Tag Archives: meal

Meal Co-Ops (2)

Welcome to part 2 of meal co-ops. In the first part, I explained what a meal co-op is and how it can save you on money and time. If you missed that first article, you can just click here: Meal Co-Ops (1). We left off explaining how each member of the co-op picks a different day to share meals. Now, let’s continue. For example, let’s say that you pick Tuesday and have three members of your co-op. On Monday night, you bulk cook baked ziti. You put together a salad and bread to go with the meal. You package the … Continue reading →

Can Meal or Menu Planning Really Save You Money?

At great lengths we have discussed menu planning, and how it saves both time and money when you stick to a plan and a shopping list. I recently had a chance to see it in action, so I thought I would show you the difference. Being the bold gal I am, I agreed to go grocery shopping with a friend who has a family of five, and I was going to do my weeks shopping for our family of seven. Yes, we had eight children in tow, and it was definitely interesting and mom was a bit stressed out by … Continue reading →

Meal Planning, Saving Food and Cluttered Pantries (2)

After spending all that time cleaning out my cluttered pantry yesterday, I was absolutely amazed by what I found. More than enough meals to cover several weeks without more than a $10 grocery bill to boot! Since I had so many items I had forgotten about, and found a need to incorporate them into meals in the upcoming weeks, I set out to create a good meal plan. Here are a few tips to help you after you clean out your pantry: Canned Veggies go great in casseroles, soups, add them to some noodles to create a pasta dish. Canned … Continue reading →

Meal Planning, Saving Food and Cluttered Pantries (1)

Today I spent four hours cleaning our pantry out. We’ve always had a spare large portable pantry in our kitchen, along with the built in pantry closet. We stored mostly snacks in it at the beginning, but in the past year it has expanded to hold canned goods, boxed items and much more. It was time to get the second pantry out of the kitchen and condense the items into one. I never dreamed it would turn into what it turned into. If your pantry hasn’t been cleaned out in awhile, and you aren’t sure what’s in there, do it … Continue reading →

Szechuan Chicken & Veggies

This [easy] recipe that I have for Szechuan Chicken & Veggies is so special to me since one of my wonderful neighbors gave it to me. My neighbor happened to mention how different yet delicious her new recipe was to make for her guests, so I asked her to let me try out the recipe. I am so glad I asked her for this Asian recipe because my family and I absolutely love it, and now I cook it probably once a month. Now I don’t know what you normally cook, but besides this recipe, I don’t normally cook Asian … Continue reading →

Thanksgiving Feasts And Your Health: Adding It All Up—Part 2

In “Thanksgiving Feasts And Your Health: Adding It All Up—Part 1” I exposed the ugly numbers involved in a typical Thanksgiving meal. Not very many people are thinking about cutting back on what is traditionally known as the biggest eating day of the year, but experts warn there are risks in eating large meals. So what can we do to minimize the damage to our bodies and still enjoy our Thanksgiving Day feast? Here are some tips: · Eat your favorite foods and don’t waste calories on foods you can eat anytime. · Eat small meals, don’t skip breakfast or … Continue reading →

Easy Tips to Make Meal Time SIMPLE

The one thing that stops many families from cooking is the idea that it is difficult, time consuming, and expensive. In truth, it can be all of those things, but only if you let it. Here are some tips I use to get dinner on the table fast for my family, without going through a drive through. Rotisserie chicken – This is my number one “go-to.” It’s perfect on a busy weeknight or when you want a nice weekend meal without all the weekend fuss. Buy it from your grocery store. It’s cooked, it’s moist, it’s delicious, and it’s easy! … Continue reading →

Two Easy One-Dish Meals

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If you are the parent of a toddler like I am, you know how difficult it can be to cook dinner while your child is running around the house. Or worse than that, while your child is howling in the other room because you left her alone with her toys. Additionally, it is hard to figure out what they will actually eat! Here are a couple of recipes that I have found are fairly easy to make and my daughter loves them. Easy Bacon Cheese Turkey-burger Mac 1 12 oz pkg macaroni & cheese with sauce 1 ¼ cups water … Continue reading →

Children and Breakfast

For many children, eating breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Without their stomachs being feed, their minds cannot concentrate on the subject being taught. According to FRAC, The Food Research and Action Center, http://www.frac.org/html/federal_food_programs/programs/sbp.html, many students do not eat breakfast for multiply reasons. One reason in particular, are not all children are hungry when they first awake. The School Breakfast Program (SBP) was established by Congress in 1966. It began as a pilot program for the children who rode the bus to school for long amounts of time before ever reaching school. The areas where the pilot … Continue reading →