7 Ways to Master Healthy, Every day Meals at Home
By Ruth Klein
America’s De-Stress Diva
And Author of “De-Stress Diva in the Kitchen”
In today’s economy, more Americans are choosing to eat at home. But in this time-crunched society, how can you find the time to prepare healthy, everyday meals at home?
Here’s how:
1. Hire Chef Crockpot. Crockpots are inexpensive and easy ways to prepare healthy meals in the morning that will be ready by dinnertime. These slow cookers roast meats and vegetables for six to eight hours, producing tender, tasty meals with fewer calories and less mess than frying on a stovetop.
2. Hire Chef George. As in the George Foreman grill (or any variation of the indoor electric grill). These grills are built with drip pans to drain unwanted fats and oils into an easy-to-clean drip pan, and most foods take only five minutes or less to grill. You can combine meats and vegetables, or just grill vegetables.
3. Stock your cupboard the healthy way. If you don’t keep unhealthy foods at the ready, you won’t reach for them when you cook. Include healthy staples such as non-fat chicken or vegetable broth, plenty of seasonings. Choose fresh vegetables over canned or frozen. Choose sweet potatoes over plain potatoes for extra vitamins. Choose organic over non-organic to avoid long-term threats to your health from chemical additives. An organically grown chicken might cost twice as much, but will taste 10 times better and be 10 times healthier for you. Aren’t you worth it?
4. Integrate other tasks into meal preparation time. Integrate other activities in your kitchen to make cooking and cleaning up less stressful. Invite your children to discuss their day and homework challenges with you while you chop, cook and clean. Practice deep breathing and stretching exercises while you reach for ingredients, plates and silverware. Listen to soothing music or tapes that teach you a foreign language while you work. Integrating important and/or enjoyable activities can double the rewards of preparing and serving healthy meals.
5. De-stress your dinner (and breakfast) table. Ban negative conversations at the table. If an unpleasant topic arises, say, let’s talk about that after the meal. Ask everyone at your table to share a pleasant memory from the day, or from the past month, or past year. Smiling is as contagious as yawning, so smile while you are at the table. Make your table cheerful with a vase of fresh flowers or fruit. On gloomy days, use silly paper napkins.
6. Have fresh water at the table. Keep pitchers of iced water on the table to encourage your family or friends to drink plenty of refreshing water with their meals. It’s a healthy, zero-calorie substitute for sugary or caffeinated drinks. Dress up your pitcher of water with thin slices of lime or lemon (or a dash of crushed mint) to make iced water an attractive treat.
7. Plan ahead for the next healthy meal. Invite family members to contribute to the next everyday meal using ingredients on hand. Ask younger family members to band together to create a fun recipe. Make meals a joyous, joint endeavor by letting the kids or your friends take over your kitchen one day a week.
Branding & Productivity Coach, Ruth Klein, is the author of “The Everything Guide to Being a Sales Rep,” “Time Management Secrets for Working Women,” and “The De-Stress Diva © in the Kitchen” and publishes The “De-Stress Diva” ™ bi-monthly with 6,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to de-stress your work, home, personal, financial and romantic life, get your FREE tips now at www.destressdiva.com for more information.
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