Gary_R: 2009-10-06

says: 1 learn the art of healthy snacking: - Kashi Crunch Go-Lean bars (no I am not being paid to promote them) they have great blood sugar stabelization abilities, and you can eat them before you start the car to leave work. Within a few minutes you will be a bit clearer headed the drive will be easier and you will be able to think when you get home (and AVOID fast food).

: 2007-07-25

says:

I know how you feel. I used to run a shelter for ferrets, while I had a dog, a parrot and 2 cats (and usually about 20 fererts in the house). I worked about 10 hours a day (split shift), and was going to school part time as well. (I look back and wonder how the heck I did all that!! LOL)

This is what saved me ... Saturdays and Sundays were my days off every weekend. This is when I went grocery shoppping (I'm vegetarian so can't help you with the meat ideas, but the person above had some great ideas!) I bought all my fruits, veggies, cheeses, crackers for the week, came home and cut everything all up. Took me about an hour or so, but then I put them all in little baggies and in the fridge ... want a snack?  Grab a baggie with some veggies / fruit, etc. (You do NOT want to do this with apples, kiwis or bananas ... I tried ... they are gross after 1 day!)

Cutting up cheese into bite size pieces, having an assortment of healthy crackers (no salt!!) in the house, etc, etc.

Stir frys are a great supper to make and they can take only 5-7 minutes ... why?  Your veggies are already cut up ... if you did what the person above me stated, your meat is already done!  Just stick them in a wok, add some precooked noodles / or already cooked rice, add some sauce and you're done!

A good idea also is to cook up about 4-6 cups of rice once a week ... then you already have it made for when you need it ... you can also do this with pasta.

It sounds like a lot of work to do on one day, but I still do it that way (and my schedule is a lot less hectic) ... I spend about 2 hours one day a week getting everything ready for the next week!

Good luck, and if you want more pointers, don't hesitate to send me a message!

Marion

hippiegirl: 2007-07-14

says: What I've been doing lately is, instead of just thawing the three chicken breasts, or pork chops, or whatever, when I do have the time and inclination to cook dinner, I thaw the entire bag or package, and bake them all at once.  It takes the same twenty minutes that it would have taken if I were only doing one meal's worth, but now I have fast re-heat, healthy items.  With the chicken, a lot of times I'll lay them all out on the pan, and then put bbq sauce on a few, onion and garlic powder on a few, curry sauce (from a bottle!) on a few.  My kids enjoy being able to choose the flavor they want, and it avoids the feeling of monotony you otherwise might experience if you just put onion and garlic powder on ALL of them.  Also, frozen veggies are great because a) they don't rot in the crisper drawer (we've all been there, right?) and b) because they're immediately blanched and frozen, they are actually "fresher" than a lot of the so-called fresh produce that's been trucked across the country.  Buy a variety of cheap sauces, like alfredo, marinara, etc.  Most stores have very good store brands (in my opinion as good as the brand name - really!) for about a dollar or so.  That way, for example, you could take your already made chicken, some frozen broccoli, some of the pasta that the posters above mentioned (hint:  angel hair takes about three minutes to cook once the water is hot) and your handy jar of alfredo.  Voila!  You just made Chicken Alfredo!  Or a chicken breast, with a little bit of jarred spaghetti sauce and some cheese on top (you decide if you want it pre-shredded or not!) and you have a quasi-chicken parmesan.

tools_team: 2007-07-11

says:

pasta takes literally seconds to prepare, and 15 minutes or so to cook...

I sound like an old man LOL but my mother used to have a slow cooker where you prepare something like a casserole in the morning and then it cooks slowly through the day and then ready when you get home at night

MandaZie: 2007-07-06

says: I think a good way to start is just to make healthy snacks readily available.  Listen, I'm 23, I live alone, and I'm on a mad budget.  Cooking ? Not a top priority for me, but you know what's helped me more than anything, and it may sound silly, but its the bag of prepeeledminicarrots in my fridge.  A lot of times, I open my fridge, ready to think what the hell is in here i want a smackeral of something... and before I can even look, there are teh carrots right at eye level, and i'm taking 4 out of the bag, and shoving them in my mouth, then going back to what I was doing.  Was I hungry? Maybe, maybe I just wanted somehting to chew.  Carrots are satisfactorily crunchy.  They're right where I'll see them, they're prepared, and they're a no-brainer.  Later, if im still hungry, i'll nab some more carrots while I make my self a turkey sandwich or some pasta.