Sometimes the day just gets away from me....And I don't get to make the dinner I want to make - and I get a little disappointed! It can be the best part of my day! It's when I get no interruptions (for the most part - Philip does a good job of occupying Aodhan and keeping him out of the kitchen) and I get to create something that we can enjoy together as a family. To me nothing feels better than creating something that other people enjoy. So when I don't get to make dinner, it bums me out! Weird, huh? I know so many people who hate to make dinner! But I have no one else to blame but myself. The process of making dinner usually begins in the morning or early afternoon - to thaw whichever entree....but I had a full morning today and was running out the door....and a doctor appointment in the afternoon...and well....I didn't get home 'til 6!
Not making dinner also means that we grab whatever - meaning something pre-packaged, sodium filled, and generally not good for us. Tonight I was guilty too. Although I had some left over (healthy) meatloaf, I had a helping of Mac n' Cheese , which I quickly cooked up for Aodhan to go with his fish sticks.
Sometimes I find myself torn with serving the right foods and making sure I get rid of what I still have in the freezer or pantry shelves as to not waste money. I usually opt for the healthy, but tonight, quick and easy won out.
Do any of you find yourself in the situation where you have 20 minutes to get dinner prepared and out on the table? What do you cook up in these situations? I would love to hear what healthy last minute dinners you've come up with! Do share!
I stock up on dry and frozen goods from Trader Joe's for those nights. At least if I have to make the sacrifice to eat prepackaged, it's a *little* better than some of the other options, like picking up Chinese or going to In N Out :) Every week before I do the grocery shopping I make a calendar of what we are going to eat each night of the week, and I take into consideration if it's a long day or an easy day and I plan the meal accordingly (ie. crock pot chicken curry if I am not getting home till 6 or 7, hands-on involved recipes for easier days) and then I get everything I need for each meal, so I never have the excuse of saying "we have nothing to eat". It takes some time to do the planning, but it's so worth it. I even list out the options for breakfast, lunch and snacks so that the temptation to eat out is lessened, and we don't let food spoil. Sounds like you and I should swap notes some time...
ReplyDeleteI love Trader Joe's for that! I do the same on occasion. And it's not the healthiest, but it's better than fast food, pizza or chinese! I have always meant to do the meal calendar, but still haven't done it. I really need to! I know it would make it easier!
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