Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1090027
NORTHSHOREMAG.COM 84 MARCH 2019 PHOTOGRAPH BY PATRICK SPOLEDER Left to right, Lucio, Angelo, and Valentino Perrina founders of Nutra Meal Plans. A subscription service takes the guess work out of healthy eating habits. BY SARAH SHEMKUS HEALING MEALS I N - D E P T H For more than 20 years, Angelo, Lucio, and Valentino Perrina watched their father struggle to keep his type 2 diabetes under control. Doctors emphasized the importance of diet, but implementing their advice was frustrating; even small servings of pasta made his blood sugar spike. Then Angelo Perrina had an idea. As the owner of Toscana Ristorante in Peabody, he could use his resources—a professional kitchen, knowledgeable chefs, precise meas- uring equipment—to produce perfectly sized meals for his father's needs. Soon, his father's blood sugar was under control. "We saw how really impactful it was for him," An- gelo Perrina says. "We thought other people could benefit." From this small inspiration has grown an ambitious business. Nutre Meal Plans offers healthy prepared dishes on a subscription plan, allowing customers to eat good food without worrying about shopping lists and complex recipes. Customers choose from breakfast items like whole grain waffles with sweet ap- ple chicken sausage and spinach, egg, and avocado sweet potato toast. Lunch offers choices such as bison sliders and shred-