Every dieter needs to have on hand some easy to prepare, good-tasting dinner ideas that can be whipped up in minutes.
Rather than having to resort to ordering in take-out when short on time, you can look at the foods in your kitchen that can be easily assembled into a last minute meal.
Here are some ideas that work for my family. They can work for you too!
1. Eat breakfast for dinner. Boxed cold cereal with non-fat milk and fresh berries is probably the fastest dinner meal of all. Keep on hand the right kind of cereal that’s moderate or high in fiber. A bowl of oatmeal can suffice also. And remember that your portion for a dinner meal is higher than for a breakfast meal. Pair with a hard boiled egg, scrambled eggs or some low fat yogurt. If you’re someone who feels rushed in the mornings, you can eat this type of meal in the evening hours when you can slow down and enjoy.
2. Pair soup and sandwich. Keep canned soups on hand that can be warmed up in minutes. The best soups are broth-based vegetable or bean soups. You can try some of the new soups that say “higher in fiber” on the can as compared to older varieties. Quick sandwiches can be made using higher fiber tortilla wraps like the ones by LA Tortilla Factory. Or try one of the newest ways to make calorie-controlled, high fiber sandwiches: using 100 calorie Arnold Select multi-grain sandwich thins. Fill your sandwich with lean meats and veggies, peanut butter and jelly, hummus or light cheese and veggies.
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3. Chill with chili. Canned vegetarian chili is a staple in our household. By adding canned, rinsed beans and canned, rinsed corn (rinsing washes away some of the salt) to the chili, you’ll have a filling and good-tasting dinner in minutes. We spice up the chili using chili powder, and garlic pepper. Feel free to use your favorite seasonings staying away from salt since canned foods already contain lots of salt. Pair with a side salad made with bagged lettuce and cut up baby carrots sprinkled on top. These are all foods that can be kept in your kitchen for a last minute, nutritious meal.
4. Open the deep freeze. The freezer is your friend when it comes to needing to assemble a quick, healthy meal. Some of our freezer favorites are frozen tilapia from Trader Joe’s, frozen veggie patties from Costco, frozen black bean enchiladas or frozen Ethnic Gourmet Indian dinners. As long as we have these on hand, we know we don’t have to depend on takeout when time is short. Yes, with the fish, we need to plan ahead and defrost in the refrigerator the night before but the other options can be decided minutes before we can have dinner on the table. Commit to always having on hand some calorie-controlled, frozen dinner ideas. These will help you stay on program and save you time also.
I hope these four tips will give you new ideas for preparing healthy dinner meals in minutes.
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