5 Simple Ways: Healthy Back to School Dinner Tips
5 Simple Ways: Healthy Back to School Dinner Tips
BY MONIKA JACOBSONBack to school season can be stressful, especially when it comes to putting together a healthy dinner for a busy family. Registered Dietitian Monika Jacobson of Eat Move Thrive Spokane gives us tips to staying organized, together, and well-fed!
The most common question families face every day is, of course, 'what’s for dinner?' Between work, school, sports, activities and everything in between, planning nutritious dinners can be stressful! If you feel overwhelmed when trying to plan meals or stick to healthy nutrition, you are not alone! Here are 5 ways to simplify, and hopefully inspire, some back-to-school dinner ideas!
Commit to a Plan
Write it down. You don’t need to plan a whole week’s worth of meals. Try for 2-3 days at a time. This will allow you to be a smarter shopper and it won’t feel so daunting. By planning ahead, you can have prep done in advance to make meal time a cinch! You could also add “themes” into your weekly plan. For example, “Meatless Mondays”, “Taco Tuesday” and “Slow Cooker Sundays.” Themes can help inspire direction with recipes.
Plan Smarter
Pick recipes centered around ingredients you have on hand. For example, use up that bag of broccoli that will surely turn slimy if not consumed soon! Dig deep in the freezer for that frozen chicken and get it thawed out for a meal this week. Using up ingredients you have on hand is also friendly on your bank account!
Be Realistic
Don’t plan to try elaborate recipes that take hours of prep on a busy weeknight. Also, don’t attempt anything time-consuming on a night where the kids are busy with activities after school. Allow for these inevitable nights to be the “easy meals” that don’t need to be less healthy (for example-bagged salads with rotisserie chicken or “spaghetti night” and add some extra veggies into the meat sauce).
Delegate!
Kids are very capable of doing kitchen chores, including cooking and clean-up. Begin the school year by assigning family members kitchen tasks with anything from meal planning and grocery shopping to meal prep and clean-up. Kids LOVE to add their opinions on the weekly family dinner menus.
Try Something Fun & Different!
Why not make it fun and festive every now and then? Take dinner to the next level with a Fall picnic and takeout from a favorite local spot. Get the family together for a cooking class that will teach you something and leave you with a delicious dinner that is ready to eat!
