CATHY HOLMES

Quick meals can still be nutritious

A recent restaurants and instititutions magazine survey found that at 4 p.m., 70 percent of adults polled didn’t know what they would eat for supper. It’s no wonder the restaurant business is booming, and so are sales of meals in a box or bag. Shoppers say they are looking for foods that are very casy to fix quickly. Convenience comes at a price: meals in a box or bag often include few cents worth of noodles, packets of spices and sauce mix. Consumers add more costly ingredients like meat or milk. Being short on time doesn’t have to mean giving up a good meal. For example, consumers are sometimes fooled into thinking that food has to be hot to be healthy. The fact is that a tuna salad sandwich, fruit or vegetable salad and serving of frozen yogurt can be fast and healthy. It is possible to simplify meal planning and preparation, create a satisfying meal and save money in the process. Stock up on versatile foods and learn what is called speed-scratch cooking, a compromise between home cooking and carry-out meals. For example, combine cut vegetables from the produce section with sliced or cubed meats or cheeses from the deli counter, home cooked pasta and bottled salad dressing to make a pasta salad in a hurry. Here are more time saving short cuts: Cook when you have time. Double or triple a recipe and freeze the extra servings for future meals. Plan to serve hot cooked pasta at one meal; mix left over pasta with deli or salad bar ingredients as a pasta salad the next night or buy a large package of ground meat, cook the meat at one time, then freeze it in family-sized packages that will be ready to use. (Remember to thaw frozen meats in the refrigerator rather than on the counter to keep foods safe.) Plan to buy some prepared foods, such as grated cheese, precut stir fry vegetables, salad mixes, shredded cabbage and precut meats, like beef cubes or boneless, skinless chicken breast strips. Stock the refrigerator with eggs and milk; the freezer with frozen vegetables and protein-rich meats, fish and poultry; and the pantry with canned fruits and vegetables, pasta and rice to speed preparation. Buying some prepared foods is like buying time. In reality, it buys more than time, meals assembled at home usually are lower in calories, fat and sodium. Learn quick-fix methods, such as stir frying: choose pre-sliced or chopped frozen vegetables and meat; cook quickly on top of stove; add oriental seasonings and serve over hot, cooked rice or tex mex seasoning and serve over tortillas to make meals in minutes. POTATO CHOWDER 2 cups canned potatoes
1/2 cup carrots, grated or cut
1/4 cup onion, chopped finely
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 chicken bouillon cubes
3 cups skim milk, scalded
1 tbsp. low-fat margarine
1/4 cup flour In a large Dutch oven or pot, combine potatoes, carrots, onions, salt, pepper and chicken bouillion cubes. Cover with water (if using canned vegetables, use water from can). Cook until tender. Scald milk (heat until tiny bubbles form around the edge of pan). In a separate bowl, combine 1/2 cup of scalded milk with 1 tbsp. margarine and 1/4 cup flour. Stir with fork until smooth. Add the rest of the milk to the vegetables, stir in the thickened milk. Mix well. Simmer for 15 minutes on low heat. Variations: Add bits of leftover vegetables and meat.
Makes five servings.
Nutrition information: One serving provides 254 calories, 2 grams of fat (7 percent), .5 grams unsaturated fat, 10 grams protein, 50 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 2.6 milligrams cholesterol and 492 mg. sodium. CATHY HOLMES is a St. John Parish extension agent for the LSU AgCenter in Edgard. She writes this column regularly for L’Observateur.