Justine Doiron’s Favorite Gut-Loving Summer Snacks

If you’ve ever fallen into a late-night scroll of Justine Doiron’s cozy, craveable cooking videos, you know she has a way of making vegetables feel both approachable and luxurious. Now, the New York Times best-selling cookbook author and creator known as @Justine_Snacks has teamed up with Nature Made and HelloFresh to bring her signature style to a gut-friendly menu that’s simple to prepare at home.

The new collaboration features limited-edition Hello Fresh meal kits and recipes developed by Justine, designed to pair with Nature Made’s latest digestive support supplements.

Ahead, Justine opens up to The Healthy by Reader’s Digest about how she approaches intuitive eating, what gut health looks like on her plate, and how eating what she enjoys became an exercise in loving herself.

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The Healthy by Reader’s Digest: Justine, you’re known for feel-good recipes. How do you think intuitive eating supports not just gut health, but emotional well-being, too?

Justine Doiron: Intuitive eating is so interesting because it’s often an unregulated health buzzword—it can mean a lot of different things to different people. For me, I really had to think about intuitive eating through the lens of energy: How does this make me feel? That perspective helped me discover the foods I love to cook, love to eat, and love to share—foods that support gut health, digestion, and holistic wellness—another buzzy word, but something I do feel is important.

When I think of intuitive eating, I think about honoring your cravings and the energy you need to support yourself throughout the day. That might mean lots of different vegetables, plant proteins—or other proteins depending on who you’re cooking for—and making sure your plates feel mostly satisfying to you. Flavor is always my biggest priority, but I also want what I’m eating to support me throughout the day. I approach food from a place of no restrictions, just additions, and I think that’s what makes it gut-healthy. We’re always getting diversity on the plate. So when Nature Made reached out, it just made sense. This is how I already cook.

The Healthy: Tell us a little bit about the collaboration with Nature Made—how did it come about?

Justine Doiron: They reached out to me looking for chefs who already had this ethos of gut-healthy food. And while I’d never thought of my food as supporting digestive health, a lot of the habits I’ve built into my cooking naturally support gut health. I’ve also used Nature Made for years, so developing recipes that could help people support their gut health—and maybe introduce them to food—just felt seamless.

The Healthy: How do you define gut health and intuitive eating for yourself, especially when you’re making food choices?

Justine Doiron: To me, if I mentally restrict myself, then that doesn’t equate with intuitive eating. It’s about having a framework in place—meals that are digestively supportive, balanced, and built around whole foods—and then checking in with your hunger and cravings on top of that. When I say “gut healthy,” I mean foods that are high in fiber, include fermented ingredients, and support prebiotic and probiotic health.

You don’t need to overthink it; just find your own structure. Maybe that’s three meals a day or two, depending on your lifestyle. My partner eats twice a day. Wild to me! I need three. Once I’ve hit my protein, carbs, and veggies for the day, I fully trust my cravings. Like last night, I had a peanut butter cup while watching Love Island. Totally satisfied, no guilt.

That’s how I’ve always approached eating. It is very publicly known that I have had a struggle with my relationship with food, and it took me years and years and years to get to that point … I made sure that I just wanted to have a balanced diet first.

The Healthy: Summer is peak grab-and-go season. What are your favorite snacks or meals that travel well?

Justine Doiron: Everybody loves a good summer sandwich. I like a salad sandwich, and that is just a bunch of vegetables, a really nice creamy dressing, which just kind of turns into the mayo on the salad and then put it between really nice focaccia. If you eat meat, obviously get some cold cuts in there. If not, I’ve got a thinly sliced tofu recipe in my cookbook that works beautifully. It’s super filling and perfect for the beach.

I also made frozen coconut butter dates with dark chocolate for the Nature Made site. We froze them yesterday—they’re so good. Coconut butter is different from coconut oil—it eats more like peanut butter, with fiber in it and you have a chewy, fudgey, coconutty snack. It’s like an Almond Joy. If you want to take it further, warm them slightly from the freezer and add them to s’mores. Unreal.

The Healthy: You’ve built a really trusted online community. How do you decide which food trends are worth trying and sharing?

Justine Doiron: Food trends move so fast. If one catches my interest, I’ll try it…but I always vet it first. I ask myself: Do I find this interesting to make? Will it work in the average home cook’s kitchen? And third, does it actually work for me?

Once it passes all three of those tests, then I share it. A few years ago, there was a trend around upside-down hand pies—instead of cooking a little tart with the pastry crust on the bottom, you put all the ingredients on parchment paper and put the pie crust on top. I tested it, posted about it, and someone DMed me like, “OK, I was skeptical, but since you did it, I’ll try it.” That’s the trust I really value.

The Healthy: You’ve got a best-selling cookbook and a huge community. That’s a lot to manage. What’s one self-care habit you never skip?

Justine Doiron: I’m a very habit-oriented person. My self-care is in the morning. I jam pack it in the morning because then I know I’m going to get it in. I wake up early, partially because I’m a morning person, partially because my cat demands it. I drink water with a splash of apple cider vinegar while I make my to-do list. It’s been a habit since college. Then, before I go on with my morning routine, which is usually just either stepping outside for a walk or going to the gym, I’m definitely into taking multivitamins. I just added folic acid into my multivitamin. And then I also take vitamin B12, which supports a plant-based diet. And then my Nature Made probiotic gummies, which are delicious.

The Healthy: Lastly, summer means barbecues, social events, lots of eating and drinking. What’s your top tip for staying healthy while also being social?

Justine Doiron: We all struggle with this! My number one: hydration. It’s the first thing to go when you’re out and about. So my number one is hydration. When you’re grilling and it’s hot, that is the first thing to slip. I always say: find a way to make staying hydrated fun for you. For me, that’s apple cider vinegar and mixing it with seltzer water. People say that that’s not as hydrating, but I just can’t fathom that. Also, summer produce is the absolute best. Cucumbers are the best they’re going to be this year. Watermelon’s never going to taste as good as it does in July.

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