Meal Planning Ideas

I like www.allrecipes.com for some yummy and quick meals. Plus, you can search based on ingredients (chicken, tofu, etc.) :) Have fun!

I second the "eating For Life" cookbook. We have been using it for 5 years now. I LOVE LOVE LOVE that cookbook. At least 3 dinners a week come from this book (We use lunch and breakfast recipes for dinner also). My 5 year old loves it and requests something from it each week. I wish they would come out with another one!

Try the "saving dinner" cookbook form Leanne Ely. She is an advocate of whole nutritional foods.

Good luck,
L.

Go to menus4mom.com. They have some great recipes and you can sign up(free) to get a weeks worth of menus along with a grocery shopping list sent to you every week. I have tried several and they have all been winners at our house.
D.

I am a rep. wit Wild Tree Herbs and we offer foods that are healthy for our families. We use Grapeseed Oils. Our foods help with ADD and Diabetics. There are a lot of recepies on the site. please check it out at www.wildtreeherbs.com rep. 4609 if you see stuff that you would like to try or have any ?' Please contact me at ____@____.com I would be happy to send yu some samples. Take a package of Taco Seasoning fromt eh store and then look at our ingreadiants and you will see ours is healthier. We offer no MSG, Dyes or preservatives. Gledna C.

As a Homemade Gourmet distributor, I can tell you we have many quick easy and healthy options to serve your family. This is not about me making sales.....it is a way to help people with Meal Solutions. I don't know where you live, but if your interested in learning more....please checkout www.homemadegourmet.com or contact me. I hope this helps. Have a great day!

My favorite is savingdinner.com She sends out a weekly menu with the shopping list. All for $29.95 a year. She lists all of the nutritional value of all the foods and has several different menus to choose from. she also has a trial week on her website to see how you like it. Rarely do we have a week where there is something the kids won't eat.

Check out the cookbook Saving Dinner by Leanne Ely it is great for healthy cooking and gives grocery lists too!

I go to dreamdinners.com and supersuppers.com and look at their menus for the month. It gives me some good ideas of things I can make ahead and freeze.

I went to whole foods website and got some recipies. I can't afford to shop there but use the recipes. they are simple and really good. They are healthy as well.

I also have a light and healthy cook book that I use. It has some good healthy recipes. My hubby loves them and so do my 2 toddlers.

I plan 2 weeks ahead at a time so when I shop I get all the ingredients I need. Hope this helps...

Check out the "Eating for Life" book at your library and try some of the recipes. If you like it, buy the book for keeps. I've been cooking from it for about a month now and we have really enjoyed it. It has recipes for healthy breakfasts, lunches, dinners, snacks, and desserts!

We are an older couple who try to eat healthy at all times, these are a few ideas that we use.

Frozen vegetables, cooked in the microwave, add oregano, or italian seasoning, basil, or Mrs. dash, plus a small amount of extra vergin olive oil or no fats at all.

Potatoes can be fried with a small amount of olive oil on low heat. Just heat the oil first, add potatoes, and place a tight fitting lid on the skillet. Add chopped onions when potatoes are nearly done.

Flat burittos can be made by toasting whole wheat tortillas in the microwave. Place tortillas flat on a paper towell, microwave at 30 second intervals, turning each time, until crispy. Depending on how large and powerful your microwave is, it should take about 2 min. for each tortilla. Watch them carefully, they will burn.
After toasting tortillas, just add non-fat refried beans, ground turkey seasoned with taco seasoning, chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and salsa.

For breakfast or snacks we love mixing plain yogurt, mixed frozen fruit, bananas, a few chopped walnuts, halved grapes, and honey. If you need something a bit more substantial, add a few Grapenuts cereal.

Hi C.! Check out my website for some healthy recipes as well as a recipe ebook for meal planning!

http://www.homemakerscottage.com

Here's another great source for inspiration:

http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com

Blessings, K.

I love "Saving Dinner" by Leanne Ely. She has great ideas and the cookbook is easy to follow. Also, I have a couple of those "4 Ingredient" cookbooks. They are so easy and and wonderful. Everything tastes great and so simple. I substitute anything unhealthy with something healthy, like wheat pasta instead of the regular white pasta; black beans instead of refriend beans...that sort of thing. Good luck!

I tried Jessica seinfields cookbook, but it is a lot of work. There is a cookbook called Eating for Life and it has several good recieped that are very good and not too difficult.

Homemade Gourmet can make any food taste great! We have fantastic seasonings that you can use with your healthy whole foods and low-fat foods. We have meal plans that will help give you variety while saving you money on your grocery budget. In addition, our recipes are quick and easy. If you would like to learn more, please check out my website at www.homemadgourmet.com/gfitch.

I would love to help you help your family.

G.

Hey C.,
There's a food blog that I love. The recipes are geared mainly toward gluten-free needs, but she uses mainly whole foods. It is www.glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com
Hope you find some yummy things for your family!

Here is one of my favorites:

Salmon with Noodles, Spinach and Pesto

Bake some salmon about 12 mins at 425 with pesto sauce spread over it (I like the Buitoni Pesto at Walmart - and it's the most affordable good pesto I've found).

While the salmon is baking, boil some whole wheat pasta (your choice - we use egg noodles, rigatoni, penne...).

When the salmon is done, transfer it to a skillet (minus the skin) with a bit of olive oil and lots of fresh spinach (possibly a whole bag for your family). Stir fry over medium or medium low until the spinach is wilted. Add drained noodles and pesto sauce and parmesean to taste. Be generous with the cheese and sauce as they lend the flavor to the dish. Continue to stir until cheese is melted.

We love this dish! It provides lots of good omega-3s and even the oil in the pesto is a good oil. It's expensive, but so healthful that we have it fairly often.

OR here's another one...

Asian Beef or Chicken or Tofu Stir Fry

Ingredients:

½ c brown rice
3 green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
sesame oil
1 c broccoli slaw
1 c napa cabbage, chopped
1 T low sodium soy sauce (or I may use 2 T - don't remember)
1 or 2 chicken breasts OR ½ lb ground beef OR extra firm tofu (about 1/3 pkg)
crushed red pepper

Directions:

Cook according to directions on package:
½ c brown rice

Your choice:
Cut 1 or 2 chicken breasts into thin strips, marinate in sesame oil and bake at 350 for approximately six minutes on each side until cooked through and tender OR
Stir fry ½ lb ground beef. OR cube extra firm tofu and stir fry in sesame oil until golden brown. Set meat (or tofu) aside.

Sauté in sesame oil for 2 minutes:
3 green onions, chopped
¼ tsp garlic powder or 2 cloves of garlic, chopped

Add and stir fry for 2 minutes:
1 c broccoli slaw
1 c napa cabbage, chopped (I prefer more of both of these)

Add and stir fry for 2 minutes:
Cooked rice
1 tbsp soy sauce (or it might be 2 tbsp?)

Add meat. Lightly season with crushed red pepper. Stir fry to mix well and serve. This feeds two (and absolutely no more). You'd definitely want to double this for your family.

OR there's always pizza...

I used to make my own crust but now I cut time by buying whole wheat pitas. I make my own pizza sauce - (6 oz. can tomato paste and 2 8 oz. cans tomato sauce in a pot placed on low heat. Sprinkle in basil, oregano, and parsley in generous amounts. Stir contents and cover. Check every few minutes and stir. The longer you can let this simmer the better it is. I generally try to shoot for 30 min - 1 hour.) I stir fry veggies (we choose bell pepper, onions and mushrooms) and put them on the pizza (I pile them on, too!). Be generous with the mozzarella and add some crushed red pepper, and we're pretty happy with our meal. I like to add a salad. We choose no meat on this, but it'd be easy to add some. I also sometimes make a pesto pizza with chicken and olives and bell pepper and sometimes I even do a veggie medley pizza (broccoli, carrots, bell pepper, onion, mushrooms...) with pesto sauce. Bake all of these in a hot oven (400 or higher) until cheese is melted but not burned (10-15 mins).

Try 10 bean soup. The beans can be bought at sprouts, wholefood market or central market. They have 10 or 13 bean, and are sold by weight. Soak them over night.
Fry onions until transparent and soft. Use chicken stock (I buy the organic chicken stock from Costco - a box has 6 packs - and I love them). Put the beans and onions and chicken stock in a pot or slow-cooker. I boil them in the pot for about 2 hours. I love them - delicious and healthy. Pretty quick to prepare but long time to cook. You can add meat if you want.

Replace ground beef with ground turkey. Don't tell them you did it, unless they ask. It is exciting to see if they notice. My guys prefer it now, but resisted it at first. It has a much better flavor and no fat or grease is in your skillet after browning it, so no draining or rinsing. I also press a clove of garlic into it while cooking it. Also, serve fresh fruit and veggies with meals. We do cucumbers, carrots, and celery with low fat ranch. Once after you prepare them, there is no work to it, just take leftovers back out of the fridge and put them in a nice serving dish. I also will slice strawberries and banana together, they can't resist it. I have picky ones too, so if I can do it, you can to. Kudos for taking responsibility for the health of your precious blessings!!!!

Look at www.peasataparty.com to find some great menu plans. Click on each link for information. What you do is buy the cookbook, "Enough Thyme," and then print out menu plans from the website. Each week's menu provides recipes for 4 meals per week; a game plan for preparing each meal; additional notes about the recipes; and a nutrition breakdown.

The author used to have a website called Fizzy Meals, and you could join for a year and receive weekly menus with all the above, plus a shopping list. Unfortunately, I don't think she provides a shopping list anymore, but all the other info is very good. Read "about Susan" to learn more about the author. Again, the meals are nutritious, quick, and delicious, so I think you would really enjoy them!

Also check out Weight Watchers recipe magazine called, "15 Minutes, 5 Ingredients," or similar, for some fast, healthy recipes. Look in your local bookstore.

www.marthastewart.com

go to the public library and check out recipe books.

Check out Whole Foods at Preston Forest

You can get a 3 or 5 ingredient recipe book. They are wonderful! A lot of times they are not the healthiest choices, but you can always replace the "bad for you foods" with "good for you" foods. That is what I do!

One of my family's favorite is as follows and it is as easy as one two three.

Items:

2 Tbsp Butter
1/2 Small chopped onion
2 cup of Lentis
12 cups of Water
1 cup of potato cubes
Salt to taste
Lemons halves
French bread

-Set oven at medium heat
-Place a coating of butter on a soup pot
-Carmilized the onions
-Add the lentis
-Add the water,
-Salt to taste, let it cook at medium heat
-10 minutes into cooking add potato cubes
-Let cook until patatoes are done
-Once in you plate add Lemon juice to taste
-Warm your french bread and viola!

This is a quick, but more important a
hearty & healthy meal if you're in a hurry

Hi, C.!
My favorite magazine is Everyday Food by Martha Stewart. Go to MarthaStewert.com & click on mazazines at the top. There you will find Everyday food. You can also buy it at the grocery store or a subscription or get recipes off the website. Really great, fast food with few ingredients. It has been published since 2003 & even has a show on PBS. You can even get a free preview issue to try to take a look at it. Happy Cooking!
G.