With a newborn and a new album, you could say Natti Natasha has been pretty busy. In May, she gave birth to her daughter, Vida Isabelle, after fearing she could never become pregnant, and now she’s happily immersing herself in all things motherhood.
So much so that she says it’s served as inspo for her new album, Nattividad. The project sort of represents a rebirth for her, a merging of her two identities as both a mom and an urban singer, Natti says.
“I had a little crisis moment where I was like I don’t know if society is going to understand how a Latina woman that represents the urban world is going to be a mom because I’m very explicit. I never hide what I want to say. I’m not afraid of it,” she tells Women’s Health. “But that’s who I am and I feel like all women out there need the opportunity to be happy in all aspects of their life. I don’t see why we have to ask for permission for it.”
To work on her album, Natti actually set up a makeshift studio in her kitchen, since her wooden table could hold a lot of the audio equipment. And while Natti did spend a lot of time working there, you’ll rarely find her cooking. “I like cooking if I don’t have to pick up,” she jokes.
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But with such a hectic schedule, there’s no way Natti could make it through her days without fueling up, especially with her favorite everyday food: beans. Yup, Natti says she’s reallllly into beans.
Curious what her actual plates look like? Here’s exactly what Natti Natasha eats in a day.
Breakfast
Natti’s not much of a breakfast person, she says, but if she does have something it’s usually oatmeal. “I do a little bit of oatmeal with water. I put it to boil or in the microwave and cover it. Then I take one scoop of protein, put it there, and mix it.”
Not only does the protein add some nutritional value to her morning meal, but she said it also makes the oatmeal’s consistency pasty, which she loves. Then she tops it off with some strawberries, blueberries, or bananas.
Lunch
After dealing with some digestive issues a few years back, Natti decided to go vegetarian in 2015, but she also says she’s never been a big meat eater. She did eat a lot of fish back when she used to live in the Dominican Republic, though.
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Though she tried going vegetarian strictly for her health, she noticed that the diet made her feel better overall, and she stuck with it. So for lunch nowadays, she might try something like seasoned tofu, or Beyond meat with some salad, or a bean stew. It’s reminiscent of a typical Dominican lunch, referred to as “la bandera,” which is typically a dish with a portion of rice, some sort of beans or legumes, and a choice of meat.
She also tries to make sure she has a side of veggies in order to get a good dose of vitamins, and close by, her favorite condiment. “Something I can never not have is ketchup.”
Dinner
Her dinner pretty much looks the same. She might have some plantains with rice and beans, and a side of avocado. “I don’t change my menu a lot to tell you the truth,” she admits. Sometimes she’ll add a Quorn product in there.
Natti is a huge fan of its vegan versions of foods like burger patties, chicken cutlets, and fish fillets. “It’s just like chicken. It’s good, and it has a lot of fiber. So it’s good to go to the bathroom,” she says.
On other days, she might have her favorite veggie–eggplant. “I love eggplant with a passion. My mom’s family is from Lebanon so they eat that a lot, and she’s cooked it for me since I was a little girl and I love it. She likes having it as a lasagna, but admits she loves it fried, too.
Another favorite food of hers is “pastelon de platano maduro.” It’s like a shepherd’s pie, except instead of potatoes, you mash up ripe plantains.
Snacks And Desserts
When it comes to snacks, Natti prefers having some almonds or peanuts, or grabbing a Quest protein bar.
Occasionally, she might also have some crackers and queso geo, a Dominican cheese with a firm texture usually coated in red wax. Cheese is one of the reasons why she can’t go fully vegan. “I wanted to be a vegan, but I love cheese, so I can’t let it go,” she stresses.
When Natti’s got a craving for something sweet, she’ll try to get her fix by having another Dominican food, “dulce frio.” It’s a trifle that’s very similar to tres leches cake.
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For Natti, it’s all about discipline and balance. She eats clean when she can, and makes sure she gets her workouts in. “I wake up in the morning and do some type of exercise, like running or boxing,” she told Billboard.
If you’ve seen her work a stage, you’ll know that that counts as a serious sweat session, too.
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