We've all been tempted to stop by McDonald's or order a pizza for supper after a hard day at work and caved in. The kids are hungry, you don't have anything to eat, and you don't want to spend an hour slaving away in the kitchen.
The occasional fast food lunch may be really beneficial to your mental health, but the difficulty emerges when "sometimes" becomes "every other day."
We understand that you want your family to be healthy and that you want to have a good, enjoyable dinner at the end of the day. It is achievable if you devise a strategy and make family mealtime a top priority.
Childhood obesity has more than doubled among children ages 2-5, quadrupled among youth ages 6-11, and more than tripled among adolescents ages 12-19 in the last 30 years. There has never been a greater pressing need for people to live healthy lives. Even for busy mothers, it is feasible.
Katie Pellerin, an Indianapolis marketing professional, and mother, recently published a fantastic blog article on how she learned to cope with weekday dinner time. "After months of trial and error, we've finally figured out what works for our little, busy, screaming-faced family for supper." Check out her blog for a detailed description of the process.
Katie and others like her have discovered techniques and resources for preparing nutritious meals for their families, and we're certain that you can do the same. Here are some pointers to assist you in your meal-planning endeavors.
1. Understand your cooking style and time constraints.
Take a time to think about how you prefer to cook and set some boundaries so you don't go in over your head. Setting ambitious objectives and New Year's plans are all too easy, only to feel burdened day after day and finally give up. Start by establishing reasonable goals for yourself, particularly if you've never cooked or planned dinner before. Begin small and build on your early achievements.
2. Make a strategy for your assault.
Several of the following suggestions go into further depth on how to prepare ahead, but this is an important aspect to remember. You'll only be able to get through the week with a grin on your face if you plan beforehand.
Select a time, such as a Sunday afternoon, to sit down and plan out the week's menus and shopping lists. It seems to be an easy task, and it is. Make time to plan and stick to it so you develop a habit.
Encourage people to identify family-friendly dishes and make them a regular part of their dinner rotation.
To locate recipes that seem tasty, you may go through cookbooks or utilize one of the numerous internet tools and websites accessible. What's Cooking USDA Mixing Bowl is a fantastic resource for fast, nutritious meals. To locate the recipes that fit you best, you may search by meal course, food category, cooking equipment you want to use, and numerous other characteristics. You may even create your own cookbook to preserve your favorite recipes.
3. Increase the number of veggies and fruits in your diet.
Here are a few simple methods to go about it:
- Fruit and vegetables, chopped up for after-school snacks
- Vegetables may be hidden in casseroles, mac & cheese, and spaghetti sauces.
- prepare vegetable fritters
- Try experimenting with vegetable noodles.
4. Become a member of a meal-planning service.
There's a lot of work spent preparing and executing your family's meals: gathering recipes, creating lists, thinking of all the stuff you'll need for the week, and cooking. Spending a modest bit of money on a meal-planning service can be worthwhile. There are a few possibilities available here. Feel free to try out different combinations to find which one works best for you. The majority of them provide a risk-free trial period.
Katie speaks about the two she tested in her blog post:
Meals are served once a month. The basic concept is to spend a whole weekend preparing a month's worth of food and then freezing it. If you're interested, the plans also include breakfasts and lunches.
5. This gets us to the concept of "prepare ahead meals."
This saves you a lot of time while also allowing you to eat better. Make-ahead meals are included in each of the meal-planning programs described above. You could opt to prepare all of your meals for the month ahead of time and freeze them. Alternatively, maybe preparing a week's worth of meals is more your pace. Or anything in the middle. The goal is to do all of the planning, purchasing, chopping, and preparing ahead of time so that you can focus on cooking. This will make you look forward to supper rather than dread it.
You may also cook some basic grab-and-go meals and breakfasts ahead of time. Make a big amount on Sunday and eat it for the rest of the week:
Salads, soup, yogurt parfaits, small meatloaves, wraps, and more may all be layered in a jar.
6. Make snack time a bit more healthy and enjoyable.
If your kids have a bad habit of eating junk food after school, consider implementing a new house rule: after school, you may eat whatever fruit or vegetable you want, but no junk food. Treats may be saved for the weekend.
Slice apples, carrots, and celery sticks at the start of the week. Set out fruit and vegetables on the kitchen table after school, along with peanut butter or veggie dips. Another healthful and convenient alternative is berries and yogurt.
To prepare entertaining and healthful snacks for kids like the one below, you don't have to be Martha Stewart.
Raisins, dried apples, apricots, craisins, and other dried fruit and nuts may also be kept on hand for snacking.
7. Purchase in bulk.
Purchasing meat in bulk and preparing it ahead of time will save you time and money. Many meal planners travel to Costco once a month to stock up on meat and other bulk products like cereal, cheese, and frozen fruits and vegetables.
As previously said, preparation is essential! It's a win for your watch, pocketbook, and waistline when you have a strategy and can purchase ahead.
8. Consider a delivery service.
The following suggestion may not be for everyone, but it will be tremendously helpful to certain busy parents. In most places, grocery delivery services are now commonly accessible. You may plan your meals and shop for groceries online, knowing that a bin full of nutritious food will be delivered to your house. Green Bean is available to Johnson County residents. Please let us know if you have any other grocery delivery choices in your region.
9. Enlist the assistance of your spouse and older children.
It's critical to share the burden. Even your older children may have a task if you divide the planning, buying, and food preparation between yourself and your spouse. Everyone's burden is lighter when the whole family is participating. Bring little children into the kitchen and include them in the cooking process. Kids like getting their hands dirty, whether it's with flour, eggs, stirring something in a dish, or just setting the table. It's also beneficial to obtain feedback from each family member on what they'd like to see on the menu that week.
Cook Smarts provides a beautiful sheet for kids to use to keep track of different veggies they try and grade. It's a wonderful way to try different dishes while also making a game out of them.
10. Don't give up and keep things simple.
Keep in mind that success does not come easily. You may fall off the wagon along the road but get right back on it. Your family's eating habits will follow them for the rest of their lives, so it's worth taking the trip together. Consider attending a support group or a wellness class if you want further assistance.
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