Making a Delicious Meal, Making it Healthier

Sometimes, we come across that recipe...it sounds amazing, the picture makes it look delicious, and then - we start reading the ingredients. Odds are, the recipe that calls for 8 tablespoons of butter doesn't REALLY need all 8 tablespoons, although it really will taste phenomenal! I try to cut that unhealthy stuff whenever I can, and the rule of thumb is pretty easy - trust your instinct.

Mmm...butter makes things taste so good, but we don't need a lot of it!

Now, I've told you before that I'm not a huge baker, and this is one of the reasons why. You canNOT alter ingredients when baking. There is a lot more chemistry involved in the measurements of certain ingredients when baking so this rule of thumb goes for cooking, NOT baking.

If it calls for cream, most times you can use 2% or skim milk in its place. If it calls for eight tablespoons of butter, start with three or four. If it calls for 1/2 a cup of sour cream, get the low-fat variety. Lots of stuffed pasta recipes call for full-fat ricotta cheese, but the low-fat kind works JUST as well. Cut where you can! Also, as a rule, brown is better than white - go with brown rice, wheat bread, wheat flour and wheat pasta...see what I mean?

Milk

The key is to keep tasting your food while cooking, and if you walk into any restaurant kitchen, you'll see it happening. Chefs and cooks always taste their food as they're making it, adjusting the seasonings, adding a little this, a little that, until it's just right. You have an advantage over them as well...all the time in the world! So, take your time, adjust your measurements to your tastes, and go with the healthier option when you can...unless you're just in the mood for an all-out decadent feast...which is fun to have sometimes, but everything in moderation, right?

The Menu - The Focal Point of your At-Home Culinary Journey

When it comes to planning my meals, I make a menu, and it comes in handy for numerous reasons. First of all, never again will you ask the question, "What do you want for dinner tonight?," only to be answered by "I don't know." Yea - I know, you ALL know what I'm talking about!

Second, it makes going to the grocery store a helluva lot easier, don't you think? A list of things you'll need to make meals for numerous days in a row - it's a brilliant concept, right? More on that in a later post, I promise!

You can plan a menu by day, or by type of food, or by country of origin, you can do it anyway you like...but here's how I do it: I make a list of different main ingredients and I pick ONE recipe for each of those main ingredients. You can't get bored if you're only eating chicken once every 2 weeks! My categories are as follows: Fish, Shellfish, Chicken, Beef, Pork, Lamb/Veal, Soup/Sandwich, Risotto, Pasta and Breakfast for Dinner. My husband especially likes that last one...

This little tip will help you plan ahead for your meals. You can prep things ahead of time if you know you are going to be home late one night. Marinating something overnight, and then just throwing it in the oven when you get home is the easiest way to get a great, home-cooked meal without all the fuss!

I normally just spell it all out on a piece of paper, which I then check off when I make one of the meals. Sometimes the menu lasts longer than other times, just based on things that come up - did we meet someone out somewhere for dinner? Did we both feel like sushi one night? Did I just SERIOUSLY not feel like cooking - because that happens once and awhile...and that's okay!

Whichever way you plan your menu, I promise you will find that it helps you immensely in the long run. It's much less stress to just know what you have to cook when you get home - and sometimes, even get excited about it! :)

I'd love to hear your feedback - if you try my tips and think they are good...or even if you hate them...leave me a comment and let me know! It will definitely help me figure out what road to take this blog on!