Category: Food Prep

10 SIMPLE SUBSTITUTIONS YOU CAN TRY TODAY

12/6/2016

Hey friends!

I hope your December is off to an amazing start. Here at The Meal Planning Method we've been busy 🐝s trying to gear up for an amazing 2017 for you. *Eeeek!* If you're thinking about taking the next steps with eating better on more consistent basis, then we'd love for you to follow us for some exciting stuff coming soon!

Today, I'm offering up some holiday help with all the extra attention on whipping up holiday treats and cooking family favorite recipes.

So I first want to let you know that recipes are really just guidelines. I hardly ever (like ever) follow a recipe to a T. This is because I find most recipes don't fit my personal preferences and nutritional needs. So I encourage you to take this same approach when researching recipes to cook or bake. I've found a certain freedom with food by doing this because I'm no longer a slave to specific ingredients and am able to now modify any recipe that comes my way. Seriously! Cooking become more enjoyable and less stressful.

And because I want YOU to be able to start refining this essential cooking skill, I'm sharing a super simple handout that gives easy suggestions for ways you can start making dishes and meals healthier with some quick switches. Get yours below!

Download this FREE "Simple Substitutions for Recipes" printable!

The Meal Planning Method - Simple Substitutions for Healthier Recipes Printable
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Maybe you just start off by making 1 healthier substitution. And that's awesome! But imagine if you made several switches how you transform a delicious, dish :) Hope you're imagining all the cooking possilibilies now!

Tell us, what will you "healthify" this holiday season? Write us in the comments below or tag us at @TheMealPlanningMethod!

lindsey

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HOW-TO HAVE A HEALTHY REFRIGERATOR

11/15/2016

3 Comments

Hey friends!

So you may be asking yourself... "Healthy refrigerator? WTH is this post about?" But the truth is that having a healthy, happy kitchen is critical to reducing your risk of food-borne illnesses and cross-contamination. Not to mention, an orderly kitchen makes it easier to practice healthy habits :)

Well, today on Tuesday, November 15th we celebrate CLEAN OUT YOUR REFRIGERATOR DAY! Now hopefully this isn't the only day of the year you designate to keeping your kitchen tidy, but it is a great chance to stay ahead of the inevitable holiday stress by preparing your most-used kitchen appliance for the upcoming holiday fun.

Today, I’m sharing a few simple fridge hacks that anyone can use for a clean, organized and safe fridge. Keep reading if you're ready to get started!

START WITH A CLEAN SLATE

Take everything out of your fridge.
Throw away all foods that are expired. You know that little bit of pasta sauce you still haven't used up yet? Now’s the time to get real and get rid of them! This ensures that the contents of your fridge are safe. Plus, it creates more space for the holiday specials you really want.
Wipe down every surface. This is a prime opportunity to get the gunk off of each shelf, bin and the door with simple hot, soapy water. After a thorough cleaning, place a box of opened baking soda in your refrigerator to eliminate odors. You might be surprised at how good it feels to see that fresh interior, and it helps you mentally prepare for the upcoming festivities and new year.

NOTE: You can actually make your own cleaning solutions (like these from Good Housekeeping) with items you most likely already have in your kitchen!

My "before" fridge. Eeeek!

ORGANIZE

Organize by "First In, First Out" (aka FIFO). This is a term used in most restaurants and is a good one to use at home, too. It means you use the oldest items first until they run out. For example, drink all of one carton of milk before opening another. This will keep you from wasting food, money or space in your fridge. So, put items that expire first in the front, where they are the most visible. This is also very useful with leftovers.
Label your extra ingredients. Include the date prepared or opened using a permanent marker + washi tape, chalkboard marker or a dry erase marker to keep things orderly. That way, next time you pick it up or clean the fridge out you'll know instantly whether or not to toss it.
Maximize your bins. Use clear plastic bins and Lazy Susans to group similar foods together such as produce and condiments. Make items easy to see and grab by keeping them at eye level in the fridge. After all, if you can’t see them, how will you eat them? This means storing smaller items in front so they aren't blocked or forgotten by bigger items. (You can also apply the same labeling strategy in the previous tip to your clear plastic bins for extra organization.)
Establish a snack spot. Designate a space in your fridge just for grab-and-go snacks. Use a clear plastic bin to arrange pre-portioned fruits, string cheese, nuts, etc. Here are 10 quick and healthy snacks to get you started.

PROTECT YOUR HEALTH

Keep the temperature at 40 degrees in the refrigerator. Bacteria thrive in temperatures above that. The freezer should be at 0 degrees.
Store milk in the middle of the fridge, where it will be consistently cold, versus the door, where the temperature fluctuates. Avoid storing perishables in the door for this reason as well.
Put all raw meats in the bottom section of the refrigerator in a container or dish. This ensures that any juices from the meats will not leak onto fresh foods and contaminate them.
When in doubt, throw it out! Better to not chance your luck on something spoiled. Toss any questionable items you're unsure of.

How do you keep a healthy, happy fridge? Share your tips with use below or using #MealPlanningMethod.

lindsey

3 Comments

OUR TOP TIPS ON HOW-TO MAKE PIZZA AT HOME

10/19/2016

2 Comments

Hey y'all!

I love to cook at home. I even consider it one of my hobbies. One of the benefits to cooking at home is that you are 100% in charge of what ingredients go into your meals. But, let's be honest... we don't always have time to make everything from scratch. So, I'm also a big fan of finding shortcuts to make a homemade meal come together quick. Today, I'm sharing some shortcuts and tips to making your own pizza at home and in less time than you would have one delivered!

So... let's talk pizza! There are 4 main components of any pizza. The...

Crust
Sauce
Cheese
Toppings

Let's break down each essential pizza component and share our top tips for each!

THE CRUST

You can make your own pizza crust from scratch (we love this 2-Ingredient Pizza Crust Recipe) or a boxed mix, OR you can buy a ready-to-cook store bought dough to save time!

If you're looking for a pre-made dough, check out your local grocery store's bakery section for a ball of raw pizza dough. This allows you and your family to create the shape and thickness of crust that YOU like. (Pst... often times you can also get raw pizza dough from your local pizzeria!)

Whether you make your own pizza dough or buy store-bought, aim for a whole wheat dough if possible for a more nutritious choice. (Stonefire's Whole Grain Naan is one of our favorites that we buy up whenever on sale!) A whole grains dough will give you more vitamins, minerals, and fiber than your regular pizza dough.

THE SAUCE

Traditional pizza sauce is a marinara sauce. And you may not realize that making your own marinara sauce at home is actually super simple!

Enter this new-to-me trick I saw on Tastemade's Discover Channel that I just had to try it for myself! (Mostly because I thought it was waaaay too easy. Boy was I wrong! It totally works.) The trick is: Blend a can of tomatoes. That's it!
Using canned tomatoes are a super quick and inexpensive shortcut to speed up the sauce making process. (Did you know that tomatoes -- even canned -- are nutritional powerhouses providing antioxidants and vitamins such as A and C!?)
And you can add extra flavor to your homemade marinara sauce with fresh garlic, onion, and spices such as oregano, thyme, and basil.

So, why do this over jarred pizza sauce? Many sauces in the stores contain a lot of added sugar. Making your own pizza sauce is a way that YOU can control how much sugar, salt, and spices, etc. go into your pizza.

You can also top your pizza with other sauces, of course, such as a white sauce, olive oil, and pesto -- which makes for a fun way to create and eat the flavors you enjoy most on your pizza.

THE CHEESE

This is the pizza component that you can be really creative with on your pizza! You can try all kinds of cheese for different flavors. Examples would be...

Mozzarella for a traditional Margherita pizza,
Feta for a mediterranean or Greek-inspired pizza, or
Cheddar for a taco-inspired pizza.

Just remember that a little cheese goes a long way on pizza so use sparingly. Cheese is the main culprit on pizzas with a high saturated fat content. We want to limit our daily saturated fat intake as it can clog our arteries and be hard on our hearts.

THE TOPPINGS

Now, let’s talk toppings as you can truly put ANYTHING on a pizza! Because of this, toppings are a great, delicious, and nutritious way to add servings of vegetables (and even fruit) to your day. To start, try tomatoes, spinach, bell peppers, mushrooms and/or onions on your pizza. As mentioned before, you can make pizzas inspired by any other favorite foods or cuisines. For example...

Taco Pizza: lean, seasoned ground beef + low-fat cheddar cheese + green onions
Greek Pizza: pesto sauce + feta cheese + banana peppers + olives + tomatoes
Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pizza: white sauce + spinach + artichokes

Have all your pizza components -- the crust, sauce, cheese, and toppings -- in place and your sure to be a pizza making pro in no time!

Be sure to check out a few of our favorite pizza night recipe ideas over on our Pinterest.

What are YOUR favorite cooking shortcuts? Share by commenting below or tagging us at @themealplanningmethod.

christy

2 Comments