Healthy Tip

Selecting meat....

Generally the leanest meat is chicken or fish. I don't cook with much fish because I cant afford it.

What do you do when you get sick of chicken. Go for the lean ground beef and ground turkey.

BUY IT ON SALE. I wait until the 93% lean ground beef goes on sale and buy them out!

I come home and cook 2/3 of it(strain and rinse):
1/3 of it into taco meat and store it in meal size portions in the freezer.
1/3 into plain, cooked ground beef in 1 lb portions and store it in the freezer.
the rest of it I store raw in 1 lb portions in the freezer.

93% lean Ground Turkey:
This is what I buy when I can't find the ground beef on sale (Wal-mart). It is generally under $2 a pound but it comes in those nasty plastic things. I usually come home and store in the same way I do the ground beef. In the pic above I found it at Sam's Club....YIPPEE!

Lean Mean Spaghetti Machine

Whole wheat pasta (i used linguine)
1/3 lb lean ground beef or turkey (optional)
1/2 t. onion powder or 2 t. onion flakes
1 clove garlic
2 t Italian seasoning
6 oz tomato paste
8 oz tomato sauce
3/4 cup water
1 cup black beans

Cook pasta according to directions. Brown meat and combine the rest of the ingredient in a sauce pan. heat until warm and then combine.

A green veggie such as salad or green beans would have been a better choice for this meal.

Children: Cut pasta into small pieces. Put sauce on top but drain some of the juice first.

Healthy Tip

I LOVE food!

...so when my husband suggested we share a Cafe Rio salad I thought he was CRAZY. I tried it and we will NEVER go back. Restaurants have such large portions and we have become accustom to it. Don't get me wrong my husband is a BIG eater....but we have found that we are completely satisfied when we only eat 1/2. I am not kidding. Every time we go out to eat, we split it. We have never gone away hungry. NEVER!

Try it, you may be a skeptic but you will never go back. PLUS you save $$$

Bananies

TheClayFamilyBlog.blogspot.com

Loved! Loved! Loved! This idea. This comes from The Clay Family Blog. Click the link above and check it out!

Ingredients:
Sliced Banana
Peanut-butter
Graham Cracker

Pasta Primavera

2 cups broccoli florets
2 cups carrots, sliced
2 cups zucchini, sliced
2 cups whole-wheat noodles, uncooked
1 Chicken Breast cooked and cubed (optional)

Sauce:
2 1/2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp soft margarine
2 cups skim milk
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

* Steam veggies until soft
* Cook noodles
* In a small saucepan, melt the margarine; stir in flour until well blended
* Gradually stir in milk, basil and pepper
* Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens (about 10-15 min)
* Remove from heat and blend in cheese
* Pour sauce over hot veggies and chicken
* Add noodles to veggies and mix together

This serves 6. We had tons of left overs so if there are only 2-3 of you, you may want to half it. The leftovers are good for lunch too.

Children: You may need to cut food to a smaller size depending on the age of your children.

Baby: Cut everything into bite size pieces

Healthy Tip

What is the best way to buy lettuce? Don't buy iceberg....period!

Iceberg has VERY little health value. Buy spinach or a spring mix instead. Even Romain would be better.

We generally use spinach for salad, sandwiches, casseroles and pretty much anything else we can put it in.

If you have a hard time swallowing darker leafy greens, buy the iceberg and then cut the spinach into small shreds and add it in.

Here is a website I found that backs my theory....I love it when that happens :).

Hunsaker Family Peach Syrup....made healthy

29 oz can Peaches
1/2 T cornstarch
1/8 c. Water
1/4 t. cinnamon
dash nutmeg

Separate the peaches from the juice. Slice the peaches into small pieces. In a small bowl combine the cornstarch and water. Put the juice in a saucepan and bring to a boil. When the juice begins to boil add the water/cornstarch mix. Whisk regularly until it starts to thicken. Add peaches back in. Serve warm on pancakes or waffles.