Nourishing Shopping Guide

At Mêrfleur we are not about attaining perfection. Instead, we focus on gently and continually reducing our purchase of toxic and inhumane food, both for our health and for the health of our precious planet.

Jessi is not your typical big meal planner. Instead, she believes in creating a market-like feeling in the kitchen. To do this, keep your fridge and pantry full of nourishing and appetizing food that will inspire when mealtime rolls around. Allow your senses to guide you, feel into your food, and don’t be afraid of changing your mind last minute based on what your body is asking for right then and there! Use your sensitive senses to your benefit here! Below Jessi shares her go-to sources, what she keeps fresh in the fridge or freezer and what she stocks in her pantry. Give this method a try for yourself and experience the joy of creative flexibility!

This is a living list that will constantly be updated as Jessi is reminded of the food she eats and guides her clients towards and as she encounters farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food artisans changing the world with their calling.

Many of these foods can be found locally in your natural food markets, but if not use them as examples of the type of quality you are seeking to match. We are passionate about regenerative organic agriculture, fully pasture-raised animals, wild net-free fishing, properly prepared grains and beans, and nutrient-dense produce. We believe these are the best and most natural ways to live in harmony with the earth. Supporting the food artisans of the world whether they are raising cattle or fermenting sauerkraut is our mission.

We invest in high-quality food above all else and see it as the foundation for resiliency and long-term health in our sensitive bodies. Savor real pure nourishing food with us!

 

Fresh & Frozen

PASTURE-RAISED ORGANIC LAND & WILD SEA ANIMALS

Jessi maintains a solid backstock of frozen proteins, pulling them out to defrost on an as needed basis. Most often she keeps a pound of ground bison or beef and another of ground dark turkey, a cornish hens or two, many salmon filets, mussels, and shrimp. These all freeze very well. She only puts 1-2 fresh entrée proteins in the fridge at a time so that she doesn’t feel pressure and avoids anything going bad. She buys chicken drumsticks or tenders fresh and roasts, bakes or grills them right away. Frozen chicken is rarely as tasty as fresh! Pork is a love in the Agadoni household, so you’ll definitely find bacon and Italian sausage alongside the deli-sliced turkey and roast beef. Since eggs are the easiest protein to add to any dish, Jessi always keeps 2-3 full cartons of local eggs in her fridge. Poach, scramble or drop raw into a hot soup for an quick meal.

This is Jessi’s personal top value and the area she tends to invest her funds into the most. Choosing wild, pasture-raised, organic, pure, clean animal protein is by far THE healthiest choice you can make when it comes to food. Whenever possible, Jessi selects the highest quality she can get her hands on, but of course do what you can with where you are in your own food journey.

BROTH & SOUP

For quick dinners, Jessi keeps 1-3 fresh frozen soups and a few bags of broth in the freezer. Ideally, these are made by a local chef or cook with excellent ingredients or if she has the time she’ll make a large batch and freeze for later.

  • Find your local farmer’s market: Local Harvest - fresh frozen broths and soups can often be found here!


RAW & CULTURED DAIRY

Jessi always chooses whole-fat. Currently, she thrives on goat and sheep-based cheeses, yogurts, and milks, other than her butter and the occasional treat of cow-based ice cream. Cheese in many forms is a necessity to her. You’ll find chevre, cheddar, mozzarella, parmigiano reggiano, asiago, brie, and more rotating through her fridge based on her seasonal preference. She keeps at least 3-4 jars of goat and sheep yogurt in the fridge to use for breakfast with granola, fresh fruit or even as a dollop of “sour cream” on soups or other savory dishes. She maintains 5-6 blocks of various kinds of butter in the freezer, pulling 1-2 out to keep in the fridge and 1 to keep on the counter at all times. Her dairy-free options are most often almond and coconut-based with little or no fillers. Almond milk with sprouted almonds is the best and easiest milk to make at home, if you have the time.

LOCAL PRODUCE

Jessi likes to keep a large fridge drawer full of vegetables including a bunch of large carrots, celery, radishes, seasonal goodies like leeks, eggplant, radicchio, or cabbage, and always stocks various fresh greens, like arugula, mustard, gem and butter lettuce. She’ll often have a few containers of pre-washed greens to make salads very easy. Root veggies, like sweet, red or yukon potatoes and all forms of onion, garlic, and shallots can be found in her fridge or cupboard, depending on the heat level in her kitchen. These vegetables need a cool dark home to last long. When it comes to fruit, she must have multiple avocados and meyer lemons available as these are essential to her. The rest of her fruit varies according to the season and can look like all kinds of citrus, berries, mango, papaya, coconut, cherries, apricots, banana, or whatever else catches her fancy at the farmers market! Support your regenertive organic farmers as often as possible. Our planet and your body will thank you!

OATS, DRIED FRUIT, NUTS & NUT BUTTER

Since oats, dried fruit, nuts, nut butter, and nut flour can go rancid very quickly, Jessi keeps these in the fridge and freezer. Oats are best consumed when sprouted, so she buys them pre-sprouted to save time! She stocks dried fruit like plums, dates, nectarines, and raisins as well as nuts like walnuts, pistachios, almonds, and almond flour. Sprouted raw organic nuts and organic unsulfured fruit are ideal, especially if you find yourself often bloated, as this improves digestion and enhances nutrient absorption but tune into your own needs here.

GF BREADS & PASTRIES

DESSERTS

Pantry

SOUPS & BEANS

On busy days, prepared beans and soups can be a lifesaver! Jessi is not shy about using ready-to-go foods if they are of high quality and deeply nourishing. She also has a touch of doomsday prepper in her, just enough to always keep a stash of bottled soups and beans as a backup. Beans, like nuts and grains, are ideally soaked in water before cooking to allow for easier digestion and nutrient absorption. Soaking also prevents bloating! Jessi always buys pre-soaked beans, because, well, she prefers to have it done for her!

  • Jeff & Karine Soups - simply add protein and a sprinkle of sea salt for a perfect soup

  • Jovial - bonus, stored in glass

  • Eden Organics - bonus, beans are presoaked with kombu for even greater nourishment

  • Rancho Gordo - bonus, heirloom unique beans, but need to be soaked prior to cooking

GRAINS

Simple and even complex carbs get a bad rap, but Jessi has always been a fan and always will be. When it comes to the naturally sensitive body carbs are needed! Jessi stocks her pantry with delicious gluten-free pastas like capellini, farfalle, elbows, and more. She’s not afraid of the traditional pasta dish! Rice and quinoa are other grains found in her pantry. Choosing organic and arsenic-free is key. sprouted is even better! The occasional baker, Jessi mostly makes savory tarts, cookie dough, and summer fruit crumbles. For these, she keeps her favorite all-purpose gluten-free flour on hand! It’s proven itself time and time again.

SEASONING

Jessi obsesses over flavor. When it comes to seasoning she believes in choosing quality over quantity every single time for easy and deeply delicious food. Collecting and using real sea salt is an actual hobby for Jessi, She stocks many different kinds, as each one offers unique results, but most often sticks with the finer grain. For general seasoning, Italian sea salt is the go-to, For a rich mineral-heavy flavor, Celtic, For finishing salt, Maldon is a classic. Pepper is used rarely in the Agadoni kitchen, but it does have its place. Only freshly ground peppercorns will do as pre-ground often has preservative fillers and grows microscopic mold. Dulse is a beautiful hit of unami when needed. Lastly, while Jessi sees the value of dried herbs and spices, she prefers fresh whenever possible. Basics like cinnamon, cinnamon sticks, real vanilla extract (not flavor), vanilla beans, garlic powder, sage, and oregano are tucked into her pantry, while a pot just outside her kitchen door grows Italian parsley, chives, thyme, basil, and mint so that she can snip what she needs in the moment for the freshest flavor!

CONDIMENTS & CANNED GOODS

SNACKS

SWEETENERS

TEA

Jessi is an avid tea drinker, but as a Natural Sensitive she avoids high caffeine except for rare special treats. A morning matcha with collagen is her go-to. Loose leaf herbal, floral, and green teas make up her collection. If steeping a green tea, she removes the leaves after 60 seconds to keep the caffeine light. The leaves can be stored in the fridge and reused the next day for a second cup.

WATER

Water will always be Jessi’s go-to. Her awareness of the many toxins and imbalanced minerals found in most water makes her very particular. Jessi’s daily source comes from her local seaside spring. She fills large glass jugs every 2 weeks and uses a technology to restructure it back to its original form. Spring water is best in her eyes, but even better is spring water freshly drawn from deep in the earth that never loses its original chemical structure and vibration, like Alive Water offers. While traveling and as a sparkling option, Jessi chooses glass bottled spring water.

SPRTIZERS, KOMBUCHA & ALCOHOL

For drinks other than water, she enjoys delicious spritzers by pairing an organic juice with sparkling mineral spring water. A few classic kombuchas are also on hand in her fridge! Alcohol is rare for Jessi, because it’s challenging for her liver to process, like it is for most Natural Sensitives, but if she’s in the mood she honors it. She always chooses organic or natural wines and very occasionally the traditional raw unfiltered organic sake. To honor her body, she often takes phase 1 liver supports, like glutathione, that night to ease any impact.