Many foods can be prepared in large batches, to be eaten for the entire week. Registered dietician Mary Henson of SUNY Upstate Medical University says this is a huge time saver and will save you money too! Plan to do your grocery shopping on Sundays (or whatever day you have an hour or two to spare for prepping food). Kids can also be involved in bagging foods and helping to get their lunches ready for the week.
Mary has some great ideas for your family.
Foods to Prepare & Buy in Large Batches:- Brown rice (takes 40 minutes to cook, but make a double batch and it will last all week)
Medium or short grain rice are usually more kid-friendly.
- Whole wheat pasta (keep on using this and eventually the complaining will stop!)
- Steamed veggies (Ex.broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, carrots -whatever you like)
Cut up and steam in a basket steamer or pasta pot with built-in strainer. Squeeze lemon juice over top and a sprinkle of salt, and you don’t even need any butter!
- BIG salad (keep in large container to use at dinner time, or separate into smaller containers for taking with lunches)
- Low cal salad dressing in snack bags to place on top of packed-lunch salads
- Cut-up raw vegetables and fruits, put into snack bags and placed in a Tupperware container in fridge. These can be thrown into lunches for the week.
Hint: Keep a spray bottle of lemon juice + water in your fridge for spraying sliced apples, or any other fruits that tend to turn brown.
- Low calorie yogurts and part-skim mozzarella cheese sticks can also be added to lunches, and take NO prep time at all!
Time saving Hint: Any leftovers can be packed in a thermos or hot-food container and sent to school for lunch.
- Mary Henson
Registered Dietician
SUNY Upstate Medical University
