While I’ve always loved to cook and bake, the pandemic definitely brought out my inner chef, and I’ve found myself making new and different recipes on a regular basis. In my quest to find fun, healthy and tasty food, I started following a few Instagram food influencers, and now I’m finding that Instagram has become my go-to place for recipe sourcing!
Most of my favorite influencers aren’t even “real” chefs, but regular people who have worked hard to create unique and original dishes that are as easy to make as they are delicious. Their creations are beautifully showcased on their pages, which makes for some especially engaging content that has inspired me to step outside my cooking comfort zone and try some new and different recipes.
Check out these five fab foodies worth following on the ‘gram:
Eating Bird Food (@eatingbirdfood)
I started following Eating Bird Food founder Brittney Mullins quite a few years ago, long before she had the huge following she does today. I love her recipes because they often involve less than 10 ingredients, and she always strives to make them as clean as possible without compromising taste. You can find everything from breakfast, to hearty dinners, to delicious baked goods on her blog, and while she does mostly focus on plant-based dishes, there’s also the occasional fish or poultry meal too. My own favorites include her Pineapple Quinoa, and her healthy versions of Girl Scout cookies.
Brocc Your Body (@broccyourbody)
Los Angeles resident Carissa Stanton started Brocc Your Body to share her love of food, fitness and nutrition. Her recipes include everything from meat and poultry dishes to grain-free desserts. She also does her own takes on normally calorie-laden foods, like a reboot of Taco Bell menu items and copycat Chick Fil A nuggets. Her Fall Chopped Salad is what really got me hooked, and I think I eat her Waffle Breakfast Sandwich at least a couple times a week.
Kale Junkie (@kalejunkie)
A lawyer by trade, Nicole Keshishian Modic started Kale Junkie as a hobby, but it quickly blew up into something much bigger. Her Instagram manages to successfully combine not only a ton of healthy recipes, but also beauty, fashion and parenting tips. Her Birthday Cake Smoothie is my go-to post workout drink (really, it’s healthy!) and I’ve been known to make and eat almost an entire pan of her Pumpkin Fudge Brownies. Modic recently announced that she’s working on a cookbook, which means I already know what everyone in my family will be getting for Christmas!
Ambitious Kitchen (@ambitiouskitchen)
I only recently started following Ambitious Kitchen, even though founder Monique Volz started her blog and eventual Instagram account back in 2011. I happened to stumble across her page and was immediately sucked in when I saw a photo of her Vegan Caesar Pasta Salad, which I had to make that very day. I’ve since tried several of her recipes, and I can’t think of one I didn’t like. And while she has plenty of healthy options to choose from, I also love that I can find some full-sugar and butter-laden treats on her page as well. It’s all about balance, right?
Kale Me Maybe (@kalememaybe)
Food blogger and wellness journalist Carina Wolff started Kale Me Maybe while she was still in college, creating easy recipes that were also healthy and nutritious. Since I’m a total sucker for any kind of pizza or pasta, I had to try her Buffalo Cauliflower Pizza, and more recently sampled her Roasted Red Pepper and Goat Cheese Pasta, both of which were huge hits at my house. Her recipes are really creative and inventive, which I think is a definite bonus when you’re trying to come up with something new for dinner.
