Quickies can be Healthy Too!

Posted: April 1, 2010 at 8:50 pm

This week has been incredibly busy, more so than the usual go go go of chasing after a toddler.Earlier in the week it was Easter Egg Hunts & Santa Claus time. And the hustle and bustle all started again yesterday afternoon at around 2:00. My parents showed up to watch the baby girl and visit with their beloved grandbaby so I could go have fun. If this is your idea of fun....

Stirrups!!!

Oh, the glorious visits to the girly doc. I mainly went to this one to check out a practice that delivers at the new women's center that opened up five minutes from my house versus the baby megacenter version in downtown Atlanta where I delivered Makenzie. I really did like the practice I delivered with the first time, but there were some things that I thought would be a better fit at the new one and I had to try it out. I am very glad I did because I LOVED them! Everyone was so nice! And since it is a smaller practice, they really took time to visit with me and discuss things. They reassured me that the steps I had taken to get my cycle back to normal and the additional weight were most likely in my best interest since it put me at an optimal level of bodyfat for conceiving and that I was doing good. Plus, it was comfortable. Is that even possible? That is the sign of a good girly doctor right there. And they even said they hope to see me again soon. I hope so too. 🙂

Yesterday also included tutoring my last session until after Spring Break. As easy as tutoring is, it will be nice to get a week off. Of course, last night we also went to our church's annual prayer path, that I talked about here. It really was a special occasion and worth the added hours to our already busy afternoon schedule. It was so moving, that we ended up spending over an hour longer there than we anticipated. Between really soaking in the prayer time, chatting with some friends who were there at the same time, and letting Makenzie have a little playground time...

...we were going to be getting home quite late for us. On the way home, I started trying to think about dinner and what to make. We knew we didn't want to take more than 15 min to whip something up since we were at that ugly hungry stage. But I also knew I still wanted a healthy dinner. I realized that's not so hard to do in a short time! Heck, we had been doing that all week.

Pasta, Roasted Veggies, & Chicken Sausage

Taco Night!

Brussels, Cheetahs, & Morningstar Buffalo "Wings"

And Wednesday night's winner was...

Eggs on Toast

(Source) <--- Need one because I was too hungry to get my own picture. But you get the gist. Except my plate was on whole wheat toast and x2. 😀 This was so quick and easy and still a healthy dinner. Yes, it may not have been the most balanced and it lacked some greens, BUT it is much better than our quickie dinners in the past. Things like a bowl of Peter's Frosted Mini Wheats cereal or stopping at whatever we could find on the way home came up, but were quickly passed over because who needs those options when you can turn to other simple dinners. Here are some things I do when looking for a quickie at dinner time. You will have to figure out other quickies on your own. 😉

  • When planning your weekly meals, always plan in a couple quick fix recipes to whip up on nights you are suddenly out of time for dinner. It never fails that at least one night per week I either won't want to cook or will suddenly realize I don't have the time to cook what I intended. Such a stress relief to already have back up options available.
  • Intentionally make leftovers. We always make leftovers of roasted veggies to use for lunches or in another dinner. Things like our pasta dishes always have a ton of leftovers because we use less pasta and more additional ingredients in our dish. Other great options for saving leftovers for a quick fix are casserole type dishes, soups, meats cooked in the crockpot so you can easily shred/chop them to toss in other meals, etc.
  • Don't feel bad for using frozen. Sure, fresh foods are better. We all know that. But sometimes there is a need for frozen products like Kashi pizzas, Morningstar/Boca/Quorn products, Amy's Organics burritos and meals, etc. I do say try to choose the option with the best stats and shortest ingredient lists (you know 20 listed instead of 30 ;)), but there is a time and place for these things in our lives. And sometimes they are a dinner saver.
  • Use quick cooking methods. If none of the above suit you, just cook things fast. Eat your veggies either raw or slightly steamed. And go ahead and use the microwave for quick cooking. If eating meat, cook up ground beef or turkey or thinly slice your chicken breast before cooking. Or eggs! You can cook breakfast for dinner, since those meals tend to be less time consuming. Make a "kitchen sink" salad where you just toss together things you have at the ready in your fridge or pantry. If you know it will be a busy night, prep the crockpot for a ready to eat meal in the morning.
  • And sometimes, a bowl of cereal or a stop at Subway is just fine too. 🙂

How often do you resort to quickie meals? Any suggestions you can share?

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24 Comments to “Quickies can be Healthy Too!”
  1. I use frozen things too – usually not whole meals or meat products, but always a fruit/veggie or some sort of side!

  2. Mellissa says:

    One of my go to’s in the summer is a 1lb of fresh green beans, whole wheat pasta, a container of pesto (or fresh made) and parm cheese. Cook beans and pasta separately, add together with pesto and cheese. A very quick dinner with tons of flavor!

    This was also the first dish my husband made for me 🙂

  3. homecookedem says:

    So glad to hear your doctor’s appt went so well! 🙂

    Great tips on making quick and healthy meals. That’s the only way we roll during the week in our house! 😉

  4. Glad that you liked your new doctor! I need to find a new OBGYN and the search can be daunting.

    I am a fan of quick fix dinners sometimes, too. especially instant rice or something like that. cooking rice can take forever and sometimes I just don’t have 45 minutes to let it steam

  5. Heather says:

    pasta and veggies are definite staples! roasting veggies and cooking pasta at the same time works so well, and you can have dinner on the table in 15-20 minutes 🙂

  6. Jessie says:

    Ahaha! I cracked up over your first pic! I can’t believe you brought your camera to the girly doc!! I think that is definitely uncharted blog territory 😉 I’m glad you like your doc – that is SO important.

    I love your tips! Especially the one about making leftovers – it’s so easy to double or triple a recipe, then have enough in the fridge or freezer for another couple of dinners. How could it be any easier?? 😛

  7. lisaou11 says:

    Im so glad you found a doctor that you like, that’s so important.

    and i love all of your meals, esp the cheetahs and the pasta!

  8. Nicole says:

    I love that you took a stirrup picture, too. Ohh girly doctors. Very important to like your OB, though, I agree!! So exciting that you guys are starting a family 🙂 So happy for you!

  9. Hello 🙂 I found your blog through another one…

    I loved your post on intuitive eating!

    As far as quickie meals… quesadillas and egg white are a staple 🙂

  10. Great tips!!! I tend to go for quick, healthy meals whenever I have to fix dinner after getting home from work. I’m always starving but I refuse to rely on fast food. I’ve discovered many healthy meals that can be made in a flash!!! Eggs on toast is one of my most favorite meals, with a runny yolk! Yum!!

    And thank you for your comment on my blog post tonight. I really appreciate sharing your story with me!! I feel exactly like you and I’m glad to know that I’m not insane for feeling like that. I really appreciate it 🙂
    Love ya!

  11. Katie says:

    I am a big fan of frozen veggies. I add them to egg scrambles in the morning when I am short on time, but still want a serving or two of veggies to start the day. They are great to add to canned soups too.

  12. Vee says:

    Great news re. the doctor! I’m happy for you.
    I am a left overs queen. 🙂 I cook for four quite often (and it’s only two of us :-)). I use them then either next day for quick lunches or I freeze them and use them for quick dinners within the next couple of weeks.

  13. lessonstolearn says:

    I live by those rules for quickie meals!

    I’m glad you found a practice you really like. That’s so important. We are new to our area, so I basically opened up a phone book to call a doctor when I got pregnant. So far, its been a great experience. I lucked out!

  14. I say always have around foods that don’t perish so quickly – potatoes, rice, pasta. It is easier once you have a base! And frozen chicken breasts are great go-tos

  15. So glad that you love your girlie doctor. That’s so important- to feel like your physician really listens to you and takes time and patience during your visit! And having one close to home is great too!
    Awesome tips for quickie dinners. I agree with all of them. I think it’s great to always have whole wheat pasta on hand as well as a frozen veggie. You can always whip something up!

  16. I have quite a few quickie meal ideas that I tend to rotate through when I’m low on time or feeling lazy. Frozen veggies, tofu, canned beans, hummus, wraps, eggs, toast… all good foods to throw something together quickly 🙂

  17. Yay on finding a good doctor. That’s so important isn’t it. My quick go-to meals have changed quite a bit over the past year. Right now my go-to is veggie burgers (I make up several varieties and freeze) with baked sweet potato “fries” or a stir fry. And yes, I use frozen veggies in my stir fry. No shame here.

  18. Jenn N. says:

    That’s good news from the doctor. I giggled a bit when you said “Plus, it was comfortable. Is that even possible?”

    Yeah I make quickie dinners all the time and use the same suggestions you do. Once a upon a time, I would spend a large part of Saturday cooking huge portions of dinners that would freeze well. I would make 10-15 homemade frozen dinners. I even bought a small extra freezer to keep them in. It was nice b/c a few nights a week all I had to do was warm up our dinners.

  19. peanutbutterfingers says:

    i think ALL my meals are quickie meals! i’m too impatient to spend more than 20-30 min. prepping a meal!

    pre-chopping veggies & the crockpot are definitely time savers!

  20. eatspinlive says:

    Thank you so much for your SWEET comment the other day! And it is so nice to see that other people use frozen foods occasionally too! I love keeping frozen organic berries for smoothies and morning star veggie burgers! They are a lifesaver sometimes! 🙂

  21. Jennifer says:

    Glad that you found a good doctor that is closer by! I tend to buy a good amount of frozen veggies because the place that we get groceries is not exactly close by and it’s hard to keep fresh food in the house all the time, even though I know it’s the best to eat. But frozen veggies is better than processed junk.

  22. Kelly says:

    Awesome tips, Tina! I tend to do sandwiches when I am short on time! Easy and healthy!!

  23. janetha says:

    those are some great quick tips! i need to freeze things more often!

  24. […] What convenience food do you find yourself choosing when necessary? I love having options like these on hand or will do a quick cook all veggie meal if we have good options available, but frozen items will make their appearance as well. Check out my post for quickie meal ideas. […]

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