Author Archive
It’s in the bag!
July 11 2012
A recent survey by Visa Canada found that a whopping 60% of Canadians buy their lunch at least once a week.
This amount may be the same across North America. So, you might think the buying your lunch once a week is not so bad, heck, you may even splurge and buy lunches more than once a week; what’s $20 here or there.
The same survey found that the average person spends between $7 and $13 dollars on lunch and sometimes even as much as $25! That may not sound like a lot but when you multiply that by 52 weeks (52 weeks X $13 = $676) you get almost $700!!! That’s a big chunk of change.
Now what if your spouse is doing the same? There’s another $700. Hey, don’t we give the kids money for lunch once a week too? That’s 2 kids and maybe a little less cash; let’s say $7…which would add up to another $700…next thing you know, you’ve spent over $2000 a year on restaurant lunches!
Looking over our meal facts, you’ll find that the average cost per portion of MealEasy’s complete meals will come out to be about $2.06 per portion! That’s a huge savings and all you did was bring your lunch from home.
I know what you’re saying: “but I don’t have time to make my lunch in the mornings”. I’ve got one word for you…leftovers! I know, I’ve preached about the advantages of leftovers here before but that’s because it just makes sense both financially and from health and nutrition perspective. What’s better than a meal where you know what all the ingredients are and how much fat and calories it contains?
This week, I made quinoa salad to go with my pork chop which I grilled for dinner on Sunday night. I made lots of quinoa so I could have some for lunches for at least half of the week. It doesn’t get boring because last night for dinner I cooked some green and yellow beans as side vegetables. A coked extra and then added them to the quinoa salad. Tonight, I’ll add some leftover zucchini…it makes for a different salad everyday with minimal effort.
The MealEasy Meal Planner allows you to choose how many portions of a dish you want to make and them scales the recipe accordingly; it also adjust the grocery list so you have everything you need. We also conveniently tell you which meals are freezable so you can make extras and keep them for lunches down the road.
It only makes sense. Why spend $700 a year that you don’t have to? Brown bag it…it’s the way to go.
Kid Friendly
July 04 2012
We get asked all the time here at MealEasy about what we have for “kid friendly” meals?
It’s a tough question. In a perfect world I’d love to say that all our meals are “kid friendly” but I know kids are sometimes hard to please. Of course, not every kid eats the same things. Some prefer salads to French fries as young Lev here can attest to. Some kids, such as my daughter, prefer quinoa to mashed potatoes.
So what is “kid friendly” food? Food shaped like animals? Food that is deep fried and overly salted (fast foods)? If that’s the kind of thing that you consider “kid friendly” then I would have to say that, no, we do not have anything that is deep fried or animal shaped.
What we do have are healthy balanced meals made from fresh ingredients and packed with a nutritional punch and not with sugar. Kids don’t need sugar laden soft drinks or salt rich French fries, they need healthy foods that help them keep their energy high and improve their mental strength…and that’s what we offer here at MealEasy.
Browse through the over 2000 meals available and you’ll find family favorites such as “sloppy Joes”, spaghetti and meatballs, grill cheese sandwiches and even “mac and cheese”; but you’ll also find Vegetarian sloppy Joes, spaghetti and white bean balls and mac and cheese with broccoli and made from whole wheat pasta. We’ve got chicken fingers, fish sticks and a selection of burger recipes; some vegetarian others with meat. Kids enjoy colorful and exciting foods especially at a young age. If you get them eating healthy and nutritious foods at home now, they are much more likely to continue making healthy food choices as they get older.
Try something new, your kids may surprise you.
Summertime, and the cooking’s easy
June 21 2012
What can be easier than barbecuing? Sure, if you’re using a charcoal grill it takes a bit of time to set up but think of all the time you save by not having to wash pots and pans. I love to BBQ any chance I get during the spring and summer months. I love any excuse to get outside really.
One of the benefits of barbecuing is that you use less oil than when cooking on the stove. But remember, grilling doesn’t have to be only meat.
I love putting asparagus, sweet potatoes, bell peppers and even fennel slices on the grill (especially with fish) as well as burgers or chicken.
At MealEasy we also have quite a few recipes that feature grilled tofu…and trust me, they are yummy!
So, get outside and start grilling; you get sunshine, great tasting food and no pots to clean.
Visit MealEasy.com for details.
The Revolution Has Begun!
June 06 2012
I was struck this weekend by how many of my neighbors have taken up gardening. The home next door to our house is divided up into three separate apartments and two of these apartments have seen new tenants arrive in the last few months. And since the weather has improved, all of these new residents have started growing their own food.
Their backyard is very small; in fact I’d say it’s no more than 20m square. The folks on the main floor have still managed to plant kale in containers, beans and peas along the side of the house as well as tomato plants and various lettuces in a converted wooden skid.
The couple that live on the second floor have tomatoes, lettuces, spinach and cucumbers growing from their second floor balcony! Even the First Lady Michele Obama is getting in on the act by publishing a gardening book: American Grown.
At our house, thanks to the wonderful book: The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener we’ve learned all about “cold frames” which have extended our growing season by a lot. In fact, we’re already eating lettuces, radishes and spinach from our garden and have been for a few weeks now. This is unheard of in Nova Scotia unless you have a green house or other.
What this tells me is that more and more people are getting into gardening and thinking about where their food comes from. What my neighbours are proving is that you don’t need a lot of space, or heck, even a backyard, to grow your own food. The more we take food production and food preparation into our own hands, the healthier we’ll all be.
By cooking at home and growing even a little of your own food, you can escape the clutches of the greedy corporations… and eat healthier as well.
In Praise of Slowness
May 30 2012
Did you know that you are three times as likely to be overweight if you eat too fast? Eating in a hurry has been proven to lead to all kinds of health issues as well as weight gain. Conversely, the slower you eat the fewer calories you ingest.
Eating quickly is a tough habit to break. I know because for years I was a speed eater. Working in restaurants you regularly scarf down as much as quickly as you can because you’re never sure when you’ll get a break to eat again. And, as a kid, I couldn’t wait to get outside to play so eating fast was a bad habit I grew up with.
There are steps you can take to slow down your eating habits and by extension prevent unwanted weight gain:
• Don’t wait too long between meals/snacks Try not to go more than 3 to 4 hours without eating something. Try snacks such as yogurt or fruit between main meals.
• Drink more water Have a glass of water before and during each meal; this will help you fill up your belly. Also, having a sip of water between bites will help you slow down your eating habits.
• Cut your food into smaller bites and chew chew chew Smaller pieces of food chewed thoroughly will again help with slowing down. One study showed weight loss success by chewing 20 to 30 times before the next bite. Also, chewing food thoroughly leads to better digestion as well.
• Know when to stop This is the hardest part, especially when what you’re eating is really yummy. The trick is to stop eating before you fell full. This will take some practice but learning when to stop eating is the most important thing when it comes to weight loss.
• Portion control We preach about this one a lot at MealEasy because we believe it is one of the most important and easiest ways to not overeat and therefore lose weight. Stick to your portion size.
New Magic Diet Weight Loss Pill
May 02 2012
It seems not a week goes by without some new diet guru espousing their magic weight loss formula or some celebrity talking about their new fad diet that gave them the perfect body they now enjoy. I’d say that there are about as many weight loss diets as there are dieters…sure seems that way.
But regardless of which weight loss plan you choose, there’s one common element to all diet plans and that is will power. If you’ve decided that now is the time to start x, y or z weight loss diet, be it low carb, low fat, high protein or all pureed green vegetable, you need to choose a plan and stick to it. That’s the only way that weight loss plans work…in fact, that the only way any plan will work. If you’re not fully committed to your diet plan, the odds of achieving your goals are greatly reduced.
It’s the same thing when choosing one of MealEasy’s Healthy Diet plans. If you’re not committed to changing your eating habits, it will be harder to achieve your fitness goals. The key with the MealEasy plans is portion control. It’s really simple math. You need to burn more calories than you take in…that’s how you lose weight. Then, when you’re at your optimum weight, MealEasy’s healthy meal plans help you maintain you fitness level but supplying you with all the nutritional information you need as well as with delicious, nutritious and easy to make everyday meals.
Therefore, if you want to lose weight, pick a diet that’s right for you…and stick to it.
Is it Time to Drop the Pop Habit?
April 25 2012
I used to drink sodas regularly and still do on occasion but I must admit, these occasions are fewer and fewer. I was never a big pop drinker; we rarely buy any for the house; my wife never drinks it and our 4 year old has never even tried the stuff.
The only time I end up having a cola is when I am at a restaurant and the only drink options are alcoholic or colas. I never drink if I have driven or plan to drive in the near future so that leaves me with pop or tap water. As I said, I used to drink colas almost every day but decided a few years back that, for my health, I should cut down on my consumption of pop. Now, the mere taste of a soda turns me off completely. I find that they are irritatingly sweet and frankly I can no longer stomach them.
Ditching cola was easy. And with mounting evidence that soft drinks, both regular and unsweetened, are really not good for you, I am happy I did get them out of my diet. And it’s not just soft drinks; sugar laden “energy drinks” which are hugely popular these days are equally unhealthy. Sure pro athletes everywhere are promoting them regularly as a pick me up and a refresher after a hard work out but that’s just it…after or before a work out an energy drink might be okay.
The fact is soft drinks offer “empty calories” and not much else.
You may enjoy the flavour and you may need the “pick-me-up” of soft drinks, but maybe now is the time to really consider your health and drop the pop.
The goodness of Kale
April 20 2012
My brother was the world’s pickiest eater. It was always white bread toast for breakfast; fish sticks and chips for lunch; and chicken and potatoes for dinner. Now, in his mid thirties, he has a new appreciation of most foods. Surprisingly, one of his new favorite foods is kale. And why not, kale is delicious, nutritious and easily cooked.
I wrote recently about chia and its status as a “superfood”. Well, if we’re talking about superfoods, then kale has to be at the top of the list. High in fiber, Vitamin K, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Calcium and antioxidants, eating kale on a regular basis has to be one of the best things you can do for your health. And…it’s yummy!
Use it in a soup, steam it, sauté it or bake it into kale chips and you can’t go wrong. Check out MealEasy for many awesome kale recipes.
Here’s a quick and simple way to enjoy some kale.
Kale Chips
• 4 cups kale, stems removed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp salt
Preheat the oven to 350F
Remove the tough stems from the kale leaves.
Wash and spin dry in a salad spinner.
Place in a mixing bowl.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle with salt.
Place on a parchment covered baking sheet.
Bake until edges begin to turn brown and leaves are crisp, about 12 minutes.
These will keep for a few days in a tightly covered container.
Next time you go to reach for a bag of potato chips for a snack, try some kale chips instead.
Don’t be afraid of fish
April 18 2012
The health benefits of eating fish have been well documented throughout the years by nutrition experts. Most agree that folks should eat a minimum of one portion of fish a week, while many say eating fish at least three times a week has been proven to be extremely beneficial to our overall health. Yet, most North Americans don’t come close to eating fish that often.
Are we afraid of fish? Is it a lack of knowledge of how to cook fish?
There have been two recent articles about fish and fish consumption that have tackled these questions. This article wonders if the reports of the negative health effects of mercury have people scared to even try fish. While this article thinks it might be a simple case of not knowing where to start when it comes to buying and cooking fish. Well, here’s where MealEasy comes in. With over 300 hundred recipes featuring fish as a main ingredient, all with clear and uncomplicated instructions, we take the mystery out of cooking fish. It’s simple to plan healthy meals using MealEasy.
There are no rules when it comes to cooking fish. In fact, there are a few recommendations in the “Afraid of cooking fish?” article which I don’t agree with; I do like to use olive oil when searing fish and, depending on the fish, think some fish are best served rare or thereabouts. But overall these guidelines are worth following. There’s a riddle I like to ask every new cook I meet: “How many chefs does it take to screw in a light bulb?” The answer: “10. One to screw it in the other 9 to say: “That’s not the way I would have done it.”” My point being, there are as many techniques as there are chefs. The best way is to try different methods and see what works best for you.
Cooking is not an exact science so have fun and don’t be intimidated by new ingredients, especially something as healthy as fish.
Weight Loss or Long Life
April 12 2012
Whether it’s about weight loss or living a longer disease free life, there are certain truths that hold: it’s about diet and it’s about exercise.
Two recent articles found here and here both point out essentially the same things. If you want to live a healthy and long life, you need to get at least 30 minutes of exercise a day and eat healthy and nutritious meals. Now, 30 minutes of exercise a day may sound impossible when you’ve got three kids to get off to school and then feed and help with homework, have to work late because the boss NEEDS this project done ASAP and your partner is busy with his or her chores.
But 30 minutes of exercise a day doesn’t mean you are expected to go out and run 10km. It could be a simple as walking to work. Another recent article I read pointed out that North Americans walk less than any other peoples. Sure, when you have to commute from your home to your office, walking to work just isn’t an option for you. But there are other things you can do: try using the stairs whenever possible; a walk around the mall on rainy days; or, do like I do and ride a bike.
As for diet, it’s really simple. Avoid excess fat, excess calories and excess sodium. How do I do all that you may ask? By planning your meals ahead of time. No more impulse buys at the grocery checkout counter; no more trips to the drive thru; no more fast foods. Now, that’s a bit draconian I know, how about trying to limit all these things and live by the rule: “everything in moderation”. That goes for everything from beer, wine and spirits to desserts. Planning your meals will also help with another important factor when it comes to your longevity…it helps reduce stress. When you know what you’re going to cook for dinner, how long it will take and that you have all the ingredients necessary, it relieves a lot of stress.