I need some ideas for some HEALTHY easy recipes to feed my family without scaring them with the healthy taste.!


Question: I am trying to get on this healthy kick...but its hard when you are the only one who wants to do it. My husband kind of does...but it seems like EVERY recipe I suggest...he gags. What are some good easy dinners or side dishes I could make for my family that we can all enjoy. Thanks!!
Oh..I also like recipes I can prepare early and just pop it in the oven later that day!!


Answers: I am trying to get on this healthy kick...but its hard when you are the only one who wants to do it. My husband kind of does...but it seems like EVERY recipe I suggest...he gags. What are some good easy dinners or side dishes I could make for my family that we can all enjoy. Thanks!!
Oh..I also like recipes I can prepare early and just pop it in the oven later that day!!

~ A salad bar is fun,,,,,,,,prep in the morning,,,,,,put each item in their own container,,,,set it up at dinner time like a salad bar.
~ Grilled veggies are great! Just cook more veggies and potatos,,a bit less more "meat".
~ Cooking on the grill ! its a family affair! Grilled chicken,,,actually any meat grilled is great !,,, a big tosses salad,,,,veggies,,,cooked or raw on the side ,,, yummy......
~ Get the crock pot goin,,,,,,,,,,chicken,,,,,,roast,,,,vegg... ,,taters,,,,,,yummmy
~ or,,,,have yer hubby stop at yer local market and pick up some grub fer yer youngens,,,,,,,,and you and yer hubby go out fer some vittles.....................

low fat spaghetti..
just boil up the spaghetti noodles as you normally do
take
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic buds chopped
1 green bell pepper chopped
saute in just 2 tsp olive oil till onion is clear
take 1 can of chopped (or you can crush a can of whole)tomatoes... add to pan, add then 1 small can of tomato paste, 1 cup of water... 1tsp sugar (not enough to bother, but enhances flavor)... 2-3 tsp Italian spice mix.. like parsley, oregano, thyme, basil, bay. etc...
and 1 can of drained chopped mushrooms
plenty of salt, pepper.... allow to come to boil turn down and simmer for 10min...
then if you want to , you can oven bake some low fat meat balls to add to spaghetti.. or you can just simmer a bit of lean ground beef and toss into sauce..
also I cut up about 2 or 3 skinless chicken breasts. saute them gently in 1 to 2 tsp olive oil.. and toss them into sauce..
your choice, or just leave meatless for a vege dinner one night..
then serve sauce over noodles.. and pass around Parmesan cheese or grated mozzarella to top with..

I will give you my chow mein recipe. it is easy to do and tastes great.

Chow Mein
500g minced beef
1 x onion diced
1 pkt chicken noodle soup (dry soup)
1 tablespoons uncooked rice
1/4 chopped cabbage
2 teaspoons curry
Frozen stir fry vegetables 250g or veges of chioce
2 cups water.

Lightly brown the mince, add onion & curry to brown for 2-3 minutes.
Then add all the other ingredients.
Cook for 25 minutes, slow simmer, give an occasional stir.
Serve with mashed potatoe or steamed rice.

These vegetable dishes don't suggest "healthy" as they are served during the holidays too so start with something they are more familiar with like:

spinach with pecans..

INGREDIENTS

6 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onion, chopped
4 cups chopped fresh spinach
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons pecan halves

DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and saute the onion until tender. Stir in the spinach and water, and cook until wilted. Mix in the pecans, and continue to cook and stir until warm.
---------------
and broccoli salad

INGREDIENTS
4 cups fresh broccoli florets
1/4 cup red onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons raisins
2 tablespoons dry roasted sunflower seeds
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons orange juice
6 tablespoon mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS
Combine the broccoli, onions, raisins, and sunflower seeds.
In a small bowl, whisk the sour cream, orange juice, and mayonnaise until blended. Pour over the broccoli mixture and toss to coat

Hi,

It's funny how it always seems like diets are possible until you realize the husband and kids aren't exactly impressed with the idea!

I learned of a fast, healthy way to eat (without scaring away my husband) from my healthy aunt who is a nurse and has a passion for health. What she does is simply buy normal foods (bread, eggs, milk, cereal, yogurt, etc.) and lots of veggies and fruits - but she never buys anything with these ingredients in them:

1. hydrogenated vegetable oil
2. high fructose corn syrup
3. sugar (this one is the most difficult)
4. enriched flower (or enriched anything)
5. saturated fat (which is animal fat)

Also, because she can handle a salad every once in a while but not every day, she brilliantly adds loads of veggies or fruits to every dish. For example, if she is making a turkey sandwich, she uses a peeler to shred carrots on it, uses spinach leaves instead of iceburg lettuce (or romain lettuce), dumps on cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, and any other favorite veggie and whiola! Yummy, hearty healthy sandwhich!

Surprisingly, my husband really liked this, too! The sandwiches, though loaded with veggies, still taste like they are supposed to- turkey, or tuna, whatever. They just have 'health' added to them. Also, we have 'trained' ourselves to eat grapes, bananas, pears, or apples with our lunches or as a snack instead of cookies or crackers (which almost always have the above ingredients in them).

Also, we try to eat smaller portions. This seems lame, but we are actually able to eat more often throughout the day because of it. And we also eat breakfast! I experimented with a whole-wheat breakfast muffin that you can throw any variety of veggies and nuts into (uses only honey and a good oil - like olive or canola oil) and it goes really great with a fruit bowl in the morning (like pears, kiwis, grapes). So healthy and yummy! The trick is taking the time to prepare the muffins so I don't have to cook on a weekday - the fruit bowls don't take that long, either. Or you can have cereal or oatmeal, again with fresh fruit on top.

It's easy to live this way if you take the time to do it. That was the bottom line for us- we had to learn how to shop healthily (our first shopping trip took a few hours!) and keep out bad stuff (or it will get eaten in our moment of weakness) and take the time to cook our own food. The thing we have most noticed about our new lifestyle is the energy and good moods we now have constantly. It's... wonderful! And I also feel strong - not physically so much, but emotionally, because we have taken control over this area in our lives. Weird, but true!

(Because I just noticed my answer is a mile long, e-mail if you want the recepi to those morning muffins) Happy healthy days to you!

if your husband gags at everything, try this. Switch the recipes you use hamburger for, and change it up to half ground turkey and half ground beef to start, and then add more turkey and less beef as you go along. This will get them used to the texture and taste of the ground turkey slowly. Hope this helps!

Also, you can try switching from regular sugar to a sugar substitute, same taste, fewer caloric intake.

Beef Stroganoff Casserole
1lb. hamburger (or ground turkey works as well)
1 pkg. egg noodles or other noodle
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 onion, minced
1/2 tsp. minced garlic (about 1 clove)
1 cube beef boullion
1/3 cup water
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded swiss cheese

In boiling water, cook noodles according to directions. Brown hamburger, drain fat, add the boullion and water, adding onion and garlic to soften. Add soup to meat mixture, mix well as it warms and thins. Add mushrooms, cooked noodles, worcestershire sauce and sour cream. Mix well and pour into casserole dish. Top with swiss cheese and bake 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.




Meatloaf
2 lbs hamburger or ground turkey
1/2 cup crushed saltine crackers
1/4 onion, chopped
1/2 tsp garlic, minced
2 eggs, beaten
1 can tomato sauce

Topping
1 can condensed tomato soup
2 tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
2 tbsp. splenda brown sugar substitute

In bowl, combine beef, onion, garlic, eggs, tomato sauce and crackers. Mix well and pat into baking dish or cast iron skillet. Bake 1 hr at 400, drain off grease. Mix topping ingredients and pour over meatloaf, bake another 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

CHICKEN WITH CUCUMBERS
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp butter
3-4 chicken breasts, cubed
1 large cucumber
1 onion, sliced thin
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken stock ( 1 cup water and 1 chicken boullion cube works too)
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2-2 cups cooked rice

Heat oil and butter in skillet. Add chicken to pan, cook thoroughly. Take cucumber and peel, slice in half, seed with a spoon and dice small. When chicken is cooked golden brown, remove from pan. Add onion and cucumber. Cover and cook 1-2 minutes. Add chicken stock, garlic, cumin and mustard. Cook 5-7 minutes more until onion and cucumber are tender. Stir in sour cream. Return chicken to pan, stir. Serve cucumber and chicken sauce over rice.


Mom's American Goulash
1 lb. Hamburger
2 small cans tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes with juice
1 lb. Large elbow macaroni
2 tbsp. Butter
Salt and Pepper to taste

Brown hamburger until no longer pink, drain any grease. Prepare macaroni according to package directions. Combine hamburger and macaroni in a large bowl or pot, add sauce, tomatoes with juice and butter. Allow to sit 15 minutes on warm so that macaroni absorbs some of the sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Bubble Pizza
2 tubes biscuits
1 lb hamburger, browned
2 cup shredded cheese, can use 1c moz and 1c cheddar
1 jar pizza sauce
Preferred pizza toppings

cut biscuits into quarters and place in a 9x13 baking pan, stir in all other ingredients and bake according to biscuit tube directions

These are healthy, easy and so good- healthy is easy if you just watch the ingredients!

Lemon Thyme Chicken

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Directions:
In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper. Set aside 4-1/2 teaspoons for sauce. Sprinkle the remaining flour mixture over both sides of chicken. In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook chicken in oil over medium heat for 7-9 minutes on each side or until juices run clear. Remove and keep warm.
In the same pan, saute onion in butter until tender. Add thyme and reserved flour mixture; stir until blended. Gradually stir in the broth and lemon juice, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve over chicken. Sprinkle with parsley. Yield: 4 servings



Catfish with Spiced fruit salsa:
Ingredients:
4 catfish fillets (6 ounces each)
2 teaspoons canola oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dried tropical fruit
1/3 cup unsweetened apple juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon apricot spreadable fruit
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Directions:
Rub both sides of fillets with oil. Combine the coriander, cumin, cinnamon and cayenne; set aside 1/2 teaspoon. Add salt to remaining spice mixture; rub over both sides of fillets.
In a saucepan, combine the tropical fruit, apple juice, vinegar and reserved spice mixture. Bring to a boil; stir in spreadable fruit. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes.
In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook fillets over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Serve with the fruit salsa; sprinkle with parsley. Yield: 4 servings.

Go to your local library and check out "The Moosewood Lowfat Cookbook" I've been making dinner from this book for three years and my family still has no idea I'm cooking healthy things for them!

lasagna:
pastry sheets
lean mince
ricotta cheese
mozzarella cheese
spinach

pesto chicken and vegies:
strips of breast fillet chicken
pesto to put on chicken
zuccini
potatoes
pumpkin
any vegies you like

thai green curry:
rice
coconut cream
chicken or beef
green curry paste or powder
zuccini
mushroom

hope these are a help
i'm really healthy and love to eat well





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