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!
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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.
Youāll 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 youāll 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!
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Why “The Picky Eater”?
I grew up a āwhole wheatā girl: I was raised in the healthy-eating, organic-obsessed, farmerās 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 āpickyā 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!
Getting Around
- Browse my delicious recipes
- Try my kid-friendly meals
- Read through my eating guides
- Learn about the Picky Eater philosophy
Keeping In Touch
- Subscribe via email to The Picky Eater to get my newest recipes and tips delivered straight to your inbox.
- FOLLOW The Picky Eater on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious, healthy, family-friendly food!
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!
Hi!! I found your blog about a year ago when searching for the best vitamins for my kids and we loved the Children’s Best Multivitamin which sadly, they have discontinued! I am super bummed because they were perfect! I am now looking at Bluebonnet Rainforest Animal vitamins or Solaray, which is another brand. Right now, we switched my daughter to Mega Food, but they have no iron and seem to lack more of the nutrients she needs which she was getting with Children’s Best. Do you have any advice on Bluebonnet or SolaRay Childrens Multivitamin? My son take Smarty Pants which are great for him, he doesn’t need the Iron as much as she does. She has a very limited food palate and needs more nutrients in her vitamins all while staying away from food dyes and tons of sugar. š
Hi Erin! Between the two, I’d go with Bluebonnet! You can also try Raise Them Well which is a comprehensive multivitamin that also contains iron!
Hi thank you for your recommendation of the best infant formula Hipp Dutch Stage 1. It looks like it’s for 0-6 months and my daughter is almost 9 months old. Is Hipp Dutch stage 2 just as good (the best formula for her age) or should I stick with stage 1 or consider another formula all together? Thank you!
Hi Jason! So yes, HiPP Dutch Stage 1 is meant to be used until 6 months of age because it has less iron than HiPP Dutch Stage 2 (and babies tend to lose their iron stores after 6 months of age). However if your baby is eating a wide variety of solids and your pediatrician isn’t concerned about her iron levels, you can ask your peds about sticking with Stage 1 since the main difference really is just the iron content. But if she’s not a great eater, or if your peds does want her to have a formula with more iron, then you should switch to Stage 2 – it’s the best out of the Stage 2 options available for her age. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!
Hello Anjali;
Thank you much for your recipes – I enjoy the broad spectrum of flavors. I tend to cook larger amounts of vegs and freeze for the future. I find your mix of herbs and spices tasty and would enjoy a book of your recipes. I think a book would be better than hunting on line to find inspiration. Again, thank you for your great recipes.
Hi Kate! Thank you so much for your kind words about my blog! I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying my recipes. I have a couple of books out but they are focused on recipes for kids! I don’t have a cookbook for adults planned yet, but you never know what the future may bring! š
Anjali, you are very inspiring and love the way you compromised in your marriage without letting go of what you know is good. Love your travel pics, but you definitely need to come to Cape Town. We were in SF last year and we lived it. Was so refreshing to have healthy vegetarian foods wherever we went. Quite different to my premise about typical American food and portions. I love cooking but need to make the transition from traditional Gujerati cooking to the more healthy alternatives without losing the art of spices and flavours.
Regards Priya
Hi Priya! Thank you so much for your comment – you are so sweet! š I’ve heard Cape Town is beautiful – we really want to visit at some point! I hope you enjoy my recipes when you try them – keep me posted on how trying healthier recipes goes for you!
Hello, I am just wondering if you have ever tried any of the LUVO products. There are supposed to be healthy and everything I have read seem to support that. Just thought it might be something to grab quick when travelling, short on time etc. I do try to cook everything myself, but there are just those times, when it seems impossible to find anything to eat with any food value. Thoughts?
Hi Wendy! I haven’t tried the LUVO products before, but in general their nutritional information and ingredients lists look pretty decent for a packaged/frozen food product. I’d say they’d probably be an ok backup if you need something fast when you’re on the go. Hope that helps!
Love your blog and recipes. Which I have only discovered today. Can’t wait to try and recreate some of recipes. I Have subscribed to all 5 choices to keep up to date with new recipes and to enter your competition. not sure if I should be leaving the comment here or not x
Awww thank you so much Grace!! I can’t wait for you to try my recipes – you’ll have to let me know how you like them! š For the giveaway — I’m guessing you’re trying to enter the Theo Chocolate one? If so, be sure to post a comment on that post so it’s counted among the rest of the entries. Thanks!
Hi Anjali! Just stumbled across your blog because I’m going to Rome this weekend and was looking for some blogger’s tips. Love your post on Rome – unfortunately I’m only going for 4 days, not 2 weeks, but trust me, I will try and eat as much as food as I can nonetheless! Thanks for the tips – working my way through the rest of your blog now š
Hi Kiran! Oh that’s so awesome – you will have an amazing time in Rome! I’m so glad you came across my blog – you’ll have to let me know if you end up trying any of my recipes! And have a wonderful trip! š
Thank you for sharing your recipes. I consider myself a picky eater but I am the mexican version. A few years ago I tried indian food for the first time and I felt in love with it. I can’t wait to try all the healthy version recipes from your blog. Thank you!!!!
Hi Lucy!! It’s so great to meet you! I can’t wait for you to try my recipes – I’m sure you will love them! Keep me posted on how it goes!
Dear Anjali,
I stumbled upon your blog quite accidentally and I am glad that I did. I will be visiting it regularly and inviting my friends to do the same as it is very interesting and extremely useful. Thank you and keep it up!
Hi Betty! Aw thank you so much! I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying my blog – keep me posted on how my recipes turn out for you!!
Enjoyed reading your About Me page. Nice photos!!! Your blog is nice! I also have become a picky eater ever since I discovered how corrupt America’s food industry is. Before then, I could eat almost anything.
Thanks Anna! It’s so nice to meet you! It’s true that the food industry in the US can be misleading and disappointing when it comes to quality of ingredients – especially for packaged foods. But luckily, there are plenty of organic and non-GMO options out there for consumers! š
Great blog, LOVE your falafel recipe and looking forward to trying more. My husband and I are trying to eat clean and incorporate more protein naturally into our diets as we are trying to work out and stay healthy. This was a fantastic recipe. Best wishes from Scotland! š
Aw thank you so much Supriya!! So glad you are enjoying my blog and my recipes, and kudos to you for eating clean and staying healthy!
I found your blog while looking for a healthy falafel recipe and your recipe looks terrific. But also I wanted you to know, I had a good laugh at your About Me section – in particular about the way you and your husband grew up around food because that describes me and my husband perfectly. Like your hubby, mine has also learned that vegetables and healthy foods can taste great! Seeing that your recipes are “husband approved”, I will definitely be trying out a bunch of them, and I can’t wait š
Haha that’s awesome! Love that we have similar stories š Can’t wait to hear how you and your husband like my recipes!