| Do you have trouble getting dinner | | | | 4. Have a neighborhood dinner swap. One |
| finished on time? Maybe you just feel | | | | night each week, a neighborhood family |
| that it's all just too much trouble so | | | | cooks enough to feed another family in |
| you stop by the fast food restaurant and | | | | the neighborhood. The next morning, |
| pick up dinner on your way home. Fixing | | | | each neighbor involved in the swap gives |
| quick and nutritious meals doesn't have | | | | another neighbor their leftovers. |
| to be a chore. Here are seven ways to | | | | Leftovers are great if they're not YOUR |
| make meal planning easier: 1. Do your | | | | leftovers! 5. Use your crock pot. Get |
| meal planning in advance. Choose | | | | up 10 minutes earlier in the morning and |
| simple, quick-to-fix meals for the days | | | | put a beef roast, onions, potatoes and |
| that you know you will be rushed. Plan | | | | carrots into your crock pot. Add some |
| a week's worth of meals and shop for all | | | | herbs and spices, put on the lid, and |
| the groceries for those meals on | | | | cook on low for eight to ten hours. |
| weekends. Having the ingredients on | | | | Dinner will be ready when you get home |
| hand, together with a plan to use them, | | | | from work. 6. Keep nutritious frozen |
| will help eliminate the temptation of | | | | meals in your freezer. On those nights |
| picking up a pizza on your way home from | | | | when you get home from work too late to |
| work. Your meal plan doesn't have to | | | | cook, let family members choose the |
| include anything more than a meat (fish | | | | frozen dinner they like best. Many of |
| or poultry), a vegetable, a salad and a | | | | the frozen meals available these days |
| dessert. 2. Get help from your family. | | | | are nutritious and tasty. 7. Keep your |
| Choose one night a week for each family | | | | pantry stocked. Make sure that you keep |
| member and make it his or her | | | | your pantry filled with staples that you |
| responsibility to plan and cook that | | | | use every day. Also have enough produce |
| day's dinner. Even children as young as | | | | in your refrigerator that you can use |
| 10 years old can help with meal planning | | | | for a quick meal. It's easier to figure |
| and preparation. If one family member | | | | out what to cook if you have the |
| cooks, another should be assigned the | | | | ingredients on hand for different |
| cleanup chores when dinner is finished. | | | | choices. Planning ahead makes it easier |
| 3. Cook extra for future use. When you | | | | to fix those dinnertime meals when you |
| have extra time to cook, make enough | | | | are rushed and won't feel like planning |
| food for more than one meal. For | | | | that night's dinner. If you keep a |
| instance, grill extra chicken on the | | | | notebook with dinners you have planned, |
| weekend and use the leftovers for | | | | you can use those dinner plans over and |
| chicken pot pie or pasta during the | | | | over again. Make a note of the dinners |
| week. If you make lasagna, instead of | | | | that your family seems to like the best. |
| making one, make two. Put one of them | | | | You, too, can learn how to cook at |
| in the freezer for unexpected company. | | | | LearnHomeCooking. |