We all know it: everyone is busy. Some people just love talking about it more. Our household like many others has a lot going on but that increased this year. We added hockey and lacrosse. I was less able to control the times and days the activities were on. We also had the dreaded dinner killing 5:15-6:15 pm twice a week hockey practise time slot. I like to cook and I like to spend the time doing it, but I was less able to make it work on a nightly basis. I did not want to resort to take out and fast food (especially twice a week), so I came up with some strategies to help us eat home cooked (mostly from scratch) meals together. I usually work 3-4 days a week, with most Mondays off. Mondays have become my food days. I drop off my two oldest boys at school and then head straight to the grocery store with my youngest son. He knows the drill now. My goal most Mondays is to cook or prep (to almost ready to eat) at least two meals. I usually kind of wing it at the grocery store when it comes to what I want to make based on a sale or what looks good. Sometimes I have a recipe or two in mind. I do have a little bit of a criteria to make things a easier:
I am also on a huge frozen and prepped vegetable kick. I grew up eating what felt like an endless supply of mixed, diced frozen veg. I wasn’t a fan, and it actually steered me away from frozen veg. There has been an explosion of frozen vegetables available in the stores so I have been a little more intrigued. Frozen fruit and veg are a great choice from a nutrition perspective as well. They are picked at peak ripeness and usually flash frozen on site. The freezing process affects the nutrients less than any other preservation method (canning, drying, dehydrating, etc.). I also love that frozen veg is ready to go, no chopping, washing, peeling. And I can use the amount I need, I can just grab a handful and leave the rest in the freezer for another day (not going bad in the fridge crisper drawer). Now, not all frozen veg are created equal in my opinion. I am not a fan of frozen broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, the texture is no beuno. I am a fan of frozen:
I also use some prepped veggies at times:
Things I always make from scratch:
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Tiffany McFadden, RDRecipes
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April 2018
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