Tips for Getting Dinner on the Table During Busy Nights

For many people getting meals on the table on busy weeknights is one of their major stumbling blocks on the road to good health.  Here are a few simple things that you can do to streamline the process and make it easier to prepare weeknight meals.

Strategy #1: Tune Up Your Pantry
If you can't find the food you've stocked, it won't be useful for your weeknight dinners. Overcrowded and messy pantries can make it harder to find what you need as you set out the ingredients for a meal you'd like to cook, and they also create a vicious cycle where you can't find an ingredient that you actually have so you buy it again and add to the clutter that blocked you from seeing the ingredient you needed in the first place.

To give your pantry a deep cleaning, work shelf-by-shelf.  Pull everything off of one shelf, dust away any trash and give the empty shelf a good scrub. Then look at everything you took off that shelf, toss anything that's expired, and donate anything that's not perishable but which you won't use. Organize the rest into categories that make sense to you and put them back in the pantry.  Repeat this process with the remaining shelves.

Strategy #2: Check Your Herbs and Spices
Make sure that the herbs and spices you use most regularly are easily accessible -- eliminating the search for key ingredients will make weeknight cooking a little easier, and every little bit helps.Also, herbs and spices can lose flavor over time, so check your expiration dates and give each jar a sniff to make sure that everything is still aromatic and fresh. Replace any stale spices -- this will help you prepare more flavorful meals that are more likely to be accepted by your whole family, picky eaters and all. Dull spices can ruin a recipe!

Strategy #3: Stock Your Freezer
When you make a recipe, consider doubling it and freezing the rest for another night when all that you have the energy for is removing and reheating. After a few doubled recipes, you'll be well on your way to a stocked freezer that you can rely on in a pinch.
For the complete article with links to additional information see this article from the Food and Health Newsletter.  3 Tips for Easier Weeknight Meals