A healthy family meal provides a time to sit down together and share your day with your loved ones. Choosing inexpensive meals saves on the family budget to keep you as well as your pocketbook healthy. Balancing the health value of the meal with the cost takes some preparation and thought, but the results can bring the family together to enjoy healthy food that won't break the bank.
Planning
Planning out your family menu allows you to better control the health value of the meal. It also prevents the last-minute frustration of trying to decide what to cook. A blank calendar page works well as a meal planner. You can either photocopy a calendar page or print a blank calendar page from the computer. Finding a healthy cookbook or website devoted to healthy recipes gives you a source for new cooking inspiration. Writing down a list of your favorite healthy and inexpensive meals also helps to fill each each day's meal on the menu planner.
Food Sources
The average supermarket offers a variety of different ingredients for a dinner, but you don't always know their origins or what chemicals were used on them. Growing as much of your own food at home as possible allows you to control the products used on them while saving money. Seeds are relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of buying the produce at the store. Some foods such as asparagus, strawberries, raspberries, tree fruits and some herbs are perennial, meaning they come back each year without replanting. Many cities allow hens within city limits which saves you money on eggs and possibly meat if you decide to eat the chickens. Swapping home-grown food with neighbors who also grow their can offer both parties variety while saving money.
Family Involvement
The family meal preparation shouldn't rest on just one person. Involving the entire family in growing the vegetables, planning the healthy meals and preparing the food provides additional bonding time. It also teaches kids valuable cooking skills they can use for the rest of their lives. If each person handles a different aspect of the meal, it comes together much faster, leaving you more time to enjoy your family.
Saving Money
A home garden is only one way to save on healthy meals for the family. Planning your meals based on the healthy foods in the weekly grocery ad allow you to keep your costs low. The fruits that are on sale in a given week can play a central role in breakfasts or as snacks. You can plan the vegetable side dish based on the vegetables that are cheap that week. The healthiest foods are typically fresh foods that are difficult to stockpile. You can stock up on some healthy foods when they go on sale such as lean meats and whole grains. Freeze the meat to keep it for several months for later use.
Meal Ideas
Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and low-fat dairy represent the major components of a healthy diet. Allergies and personal preferences also play a role in food selection. The items might now sound exciting individually, but be sure it will be possible to create delicious and healthy meals for the family before buying a particular ingredient in large quantities. Stir-fries allow you to customize the meat, vegetable and sauce selection to fit your family. Most grocery stores sell a variety of stir-fry sauces in the Asian food section. Homemade pizza using a whole wheat crust and low-fat cheese offers a healthy classic. Topped with lots of vegetables, the dish offers health value in a tasty package. Whole grain pasta topped with sauteed vegetables works well for a quick and inexpensive family meal.
