Healthy at Home: Preparing Nutritious Meals at Home
The pandemic hit and, if you’re like me, you’ve been much more inclined to eat at home. This has forced my husband and me to prepare more meals that we can all enjoy. The goal for us is to make something that is not only delicious, but a bit healthy, too! Thankfully I know a few tricks to add a little “dietitian” to our meals without sacrificing flavor.
Before getting into specific examples, I always try to implement a few “rules” and pointers when mapping out meals and snacks:
Incorporate protein at each meal/snack (nuts, lean meat, low-fat cheese, eggs, low-fat cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, beans)
Choose plant-based fats (nuts, avocado, seeds, nut butters, olive oil)
Choose whole-grain/whole-wheat cereals, breads, crackers (aim for 3 grams fiber/per serving per label)
Add something fun to a bland meal, snack, or side to make it more interesting (throw in some dark chocolate chips into a homemade trail mix – recipe below)
Don’t make it complicated if you see cooking as a burden (pasta with premade sauce from a jar is just fine!)
If you are going to go all out with cooking, choose a batch recipe like a casserole or chili so you have leftovers (can also double the recipe and freeze for later)
Examples of healthy meals:
Tacos: whole-wheat tortillas, shredded low-fat cheese, fat-free refried beans, and lean ground beef/turkey; for taco salad, combine cheese, ground meat, canned black beans, bagged shredded lettuce, and salsa for dressing
Riced cauliflower added to mac and cheese or a stir-fry as an easy way to sneak in some veggies
Protein pancakes: 2 scoops of whey protein, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 eggs, and 6 tbsp almond milk combined to make a batter
Pizza: pizza sauce, low-fat shredded mozzarella, and any veggie you like (sliced peppers, mushrooms, onion, etc.) added to a premade whole-wheat pizza crust (or a whole-grain English muffin to make a mini pizza)
Puree low-fat cottage cheese with cream cheese for a spread on whole-wheat bagels, crackers, or toast
Quesadillas: low-fat cheddar cheese, and any veggies you like cooked between two 8-inch whole-wheat tortillas on a skillet
Pasta: lean ground beef, chicken, or turkey, reduced sugar marinara sauce, whole-wheat pasta, and spiraled zucchini (can buy precut frozen to add in for a veggie!)
Smoothies: milk of choice (low-fat milk, almond milk, etc.), frozen fruit, low-fat Greek yogurt, baby spinach, and protein of choice (low-fat cottage cheese, whey protein, liquid egg whites – cannot taste the eggs when blended with this!) blended together
Choose recipes that incorporate canned/frozen/premade items to reduce chopping. For example, chili made of canned beans, diced tomatoes, vegetable/chicken broth, lean ground beef, chicken, or turkey, frozen, diced sweet potatoes, frozen corn, green bean, and carrot mix
In addition to the above ideas, there are tons of ideas online for easy and healthy recipes with few ingredients so don’t be afraid to experiment!
As you can see from the above examples, making healthy meals at home doesn’t have to be a chore. So next time you think about ordering out, challenge yourself to make something at home and add your healthy spin to it!
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