Good for you meal a family will eat!!!

[ipumpkin]

I have been doing just this for at least 2 years. I should write a book! First of all, are you tracking every calorie you put in your mouth? That's really the trick to losing weight fast. When I log my calories, I will lose like .5 - 1 pound every day! It forces you to be accountable for all the junk you eat.

Anyway,

I LOVE the book Saving DInner by Leanne Ely. There are menus, recipes, shopping lists and most importantly, nutritional info,

check out her website

savingdinner.com

I used that for a year straight and didn't stray much, then we got a bit bored with it and I discovered the Cooking Light magazine. LOVE IT!!!
it's not as much as a no-brainer, but all of the recipes are awesome, some more complicated, some are very easy, but they all are healthy and there are tons of healthier living tips, nutritional info, etc.
check that out at
cookinglight.com

And then I have my easy stand by meals that I fall back on when I am too lazy to think about what we are going to eat...

a pork loin roast (just pop it in the oven and make your veggies)
a bunch of steamed broccoli (dipped in ranch or smothered with cheese for the kids and naughty dh's)
applesauce
and a yam (gobs of butter and cinnamon for the naughty ones)

For you, spray your yam and your broccoli with the fake butter stuff and sprinkle the yam with cinnamon YUM YUM. Pm me if you want other ideas.

[FitMommyOf2]

Eating for Life is an awesome way of healthy eating IMO. Basically it's rule is to a) balance the meals with equal portions of carbs and protein + eating veggies and b) the portions are based on your own size of your hand or fist. (For ex. for a chicken breast, use the flat palm as a guideline, for pasta or rice [[both cooked!] use the size of your fist)

It's really easy to eat clean/healthy if you just pay attention to a few pointers like that and the beauty of it, you can easily switch any kind of 'bad; recipe into something healthy.
-Use fat free milk instead of full fat
-Use cooking spray instead of butter OR 1 Tbsp of olive oil since it's the healthy oil (just be moderate with it )
-Skip drinking any kind of pop or juice. Water and herbal tea is the way to go.
-Go low fat or fat free w/yogurts, sour cream, etc.
-Eat more protein by eating more cottage cheese, egg whites (not whole eggs; the guideline is 4 egg whites + 1 whole egg) etc.

Not sure if this really helped, but for me it's always been easier to sticking to the 'obvious' healthy way vs. some kind of diet like SBD or Atkins [which latter is really bad for you if you do some research!]

Good luck!

[kuppusamy]

We do stir fry's a LOT! You can even use the good for you soba noodles (they are like lo mein noodles only healthier). I use reduced sodium tamari sauce, a few tablepoons. Thin it out with water or stock if you have on hand. Then, I add the juice of lemon, lime, or orange. Heck, I've even used naked margarita mix! Then, add a clove or two of garlic or ginger (either works great). Marinate the chicken, then grill the chicken on the stove. Micro your veggies. Add marinade to pan and let it boil rapidly for at least 10 minutes. Then add your veggies and cooked noodles. You can make more sauce if you want it saucier. I've doubled the sauce too.


I've also used BOCA burgers. Those veggies burgers are low fat and great tasting. For your hubby make some mexi-mayo. Use 1/2 c mayo (light even tastes good here) and 1 teaspoon of cajun seasoning. Wa-la. Then, just heat up some frozen veggies or make more mayo for dip (you could even do 1/2 c mayo and sour cream for a better dip). Also, boca burgers come disguised as a chicken patty from your fave fastfood place.


We grill chicken when it gets to be spring time. I just serve with a green salad. You could chop a few potatoes and stick them in the oven for oven fries - just spray with PAM.


Fajitas are awesome! Just marinade your chicken or grill it naked and add rings of peppers and onions. Serve with tortillas and mexian rice. PM me for my recipe (time inclusive but super tasty - better than your fave mexican resteraunt).

Any of these go great with fresh fruit! I serve our dinners with tap water and lemon wedges. Water is essential for loosing weight
Hope I've given you some ideas!!

[Isabellasmom]

I really like the weight watcher cookbook, I think that it is make it in minutes. It is divided into 3 sections like 10, 20 and 30 minutes(how much time) and the recipes are pretty simple.

One I can think off hand is Turkey Cordon Blue Rolls.

You use turkey cutlets and roll each one with a small piece of lowfat swiss and honey ham.

Roll them and tie them with poultry string, brush them with low fat mayo and them roll in bread crumbs, then sear them in a pan on the stove until browned and then add some lowfat/sodium chicken broth and reduce.

When they are done take the string off and slice, they are sooo good with a veggie.

We also

[ellemenopee]

Salmon - easy, not too expensive really and super quick. Mix 2 Tbl Mayo with 1 TBL grated parmesean, 1Tsp pesto, 1/2 Tsp lime or lemon juice (lime is better) and spoon this on top of fish. Bake for 15 mins at 375.
Serve with Liptons broccoli and cheese pasta (comes in the bags, pasta is curly) and Spinach salad made:
Bagged spinach (baby or regular)
torn cilantro (however much you want but not too much cause it will make the salad taste like soap)
Viva italian dressing
Carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers...whatever else you have to want to add.
This is one of hubby's fave meals. Mine too!

[Sanche]

[lovemysmilingboys]

I'm trying to lose weight but not the rest of the family. I've been fixing recipes from a magazine called Light & Tasty (lightandtasty.com) I LOVE this magazine and almost every recipe I try turns out great and everyone is happy with the meals I make. Tonight I'll be making a salmon chowder...yummy!! Also the recipes are very easy to make and made with ingredients that you have heard of. LOL!