Quick Meal Ideas

Busy families often require quick meal ideas. Instead of heading for the drive-thru or the frozen food section, why not try a new recipe? When preparing quick meals, it's important to not sacrifice nutrition for simplicity; it's possible to have both. Two healthy recipes that are easy to prepare are Broiled Halibut with Tangy Yogurt Sauce and Crock-Pot Moroccan Lentil Stew.

Broiled Halibut with Tangy Yogurt Sauce is one of many quick meal ideas. For this recipe, you will need 4 halibut fillets, weighing approximately 6 ounces each, 4 cups of plain non-fat yogurt, 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice, 2 cloves of crushed garlic, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper. As you prepare the fish, preheat your broiler. Combine the yogurt, lemon juice, salt, and pepper by mixing well in a small bowl. Place foil on a broiler pan and place the fish on top. Cover the tops of the fish with half of the yogurt mixture, reserving the rest to serve with the meal. Place fish 4 inches from the broiler and cook for 10 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork. The topping should be golden brown. Serve immediately with a side of the yogurt mixture.

Crock-pot dinners are great quick meal ideas. They are especially handy as meal ideas for summer. The beauty of using a crock-pot is that it frees up the rest of your day for other household chores. For a meatless dish, try the Crock-Pot Morroccan Lentil Stew. This recipe requires 1 cup of dried lentils, 1 pound of peeled and cubed butternut squash, 10 cubed red potatoes, 1 chopped onion, 4 cloves of minced garlic, an 8 ounce package of frozen cut green beans, and 2 14 ounce cans of undrained, diced tomatoes. For seasoning, you will need 1 tablespoon of curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/8 teaspoon of white pepper, 1/8 teaspoon of crushed red pepper. You will also need 2 cups of water. Combine all of the ingredients, except the green beans in your crock-pot. Cook on low, covered, for 8-10 hours or until the vegetables are tender. Once they are, increase the temperature to high and add the green beans. Continue cooking until the entire stew is heated through and the green beans are tender, approximately 10-15 minutes.

Raising healthy families is easy when preparing nutritious and quick meal ideas. These recipes can be made in a jiffy and fit into any number of healthy meal plans. Of course, these recipes are suggested as a guideline, and there are many adjustments you can make to fit your family's particular tastes.