Family Matters Newsletter - April 2009
PDF VersionMeal Planning Helps Families Save Money
By: Glenda Wentworth, CSU Extension, Eagle County.
Want to save money? Learning how to planmenus will probably save more money onyour food budget than any other skill. Good planning can make a big difference. Planning can also help you save time and loweryour stress.
Have you ever stood in front of the refrigerator wondering, “What are wegoing to have for dinner tonight?” Meal planning can help in make cooking andeating more fun. Planning gives you control of what you eat and how it is prepared.
You will be able to help your family save money by cooking food at home. Convenience foods can cost more than twice as much as the same dish cooked at home. Often, it is less expensive to cook "from scratch" rather than buying ready-made mixes.
The big secret to saving money is having menus that cycle every two weeks or so. Write out a menu for each day of the week for a couple of weeks. Include breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner. To simplify your shopping list, type all the normal items needed each week on a computer. Then you just have to print one out each week and add any new items for your recipes.
Check your cupboards to see if you have any of the ingredients on your menu. Make a list of what you will need to buy at the grocery store.
When you go to the store, stick to your list and do not buy anything else. This is where you can save money.
To begin, select a main dish, it forms the base around which you will plan the rest of the menu. Plan to use plenty of vegetables, fruits, and grains with the main dish. Keep in mind that children like to eat some vegetables raw, as well as cooked. Use fresh, frozen, or canned vegetables. Both canned
You will be able to help your family save money by cooking food at home. Convenience foods can cost more than twice as much as the same dish cooked at home. Often, it is less expensive to cook "from scratch" rather than buying ready-made mixes.
Use recipes that are fast and simple to make and that can be easily thrown together. Remember to include “planned” leftovers as part of meal planning. Leftovers stretch your food budget, save time, and are good for lunches or quick suppers.
Include a variety of foods when planning meals. Your family can get all the nutrients they need to stay healthy by eating a variety of foods. No one food or group of foods can provide everything needed for a healthy diet.
Plan menus that are interesting and appealing.
- Think about texture of foods. Serve something crunchy with something soft. For example serve a green salad or raw vegetables with spaghetti.
- Use a mixture of different sizes and shapes of foods. For example a meal with cubed meat, diced potatoes, mixed vegetables, and fruit cocktail looks the same. Different shapes such as cubes, mounds, strips and shredded bits make meals more attractive.
- Contrast foods as you plan. If you are serving a hearty stew, plan to serve some fresh fruit and bread. A meal with too many starches or sweets lacks balance.
- Think about using two colorful foods in each menu for visual appeal. Which meal is more appealing to you: turkey, rice, cauliflower, white bread, pears, and milk or turkey, green peas, whole-wheat bread, orange slices, and milk?
Meal planning does take time initially but in the long run, once you have meals planned, it will save you time, money and stress.
Oven "Fried" Herb Chicken
¼ teaspoon pepper 1 (3-pound) chicken, skinned and cut into 8 pieces
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon basil
¼ teaspoon ground thyme
1 can cooking spray
1 tablespoon margarine, melted
Preheat oven to 400°F. Sprinkle pepper on the chicken pieces. Combine Flour, garlic and onion powder, paprika, thyme and basil in a large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken a few pieces at a time. Seal and shake to coat chicken with flour mixture. Place chicken on a pan coated with cooking spray. Drizzle melted margarine over chicken. Bake at 400°F for 50 minutes or until juices run clear and are no longer pink. Yields 6 servings. This oven "fried" chicken recipe is lower in fat than traditional fried chicken. From: CSU Extension, Eat Well For Less.
Go to top of this page.
Active Kids by America On the Move
Once you’ve got your meal plan, it’s time to hit the grocery store. Have to take the kids with you? Don’t worry; bringing the kids to the store with you is a great way to keep them active. There are plenty of things that they can help you with. Make a mini list for them so that they have specific items that they MUST find. This will distract them from all the other sugary snacks, and keep them active. As you are shopping in the produce, ask the kids to pick out a fruit or vegetable that they’d like to try. By giving them a say in what they eat, they are more likely to try it, and like it.
For more information on making small changes, visit www.americaonthemove.org.
Go to top of this page.
