“Go Further with Food”
By Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Marina Bedrossian
Reduce food waste, while helping your waist!
Planing your meals and snacks helps cut food waste, and guess what? It is also the key to long-term diet success (SCORE!). This means shrinking your food bill AND your pant size in the same effort. Let’s take a look…
- When people plan their meals, they are more likely to make healthy choices.
- It all starts at the grocery store. Food shopping should take place once a week. If you have the food at home, you’re more likely to prepare it.
- The biggest problem is not the lack of time, it is the lack of energy. Try preparing meals earlier in the day when you have more energy. Start preparing dinner at the same time as breakfast! If you know certain days are hectic, plan ahead. Cook extra food ahead of time to have leftovers when most needed.
- Lack of inspiration: it can be a real downer! Try:
- Keeping a list of recipes which have worked well in the past
- Subscribe to a cooking magazine for new recipes each month
- Set time aside each month to look through your cookbooks. This is a great way to involve the kids!
- Consider a meal planning software such as LivingPlate.org/meal-plans
Get into FOOD MODE.
1. I recommend writing down meal ideas for the week, once a week. You can then use the list to guide you through food shopping. This will help you stay focused, which means you will save money.
2. When you get home, try to find time to prepare a few items. You may wash produce to have on hand for snacks or salads. You might even roast some vegetables or a chicken. Maybe start soaking beans for a recipe tomorrow.
3. Don’t let your hard work go in the garbage! Keep prepped meals and snacks at eye-level in the refrigerator to ensure they will be eaten before they spoil. When in doubt, freeze leftovers for another week.
Example of a food plan for the week:
Sunday: Roasted chicken with roasted root vegetables (potatoes, carrots, beets, parsnips), mixed green salad
Monday: Salmon burgers (canned wild salmon mixed with leftover potatoes, herbs, egg) with a mixed green salad
Tuesday: Chicken tacos (from Sunday’s leftovers) with guacamole, salsa, and Mexican-spiced roasted cauliflower (cooked on Sunday)
Wednesday: Chickpea pasta and zucchini noodles with meat sauce
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Chili with grits
Saturday: Lemon chicken and vegetable kebabs with mint and lemon quinoa mixed with cucumbers & tomatoes