At the end of last week’s article, I suggested starting a list of ideas that work for you – healthy menu ideas that you can refer to when perplexed about ‘what’s for dinner.’ Since it’s summer, and it’s easy to slip into the long laid-back days, I thought that maybe a list of simple ideas could be a beneficial and handy means of inspiring you to make your own personalized list.

Easy salad ideas

• Refer to A “How To” for Salads that we published in July 2010 to get some basic ideas for building a salad with variety. Once you start making salads a meal, you’ll have the ‘fixin’s’ on hand for a quick meal in minutes.
• Have spinach, romaine, or other dark greens as the base of your salad; dark greens are nutrition super stars.
• Adding sugar snap peas to the top of a salad, or to a stir-fry adds ‘crunch,’ interest and nutrition almost effortlessly.
• Toast some chopped nuts or sunflower seeds for a quick way to increase nutrition and add interest to a salad.

Adding fruits and vegetables to ready made

• Chop bell peppers, onions, eggplant, or zucchini; sauté in a little extra virgin olive oil and add to marinara sauce. Serve over whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, or wheat berries. This is a great way to add more vegetables to the menu of the vegetable adverse.
• Add chopped/diced red bell peppers, celery, halved grapes or grape tomatoes to tuna, salmon or chicken salads. Try my Lemon-Orange Vinaigrette Dressing to reduce mayonnaise.
• Add steamed frozen stir-fry vegetables, fresh pea pods, bell peppers, cabbage or broccoli to Chinese take out; essentially diluting the salty sauce from the take out and increasing the vegetable density.
• Make a veggie snack dip with a cup of nonfat plain Greek Yogurt, and a little onion powder or green onion, paprika, black pepper and a couple teaspoons of lemon juice; a little chopped basil or parsley is nice, stirred into a cup of diced peeled cucumber. Note the lack of fat in a dip. Amazing way to get some dairy without the fat.
• Frozen stir-fry vegetables are a real time saver – keep them in the freezer for that ‘Yikes, what will I make tonight? evening.’ Put the frozen veggies in a wok or large skillet with a little extra virgin olive oil. Stir until cooked, with a little minced garlic or garlic powder. Add a little low sodium soy sauce and a few sprinkles of ground ginger. Add a few shrimps, scallops, or chicken chunks if desired and stir until heated through. Serve over whole-wheat noodles, brown rice or wheat berries.
• Try limejuice on sweet potatoes, yams, papaya and salads. It’s an interesting way to add citrus and reduce the need for butter or salty fatty dressings.

Fruit

• Fruit is such an easy menu or snack item; cutting it seems to make it disappear like magic.
• Sliced, or cubed melon, pineapple, kiwis, papaya add a nice taste variety to any meal.
• Rinsed blueberries, cherries, grapes, strawberries – speed and nutrition – the name of the game.

Whole Grains

• Keep cooked brown rice and wheat berries in the refrigerator or freezer (depending on how fast/often you use it). If it is ready, the cook time won’t slow you down, because you can thaw/warm in the microwave.

Fish

• I’ve recently rediscovered salmon patties from my childhood – relatively inexpensive and yummy. Note: look for wild, with the bone (calcium) not removed. You also may discover that salmon patties are acceptable to children, who sometimes are a little reluctant to eat a piece of fish fillet. Mix a 15-ounce can of salmon with about ¾ cup dry breadcrumbs, 2 eggs, a little black pepper, 1 – 2 tablespoons minced onion or chives, or fresh parsley. Divide into about 5 or 6 balls and flatten and roll into additional breadcrumbs.  Fry in a lightly extra virgin olive oiled non-stick skillet. Serve on a whole wheat thin, if you want it to look something like a burger. Garnish with lettuce, tomato, and pickle, if desired. It really doesn’t need mayo, but a little hummus or avocado is good. Or just serve the patties with steamed vegetables and fruit.
• Put a frozen fillet in a non-stick skillet, coat fish with a little extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with dill weed, lemon pepper or your favorite spices. Heat over a low heat, turning and seasoning the other side once, until fish is opaque or begins to flake. Leave the lid slightly ajar, so that the steam can vent – protecting the fish from steaming and falling apart. Having frozen fish in your freezer is a quick save.

Legumes

• Ready-made hummus in the refrigerator is just waiting to be used as a quick salad dressing; dip, or sandwich spread. It’s an easy way to get more legumes into the diet, while replacing higher fat dressings, spreads and dips.
• Sprinkle rinsed canned beans onto a salad.
• Add a drained can of beans to soups; an easy way to increase protein, fiber and a load of nutrients, without increasing animal foods.

If an idea or two sounds like something you want to do, you can copy this post; erase the items that won’t work for you, or your family. Then save the document, jot down the ideas that pop into your mind; and every time you discover an idea or menu item that works for you, note it to your document. Then the next time a ‘Yikes, what will I make tonight? evening.’ rolls around, you won’t be caught off guard and risk turning to some greasy, salty fast food or restaurant food.