Here’s How to Sprinkle Nutritional Magic on Everything From Salad to Popcorn

Photo: Nutrition Stripped
If you've ever wished you had a fairy godmother who would sprinkle your food with a magical dust that instantly makes everything healthier, your dreams are finally coming true. (Except you're on your own on the whole sprinkling part—sorry!) There's a super underrated pantry staple that deserves a lot more attention for its insanely powerful nutritional bang, and one registered dietitian came up with the perfect way to use it 24/7.

When McKel Hill, RDN, founder of Nutrition Stripped, wanted to create a meal-booster, she knew exactly the ingredient to start with: nutritional yeast. A serving of the totally vegan food—which is actually a deactivated yeast—is two Tbsp, but in that little amount it packs in 130 percent of your recommended daily value of vitamin B12, 8 to 10 grams of protein, and other essential components sometimes even the healthiest diets are missing. "It's one of the top plant-based proteins you should be eating if you aren’t already," she writes. And the best part? All that goodness also comes with a cheesy taste.

"It's one of the top plant-based proteins you should be eating if you aren’t already." —McKel Hill, RDN

To create a mix that's equally as delicious on salad and veggies as it is in your nightly bowl of popcorn, Hill started with a base of nutritional yeast and added in some other key superfoods in her Not Cheese Cheesy Dust: inflammation-reducing turmeric, walnuts for "loads of heart-healthy fats and omega-3 fatty acids," black pepper, a little heat from some cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and a pinch of sea salt. What results is a multi-use condiment you can store in an airtight container in your pantry for up to two months.

No matter what you decide to put your cheesy dust on (seriously, the options are endless!), it'll help your meals reach true #healthgoals status. So what are you waiting for? It's time to get to dustin'.

Try these other condiments that are actually good for you. Or, avoid these food storage mistakes to extend the life of your groceries.

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