I am overweight and have been for a long time, my husband is overweight but he gets alot of exercise in his job and taking our Border Collie, Pearl for 3 or 4 walks a day. My son is beginning to show signs of weight gain, even though his job requires alot of walking and lifting...
So lately my son who lives in the same house as myself and my husband has been asking for lighter meals or meals where he can perhaps shed a few pounds...
But there is a major problem that I see no way of solving except the generally accepted principles of weight loss. That being fruit and vegetables!
Now, how to get over that hurdle? At this stage of life, the men I cook for usually make their own choices and 99% of the time that choice is meat and something white, like potato, rice, or pasta. Putting chunks of zucchini in the pasta sauce only means I will clear plates off the table that have been licked clean with a pile of zucchini on one side.
I know that the men in the house should be able to accept the idea that vegetables are GOOD for you and that it is their choice to eat them or not, but they keep telling me to cook something good but that will help them loose a few pounds...
Got any ideas?
I watch the Food Network almost everyday and sometimes I come across things that might work. In General tho one of the greatest difficulties with TV cooking today is that almost all those shows are silly competitions that really have nothing to do with cooking and everything to do with making people feel like loosers!
Quite a few years ago I bought a Stock Pot and it has been one of the best things in my kitchen. Who loves the convenience of a cooked Rotisserie Chicken from the Supermarket, picked up on the way home from work? I gotta say it is one of the most useful fast foods anywhere. Forget about stopping at a "FAST FOOD" Burger place! In my house -- three adults here -- a chicken is two days of supper... And then a potful of chicken stock!
CHEAP and USEFUL
My Stock Pot gets filled with 3 Rotisserie Chicken carcasses about once a month -- I put the bones and skin into a freezer bag and freeze it ---
And that pile of "junk" or "leftovers" becomes the basis of quite a few recipes...
So, you need a big pot, three chicken carcasses, three stalks of celery, three big carrots, about 1/2 an onion and some salt and pepper if you like... Put as much water in the pot as it will hold without boiling over, turn on the heat to boil then turn the heat down to the hotplate's lowest setting and leave it for at least two hours... Strain out the bones and veg and find some jars or containers to put the broth in, cool down, put in the freezer til you come across a recipe that says Chicken Broth.
This STILL leaves us with the dilemna of getting my family to absorb vegetables and/or fruits...
I suspect since it has taken quite a few years of exploring food that will make them happy but also help them maintain a healthy body, this search will be ongoing.
So, Fridays are For Food.
For myself I found a very interesting and delicious GREEN soup at Skinnytaste.com
I used my homemade chicken broth as the basis of this soup and I love it! But it is GREEN and the men of the house will not even consider it!
Now in this search for healthy choices for my family there is not only the criteria that fruits and veggies not really look or taste GREEN, but that the cost remain low (because honestly we are a family of working poor) and the making should be relatively uncomplicated and able to be made in a reasonable length of time. (unless it is done in the slow cooker)
So I don't want to make this so long that you get bored reading, so suffice to say, that I am going to dedicate Friday to the Food Journey in my household and maybe I can find some ways for you to improve the way your family eats too...
I am going to name names, so you can find healthful recipes or ideas and provide links with useful things - but I am NOT doing this for a reward other than it is a journey for me and I just have to tell somebody about it...
So. Lets try to eat an Apple or an Orange or a Banana Today!
