Simple Healthy Foods and Meals in a Hurry
All moms are working mothers whether you choose to work for money outside the home, run a home-based business, or devote all your time to raising your children. And sometimes the last thing a busy mother wants to do between running errands, chasing kids, and/or coming home after a full day of work is to cook a delicious, healthy meal for her family. The temptation is to grab a fast food meal full of calories, saturated fats, sugar and sodium. Or if you're hungry during the day, buy a candy from your work's vending machine or purchasing a chocolate bar while standing in line at the grocery store.
The good news is that you can eat healthy and prepare healthy meals quickly. And even if you don't have time to fully prepare a meal, there are healthier alternatives to the fast food solution.
When There's Absolutely No Time
Shop in your grocer's deli section for a quick meal on the go. Many grocers are set up to get you in and out quickly when you shop in their delis and the delis tend to have healthier foods than the burgers and fries that are staples of fast food restaurants. You probably won't get a meal as healthy as one that is home cooked, but you will get one that provides significantly more nutrients than your local burger joint.
Choose something like a hot and fresh rotisserie chicken. It'll be fully cooked and nicely seasoned. All you'll need to do is serve it with a salad to create a full meal. You can buy prepackaged salads where all you need to do is put them in a bowl. Or you can buy a frozen bag of vegetables designed to be thrown into the microwave as is and be ready to eat in mere minutes. Try to stay away from the fried chicken, creamy sauces, thick gravies and mayo-laden macaroni or potato salads. Greasy potato wedges aren't the best choice either. Some delis offer the better option of mashed potatoes.
The Slow Cooker
Sometimes the longest part of getting a meal ready is preparing the meat. That's where a slow cooker comes in very handy. It allows you to cook the meat while you're at work or running around. The more advanced slow cookers allow you to set the timer on when the food starts cooking. All allow you to determine the temperature and how long the food will cook.
Slow cookers can be used to make many different other meals from soups to vegetarian dishes to complete meals. Some meals require as few as five ingredients, can be prepared the night before in the cooker's removable crock pot, stored in the fridge and placed in the cooker in the morning.
Many modern steamers will allow you to cook rice and other side dishes while you get other chores and tasks done. This eliminates the need to stand directly over the stove to make a meal.
