For most of us our busy lives and hectic evening rountines make preparing healthy meals every day a challenge.  That means that quite often it’s easier to pick up dinner at a fast food restaurant on the way home from work or to eat the same thing over and over.  However, these eating patterns can lead to meals that are not nutritionally balanced or that contain loads of calories -- not to mention how quickly they can add up to big expenses in your monthly food budget. 

Although healthier options at fast food restaurants are becoming more common, there is still the temptation to choose items which may not be healthy at all.  What’s worse is that studies have shown that children who eat fast food on a regular basis tend to continue to eat fast food as they grow older, which can lead to obesity and health concerns later in life.  Changing eating habits to healthier options and portions consisting of fruits, vegetables, dairy and lean meats can take some planning but it's well worth the effort.

With little time to prepare healthy, nutritious meals for ourselves and our families, it's best to have a strategy that matches the foods you are likely to eat with the amount of time you are realistically going to spend preparing your meals.  The Food Personality Quiz on Meals Matter can help!   

Meals Matter’s Food Personality Quiz is an online tool that helps you solve the predicament of what to cook or ways to prepare meals that mesh with your lifestyle.  Each of us has a different Food Personality which affects how we prepare foods and the types of foods that we eat.  Do you prefer to only cook meals that contain less than 6 ingredients? Or, do you look forward to the days when you can spend plenty of time preparing a delicious meal for your family? The key to healthy eating is to know what your Food Personality is and to have ideas of nutritious and tasty meals that coincide with your cooking preferences. 

Your Food Personality is unique to you and the quiz is certain to provide you with ideas to use right away.  Take our Food Personality Quiztoday to get you and your family on the right track to healthy, nutritious eating!

It’s time to start planning your Thanksgiving meal and Meals Matter can help. Planning ahead is one of the easiest ways to avoid becoming overloaded during the hectic holiday season.

To help families take some of the stress out of preparing a Thanksgiving feast, we've selected some of our favorite make-ahead holiday dishes. Several of them can be made ahead of time so you’ll have plenty of extra time to spend with your family, instead of preparing food, this Thanksgiving.

For a festive family feast that’s relatively stress-free, plan on Maple Roasted Turkey with Stuffed Squash with Bulgur and Feta and Maple-Pumpkin Custards with Crystallized Ginger. Both the squash and the custard can be made in advance, leaving you with plenty of time for the turkey.

Here are some delicious holiday appetizer and side dish recipes that can also be made in advance: Spinach Balls, Caramelized Apples with Toasted Walnut Brie, Triple Cranberry Sauce and Thanksgiving Giblet Gravy.

Turkey needs to be carefully stored, thawed and cooked to prevent foodborne illness.

Turkeys are large, often purchased frozen and typically filled with stuffing, which makes it more difficult to thoroughly cook the bird to a safe internal temperature of 165 degrees.

We’ve put together Tips for Cooking a Turkey to help you purchase, thaw and prepare your turkey safely.

Daylight Saving Time ends today, with most of the country falling back an hour to return to Standard Time. This time change marks the end of the harvest, and store shelves and road side stands offer wide varieties of squash, apples and pumpkin during this time.

Celebrate with a Fall Harvest Family Meal of Squash and Leek Lasagna, Apple Salad with Yogurt Honey Dressing and a Light and Creamy Pumpkin Mousse.

Warm your family as the weather cools with other hearty Fall Harvest recipes, including Roasted Fall Vegetables, Slow Cooker Fall Pork Tenderloin, Fall Ratatouille and Cinnamint Cappuccino.

If you haven’t already, register now to add these and other healthy recipes to your own personalized meal plan and shopping list. It’s free!

If you’re already running out of ideas for your kid’s back-to-school lunches, you’re not alone. Coming up with lunch ideas that your kids will actually eat can be a challenge for many parents. Our simple steps for packing a healthy, balanced lunch can help.  

Don’t let packed lunches get repetitive. Try different types of bread, dips, small treats -- and even a short notes to remind them you love them.

Our printable Tips for a Healthy Lunchbox offers ideas for healthy foods to include in kids’ lunches.

Healthy Lunch Tips

Provide foods from at least three food groups, which gives children the nutrients and energy they need to stay energized and do well in school.

For example, a peanut butter (meat, beans and nuts) and jelly sandwich (grains), an apple (fruit) and milk (milk and dairy), is a simple and balanced meal from four food groups that contains protein, fat and carbohydrate – the nutrients children need to grow and learn.

And, remember, children who help select and prepare their meals are more likely to eat them. The key is to give children healthy options to choose from.

For example, ask your kids if they want yogurt or string cheese, an apple or a banana, a peanut butter and jelly or ham-and-cheese sandwich. Whichever choice they make, you know they’re going to eat something nutritious.

Getting your child’s input, acknowledging his or her taste preferences and giving them some control over what they eat means less uneaten food and ultimately a better nourished child who is ready to learn at school.

Find more healthy lunch ideas.

Recently, we’ve touched a few different Food Personalities, including the Gourmets, those who tend to eat Last Minute Meals and even those who like their meals Fast and Fresh. Each Food Personality is dependent on many factors. There is, however, one theme that is prevalent among most; people are looking for easy and quick food preparation tips. This is especially common among the last Food Personality group we’ll discuss, known as "Meals in a Flash".

Today, we’ll focus on a few additional tips that can help you to make your Meals in a Flash any day of the week!

When you do have time to cook, focus on making meals that can leave you with great leftovers. Casseroles, crock pot recipes and pasta dishes tend to be the best choices. Check out this great Crock Pot Recipe that can turn One Meal into Three!

If you don’t have time to prepare meals in advance, this is where having a well stocked freezer and pantry, as well as lots of spices, can come in handy. Frozen veggies can be added to almost any meal as a healthy alternative to many side dishes. Frozen chicken or ground beef can be cooked quickly, and with a little extra seasoning, can be ready in no time and taste great! Try making quick and easy tacos with ground meat. Use lean meat for a healthier option as suggested in this Lean Beef Taco recipe.

Lasagnas are great to make ahead of time and sometimes they even taste better as leftovers. By making a few lasagna dishes in smaller pans, you will be able to store those that aren’t immediately eaten in the freezer so that they will ready to bake anytime. Browse through our Lasagna Recipes to find your favorite.

Even when you are making quick meals, don’t forget to focus on the healthier alternatives. Consider using leaner meats, reduced fat milk and cheeses, whole grains instead, and extra veggies when possible.

Learn more about your Food Personality!

You may not fit in the Food Personality for those who love to cook or the Food Personality for those who absolutely despise cooking, but that doesn’t mean that there’s not a Food Personality for you. There certainly is!

Have you found that your healthy eating or weight loss goals are fading without seeing the results you had hoped for? Or, do you find that after a long day at work, picking up the kids from school, running around to afternoon practices or going to the gym in the evening, you feel as if you don’t have time to make dinner? Are staying fit and eating healthy of importance to you even when you’re short on time?

Today we find ourselves juggling more activities than ever before. It is difficult to keep up with all of the different things we have going on, much less spend a significant amount of time preparing meals. Although this is often the case, we undoubtedly know the importance of eating healthy and encouraging our families to do the same.

If you can relate to the statements above, you may likely fall into the Fast and Fresh Food Personality. Those who fit best into this Food Personality appreciate easy-to-prepare recipes that can be ready to eat quickly. They also want to make sure that even if the meals are quick to prepare, they are healthy as well.

We at Meals Matter encourage you to eat healthy all year long, regardless of your hectic schedules. Below are few quick recipes for those who like Fast and Fresh meals. Don’t forget to take our Food Personality quiz to find additional tips specific to your Food Personality.

Recipes that may interest you:

• Updated Mac & Cheese
• Italian Bean & Grain Soup
• Rosemary Oven Fried Chicken

Browse our recipes for additional ideas!

We recently wrote about the Gourmet Food Personality, however, as we all have our own preferences and cooking styles, clearly not everyone will fall into this distinction. There is also the possibility that you are usually a Gourmet, but work and the family’s schedule may not allow the time necessary to prepare those delicious meals, and at those times you may find that you have a different Food Personality.

In this post we’ll touch on a Food Personality that is quite a bit different than the Gourmets; it is known as Last Minute Meals. Often those who fall into this category simply don’t like to cook or are often unsure of what to make for dinner. As a result, those who fall into this Last Minute Meals category may opt for the quickest and easiest choice.

The unfortunate part about the Last Minute Meals category is that fast foods or prepackaged meals are not always the healthiest options. Think about the burgers and fries that you can find at the fast-food restaurant just down the street. The fries and hamburger combined can easily reach half of your daily calorie needs in one meal, if not more!

The good news is that local grocers are realizing the need to make healthier options readily available. Next time that you find yourself in a time crunch or simply not wanting to cook, don’t forget the healthier alternatives or the even recipes that require fewer ingredients for quicker preparation. Below are a few tips that may help you to more easily focus on healthy eating if you find yourself in the Last Minute Meals category:

• Instead of a fast food restaurant, opt for a café or take-out from a restaurant where you can order salads and fresh veggies.
• Pre-cut or frozen vegetables are available in most grocery stores. Stock up on these for quick sides or to add to pizza or casseroles during the week.
• Eat cheese and crackers with a bowl of soup for lunch or dinner.
• Don’t forget that many foods can be cooked in the microwave and this can be an easier, quicker way to cook. A few ideas of food that can be cooked in a microwave are frozen veggies, potatoes, frozen burritos, pre-cooked meat, etc.

You can also browse through our Quick Meals to find delicious recipes you and your family will love!

A Food Personality can be defined by one’s cooking style and we are all unique when it comes to how we like to prepare meals. A Food Personality can be influenced by one’s lifestyle, daily schedule, and culture, all of which play a role in eating habits. For instance, not everyone views the thought of cooking or preparing meals in the same way. For some, cooking is an art, but for others it may be a chore.

Do you love to cook? Have meals always been an important part of your family or culture? Do you get excited about new cooking shows and do you look forward to trying new recipes? If you answered yes to most of these questions, you may have what is known as a Gourmet Food Personality.

Those who may consider themselves Gourmets love to try new recipes, often from scratch. Food is an important part of their lifestyle; however, healthy choices may not always be put at the forefront.

As we all know, making elaborate meals every night of the week can be time consuming and it is not realistic for many of us. That said, here are a few tips to keep your meals fresh, exciting, and most importantly, healthy throughout the entire week.

• Think of those spices in your collection that haven’t been put to use recently. What recipes call for these rarely used spices?
• Establish a themed night to help think of new ideas, such as an Italian or Greek night.
• Cut fresh veggies in advance during your spare time so that they’re ready on short notice.
• Share healthy recipes with friends and store them to create your own cookbook with your favorites. In addition, contribute your favorite recipes with other Meals Matter enthusiasts.

So, if your cooking style is to prepare meals that are more involved than basic recipes, try these ideas to help you continue keeping food an important part of your daily schedule without it becoming a chore. Also be sure to incorporate functional foods (foods that are good for your health) into recipes where possible.

If you haven’t already, find out your Food Personality today by taking our simple quiz!

How often do you come home from a hectic day at work and struggle to determine what to do for dinner? More than likely you are all too familiar with this feeling.

One of the best ways to avoid racking your brain every evening to come up with an answer is through meal planning. By planning a few meals for the upcoming week, you will alleviate this unnecessary stress and have more time to spend with your family.

Family meals are especially important when you have children. Research has also shown that children and teens that eat regular meals with their families are nearly 5 times less likely to use drugs or smoke than those who do not eat family meals on a regular basis. Dinner is often the best time to have meals together as this is when everyone is winding down from a busy day. This can also be a time to learn about your children, how their day has been, and simply reconnect with one another

Meal planning can be very beneficial for your health. It allows you to have more control over portion sizes and helps to avoid spur-of-the-moment purchasing of fast food as a last resort. Ensuring that you and your family are eating nutrient-rich foods is a lot easier when planning in advance and making meals at home. When you can eliminate last minute trips to the store, you’ll have more time to prepare meals and side dishes full of functional foods, which are excellent for you and your family’s health.

Meal planning can also help you save money. When you have a plan of what you will need to purchase for the week ahead, you will be able to reduce the number of random purchases you make while you’re shopping and you’ll save gas by making one trip to the store instead of multiple trips each week.

Part of meal planning is having an idea of what ingredients you will need in the coming week, and creating a shopping list containing those ingredients. When you arrive at the store you’ll know exactly what you need, so that you can avoid the uncertainty of what to purchase, which can often lead to impulse spending.

Making the commitment to a meal planning routine is just the first step. The next question is where to find the meals that you will make. We offer hundreds of recipes and meal ideas for you to browse, so that you can find the perfect recipes for you and your family. Once you have found the recipes that you want to try, be sure to make use of our shopping list and meal planner to get you started on the right track.