!

  11. That quote from ‘When Harry Met Sally’ made me laugh out loud. I’m with you on being a little picky. Like your blog. I look forward to reading more of your posts. Cheers!

  12. Hi again. I was just reading through some of your recipes with my husband and we were like, “gotta try that, and that, and oohh, that one too” Such good stuff without a lot of fancy, expensive ingredients, just healthy and simple. Thanks. I’m trying to find creative ways to use up the 12 cups (!) of rice I accidentally made tonight.

  13. Hi Picky eater,

    Me too! I am so picky and very health conscious person…. well in my later years is when I really became a particularly picky eater. If I eat out then the food needs to be prepared just the way I like it…I mean love it. Two reasons… its my health and my taste buds that I need to please. Restaurants need to get a clue on how to keep customers happy and coming back… so many restaurants serve unhealthy food.
    Okay enough of that..

    Thank you for your Blog and I’m so glad I’ve found it.

    Cheers,
    Mindy : )

    • Thanks so much for your note! I totally agree with you – it’s always a challenge to find healthy flavorful at restaurants – I’ve started eating at higher end places because they will usually have healthy options on the menu or will tailor the items to my preferences šŸ™‚ Please do keep in touch and let me know if you come across any good, healthy recipes I can include on my blog!

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