©learning zonexpress 1 by victoria cherne, cfcs. ©learning zonexpress 2 basic meal planning...

©Learning ZoneXpress1

by Victoria Cherne, CFCS


Basic Meal Planning

• Success = management skills.

Television chefs make it look easy!

Organize and plan ahead.

• This presentation will discuss:

Meal Patterns

Health & Nutrition

Meal/Menu Planning

Grocery Shopping

Preparation/Kitchen Safety

Time Management


Basic Meal Planning

• Good meal planning involves using resources wisely to meet the following goals:

Provide good nutrition that meets the needs of each family member.

Plan meals that fit into the familyfood budget and lifestyle.

Prepare satisfying meals that look and taste appealing.

Use time, resources, and energy efficiently.

Use kitchen tools and equipment safely.


Consider Your Lifestyle

• Your health & nutrition needs, meal patterns, menu planning, and even preparation are unique to your family and lifestyle.

• Use this planning information to help you make the best use of your time and resources.

• Some families plan and prepare meals together, while others take turns doing different tasks.

• Do what works best for your family and lifestyle.


Meal Choices

• What influences our food choices?

Family & Culture

Friends

Religious Beliefs

Emotions

Geographical Area

Advertising

Lifestyle & Values


Meal Patterns

• Most people follow meal patterns, or habits that determine when and what food they eat.

• A meal pattern for one day might be:

Breakfast: Cereal, milk & juice.

Lunch: Sandwich, fruit & milk.

Dinner: Hamburger, baked potato,green beans & milk.

Snack: Fruit or popcorn.


Meal Patterns

• Goal: Get the nutrition you need to keep your body fit and energetic!

Meal patterns can be adapted to fit different lifestyles and preferences.

Each meal can be light or full, depending family needs.

Achieve a balance of the food groups and nutrition throughout the week.


Meal Patterns

• There is no one way to eat smart and stay healthy.

Americans organize their meals to eat three meals a day.

Europeans organize their meals to eat 3-5 times a day.

“Grazing” means you eat several mini-meals throughout the day, snacking with healthy foods.

• Skipping meals is not healthy.

May cause mental andphysical fatigue, and poor concentration.


Meal Patterns: Breakfast

• Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!

Eating breakfast “jump starts” your metabolism and provides your body with the energy it needs to be both mentally and physically active.

If time is a problem, a cereal bar or apple is better than a cup of coffee or soft drink.

• A healthy breakfast should include:

Protein

Calcium

Vitamin C

Carbohydrates


Meal Patterns: Lunch

• In many countries such as France, Spain, and Italy, lunch is the largest, most important meal of the day.

• For many in the United States , lunch is the noontime meal to grab & go.


Meal Patterns: Dinner

• Dinner is often a leisurely meal that can be shared with family members and friends.

Depending on where you live your evening meal may be called dinner or supper.

Dinner may be light or full.

Sometimes traditional breakfast foods are servedfor the evening meal.


Meal Patterns: Snacks

• Snacks are foods eaten between meals to satisfy nutritional needs as well as hunger.

• Healthy snacks:

Fruit - fresh, frozen, dried, canned or juices.

Raw vegetables - like carrots & celery.

Muffins, or toast with peanut butter.

Raisins or pretzels.

Crackers and cheese.


Eating Together

• Studies show that structured family time together increases the strength andresilience of families.

• Families have their own styles for meals. It often depends on:

The menu.

Number of people.

Space available.

Schedules.

• What are some of your experiences with family holidays and meals?


Health & Nutrition

USDA The Food Guide Pyramid A Guide to Daily Food Choices for Meal Planning

By eating the recommended servings, you get the “50+” nutrients you need everyday to stay healthy.

Balance physical activity with food.

Eat a variety of foods from the Food Guide Pyramid.


Health & Nutrition

• Consider the nutrition needs of the family:

Younger children need more, small meals.

Athletes need more fluids and calories.

Teens need foods high in calcium.

-They are at peak bone mass formation.

Medical conditions, like diabetes and allergies.

Vegetarians eat plant foodsrich in fiber and complex carbohydrates.


Health & Nutrition

• Drink plenty of water throughout the day!Nearly half your body weight is water, this needs to be replenished daily!

Drink water before and after exercising.

Do not drink soft drinks in place of water, soft drinks contain sugar and caffeine.

Drinking low-fat milk is a good way to get water and nutrients.


Plan Your Menu

• A menu should be appealing and appetizing.

• Include foods that compliment one another in taste, appearance, and nutrition.

• To create variety in a meal consider:

Color

Texture

Temperature

Size & Shape

Flavor

• We eat with our eyes!


Plan Your Menu

• What’s wrong with these meals?

Meal 1 Meal 2

Cauliflower Meatballs

Mashed Potatoes Peas

Baked Cod Raspberries

Vanilla Ice Cream Biscuits

White Bread


Plan Your Menu

• Plan your meals to match:

Skills with kitchen equipment.

Food experience & knowledge.

Familiarity with ingredients.

Budget

Time

• Step 1: Create a menu for a weekwith these in mind.


Budgeting Resources

• Plan Ahead/Shop Wisely:

Step 2: Make a list of ingredients needed for the recipes in your meal plan.

• Cost/Budget

Consider your food budget

Consider your Time/Energy

- Food preparation takes time.

- Who will help?


Grocery Shopping

• Where to Shop:

Grocery Stores & Supermarkets:

- Have a wide variety of food items.

Specialty Stores:

- Gourmet, bakery, organic, farmers market, convenience stores, or ethnic.

Warehouse Stores:

- Endless choices of grocery items.

Food Co-ops:

- Owned by the employees.

Online Shopping:

- Delivered to your door.


Grocery Shopping

• Staples:

Basic ingredients in a kitchen.

- Flour, salt, sugar, milk, eggs, bread, etc.

• Perishables:

Ingredients that last a short time, and often need refrigeration.

- Eggs, milk, fruits, vegetables, etc.

• Paper Goods:

Plastic wrap, napkins, foil, etc.


Advertising

• Food store advertising encourages impulse buying.

Popular food items are placed at eye level, so you see and buy.

Slow relaxing music encourages people to buy more.

Name other techniques used.

- Food sampling?

• Stick to your grocery list!


Read the Label

• Comparison Shop:

Compare the advantages and disadvantages of quality, nutrition, price, and convenienceof food stores and products.

Compare brands.

Check unit pricing.

• Proper Storage

Put frozen foods away first.

Then refrigerate perishables.

Store canned and boxed foods last.


Meal Preparation

Who is cooking? What is their ability level? Ask for help when needed.

Review equipment you need. Do you know how to use it?

- Electric mixer & small appliances.

- Knives & special tools.

- Cooking tools & utensils.

- Cooking appliances,range, & microwave.


Kitchen Safety

• Safety Considerations:

Always wash your hands before handling food.

Always use potholders on hot items.

- Oven doors, stove tops & items from the microwave can be very hot.

Use only microwave-safe dishes in the microwave.

Always use caution with knives and cutting.

Keep work area organized and work within your time and energy limits.


Time Management

• Step 3: Make a time management plan

• What time will your meal be served?

• How much time will it take to:

Shop?

Prepare each menu item?

Cook each menu item?

Set the table?

Clean up?


Schedule Preparation Time

•Set up a time schedule, it might look like this:(Always allow a little extra time for unexpected delays.)

3–4:00 pm Shop for ingredients. (or before)

4-5:00 pm Prepare lasagna, and bake.

5:00 pm Set table.

5:10 pm Prepare salad, and wash and chill grapes (multi-tasking).

5:40 pm Cook green beans.

5:50 pm Cut and warm French bread.

6:10 pm Dinner is ready.

6:40 pm Serve chilled grapes.

7-8:00 pm Clean up!


Saving Time: Multi-Tasking

• “Personal Chefs” specialize in creating an entire week of delicious foods in a few short hours by using multi-tasking techniques.

• Multi-tasking while preparing meals can reduce the amount of time and energy involved.

Multi-tasking is doing two or more tasks at one time to make the best use of time.

For example, washing lettuce for the salad while the lasagna is baking.

Give other examples.

• Step 4: Look for ways to multi-task.

• Step 5: Clean as you go!


Saving Time: One-Dish Meals

• Nutritious one-dish meals have the advantage of combining many food groups.

• Can you add to this list of one-dish meals?

Chef Salad

Stir-fry

___________

___________

___________


Review: Step for Meal Planning

• Step 1: Create a menu before you shop.

• Step 2: Make a shopping list from your menu of ingredients you need.

• Step 3: Make a time management plan. Assign meal tasks (teamwork) and schedule preparation time.

• Step 4: Look for ways to Multi-task (i.e. wash/peel potatoes while chicken is baking).

• Step 5: Clean up as you go to minimizework after the meal.

• Step 6: Try to set aside time every day to have your meals together with family or friends.


Evaluate Your Meal

• Meal planning is a process. Even the best cooks and chefs evaluate their meals for improvements and see what they could do differently.

How did your meal turn out?

Did your guests enjoy the meal?

Were you happy with the results?

What did you like about your meal?

What would you do differently next time?

What was the most difficultpart of planning and preparing your meal?


Summary

• Good nutrition and menu planning adds quality to both our health and our well being.

• Eating healthy foods nourishes our bodies while enjoying a meal with family and friends lowers stress and increases our enjoyment of life.

• Menu planning can minimize the time and energy involved in shopping and meal preparation.

• Multi-tasking and teamwork can result in more enjoyment for all.

The End! Now it’s your turn.



Plan a Dinner Menu

• Consider your budget.

Some food items are more expensive than others. If you are not familiar with food prices go to the store to price different food items.

A menu that includes steaks and fresh asparagus is going to be more costly than spaghetti and a tossed salad.

• Organize your work plan.

Read through the recipes in yourmenu and make sure you have all the necessary ingredients.

Make a shopping list of items you need.


Plan a Dinner Menu

• Make a time schedule.

Decide what time you will serve your meal.

Include time for shopping, preparing and cooking/baking all items in you menu.

Consider the food that takes the longest to prepare.

Give yourself plenty of time to prepare all the items in your menu.


Meal Planning Quiz

1. Name three “influences” on our meal choices.

2. List the Food Guide Pyramid food groups, and recommended daily servings of each.

3. What are five things to consider when planning an appetizing and appealing menu?


Meal Planning Quiz

4. What is “Comparison Shopping”?

5. List three things you can do to help insure safety in the kitchen.

6. Give an example of multi-tasking during meal preparation.

7. What is the final step inmeal planning?


Online References

• Suggested web sites appropriate for the Meal Planning:

www.eatsmart.org

www.nal.usda.gov

www.health.gov

www.realsimple.com

Please note that web sites are constantly changing and being updated.

©learning zonexpress 1 by victoria cherne, cfcs. ©learning zonexpress 2 basic meal planning...

Documents

important meal

meal choiceswhat

noontime meal

meal patternsthere

meal patternsgoal

leisurely meal

evening meal

basic meal planningsuccess