This is the last of the excerpts from my new book, Real Food on a Real Budget. It was taken from Chapter 7- Eat Local, Eat Seasonal. This month one of the topics here at Keeper of the Home is local and seasonal food, so this seemed a fitting topic to share!

*******

In one of my favorite reads this past year, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, she explains the concept of seasonality through a little creation she calls the "Vegetannual.” This incredible (yet completely imaginary) plant is intended to demonstrate the seasonal cycle of vegetable production over the course of the year.

It begins with crisp greens and asparagus in early spring, moves on to the peas, cabbages and cauliflower of later spring. Early summer finds the beginning of summer squash and cucumbers, which as the summer progresses have given way to glorious, plump tomatoes and mouth-watering melons. Late summer we see the arrival of corn and potatoes, and then as fall begins its triumphal entrance, we find winter squash and root vegetables in abundance, ready to see us through the winter.

“Some minor deviations and a bit of overlap are allowed, but in general, picturing an imaginary vegetannual plant is a pretty reliable guide to what will be in season, wherever you live. If you find yourself eating a watermelon in April, you can count back three months and imagine a place warm enough in January for this plant have launched it’s destiny. Mexico maybe, or southern California. Chile is also a possibility. If you’re inclined to think this way, consider what it took to transport a finicky fruit the size of a human toddler to your door, from that locale.

Our gardening forebears meant watermelon to be the juicy, barefoot taste of a hot summer’s end, just as pumpkin is the trademark fruit of late October. Most of us accept the latter and limit our jack-o-lantern activities to the proper botanical season. Waiting for a watermelon is harder. It’s tempting to reach for melons, red peppers, tomatoes, and other late-summer delights before the summer even arrives. But it’s actually possible to wait, celebrating each season when it comes, not fretting about its being absent at all other times because something else good is at hand.

If many of us would view this style of eating as deprivation, that’s only because we’ve grown accustomed to the botanically outrageous condition of having everything, always.”

Barbara Kingsolver, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, pg. 65.

A few years ago I was ignorant to this cycle of plant life and food production. I did not understand that the supermarket tomatoes in March and the melons in December were just simply not the way that food really grows. Nor did I appreciate the difference to be had between foods that were grown out of season and transported thousands of miles for my convenience, compared to those that were grown in season and picked at their peak of ripeness and perfection.

Image by La Grande Farmer's Market

I have come to not only appreciate, but greatly anticipate the arrival of each new season and the produce that it brings. This spring found me eager to savour fresh asparagus and to make salads out of my own garden greens. By summer I was absolutely longing for delicious berries right off the bush, and scrumptious dinners including zucchini, cherry tomatoes and basil straight from my garden.

We’re now in the midst of corn season as I write this chapter and it’s challenging for me to pass by a roadside stand without purchasing any for dinner that week, or to go for a walk in the park without taking twice as long due to stopping to pick almost every single ripe blackberry I see. I watch my neighbour’s apple tree with great expectation, knowing that later this month those apples will be crisp and sweet and mine for the picking. Three cheers for neighbours who don’t want to harvest their own fruit trees.

So how does this all tie in with the fact that we are after food that is not only whole and nourishing, but frugal as well? It’s fairly obvious that seasonal produce has many perks: it is fresher, tastier, contains higher nutrients (because it hasn’t traveled long distances during which its nutrients were lost), and it is a truly wonderful and beneficial thing to support what is being locally produced each season.

Beyond that, though, buying and eating seasonally has many benefits for your pocketbook as well! Food that has not had to travel long distances and is ripe and in abundance quite often comes at a much cheaper price than foods that are not in season. There is a real cost to food transportation and storage, and we pay that cost with our food dollars when we buy based on what we feel like eating, rather than what’s seasonally available to us.

Want to learn more about knowing what's in season and how to find local/seasonal deals? Purchase the book Real Food on a Real Budget!

How does buying local and seasonal impact the way that you shop and eat?

Image by Kanko*

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Real Food Makeover: The Anderson Family
2. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2
3. How to Find Local Sources of Raw Milk
4. How My Garden Grows: July

Today's post is a brief excerpt taken from Chapter 2 of my new book, Real Food on a Real Budget. The chapter explores how we can examine the options and resources available to us, as we seek to find sources of high-quality AND affordable food wherever we live.

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It’s a bit of a game to me. I confess that I love the hunt of finding new resources for getting better and better quality foods on the same budget. I’m always on the lookout for new places to shop, new farmers or local suppliers to get to know, new services or co-ops or bulk suppliers to use.

The beautiful thing is that there are many options out there, if you’re willing to look beyond the doors of your regular grocery store! Here are just a few of the different types of resources there are when it comes to purchasing food:

∞ Direct from the farm

∞ Produce Markets

∞ Small, local shops (meat or deli, specialty grocery, etc.)

∞ Farmer’s Markets

∞ Co-ops or buying clubs

∞ Warehouse Clubs (Sam’s, Costco, etc.)

∞ Conventional grocery stores

∞ Natural/Health food stores

∞ Neighbours or families with small hobby farms

∞ Online stores

∞ CSA’s (community supported agriculture)

I’m sure there are others but these are some of the most common and readily available. You can see that the combinations and the ways that one might source out their food from these different options are endless!

For most of us, not all of these options are available. For instance, I am able to buy directly from a great produce market, but up until this past summer there wasn’t a farmer’s market within less than a 30 minute drive.

I currently live close enough to the US border (and have family who live there as well), which gives me access to a fantastic natural foods co-op. Should I move away from where we live now, that will cease to be an option for me and I will have to look into other options for buying many of my bulk foods, such as a going to a health food store or purchasing online and having my orders shipped to me.

It’s a matter of taking stock of your options, how worthwhile each of those options are, and then determining how you will use those to source out the food that your family needs.

A Few Good Places to Start... (the really practical stuff, but you gotta get the book to read it! :)

Would you like to read more? Purchase Real Food on a Real Budget today, in either a paperback or digital version.

Image by NatalieMaynor

What type of creative options have you found as resources for purchasing real, whole foods? How did you find them?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Nutritional Foundations: Finding high quality sources for a whole foods diet
2. How to Find Local Sources of Raw Milk
3. Real Food Makeover: The Anderson Family
4. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family

Written by Anne Elliot, Contributing Writer

I first learned about the benefits of raw milk ten years ago. It was obviously God’s leading and guidance because I wasn’t looking for it. I didn’t even know you could buy milk that hadn’t been pasteurized or homogenized. I didn’t know all the benefits that would come when our family switched to raw milk.

One day, in the providence of God, I “accidentally” clicked on the Weston A. Price website after a Yahoo search. I remember voraciously reading everything on their website, which eventually ended in our family beginning to drink raw milk. We’ve never gone back to that ol’ store-bought stuff!

However, we’ve lived in four states since that time. Each time we move, it’s very difficult to find a new source of raw milk. The first time, raw milk was legal in our state. A wonderful, Christian farmer delivered it right to my door each week for only $2 per gallon, often taking it right into my kitchen for me.

In the second state, milk was legal but dairy farms were few and far between. We had a sick daughter who depended on quality milk for her health, so we purchased milk from a faraway dairy and had it delivered by UPS to our door. As you can imagine, the rest of us didn’t drink much milk at all because of the expense!

In the third state, the sale of raw milk was illegal, but we were close enough to the state line to be able to drive into the next state to purchase the milk legally. Where I live now, our laws require that I drive to the farm with my own milk containers and leave a donation for the milk.

With all the varying laws and the general public fear of raw milk’s safety, it can be difficult to find milk. It can be intimidating to even try. However, with a little persistence, you also can find a great local source of raw milk and provide one of the best foods on the planet to your family. Here are some steps to follow:

1. Learn the current laws where you live.

• Real Milk - scroll down for summaries by state
• The Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund

2. Find a farmer.

Depending on where you live, you have several options. I always begin by calling my local Weston A. Price chapter leader. This person will be well informed on farmers who might sell raw milk in your area.

Another option would be to see if any local farmers have a listing on www.localharvest.org.

You might try talking to farmers at your local farmer's market, or maybe some local Amish or Mennonite families who know of someone who raises cows. It's even a good idea to just get in the car and drive around, asking anyone you see if they know of any dairy farmers who might sell directly to you.

Please don't forget to pray! At one time, we badly needed some milk but didn't know how to find it. My little son boldly asked God for a cow! I laughed, but then I remembered that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Finding a little dairy farm is nothing to Him! Sure enough, God answered his prayer quickly. He delights in answering your prayers, too.

3. Determine if the milk you find is of good quality.

Most of the fears over raw milk can be answered by common-sense cleanliness. RawUsa's website has many suggestions for determining if a farm produces safe milk. My own local farmer's wife told me, though, two basic things to watch for:

Does the farm look basically clean and kept up?

Are the cows out on pasture when possible, eating green grass like God intended for them?

4. Maintain a good relationship with your farmer.

Once you find a farmer who will sell raw milk to you, be sure to treat him respectfully. Be on time if you'll be meeting him at his farm, since he has a zillion other jobs to do besides providing you with yummy milk. If you use his equipment to fill your own containers, clean up after yourself when you're done. Ask him for permission before telling others about his farm, especially if your state's laws are more stringent. Don't allow your children to wander around his farm without permission. Most of all, pay him well! After all, we want to encourage more farmers to sell directly to consumers!

Many of these ideas work for anything local that you want to find, from grass-fed meat, to eggs, to fresh produce. Do your homework, ask God for help, and treat others like you would want to be treated.

May you find the best food this year!

Does your family drink raw milk? How did you find a good, clean source of milk to purchase?

Anne is a pastor's wife and homeschooling mom to seven sweet kiddos, all living in southern Minnesota. Her passion is trying to discover what the Bible says about almost every topic affecting moms, and she blogs about it at http://anneelliott.com/blog.

Image from istockphoto

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Raw Milk Substitute for Cultured Dairy Products
2. Nutritional Foundations: Finding high quality sources for a whole foods diet
3. Raw milk controversy rages on
4. Don’t Cry Over Sour Milk (Using Your Raw Milk Gone “Bad”)

I am so excited to introduce my newest book to you!

Real Food on a Real Budget has been a bit like having two babies in one year... first, we welcomed Johanna into our family this August. Within a week of her birth, while being told "sit down, rest, stop getting up!" by my loving hubby and midwife, I launched into writing this book.

Just about 9 months later, after much brainstorming, countless hours spent writing (and deleting and then writing again), many late nights and much anticipation, my labor of love is finally finished...

Why I Wrote This Book

As I was brainstorming in those early days, I was trying to think of what would be the most relevant topic I could write on, but it had to be a topic that I knew intimately. In both the USA and Canada, families everywhere have been experiencing the effects of recession and financial struggle. For many families, budget constraints and figuring out how they can save money are of the utmost priority.

I understand this well. 5 years ago, we were living on a minimum wage salary with a new baby. In recent years where we have lived very frugally in order to save up to start our own family business, as our young family continued to grow. This year we are in the process of starting that business, which takes a whole lot of patience and willingness to go without, as you pour every bit of profit back into building up the business.

We have always had a tight grocery budget. We spend 30% less on food than the average family.

And yet, day in and day out, I blog about whole foods, better nutrition, Nourishing Traditions, and tell you that you should be buying higher quality meat, and raw milk, and organics, and so on. How can we afford to eat like this when we're always pinching pennies and watching the budget so closely?

Real Food on a Real Budget is a primer for real families, just like yours, to show you how it is possible to eat real food without spending a fortune.

I am not only passionate about teaching better nutrition and what you should be eating. I wanted to create something that you help enable you to learn how you can actually afford to do this. I believe strongly that healthy living should be accessible and affordable for everyone!

Want to Learn More About the Book?

For a much more detailed explanation of the book, including a brief preview that you can download to take a little peak inside, please visit the promo page:

Learn more about Real Food on a Real Budget

A Few Thank You's

No one ever writes a book alone. If they do, I don't know how they do it!

I am so grateful to the Lord for allowing me to write this book. I am continually amazed and humbled that He has given me the opportunity to run this blog, to know the incredible women who visit here, and to work at something that I love so much, getting to share my beliefs and passions and hopefully encourage women and families. This is all from Him and for Him.

Without my husband, this book would not exist. Literally. You know the phrase, "behind every great man there is an even greater woman"? The opposite is true in our family! He makes sure I get time to write. He encourages me to keep going. He tells me (lovingly) when what I wrote stinks and needs to be re-written, and then beams at me with pride in his eyes when I come back to him with something better. He worked tirelessly to edit and format and prepare this book so that it would be as perfect as possible when you rest your eyes upon it. Thank you, my love!

To my kids, for being gracious when mommy had to work. I love you all like crazy. Abbie, that date with mommy is coming this week, you just wait!

To my incredible designer, Karla Porter of Fruition Designs. I gave her a few vague ideas for this book cover, but I was fairly directionless. The cover you see is the very first draft of what she sent to me. Perfect from the start! I love it, Karla! Thank you!

To my dear friend Jessica, who loves to correct my grammar and tell me I used "it's" the wrong way. :) Thank you for the amazing grasp of the English language that you brought to my book, and for letting me repay in friendship.

To all those who read and reviewed the initial copy- too many to mention, but all of you real foodies and bloggers know who you are. Your feedback was so valuable for me.

Lastly, to my readers, who gave me grace when the book took 4 months longer than I thought it would and just kept gently asking, "Are you still writing that book?" Last night, my husband and I were praying for you all, that this book would impact you and your families, helping you to better steward both your health and your finances, to bring glory to God. I appreciate you all so much!

An Introductory Special

Because I want to see as many people as possible get this book, I'm running a launch week special on it!

The book will regularly sell for $24.95 (digital copy) or $29.95 plus shipping (paperback copy). As a 280-page book, bursting at the seams with tips and ideas to revolutionize your grocery budget and how you feed your family, it's well worth it.

By implementing just a few of the suggestions from the book, you could easily save the cost of the book in one month, or even one shopping trip. If you really put it's suggestions into practice, you should expect to save literally $100s and possibly much more over the course of a year, or start purchasing all the "expensive" real foods you want to serve your family, without a jump in your budget.

For this week, though, I'm offering it at a 25% discount...

Buy a digital copy   $24.97 $18.97

Buy a paperback copy   $29.97 plus $3.99 shipping $25.97 with free shipping (by using coupon code: FREESHIP to save the shipping at checkout)

**Note that this code is provided by Lulu.com, not by Keeper of the Home. If you have any troubles with the code, please email and let me know!**

I hope you love it and that it transforms what you eat and how much you spend!

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Upcoming: Four Families are Going to Get a Real Food Makeover!
2. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2
3. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family
4. Real Food Makeover: The Anderson Family

This week's makeover is for the Woody Family. There is mom Stephanie, dad Josh and children Delaney (5), Dawson (3), & Finn (2).

How They Currently Eat:

This family particularly touched me with the email they sent me to be chosen as one of the makeover families. Here is an excerpt from it:

Our journey to being a whole food family is much harder than I anticipated.  My wife and I are great planners and dreamers, but the process of doing and finishing, or sometimes even starting, leaves us wanting.  We love to read about and understand the benefits of a whole foods life.  They are numerous and, we believe, life-changing.   And yet we struggle week in and week out making these changes.

I imagine that there are heads nodding all over the blogosphere. We can all relate to that, can't we?

This family is willing to try new things, and yet they struggle with falling into old habits, not planning adequately, and when time runs short, they turn to processed or fast food. It is such a common struggle.

Though they definitely do eat some real, whole foods, there are a lot of convenience foods mixed in there (chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, toaster strudels, boxed cereals). Too heavy on the grains, not enough veggies. They use real butter (yay!), but want to improve the quality of their meat. They try to use whole grains, but a lot of times they don't.

Their Goals:

To make changes that will stick! They want this to become a lifelong change, even if it's slow and steady, so that it becomes a way of living, and not just something that they try for a while and then give up on.

Mom and Dad would both like to lose some weight. Mom has also struggled with increasing levels of depression after having each successive baby. They would also like to deal with some present and possible allergies (they run in the family), and prevent them from getting out of control.

Most importantly, they want to get on track with planning and preparing healthier meals in a consistent way and keep up the motivation to continue on with these changes. Overall better health and more real, homemade food is a major goal for this family!

Time for Their Real Food Makeover!

3 Baby Steps for Them to Take:

1. As a family, decide on some ways to further educate themselves, and also to motivate themselves to make these changes

2. Get rid of most of the processed/convenience foods that they are eating.

3. For Stephanie, begin to have 1 planning session and 1 prepping session each week.

Image by gusilu

Education and Motivation- They Make All the Difference!

As I read through their answers to my questions and prayed about what to say, the biggest thing that kept coming to mind is that for this family, it's not necessarily about changing their meat or soaking their grains or eating more vegetables (although those are all good steps that they should ultimately take).

What they're seeking is a lifestyle change... a way to really make these changes become the new normal for their family.

I've been there. In my experience, the only thing that kept me going when I began to make healthier changes was becoming educated about WHY I was making the changes, and having something that truly MOTIVATED me to change.

Ways to Educate Yourself:

1. Watch some eye-opening videos that will underscore the importance of these changes, like Supersize Me, Food Inc., or Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution.

2. Read, read, read. Some of the books that I have found to be very accessible and challenging are The Maker's Diet, What the Bible Says About Healthy Living, Real Food: What to Eat and Why, and Nourishing Traditions (though this one is definitely a bigger jump- start with some of the others first, perhaps).

3. Go through some real food basics, in bite-sized chunks. DON'T try to read through or tackle these things all at once. Just pick some topics of interest and start learning. Here are a few places to start:

• Nutritional Foundations- My own series that works systematically through the grocery store, discussing food options and some of the why's behind what I do and don't recommend
• Nourishing Foundations- From the Nourishing Gourmet, a selection of posts on various topics to do with real food, like grains, raw milk, natural sweeteners, etc.
• Beginner's Tour- From the Weston A Price Foundation website, an intro into who they are and what they believe about foods and health.
• Monday Mission Checklist- From Kitchen Stewardship, a fantastic list of posts on a large variety of real food topics, with baby steps to take and information on why you should makes these changes

Dad (Josh) with Delaney

Getting Motivated

For me, it was health issues that drove me to make changes. What will motivate this family to keep walking down this road?

I think that spending some time together as a family, discussing the reasons why you want to do this, would be so valuable. Write a list of what you come up with, including everybody's ideas (especially the kids!). Post the list up in a prominent place, like on the fridge, where you will all see it often and be reminded of the reasons why you are making these changes.

While you're at it, you should discuss some of your goals. Which areas would you like to work on first? What foods would you like to eat more/less of? What health results would you like to see? Post these up as well, alongside your reasons for making these changes.

In fact, you can increase motivation by making some tangible goals as a family and establishing some sort of family reward. Perhaps if you can make it through a week without any processed, convenience foods, you can make homemade popcorn and have a family fun night. Or a month of zero fast food runs equals a trip to the zoo or aquarium! If everyone knows that a special treat is riding on achieving your goal, then you will all work harder to stick to it and hold each other accountable!

Start Some New Food Traditions

Food habits are often related to our traditions, our relationships, our celebrations, and things that feel familiar or comforting to us. These can be hard to let go of. I know this, because many of the foods that I grew up eating, although I know in my head that I shouldn't eat them, are still a major struggle to say no to when they are offered or accessible to me. Old habits die hard.

Making new traditions can be a powerful way of creating positive associations with foods that are good for you, instead of ones that aren't. By establishing new family traditions, like special meals or a Saturday morning routine, real foods begin to have a more important place on your family table.

Simple Mom gives a great example of how real foods can be incorporated into a special family night. Why not choose a night each week when you can cook a meal together, enjoying the process, rather than feeling rushed like you might on other nights? Make Saturday mornings a leisurely time when you make soaked, homemade pancakes or waffles, with fresh berries.

Image by smittenkittcnorig

Planning and Prep Times

One of the best ways to ruin a good diet is to get hungry and realize that there's nothing quick and simple to eat. Not knowing what to make for the next meal and not having snacks or easy foods ready when you need them.

Make a time each week to plan- It will take about 1-2 hours at first, but gradually it will get easier and faster. See my makeover for the W family, for detailed suggestions and links for getting set up to meal plan in a more effective way.

Make a time each week to do food prep- This is also very important for a busy mama who doesn't want to resort to convenience foods. This can be chopping veggies, washing and ripping lettuce, pre-cooking meats, cooking large amounts of beans and freezing them, making baked goods like muffins or bread, making large batches of homemade granola.

Consider Once-a-Month cooking (or a variation of it)- Another useful thing to do is to make freezer meals, so that there can be some nights when dinner is as simple as thawing something in the morning and popping it in the oven that afternoon. This can be done by taking a half day or a day each month to make as many meals as you can. It can also be done by doubling or tripling meals once or twice a week, so that you can always have a few extra meals to pull out when you need them.

Get more efficient in the kitchen- The Nourishing Gourmet has had a couple of great posts lately on learning to increase efficiency and speed in food preparation. This is a skill that every busy mama needs! Check out her posts The Pemmican Principle of Food Preparation for Time Efficiency and 4 Tips for Increasing Your Work Speed in the Kitchen.

Just to help them even more with applying these suggestions to their lives, this family will be receiving:

• A copy of my ebook, Healthy Homemaking: One Step at a Time
• A 1 year Print Membership from ListPlanIt, to aid them in getting organized in the kitchen, with meal planning and with grocery shopping. Thanks, ListPlanIt!

What motivates you to stick with your health-related goals and eating habit changes?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family
2. Real Food Makeover: The Anderson Family
3. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2
4. Upcoming: Four Families are Going to Get a Real Food Makeover!

This is a continuation of last week's makeover for the Anderson family.

This week I want to share a sample menu plan. It won't look quite as specific as the menu plan for the W family, because mom Andi is already a regular menu planner and has certain meals/themes that she uses each week, so instead I'm going to make a lot of overall suggestions.

In the first post, I discussed how her biggest priority is to make things that will help her husband with some health problems and to be able to lose some weight, but also that he will like. He really wants to be on board with making healthy changes, but finds it hard to change his food preferences. My suggestions are geared towards helping her to help him change what he eats, in a very manageable and gradual way, so that the changes will stick rather than be thrown out the window.

A Sample Weekly Meal Plan

Breakfasts:

The family sticks with a regular breakfast schedule each week, so I'm going to simply suggest some small ways to change and improve it.

Mon-Thurs: Cold cereal with milk, and a bread item (toast, bagel, etc.)

Friday: Biscuits and gravy

Saturday: Go out for breakfast wraps every other week

Sunday: Eggs, toast, hashbrowns, sausage/bacon

There are a few things that can be done here. The first is to simply add/substitute some other foods, while keeping this basic framework in place. A few good changes to make would be:

• Try making a homemade granola and substituting that for store bought cereal a couple times each week. Here are a few recipes that might work well. This is the soaked granola recipe that we enjoy, but there are lots of granola recipes out there. Also, see my discussion on buying cold cereals.
• Add more protein to the M-Th breakfast- peanut butter or almond butter on toast, a hardboiled or fried egg, a small bowl of yogurt, some cheese, etc. This helps to balance out the blood sugar high from all the carbs, and filing up more on protein might help to slowly decrease how many carbs are being consumed.
• Try adding a piece of fruit or a simple fruit smoothie each day. It can be something as easy as an orange or a couple slices of melon. The fruit smoothie could be some plain yogurt, frozen or fresh berries, a banana and some honey.
• Fridays could easily be improved by adding some protein as well, like eggs or breakfast meat. An omelet would be a great addition, with one or two finely chopped veggies (peppers, mushrooms, asparagus, zucchini, or even just herbs).
• Instead of going out for breakfast wraps, make them yourself! We love to make these using sprouted or whole grain tortillas, scrambled eggs, boiled potatoes, grated cheese and salsa or sour cream (or both).
• For any of the weekend breakfasts, a dish like Baked oatmeal might be a tasty way to try to add some variety. If the family really doesn't like the soaked version, you could try it unsoaked like this instead.
• Another way to substitute the cold cereal/toast routine is with hot (soaked) oatmeal . Try it just once a week, add lots of nice toppings to it to make it appealing (milk/cream, honey, dried or fresh fruit, nuts, etc.), and see how it goes!

The other way to improve upon breakfast is to improve specific ingredients that are used (the type of bread, eggs, milk, etc.) but I will get into this in a few moments.

Image by thebittenword

Lunches:

Andi makes bagged lunches for her husband each day (good for her!). He's a man who likes routine, and his standard lunch is a PB sandwich, some crackers or chips, and a banana.

The main problem with this lunch (especially for him) is the predominance of carbs and the lack of protein and more nutrient-rich foods. I would start to slowly change this by choosing one aspect of the lunch at a time. Don't try to change the sandwich and the chips and the banana at the same time, but pick just one element.

If it's the sandwich, try different ingredient combos. Perhaps meat and cheese with mayo and lettuce, or a wrap with shredded chicken. Last week I linked to some fun sandwich variations in the Lunch discussion. These might inspire, and hopefully you can come up with some ideas that your hubby would enjoy!

For the crackers or chips, I would suggest trying to find things that are salty, crunchy or a better homemade grain snack. Muffins might work well, and you can make them with things like zucchini (toss in a few chocolate chips), carrot, applesauce, berries, etc. Other ideas are veggie sticks with a dip, a bag of trail mix, homemade crackers or cookies, or even occasionally something like Terra Chips (made with veggies like sweet potatoes, parsnips and beets, these are surprisingly tasty, though the oils still aren't the best).

It would be good to see more variety with the fruit as well. Bananas are so portable, I understand. But so are apples and pears, oranges (mandarins are nice), grapes, kiwis, strawberries, or even a few slices of melon in a container.

As for her and the boys at home, they usually do sandwiches, leftovers or pasta. I think leftovers are a fantastic way to keep lunch nutritious but quick!

This would be a good time for her to get more adventurous, to help the boys develop an appreciation for some new foods! She could serve things like yogurt with fruit and homemade granola or nuts and seeds, salmon or tuna melts, fruit salad, wraps with finely chopped veggies (if they're hard for little hands to hold, serve the filling in a bowl with the wrap alongside it).

Pasta is a great place to add in veggies, like some diced tomatoes or peppers, grated zucchini, peas, etc. and make sure to include some protein as well. Another quick and easy option is cheese quesadillas, which can include beans (refried or whole), a good food to teach the boys to eat.

Dinners:

Andi currently has a great system where she uses themes to plan out her dinners (beef, meatless, chicken, etc.). I'm going to leave her to what she's doing in that regard.

Instead, I want to offer some husband-friendly but more nutritious recipe ideas. Though I'm fortunate to have an adventurous hubby who goes along with my crazy experimenting, he also really enjoys "meat and potato" kind of comfort meals. I have learned to tailor what I make so that the meals are up his alley, but the ingredients are top-notch, the methods are traditional, and the veggies are abundant.

Here is a list of meals/recipes that I think might work in Andi's repetoire:

• Spinach Rice Casserole
• Macaroni and Cheese Casserole with Cauliflower (add tuna or salmon or chicken)
• Piled High Chicken Potpie
• Meatloaf with a side of rice and a vegetable
• Chicken Divan
• Roast Beef in the crockpot with potatoes and carrots and homemade biscuits,
• Homemade pizza
• Turkey and Cheese Stromboli
• Fajitas (beef or chicken) or bean/rice/cheese burritos
• Addictive Sweet Potato Burritos (maybe these will go over well on meatless night?)
• Taco Salad.
• Spaghetti with tomato sauce (our favorite sauce recipe)
• Beef Stew
• Chili and cornbread
• Bierocks (bread pockets with ground beef/cabbage filling- very tasty!)
• Cheesy Beef and Rice with a salad (some good options- coleslaw, Greek Salad, green salad or broccoli salad
• Zucchini Spaghetti Bake
• Shepherd's Pie (with lots of veggies added in!)

I also think it would be a great goal for the Anderson's to start eating at least 1 fresh (not canned) veggie per night, and a fresh salad once a week. My post on how to cook vegetables is a good place to start, including lots of yummy recipe links. Some of the more complex dishes like Cauliflower Casserole might make for easy transitions into eating more fresh vegetables.

Image by Theodore Scott

Replacing Like With Like

You may have noticed a theme during this week's suggestions... to replace like with like.

By this, I simply mean that you take what you currently eat and find similar, but more nourishing, options to replace it with. Do it a little at a time, slowly improving different aspects of each meal, and gradually you will find that your diet has become much healthier, but in a fairly painless manner.

I mentioned above that the other main way to improve what they eat is to replace certain ingredients with better versions of the same one. This is a concept I've discussed before in my Nutritional Foundations series. The very first place to begin to make changes can be simple- by cooking and eating the same types of foods, but making the change at the time of buying the food instead!

Here are the top 3 places that I would suggest the Anderson family start with replacing foods:

1. White, refined grains with whole grains
2. Conventional beef with grass-fed beef
3. Milk with raw, grass-fed milk

Next priorities after these could be finding a source of free-range eggs, and then beginning to switch over to natural sweeteners instead of refined ones. This post is a good starting place for finding resources where you can purchase better quality foods where you live.

Just one more thing...

I said it in the first makeover, and I'll say it again. It would be worthwhile to add cod liver oil as a supplement for all of the family members. I've linked to a good information page on the Weston A. Price Foundation website, which can do the soapbox preaching about the merits of cod liver oil for me so that I don't need to be a broken record.

To further help the Anderson family with their Real Food Makeover, they will also be receiving:

• A copy of my ebook, Healthy Homemaking: One Step at a Time
• A 1 year Print Membership from ListPlanIt, to aid them in getting organized in the kitchen, with meal planning and with grocery shopping. Thanks, ListPlanIt! I should have known that Andi (the faithful meal planner) would be the one mom who already uses a ListPlanIt membership, but nonetheless, hers has been renewed for the next year.

What are some of your favorite husband-friendly, comfort food type meals? Have you used the concept of "replacing like with like" at all in your own journey towards better health and nutrition?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Real Food Makeover: The Anderson Family
2. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2
3. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family
4. Recipes and Ideas for What to Eat on the GAPS Introduction Diet

I am just loving these makeovers! They are long and take more work than my usual posts, but to me, there is nothing like really digging in and getting practical for particular families. Are you enjoying these posts, too? I pray that they are a blessing, for both the families involved, and those that read them as well!

This week's family is the Andersons. There is Andi (mom), Jesse (Dad) and two little cutie pies, Corbin (2) and Callan (just turning 1).

How they currently eat:

The first thing that I noticed when I read through their questionnaire answers is that they eat a significant amount of grains and starches (most of them refined as well), lots of protein (but the same types- not much variety), and very little fruits and vegetables. When they do eat veggies, they are usually canned.

Dad is a real meat and potatoes kind of guy, and isn't particularly adventurous when it comes to eating. Mom used to be, but it's tough to cook that way when not everyone will eat it. So far, their boys are not picky, which is definitely a huge plus!

Their goals:

Mom is a wonderful meal planner, but she knows that she needs to take that structure and add in some better foods for her family. They need to stick to their budget, but figure out how to get higher quality and fresher foods. They would like to find some more real food resources in their area (Lubbock, TX).

Dad's health is struggling, and he would like to lose some weight and get his blood sugar levels down, as he is at high risk for diabetes right now. Mom would really like to get back to being healthier, but most of all wants to help her hubby and find ways to make foods that he (and the boys) really LOVE, that will be better for them all.

Time for Their Real Food Makeover!

3 Baby Steps for Them to Take:

1. Decrease their consumption of grains and starches, particularly refined (white, processed) grains.
2. Increase their vegetable and fruit intake, especially more fresh produce (as opposed to canned).
3. Add better variety to their protein options, for more well-rounded nutrition.

Not only are these good steps to take in general for the whole family, but they will also serve their health goals for Jesse. By decreasing refined grains and starches, he will be able to lose some weight (which will help with the diabetes risk). Additionally, improving their protein intake will help his body to get more of the important nutrients that it needs, while balancing out his grain intake and keeping his blood sugar levels more steady. These are just beginning steps to take, but they are important ones.

Image by floodkoff

Let's Talk About Feeding Husbands

This is a tricky subject, but it is certainly not impossible to be able to help your husband learn to appreciate more real, fresh foods and eat a better balanced diet!

There are two main things that I think are important to keep in mind:

• Your husband is a grown man, able to make his own decisions. He is the leader of the home and deserves respect. He needs encouragement not criticism, and needs you to work with him, not just try to force him to change.
• Changes happen best s-l-o-w-l-y. If you can help him by changing things little by little, bit by bit, he will most likely come around and begin to eat more and more real foods than you ever thought possible.

There are lots of ways to get our men eating better, without pulling the rug out from under them and changing the foods they like to eat overnight. One is by simply talking with them about changes that you would like to make, and asking which ones sound like the most feasible changes to start with. Work as a team. Bring them on board. Let them be a part of the decision making.

Try finding out if there are some things that he is not ready to compromise on or change at all yet. Let him keep a few of his absolute favorites. This will help him feel better about the things that are changing.

Ask for his input as you create a list of meals/recipes that you would like to make. Get him to rate meals on a scale, so that you know what to include more often. Make sure that as you meal plan, each week includes some of his favorites and then it will be easier on him when you also include a couple things that are new or not as preferred.

Start by sneaking the good stuff in. I'm generally not in favor of the whole concept of getting our families to eat good foods in a deceptive manner. HOWEVER, when family members are used to the taste of processed, convenience foods or simply haven't acquired a taste for wholesome foods like fresh veggies, you need to help them out.

One of the easiest ways to sneak in vegetables is to grate or puree them first (works well with carrots, zucchini, peppers, sweet potato or squash, etc.). Next, add them in to more complex dishes, like meatloaf or meatballs, burrito or taco fillings, chili, meat/potato stews, tomato pasta sauces, etc. They won't be particularly noticeable, but here's the thing: by adding more and more in gradually you can help to change tastebuds (hubby) and mold and shape little tastebuds (adorable boys). As you increase the amount of good stuff in the recipes you make, they will become accustomed to the taste of wholesome, fresh veggies and then, the sky begins to be the limit!

As well, check out my post on cooking and serving vegetables yesterday. I offer some simple cooking methods, and lots of tasty vegetable side dish recipes. And always remember, if they're balking at eating the veggies you prepare, just add grated cheese. Cheese covers a mutitude of sins.

Here are a couple of previous posts I've written on feeding our husbands, which I think are helpful:

Making Healthy Changes When Your Husband Isn't On Board

Good in the Kitchen

Image by peet-astn

Increasing Vegetable and Fruit Intake

Priority number one is to switch from canned veggies to fresh veggies, for a few reasons. First, canned veggies are processed at high temperatures and lose many of their nutrients in the process. Second, they often have additives like preservative, salt, sugar, etc. Third, canned foods have BPA in their linings, a chemical you definitely want to avoid. Fourth, they just don't taste very good and if I only had the choice of eating canned veggies, I probably wouldn't be very keen on them either.

I know that fresh produce can cost significantly more than canned vegetables, but this doesn't have to be the case. Grocery stores have notoriously expensive produce. Get out of your regular grocery store, and find a produce market or farmer's market instead. I used the search at www.eatwellguide.org, and came up with a couple of options- Apple Country Farmer's Markets or Sunburst Farm Markets, both with two locations in Lubbock. Try one of these to start with, and if they are anything like the ones in my area, you will find an abundance of fresh, beautiful produce at prices much lower than a conventional supermarket.

Similar to what I suggested in the first Real Food Makeover, these are some excellent but manageabel goals for including more vegetables and fruits in your diet:

• Have at least 1 fresh vegetable with each dinner
• Include at least 1 salad in each weeks' menu plan (this can even be something like Caesar salad or iceberg lettuce salad in the beginning, and then progress to some other options down the road)
• Serve one type of fruit for either breakfast or lunch each day. Apples, peaches, berries, kiwi, melon, pears, oranges... anything! Fruit salads can be a nice way to get these in, as can fruit smoothies, or simply a plate of cut fruit.

We'll continue on later this week with a one week meal plan, lots of recipe suggestions, and some more ideas for switching some of their current foods choices over to more real, whole foods, especially some that are much more nutrient-dense.

How do you cook in a healthy way that also pleases your husband? What are your best suggestions for getting more vegetables and fruits into your family?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family
2. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2
3. Upcoming: Four Families are Going to Get a Real Food Makeover!
4. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: Planning to Make Food Preparation Happen

"I know we should eat more vegetables, but..."

This is a common refrain. I bet you've even said it yourself. Vegetables tend to be one of the most under-appreciated parts of the food kingdom, and sadly, one that very few people have learned to truly incorporate into their regular eating habits.

The video above is a clip from a recent episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution (one of the few things worth watching on tv!). Watch this brief segment to see that today's children are utterly lacking in even the most basic of knowledge about the abundance of vegetables that our kind Creator has given us for our health and enjoyment. It is both shocking and revealing of our culture's eating habits, just how uneducated these 6 year olds are in the realm of vegetables.

As I watched, I suddenly felt so grateful that my 5 year old could have quickly and easily named each of these colorful veggies. The reason why? Because after years of neglecting these nutritious gems, I have finally learned how to cook vegetables, and cook them well, in ways that are quick, simple and that we consistently enjoy (and yes, even my children and my husband!).

Two Simple Methods for Preparing Practically Any Vegetable

Steaming:

Steaming, rather than boiling, is preferable because there is less nutrient loss and quite frankly, the taste and texture are just that much better. Please (please), don't use your microwave. Let me teach you the simple stovetop method.

You'll need a pot and a colander that fits it. A metal pop-up steamer like this works well and will fit inside a mid-sized pot.

You could also use a tiered pot set, that comes with a steamer piece that has handles, similar to this one.

The basic method for steaming is to add a couple inches of water to the bottom of the pot and bring the water to a boil. Then place the steamer full of vegetables over top of the steaming water, put a lid on top and set a timer for the appropriate amount of time.

Depending on the vegetable, you will need to let it steam for as little as just a few minutes, or more commonly about 5-15 minutes. Here is a chart that lists most vegetables and how long they need to be steamed for (just ignore the microwave directions!).

What to steam? Almost anything! Carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, asparagus, cabbage, brussel sprouts, corn, greens, sweet potato... pretty much anything you can think of.

Don't leave your vegetables naked once they've been steamed, or you will probably find that they still don't taste as good as you'd like. I know we've been told so many times to stop using all that butter, but it's bad advice. Put some butter on your vegetables, and yes, a good sprinkle of salt, too (just try to make it an unrefined sea salt). Vegetables taste best and their nutrients are most easily assimilated when the are served with some good, old-fashioned fat.

For some other ideas, here are 8 Ways to Perk Up Steamed Veggies.

Image by Sandy Austin

Pan Cooking

This is my favorite method of preparing veggies because it is fast, simple and makes only one dirty dish (not that rinsing out a pot and colander is difficult, either). Mushrooms, asparagus, zuchinni, snap peas, green beans, onions... yum.

Here is my oh-so-technical method of pan cooking veggies: Chop veggies up (or for something like asparagus, leave whole but break off the fibrous bottoms). Warm up the pan to medium heat and melt a couple tablespoons of oil (butter, coconut oil, tallow or lard- they all work well). Toss the veggies in, and give them a bit of a stir/flip every few minutes. Once the vegetables have softened, they're done. Usually it takes under 10 minutes.

Depending on what I'm making and what we're in the mood for, I sometimes add some herbs, spices or other flavorings. We love to eat mushrooms fried with some butter, soy sauce and maple syrup (don't knock it til you've tried it!). For asparagus, I usually add butter, lemon juice, and dill. Zucchini is nice with Italian herbs. Snap peas are wonderful as is, so long as you keep them just a bit "snappy" still.

It only takes trying this a few times before you get the hang of it. You'll start to recognize when your vegetables are ready, and it never hurts to just pop a piece in your mouth to do a little taste test (the privileges that come with being the chef!).

Tasty Recipes to Get More Vegetables Onto Your Table

Salads and Greens

Broccoli Salad

Savory Carrot Salad with Toasted Nuts and Oregano

Greek Salad

Green Bean Salad

Spinach Rice Casserole

Potato, Sweet Potato, Yam and Squash

Four Seasons of Potato Salad (4 different takes on potato salad- all yummy! You have to scroll down a little to find the link)

Butternut Squash Fries

12 Clove Butternut Squash

Delicious Home Baked French Fries

Gingered Sweet Potatoes

Papas Chorreadas (Potatoes/Sweet Potatoes with a creamy tomato sauce)

Sweet Potato Casserole

Image by Summer Tomato

Root Veggies (Carrots, Turnips, Beets, etc.)

Pan Fried Buttery Carrots

Turnip and Squash Gratin

Roasted Beets (yummier than they sound!)

Cruciferous Veggies- Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage

Buttery Lemon Broccoli

Cauliflower Souffle (I was looking for a different Cauliflower Casserole recipe that I printed from another blog, but I just can't find it. This recipe is pretty similar)

World's Best Braised Cabbage

Other Assorted Veggies- Beans, Asparagus, Zucchini, Mushrooms

Sauteed Mushrooms with Soy Sauce and Maple Syrup

Roasted Asparagus

Simple Zucchini and Onions

Garlic Green or Yellow Beans

This is just a small sampling of the variety of amazing, delicious ways that you can serve up more vegetables. Obviously this post only begins to scratch the surface, but I hope that it gives you a bit more inspiration and know-how, to help you increase the amount of vegetables that your family eats!

I'm sure that you have your own favorite vegetable recipes... Would you share one or two of them with us?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Preserving Summer’s Bounty: Blanching and Freezing Vegetables
2. Recipes and Ideas for What to Eat on the GAPS Introduction Diet
3. Play it Again: The Great Debate- Washing our Fruits and Vegetables
4. Real Food Makeover- The “W” Family, Part 2

Continuing on from the first installment of this week's Real Food Makeover...

What to Buy, Where to Buy It

One fantastic thing that the "W's" mentioned is that there is a an enthusiastic local foods movement in their area, including a co-op, farmer's markets and CSAs. I think that the co-op would be an excellent starting place.

Last time I talked about creating a kitchen binder, including a grocery checklist. During mom's times of meal planning, she will be able to check off needed items on this list, as well as hopefully getting into the habit of quickly using it to check off things whenever she notices that something is running out. Once a month, maybe during her Sunday afternoon planning, she can use this list to put together a co-op monthly order, which will allow her to start buying some foods of better quality at affordable prices.

One of the easiest ways to instantly improve the way that anyone eats is to simply replace certain foods that they buy with similar foods of better quality. Here are some particular examples for the "W" family:

• Replace current bread with varieties that are either sprouted grain or actual sourdough (not just the white bread that tastes like sourdough- to know if something is truly sourdough, it should have only ingredients like flour, water, sourdough starter, salt, etc.)
• Replace white/brown sugar with an unrefined alternative, like Sucanat or Rapadura. Honey is the perfect sweetener for things like oatmeal, smoothies, yogurt, etc.
• Replace organic milk with raw, grass-fed milk if it is available (here are some raw milk sources for GA, where they live)
• Replace meat with grass-fed beef and free-range poultry (look for local farms near their home either  at Eat Wild or Local Harvest)

It would be best to replace boxed cereal ultimately, but in the meantime, she can replace what they currently eat with some better choices while making baby steps. Cereals with high sugar content and puffed grains are among the worst. Avoid anything with hydrogenated oils (even partially hydrogenated) and high fructose corn syrup. A couple of brands that are better are Barbara's (but avoid the Puffins- they all have puffed grains), and Nature's Path (they have lots of great flake cereals and sell bulk size Eco Pacs).

Don't try to do these all at once- replace one food or group of foods per month, until you've gradually replaced them all. I offered packaged cereal suggestions because I understand that it's hard to go from using convenience foods for breakfast to suddenly making everything all the time. Little by little is the best way to make changes.

Image by musicfanatic29

Increasing Homemade Foods and Vegetables:

I think that the easiest way to do this is by incorporating two things into "D"s weekly schedule:

1. A portion of time (perhaps during naps or if the children watch any videos) each week that is set aside for food prep. Use the time to make muffins and granola bars, chop veggies and fruit, soak beans, make a meal ahead of time, etc. Anything that makes meals go faster and easier the rest of the week. Even 1-2 hours will make such a huge difference!
2. One or two things that she prepares each week can be doubled or tripled. For example, if she is going to make muffins for breakfast one morning, make a double or triple batch that can finish baking while the family eats/cleans up, so that there are extra muffins to be eaten as snacks or food-on-the-run later in the week. One night a week, while making dinner, double the recipe and put an entire meal in the freeze. This means there is one night that dinner takes barely any prep time, and the extra time it takes to make two meals instead of one is fairly negligible.

I think that the other important area for "D" is to learn to make more veggies. It would be fantastic to set a goal of:

• 1 salad per week
• 1 vegetable minimum per night, as a simple side or as  part of a stir-fry or casserole.
• Chop one container of easy to snack on veggies each week, to be consumed with lunches or as snacks throughout the week

Very shortly, I will be posting about how to cook a variety of vegetables and some simple side dish recipes to help you incorporate them into your dinners more easily.

A Sample Weekly Meal Plan

(Including lots of recipe links and specific ideas!)

Breakfasts:

• (Soaked) Oatmeal with milk/cream, honey, dried or fresh fruit, nuts, etc.
• Smoothie with greens and homemade muffins
• Eggs (scrambled, fried, omelet) with sprouted/sourdough toast
• Fruit and yogurt (with nuts or homemade granola, if desired)
• (Soaked) Oatmeal
• Smoothie with greens and cereal (Yes, even boxed cereal, because we're baby-stepping still! But see the discussion about types/brands above)
• Baked oatmeal

*Note that the two smoothie with greens links go to different recipes.

Image by sweetonveg

Lunches:

• Sandwiches (sprouted/sourdough bread with cheese, deli meat, lettuce/veggies, etc.) and fruit of choice
• Leftovers from dinner
• Quesadillas (with some type of protein- beans, leftover meat, hard boiled eggs), guac or salsa and carrot sticks. (If available, sprouted grain tortillas are the best.)
• Soup (lentil veggie, or homemade tomato) with fruit of choice
• Sandwiches (try getting adventurous and add some fresh sprouts or something different like salmon melts!). Here are some fun sandwich variations for inspiration.
• Leftovers from dinner
• Homemade Mac&Cheese with raw cucumbers and peppers on the side (try this ranch dressing recipe)

Dinners:

I've created theme nights, to help make meal planning easier and to ensure more of a good variety of different foods over the course of the week.

• Monday (Soup/Stew)- Beezie's Black Bean Soup (from allrecipes.com- having trouble with their site today to get the link), Cream of Tomato Soup or Spud Special Soup, served with green salad and bread.
• Tuesday (Fish/Seafood)- Baked salmon with Spinach Rice Casserole, Macaroni and Cheese Casserole with Cauliflower (add tuna or salmon) with carrots cooked in butter and honey, or for a quick dinner, Salmon/Tuna Melts with raw veggies and dip
• Wednesday (Beef/Chicken)- Piled High Chicken Potpie, Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and broccoli salad, Roast Beef in the crockpot with potatoes and carrots and homemade biscuits, Chicken Divan
• Thursday (Vegetarian)- Apple Curry over brown rice, Lentils and Rice Casserole with steamed broccoli or cauliflower, or Indonesian Rice with Peanut Coconut Sauce.
• Friday (Pizza)- Homemade pizza or Calzones (a current favorite of the "W's"). Try this stromboli for a delicious, homemade pizza alternative. Serve with coleslaw, Greek Salad or green salad.
• Saturday (Quick & Easy)- Breakfast for dinner (pancakes with fruit, eggs and toast, smoothies, etc.), leftover buffet, or simple fried rice, wrap sandwiches (meat, cheese, veggies, mayo), or Taco Salad.
• Sunday (Pasta)- Lasagna, Spaghetti with tomato sauce (our favorite sauce recipe), or Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce.

Snacks:

• Homemade popcorn (with butter, sea salt, or nutritional yeast if you're brave!)
• Simple veggie platter- Any of carrots, snow peas, cucumbers, pepper strips, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower pieces. Nice with a quick homemade dip.
• Fruit- Any fresh fruit, like oranges or mandarins, apples, bananas, grapes, melon slices, etc.
• Homemade granola bars (this granola bar recipe looks good, too)
• Smoothies (a few faves- Peanut Butter Smoothies, Raspberry Pina Colada, and Orange Creamsicle)
• Homemade muffins (from the double batch you made for breakfast!)
• Hummus and whole-grain crackers
• Occasional Kettle chips or organic corn chips
• Good dark chocolate. Infinitely better than a candy bar, in every possible way. :)
• Fruit bars for the kids- if available, get organic ones or some with only fruit/lemon juice in them. Otherwise, the Sun-Rype brand is pretty good.
• Dried fruits and nuts/seeds. Make your own trail mix by combining your favorites and keep a container in the cupboard or even on the counter for snacking.

Image by naturalmom

Health Boosters

• Add cod liver oil for all family members. This provides good fats that they're not getting enough of, vitamins A and D for children's development and also Vitamin D for better immunity. It may also likely help with skin issues. Though pricey, I love the brand Green Pastures.
• Add smoothies a few times a week. Making them berry based adds lots of antioxidants to the diet, and more importantly, try adding in greens. Start with something really palatable, like Greens+ powder (from any health food store) or simply fresh spinach or kale leaves. See the recipes above in the Breakfast section.
• Everyone could probably use to take some probiotics for a season, since they do tend to eat heavy on the carbs. Add more yogurt to the diet (but the good sour stuff, not the sugary, flavored kind). Since they like salty and crunchy snacks, what about good dill pickles like Bubbie's for more beneficial bacteria?
• Add coconut oil as a good fat. This will also help mom to stay full and work towards a bit of weight loss. Try a recipe like these Peppermint Coconut Patties to snack on when hungry, as a way to fill up and stay full longer.

Even More Resources...

Just to help the "W" family with applying these suggestions to their lives, they will be receiving:

• A copy of my ebook, Healthy Homemaking: One Step at a Time
• A 1 year Print Membership from ListPlanIt, to aid them in getting organized in the kitchen, with meal planning and with grocery shopping. Thanks, ListPlanIt!

Do you see yourself in the suggestions for this makeover? Any tips that you will be taking away to try in your own home?

Our Sponsors:

• Spoonk Rider: The Portable Accupressure Mat
• Plan to Eat: Drag & drop meal planner with automated shopping list maker.
• Fertility Flower: Helps women predict ovulation, increasing chances of conception. Outstanding charting tools.
• Experience God as Your Provider: Does Your Financial Future Feel Like a Crumbling Sand Castle?
• Learn to Cook With Sourdough: "Pay What You Can" Classes in Sourdough and Traditional Cooking
• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Real Food Makeover: The “W” Family
2. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: Planning to Make Food Preparation Happen
3. Upcoming: Four Families are Going to Get a Real Food Makeover!
4. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: My Recipe Binder

Introducing the first of four families to receive a Real Food Makeover! Each week, I will be highlighting a different family and offering suggestions and resources to help them along the road to eating more real, whole, healthy foods.

Meet the W. family: Mom "D" (37), Dad "M" (35), son "I" (3) and twin daughters "G' and "S" (1).

How they currently eat:

A mix of both whole, homemade foods as well as plenty of convenience foods and packaged snacks. They eat out or have take out meals about 1-3 times per week (usually fast food). Milk, eggs and about 1/3 of their produce are organic. They enjoy a lot of comfort type foods, including milk, bread, cheese, pasta, cereal, etc. They currently eat some fruits and veggies, but know that they could be eating a lot more.

Their goals:

To learn to make cooking/shopping more efficient and organized, so that healthier and more homemade meals come together with less stress and without resorting to packaged or fast food. To improve their overall health, including losing the few last lbs of baby weight for Mom, increasing immunity for Dad (who gets hit hard whenever he gets sick), and working with some minor health challenges like asthma (Mom) and skin sensitivities.

They would like to drop some sugary and processed foods (including highly sugared coffee for Mom), and add in more whole foods, especially vegetables. They have good access to farmer's markets and a natural foods coop, but need to get organized and learn how to take advantage of these resources.

Time for their Real Food Makeover!

3 Baby Steps for Them to Take:

1. Improve organization so that meal planning comes together easily, allowing for healthier meals and less eating out.

2. Improve the quality of many of the foods they already eat. Keep eating the same types of things, but some better versions of them.

3. Add a few important supplements, including cod liver oil and greens.

Image by idovermani

Getting Organized with Meal Planning, Shopping and Cooking

"D" described how her meal planning often goes- she sits down to do it on Sunday afternoons, and begins to get tired and uninspired as she plans. She asks her hubby for ideas, they both get distracted, and ultimately meal planning only truly happens 1/2 to 1/3 of the time.

She really enjoys cooking and trying new recipes, but doesn't have a lot of time to come up with ideas. She also needs a way to make her meal planning and time spent in the kitchen very effective.

Here's what I would suggest:

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Putting in a bit of time to get herself really organized in the kitchen will enable "D" to use her kitchen time more efficiently, and be able to consistently pull together a meal plan so that she can stick to home cooked meals.

1. Create a 21 meals list- This gives her a very quick and simple tool to use while meal planning
2. Next, make herself a kitchen binder. It could ultimately be a homemaking binder, but doesn't need to be. She can put her 21 meals list in this binder.
3. Write out a few favorite meal pages, to help consolidate the recipes/meals they enjoy and give her some more easy references for when the 21 meal list just isn't doing it for her. Keep it simple and start by focusing on main courses and sides. Add these to the binder.
4. Make a place to either write down a list or even add printed recipe pages of new recipes that she would like to try. When lacking inspiration, she'll have a quick place to look.
5. Add a grocery shopping checklist. This is a great tool to allow you to just check off items as you run out or think of something you want to buy, minimizing grocery store trips and ensuring that you have what you need when you need it. Simple Mom has a downloadable grocery shopping checklist, and ListPlanIt has one that you can either print out, or you can customize it with a Download membership.

Don't try to add all of these things at once. By doing just one thing from the list every week, she will slowly have built up a VERY useful tool for all her kitchen and shopping planning.

Now, when Sunday afternoon arrives, the ideas should flow easier. There should be no need to ask hubby and get distracted. :) In fact, the best time to get her hubby's input would be for "D" to ask him to list some of his favorite meals and recipes while she is making her 21 Meal List and Favorite Meal Lists.

Finding Good Recipes to Use

One thing "D" mentioned is that she enjoys trying new recipes, but lacks the time to do a lot of searching for them (although she reads quickly, so a new cookbook or two would be helpful for her). She also hasn't begun soaking her grains or really looking into that at all, and is unsure of where to begin.

I would recommend that she buy 2 new cookbooks. Here are my top suggestions:

Jamie's Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals (Jamie is inspiring. He loves cooking, love whole foods, and has fantastic ideas)

Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats (This is the ultimate book that I must recommend to everyone. Some of it will be daunting. Some of it is easy. Start with what you can do, and know that as you grow in your skills and knowledge, this book will become more and more important and helpful)

Super Natural Cooking: Five Delicious Ways to Incorporate Whole and Natural Foods into Your Cooking (Heidi is another whole-food lover, with beautiful, appealing recipes that are often quite simple. Also lots of vegetarian meals, which the "W" family enjoys, although they also eat meat, eggs and dairy)

Sue Gregg's Introducing Whole Grain Baking with Blender Batter Baking and the 2 Stage Process (the best, easiest book I know of to teach how about soaked grains and how to easily incorporate them into your diet)

Another excellent way to find good recipes is to read some real food blogs. I like to either print out the recipes I find that appeal to me and add them to my recipe binder (or "D" could just put them in the "new recipes to try" section of her kitchen binder), or else use a bookmarking system like Delicious to store them online.

A few great sites to get simple, family friendly recipes from:

• The Nourishing Gourmet
• Passionate Homemaking
• Heavenly Homemakers
• Tammy's Recipes
• Kitchen Stewardship
• AllRecipes.com (not every recipe is healthy, but there are so many whole foods recipes in the mix, and if nothing else it provides inspiration and I love their ingredient search for when I'm trying to work with what I already have)

More to Come...

Later this week I will continue to give the "W" family their Real Food Makeover, by creating a week's worth of menu ideas for them, discussing some of the changes that they can make in their buying habits, and some suggestions for their specific health struggles.

Additionally, look for an upcoming post on simple ways to prepare vegetables and easily add them to your meals! I know that this is a challenge for the "W" family in particular, but I'm pretty sure that it is a common challenge for many families who would like to up their vegetable intake but aren't quite sure how to do it.

What are your biggest challenges when it comes to eating and serving real food in your home?

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• Holy Ambition: If you're thinking, God can't use me, think again! YOU can make a difference.

You might also enjoy:

1. Upcoming: Four Families are Going to Get a Real Food Makeover!
2. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: Planning to Make Food Preparation Happen
3. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: My Recipe Binder
4. Organization in the Real Food Kitchen: Ferments Everywhere