Meal Planning Guide PDF

Meal Planning  Resources for Meal Planning Meal planning lets you enjoy nutritious, flavorful meals even when time and money are tight. Meal planning helps ensure good nutrition and can save you money. Things to consider when planning: ○ Time & Energy ○ Skills & Equip...

Meal Planning  Resources for Meal Planning Meal planning lets you enjoy nutritious, flavorful meals even when time and money are tight. Meal planning helps ensure good nutrition and can save you money. Things to consider when planning: ○ Time & Energy ○ Skills & Equipment ○ Available Food ○ Money/Budget  Time & Energy Role - set of responsibilities based on your different relationships with others. Demands time & energy. ○ Family member ○ Student ○ Friend ○ Teammate ○ Volunteer Planning healthy meals can help energize your busy life and promote independence.  Skills & Equipment Take advantage of family members cooking skills. Start with simple tasks.  Available Food Some foods are more readily available during certain times of the year depending on where you live. Foods are usually cheaper when they are in season. Build meals around seasonal foods. ○ https://seasonalandsimple.info/tabs/produce Preserve foods by canning or freezing them.  The Food Budget Budget - plan for managing money. On average, 11% of monthly disposable income is spent on food in the US  Influences on Spending Income (high income vs low income) Number of family members Age of family members Time and skills available for food preparation How often a family eats out The amount of food wasted  Setting Up a Food Budget Find out how much you spend on food for 2 consecutive weeks. ○ Keep separate records for foods eaten at home, eating out, school lunches, gas stations snacks, etc. Determine the amount you spent each week. ○ Add up what you spent on foods at home, foods out, and add the amounts together. Divide that total by 2 to find the average amount spent on food per week. Find the percentage of food expenses used for eating at home and eating out. ○ Divide the amount spent on food eaten out by the total food expense. Then multiply the result by 100. Find the percentage of income spent on food. ○ Divide the average amount spent on food by the family’s weekly income. Multiply the figure by 100. Is it more or less than the average 11%  Meeting Your Budget Goals Takes time and fine tuning Some weeks, you may spend more to stock up on sale items, other weeks you may spend less Staples - basic items that are used on a regular basis such as milk, cereal, bread and eggs  Meeting Your Budget Goals Trim food costs by: ○ Preparing simple meals at home more often Homemade meals such as soups, casseroles and stir-fries can cost less and taste better ○ Choosing economical main dishes Stretch or replace animal protein with high protein plant based protein ○ Look for store advertisements Ads, grocery apps, etc. ○ Reduce food waste Store food properly, get creative with leftovers, serve smaller portion sizes to avoid overeating and stretching meals  Food Assistance Programs Healthy citizens contribute productively to the economy. When people cannot afford basics such as food, society suffers. Many private organizations run food banks and soup kitchens. Government also supports good nutrition by supplying service agencies with funds and commodities. Commodity - a product of agricultural production, often surplus food purchased from farmers. Many food programs are funded by the federal government (see next slides)  Food Assistance Programs National School Lunch Program (1964) ○ Free or reduced lunches for families under certain income levels Food Stamp Program (1964) ○ Improve nutrition of low-income families ○ EBT Card ○ Does not pay nonfood items, tobacco, alcohol, pet food or restaurant meals School Breakfast Program (1966) ○ Free or reduced lunches for families under certain income levels  Food Assistance Programs Child and Adult Care Food Program (1968) ○ Provides healthful meals and snacks for children and adults that are under care of others under certain income levels. Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program (1970s) ○ Improve nutrition and health of low-income pregnant women, breast-feeding women, and children up to five years of age. Elderly Nutrition Program (ENP) (1972) ○ Grant money and commodities to aging citizens.  Planning for Convenience Scratch cooking - preparing a dish from basic ingredients ○ Produces flavorful, economical meals Can take a lot of time and energy depending on the recipe Many turn to time- and energy-saving products and techniques  Convenience Foods Convenience foods - foods that have been processed to make them faster and easier to use ○ Microwavable meals ○ Pre-cut fruits and vegetables ○ Instant oatmeal packets ○ Canned soups Consider pros and cons like cost, nutrition and meal appeal of convenience foods Speed-scratch cooking - approach to cooking that uses convenience foods along with basic ingredients for easier meal preparation  Time-Saving Techniques Cut large pieces of meat or whole poultry into smaller portions Prepare quick-cooking, one-dish meals Try fish, a natural convenience food, that is easily prepared and cooked quickly Use a microwave to save time on defrosting foods, heating foods Work as a family team to plan and prepare meals Set aside a weekend day to make and freeze lunches or dinners for the week ahead Look for recipes that can be used in different ways  Planning for Appeal Flavor ○ Flavors should harmonize and keep taste buds interested, but not overwhelmed ○ Avoid using foods with similar flavors in the same meal Color ○ Use a variety of different colors to brighten a meal ○ Add a garnish Texture ○ Refers to the way a food feels when you chew it ○ Use a variety of textures Shape & Size ○ Add variety with different shapes and sizes of foods Temperature ○ Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold  Weekly Meal Planning Saves time and money in the long run Allows you to follow a healthful eating pattern Makes grocery shopping easier Arrange your grocery list the way the grocery store is set up When shopping, pay attention to sale items Utilize resources (slow cooker/instant pot, etc)