There is so much information out there about groceries — what’s on sale — what you should eat — what you should buy. I am frankly tired of my customers being so confused about what they should buy and their general feeling of inferiority that they don’t know the “right” answer. So my guidance to them, and to you, is to not listen to anyone about what to buy, except your family. Take a close look at your family’s eating habits and learn what are your family’s Smart Ingredients. What oil to use is a great example. I can’t tell you how many times I get the questions “Does it have to be extra virgin? Should I only use olive oil? Someone told me I should only buy grapeseed oil, what do you think?” I often answer all these questions with “Use butter.” Not because I don’t love oils and think they have a superior health value, because I do. I just want to make the point that in most applications, like searing or basting foods, fat is fat and whatever you have, use or prefer will work just fine. Listening to the information overload will never get you to the “right” answers. Playing the Smart cooking game, getting in the kitchen and working hard to win at dinner will.

My youngest child is a preschooler. So if the tv is on during the day, it’s typically Sprout or the Disney channel. If I listened to the food influences from those channel’s commercials, I would be feeding my young child noodles with processed dehydrated cheeses and sauces, bottled dressings, pop tarts and frozen dinners and feeling great about doing it. I don’t feed her those things, and I am not influenced to do so by what I hear and see. Because knowledge is power, and I already know what to feed her that is healthy and she likes. I encourage you to take control over what you need and what you should buy at the grocery store.

Then, your approach at the grocery store will become what I call “shooting straight” versus “casting a net”. Casting a net means buying some of this and some of that… many things that don’t always add up to feeding your family. Shooting straight means buying more Smart Ingredients (stock up!) and less clutter. If your family is eating a lot of processed foods and you want to move into more healthful options, start by buying the same one or two things you know your family will eat and prepare them in different ways. The chance that you’ll end up using them is much greater than if you decide to try an entirely new healthy food regime with foods you aren’t sure the family will eat. Don’t try to change the world (your family’s entire dinner process) in a day. Take it one day at a time and if you are using Smart Ingredients and building off of the 3 or so favorite “types” of meals your family likes, you will have 20-30 “go to” recipes in no time.

My Mom has jumped on the green smoothie craze, encouraged to do so by her chiropractor. She loves them and feels great about what she eats for breakfast, has even got the rest of us joining in, and I’m proud of her for her dedication. Then her hairdresser — the end of all information sources — told her that by blending her produce she’s losing all the nutrition value and it’s a waste of her time. Now my Mom is doubting her efforts. I told her to hold it right there, tell the hairdresser to stick to dye jobs and highlights, and to keep drinking her smoothies. I tried to find any scientific evidence that blending changes the health value of vegetables, and I couldn’t. The safest bet is that the food is still raw, and it’s still more greens than she would have been eating otherwise. But the more important thing is that the green smoothies are working for my Mom, and they are much healthier than the scones she used to eat for breakfast.  No one should be derailed by what someone else tells you you should or shouldn’t eat or buy.

Here’s my Mom’s favorite Green Smoothie Recipe

Ratio 60% fruit to 40% greens

• Spinach
• Strawberries
• Fresh Pineapple
• Parsley

Combine all ingredients with water and ice. Blend.

Last year I was getting asked all the time if I “Super-couponed” by either passionate couponers or those who felt like they should be in on the latest thing. I get it – couponing can make the grocery store a game and the money saved can make you a winner. But like a kid who graduates from hungry Hippos to Monopoly, it’s time to learn a better game that makes more sense and works for life, both saving you money at the store and bringing you success in your kitchen. It’s called Shopping Smart.

The goal of the Shopping Smart game is to NOT have to go the store more than once every 7-10 days. And, to buy only items that can be mixed and matched to add up to dinner success in your home. Not shopping Smart would mean going to the grocery store, buying a bunch of this-and-that that looks good/is new/would be great in one dinner. Shopping Smart means going to the grocery store knowing just what items to buy because they are items that ALWAYS add up to dinner in your house. If you read my blog often, you’re used to pasta being a frequent example. Forgive me, here I go again… but I’ll throw in a side of produce too. My family loves pasta. I make it at least once a week though rarely the same way twice in a month, alternating baked pasta, mac and cheese, fettuccine, pasta with vegetables herbs and olive oil, and many of the other pasta recipes you can see on my website. The low price on pasta around here lately has been $1.39. This week a great brand was on sale for $0.79 per pound, so I bought ten pounds. I saved $5!…I won! I didn’t have to scan the papers, find the scissors, cut anything out or make sure I brought it with me, and there’s no chance that it won’t get used or will go to waste, because it’s one of my family’s Smart ingredients. Spinach is another great example. In the winter, fresh spinach can be a bit pricey. With Spring on the horizon, I found a large bag for just $2.22 at my local fresh market-type Euro grocer. I froze the majority of it in sandwich-size Ziploc bags for use in soups, pastas, pizzas, quiche, strata and more, and kept in the crisper just the amount I’m sure I’ll use before it wilts. 

As one mother of five who uses my cookbook 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store, says, the Smart shopping method is “a godsend.” This Mom, Shelly Mabe of Warren , MI, and author of the freehomeschooling.com blog, is using the cookbook to help her family get out of debt. She said “This falls right in line with our family plan to be out of debt in 1 year.” And, as a woman known for her tendency to grab her family a pizza for dinner, she is impressing her friends that she has actually making dinner every night — and that even her picky eaters loved the meals.

The fact that the “Super-coupon” phase seems to have faded speaks to it’s sustainability as a lifetime plan. By going to the store with the intention to save money using coupons you are risking two things: one is buying things that may not add up to dinner just because you have a coupon for them — and buying them in bulk for that matter. The other thing you’re sacrificing is your time. You don’t need to spend time accumulating, clipping, sorting, printing, and remembering your coupons. By buying only what adds up to dinner success you will save more money than could be put on a piece of paper. Think of it as a 40% off for life, with an added bonus of a lot of free time. And, this plan never expires!

A continuation of our “30 Days of Dinner” posts.

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Are you winning at dinner? Do you find yourself going to the store more often than you’d like? Grab one or two extra meats on your next “nightly” trip, and our blog and online recipes can help you figure out something to make with them with ingredients you have at home. Won’t it be nice to know you won’t have to head back to the store tomorrow… or the next day?

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Day 14

Menu: Spaghetti with tomato cream sauce, meatballs, and grilled asparagus

Game Plays applied:

Gifts to self — when I make spaghetti sauce, I make a lot. Enough that I have many, many servings frozen. I took the spaghetti sauce from the freezer, thawed and mixed it with the new Philadelphia Cooking Creme with Italian Herbs* for the sauce. I combined that with precooked meatballs from the freezer for a quick and easy pasta dinner.

PRODUCT REVIEW – Philadelphia Cooking Cream

This is not something I would normally buy. I think Kraft saturates the market with highly-processed pre-packaged dinners (or in this case multi-ingredient mixes) that make people feel like they are making a healthy homemade meal. These products do save people from doing much of the cooking themselves. But at what cost? I bought it because I have been asked by many customers… with excitement in their voices “have you tried it?”. As if they were thinking this would be the solution to all their cooking challenges. So I tried it. It is simply cream cheese of a creamier consistency with herbs mixed in, and probably a whole lot of unneeded preservatives. Trust me, this is nothing you couldn’t put together yourself at home. Thin out some cream cheese with milk or greek yogurt, and add some fresh herbs, salt, pepper, garlic and Parmesan cheese. You will save yourself a lot of process chemicals, and probably quite a bit of cost on fancy packaging. I know we’re all looking for cooking shortcuts, but shopping smart and cooking with a game plan get you there with more success.

Day 15

Turkey Breast with Green Beans and Cornbread Stuffing

Game Plays applied:

2/3 Rule — I had to try out a new stuffing recipe for a local newspaper article, so that I had to make from scratch. I made it early in the day.  The great thing with stuffing is you can prep it up to 24 hours in advance of your cooking time. So, it’s an easy thing to squeeze in if you have extra time during breakfast or the night before. I bought a pre-seasoned turkey breast. All I had to do was pop that into the oven, so the turkey counts as a “quick and easy”. And the green beans, while cooked from scratch only got a quick steam with some garlic salt.

Day 16

Menu: Pork Chops, Potatoes and carrots

One-pan meal – I made a white sauce, layered the potatoes and carrots in it on the bottom of a baking dish with a sliced onion, and topped that with seasoned, floured and seared pork chops. This baked for about 40 minutes, covered.

*This meal did take about 35-40 minutes of prep time, but I think pork chops need a little extra love to turn out tender and flavorful.

Here are some things last month’s winner had to say about her FREE copy of our best-selling cookbook 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store:

• The concept of shopping less often, having a plan and the ingredients on hand, to get dinner on the table every day is one most of us dream of. This attractive, well-designed book, 70 Meals One Trip to the Store, gives us the tools to get headed in that direction. The brilliant idea of having a group of recipes that share common ingredients, yet are not so similar as to be boring is at the heart of this system. As the author puts it, getting rid of “ingredient clutter” will let you buy less, save more money, simplify and speed up your shopping and make getting dinner ready much easier.
• The 70 recipes are easy to read and one per page, so you don’t have to flip back and forth while cooking. They’re all very simple, so even beginner cooks can master them.
• What would I add to this? A little more information on just how 70 meals can be made with one trip to the store as the title suggests. Maybe adding vegetable side dish suggestions to the recipes would be helpful.
• To help busy cooks a little more, suggested preparation and cooking times added to each recipe might be helpful. It’s always nice to select recipes based on how much time we have to spare to make them whether it’s active time or unattended time.
• The tips and tricks are very useful and will really help the organization and flow in the kitchen at dinner time. Also, having the recipe index, listed by protein in the front of the book was a very smart idea. I wish more cookbooks were arranged this way.
• Overall, I really like this cookbook and the system of organization it follows. You don’t need to be so militant as to have months of meals already planned out day by day. That’s the real brilliance behind this system; once you’ve got your pantry stocked, you can decide what to have for dinner at the last minute and not have to follow a set schedule.
• All of the recipes sound delicious and are varied enough that there will always be plenty to choose from for something interesting to serve. I’m certain that many of these recipes will remain in my go-to repertoire to serve over and over.

Thank you Nancy! Your comments really hit the nail on the head about why this book is so helpful at dinnertime. I will try to incorporate your suggestions, and add prep and cooking time to the recipes online too.

Now, how about a FREE copy for you? Just enter a comment to this blog post to be entered to win. We will randomly select a winner on Friday!

This post is a continuation of a look inside 30 days of dinner at my house to see how I use the “Win at Dinner” strategies in real-life situations. Read the previous posts for more information on the Game Plays.

Day 11

Homemade pizza

Game Plays:

70 Meals, One Trip to the Store – Following the 70 Meals cookbook, I always have ingredients on hand to make several kinds of pizza. Pizza is always a winner in my house, and the kids love to help make the crust. Using one packet of “Smart ingredient” RED Star yeast, I made two crusts from which we ate one Barbeque chicken and caramelized onion, and one Mozzarella and red sauce pizza.

Day 12

Moroccan Lamb and Apricot Stew

Game Plays:

None. This is one of those instances when I found a unique recipe (here’s the link) that I really wanted to try, using many ingredients that I had to go out and buy. As I recommend, keeping this to once or twice a month keeps making dinner from being a “project”, and the ingredient clutter (ingredients you rarely use) to a minimum.

Day 13

Chicken Fajitas

Game Plays:

Gifts to self - I had roasted several pounds of chicken, cubed and frozen it in 1-pound quantities, a few weeks back. I thawed and used one of these pounds for the Fajitas. I filled the lazy susan with toppings (lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, guacamole, salsa and sour cream) and sides (refried beans and tortilla chips), and everyone filled their own plate.

70 Meals, One Trip to the Store – Chicken fajitas are in the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook which means I have everything I need to make them, any night of the year.

I can’t believe March is already near over. Our next post… Another cookbook giveaway! Stay tuned.

As we near the end of what we can call “cooking recovery week” another flexible, one-dish dinner gives a nice break to you hard-working cooks. 

Baked Pasta

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 10 ounces thick pasta noodles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 10 ounces red sauce
• 1 cup Mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

Optional additions:

• 1/2 pound sausage or ground beef, browned
• 1 1/2 cups spinach
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, diced
• 1 cup ricotta or cottage cheese
• Fresh basil

Boil noodles according to Al Dente package directions. Coat a baking dish with olive oil, and pour noodles on top. Fold remaining ingredients into noodles, including optional additions. Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Because you worked so hard cooking this past week, we are giving you 5 days-worth of easy weeknight recipes from the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook. And the best thing about them is — because like all the recipes in the book they are void of “ingredient clutter” — you can likely make them with ingredients you already have on hand at home!

Today’s recipe is for Strata. The great thing about a strata is that you can make it with so many variations of ingredients. Got eggs? Some bread, or leftover rolls from Thanksgiving? A little milk and maybe some cheese? That’s your base. Here’s the recipe with suggestions for additions to make it any which way you please.

Strata

Ingredients

6 cups bread cut in 1 inch pieces

7 eggs

2 cups milk

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 cup shredded cheese (many kinds of cheese will work, including Gruyere, cheddar, Monterey Jack, etc.)

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Additions of your choice include, but are not limited to: 1 cup diced cooked chicken, 1 can drained diced tomatoes, 1 cup spinach, 1 cup mushrooms, 1 can drained artichoke hearts.

Beat together eggs and milk with a whisk. Add mustard, salt and pepper and whisk together. Put bread in a buttered 9 x 13 baking dish. Add “Additions of your choice”, and half of the cheeses. Mix together and spread evenly around the pan. Gently pour in egg mixture, covering the bread. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Cover and refrigerate for at least one half hour, up to overnight. Bake the strata for 30-40 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven, until egg is set and edges are browned. Serve warm.

The Thanksgiving sales are in full force at the Grocery store. If you haven’t started your shopping already, now is a good time. Many of these seasonal items that tend to go fast, chopped pecans, condensed milk, canned pumpkin, canned cranberry sauce, refrigerated pie crust ($0.50 off coupon, now at coupons.com) have a long shelf life and can be easily purchased ahead. You can freeze fresh cranberries until you need them for your recipes.

You will give yourself thanks next week if you have everything you need, or at least most of your list out of the way, freeing up more time for cooking and enjoying your family.

While you’re there, grab a few sweet potatoes to add the following casserole to your day. We love this recipe because it is fluffy and sweet, and uses ingredients you are likely to have on hand.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients

• 4 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a medium-sized baking dish. In a large bowl, mix together mashed sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup butter, milk, sugar, vanilla extract, and eggs. Spread sweet potato mixture into the prepared baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar and flour. Cut in 1/3 cup butter until mixture is crumbly, then stir in pecans. Sprinkle pecan mixture over the sweet potatoes. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

Today I went to Costco, the local food warehouse near where I live. It was time for a stock up in my house. In addition to the bulk-size snacks, and the replenishing of my 70 Meals semiannual list, I got 6 pounds of ground beef, at $2.99/pound, 12 large, boneless skinless chicken breasts vaccuum sealed by twos, and 10 frozen tilapia fillets. I was tempted by much of the premade, prepackaged dinners that the grocery warehouse has to offer, and I even grabbed one frozen dinner to have in a pinch. But knowing that I am shopping Smart, means I can make a hot healthy homemade dinner any night f the year (activities or no) with little time, and little stress, and no help from the pre-packaged aisle.

Bulk shopping is great. It can be scary when you’re not committed to using the food, but once you’ve committed to a plan, such as 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store, have declared that you are in fact going to cook using that food, and know that you are buying Smart Ingredients that you will in fact use, it makes all the sense in the world. One you have rid your cabinets of ingredient clutter (items that are rarely used), you will have the room you need for your Smart Ingredients. For me, for example, buying, in bulk, items like canned diced tomatoes, pasta, mixed vegetables, frozen spinach, chicken broth, makes great sense, because I am plowing through them over the next few weeks in hot, healthy, no-stress meals for my family.

Now that you’ve committed to figuring out what your Smart Ingredients are that lead to dinner success in your home, it’s time to stock up on them, and take a major step toward never fearing the question “What’s for dinner?” again. Here’s a link to the 70 Meals semiannual pantry-stocking list:

Semiannual List

Who is busy this summer? Anyone? Ha! It may be busy going to the pool or the beach, but it’s still busy. And spending more time outdoors means we need to be even better at economizing our time in the kitchen. This was a very light grocery shopping week for me, picking up just $50 worth of food when I did a quick shop before my Father’s Day dinner. Since I stick firm to my “once every 7-10 days” shopping plan, it was time to head to the freezer. I stock up on chicken, ground beef and whitefish becasue they are a great base for many flavors, and because I follow the 70 Meals plan, I know I have the ingredients on hand to make any of the dishes in the book. Today I thawed some chicken breasts and made Chicken Fajitas. I absolutely love the flavor combination of the Italian Dressing and the taco seasoning in the 70 Meals recipe. I’ve already taken the ground beef out of the freezer to make some of my favorite stuffed burgers (Bacon Cheddar Stuffed Burgers and Salsa Stuffed Burgers) tomorrow, and the next day I’ll move on to Tilapia in whichever of the 10 recipes from the 70 Meals cookbooks suits my fancy that day. Check out the recipes section of our website for some of my favorites.

Because you’re busy doesn’t mean you can’t make dinner. It’s having the strategies and Smart Ingredients on hand to make it easy that makes it work. Are you a blog subscriber? If not, click on the green button on the top right to subscribe now, and be automatically entered in to win FREE Smart Ingredients and a copy of the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook. Click on the photo on the top right for more details.