For most families, a healthy meal isn’t going to appear on the dinner table unless it’s planned ahead of time.  Deciding what to make for dinner at the last minute is stressful.  Women who are most successful at choosing healthy foods for their bodies plan ahead. 

Making a grocery list before heading out to shop helps you recall items you need and also saves you time.  Running to the grocery store several times per week wastes time and money.   

Try organizing your list according to the layout of the grocery store.  If you quickly plan out four healthy meals for the week you can buy the ingredients during your shopping trip.  Five minutes spent making a list will save a lot of time before dinner each night.

What’s convenient and healthy?
Several university studies have shown that canned fruits and vegetables are comparable in nutrition to cooked, fresh and frozen produce.  This makes canned fruits and vegetables a convenient and economic alternative.  Choose fruits in their own juice or vegetables with lower sodium.  For quick recipes with canned produce go to www.mealtime.org

Go Meatless
Try canned beans in meals instead of meat as a timesaver.  Canned beans do not have to be cooked to a certain temperature, are low in fat, and high in fiber.  Plus, beans are high in antioxidants and are one of the cheapest sources of protein available.

Make time for family meals
Studies have shown that children and especially teenagers who eat dinner as a family have healthier diets, watch less television, and engage in less risky behaviors.

By planning ahead you can make some of the dinner tasks you’re constantly juggling easier and know that you’ve made good decisions for yourself and your family.

Try this healthy and quick recipe:
Orzo with Chicken and Asiago
Ingredients:

1 cup water
1 (16-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
12 ounces skinned, boned chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
1 1/4 cups uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Asiago cheese, divided (Can use Mozzarella)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, basil, or oregano
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Combine water and broth in a large skillet with a lid; bring to a boil. Add chicken and pasta; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in peas, 1/4 cup cheese, salt, herbs, and pepper. Top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.
Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 1 1/4 cups)

CALORIES 384 (14% from fat); FAT 5.9g (sat 2.9g,mono 1.5g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 34.3g; CHOLESTEROL 64mg; CALCIUM 179mg; SODIUM 656mg; FIBER 2.9g; IRON 3.3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 45.7g
Source: Cooking Light

How WellSpan Can Help
For more information regarding outpatient nutrition consultations, call (717)851-2942 in York or (717) 337-4107 in Adams County.