Now that you know how to plan healthy meals into your weekly routine, are armed with yummy recipes, and your fridge is stocked with delicious ingredients, you may still find it difficult to take action. Below are some fabulous recipes and tips that will help make your dinner practically cook itself!
Is your tummy rumbling at the end of a long day’s work?
Then a basic crock pot is one of the best time-saving kitchen investments. Throw your ingredients in the pot, and enjoy being greeted by the smell of a simmering dinner ready to eat when you arrive home. Check out:
- This huge variety of 40 Best Slow-Cooker Recipes to Make in Your Crock-Pot from The Pioneer Woman
- 37 Kid-Friendly Crockpot Meals: Easy Family Dinner Ideas – Feasts to slim-down dinners
To have the discipline to wait for meals that may require a tad more preparation, keep some healthy snacks in your car. That way you won’t be so ravenous on your commute home and be tempted to pull in the drive-thru.
Consider snacks that won’t perish too quickly, such as:
- Nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans)
- Dried Fruit (raisins, apricots, cherries, craisins, fruit leathers)
- Granola Bars, Rice Cakes
- Popcorn, Sunflower Seeds
- More Healthy Snacks on the Go: 31 Non-Perishable Noshes That Travel
Now, if you already are home, make the most of your time. Whether you’re writing a report, watching TV, or catching up on housecleaning, make these opportunities to multi-task. For instance, while doing laundry, plug in the crock pot, throw 3 or 4 
sweet potatoes in the oven to bake, or even let a turkey breast roast. You can then eat this pre-prepped food throughout the week.
Try freezing your fresh-cooked vegetables in sealable bags (or even just buy already frozen ones). A simple stir fry on a weeknight is as easy as throwing your vegetables in a pan with some oil, a few tablespoons of bottled stir-fry sauce, and some meat from that turkey you roasted while paying the bills!
With an abundance of fresh fruit this summer, use these same freezing tricks with your juicey summer berries. Freeze 
extra blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, or even sliced peaches in ziploc baggies. For a cool and refreshing breakfast or dinner, put frozen fruit, yogurt, and juice in a blender, and you have an on-the-go or a savor-on-the-patio meal ready in just minutes! Adding a tablespoon of ground flax seed, protien powder, or even tofu will pack an extra punch to your liquid lunch. Have fun and experiment! Check out out these recipes:
- Summer Smoothie Recipe Round-Up: Refreshing & Healthy Ideas – Gainful– not just for kids!
- From Classic to Crazy Smoothies– vegan and dairy-free varieties too!
And here’s a little cheat: If you really can’t bear the thought of making dinner, pick up a fresh salad from store like Whole Foods, or if you’re a meat-eater pick up a rotisserie chicken. Most grocery stores carry these in their deli department. You can eat the chicken as-is the night you pick it up, but you will most likely have plenty of leftovers for these type of chicken dishes:
- Add mayo, mustard, celery, and you have a quick chicken salad for sandwiches or served on a bed of greens. Get really creative by adding dried fruit and nuts!
- Toss chicken in with a jar of tomato sauce, boil some noodles, sprinkle on the parmesan, and you have an Italian feast!
- Pick up a bottle of bbq sauce, and dip the drumsticks in it, and enjoy with the frozen vegetables you have on hand.
Need More Inspiration? Try these:
Mmmm…Getting hungry? Then get cooking! With a few minutes of well-placed preparation you can enjoy easy and healthy feasts any day of the week. Enjoy!
About Real Life E®
Elizabeth Grace Saunders is a time management coach and best-selling author who empowers individuals who feel guilty, overwhelmed and frustrated to feel peaceful, confident and accomplished. She helps people struggling with new levels of responsibility after receiving a promotion or becoming a parent, who aren’t meeting expectations at work, or who need better work-life balance to overcome burnout.
Elizabeth was named one of the World’s Top 30 Time Management Professionals by Global Gurus and is a member of Forbes Coaches Council. McGraw Hill published her first book The 3 Secrets to Effective Time Investment: How to Achieve More Success with Less Stress. Harvard Business Review published her second book How to Invest Your Time Like Money. Elizabeth offers a Christian time management approach through her third book Divine Time Management, published by FaithWords. Elizabeth has written time management articles for Harvard Business Review and Fast Company and has appeared on CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox. Find out more at www.RealLifeE.com
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