Whole Foods Just Launched Our New Favorite Meal Prep Shortcut — And 6 Other Goodies

It’s that time again! Whole Foods recently announced their new October grocery lineup, and as usual I went to go spend my whole paycheck on it! To my surprise, I discovered a few can’t-live-without groceries that I will most definitely be adding to my regular shopping list. Don’t you love when that happens?

These are the new Whole Foods groceries I will definitely be buying again.

These plant-based “burger” patties are my new go-to way to cut back on eating meat during the week. (On the weekends you can find me at Shake Shack, though.) They’re made with pea, rice, and soy protein and get their “beefy” color from beetroot. Season these with a little salt and pepper and throw them in a frying pan for a few minutes per side until they’re nice and cooked through. They’re also sturdy enough to go on the grill — which I’d try if I didn’t live in a tiny apartment in New York City!

While these concentrated simmer sauces are a bit on the pricey side, the amount of flavor alone packed into each 9-ounce jar is worth it. I tossed a teaspoon of Smoky Latin Sauce into the pan while I sautéed some frozen Cascadian Farms rice and beans (see #5) and felt like I was an Iron Chef six minutes later when it was all ready for eating. Each jar will last up to a month in the fridge after opening — plenty of time to become a creative cooking genius.

I make a smoothie every singe morning for breakfast and thought I had the whole process down to a science until now. (Usually I throw in some spinach, collagen powder, nut butter, frozen berries, chia seeds, and oat milk and blend away!) This pouch has everything you need already inside. All you have to do is add liquid and blend — two instant servings of smoothie.

If you like a hearty mix of dates and nuts in bar form, this pick-me-up from CLIF is for you. It’s smaller and has a slightly dryer texture than a typical CLIF bar and reminded me a bit of a Larabar. With 10 grams of plant-based protein, this will help you avoid that post-lunch afternoon slump.

This new frozen shortcut is, hands-down, going to become one of my grocery list mainstays. These bags are filled with blends of grains and veggies that are ready to heat and eat, making meal prep a whole lot faster. I mixed the brown rice, pepper, corn, and black bean blend with the Mesa de Vida Smoky Latin cooking sauce (see #2), topped it with some sliced avocado, and had dinner ready in less than 10 minutes.

If you want to eat a good-for-you-breakfast that kind of feels like dessert, go right ahead with these Dark Chocolate Almond Flour bars from Simple Mills. They have a texture similar to a pillowy cookie or muffin top and are sweetened with honey and molasses.

Not going to lie, I was skeptical to try shelf-stable meat sauce, but these taste like total dupes for my Italian mom’s Sunday gravy. (Maybe don’t tell her I told you that, though.) These jars are filled with the ridiculously delicious Rao’s tomato sauce you already know and love — AND flavorful flecks of ground beef and hearty chunks of sautéed mushrooms and Italian sausage. These are seriously the next best thing to homemade.

Related: Rao’s Just Launched 6 Shelf-Stable Soups — We Tried Them All And We’re Totally Obsessed

Which of these groceries are you dying to try?