Tuesday, August 28, 2012

My Dinner Problem

  So, here is the problem.   Actually, let's begin with what the problem is not.  The problem is not that I am incapable of coming up with a well-balanced dinner menu.  I am totally capable. I have been doing it for a long time.  The problem is, sometimes I wish somebody else would do it.  Sometimes I try asking other people to do it, such as my children.   I don't know why I keep trying to ask the children because all they keep saying is "Tacos!"  I like Tacos, but if we have them every single day of our lives forever, we will all hate them sooner or later.  Probably sooner.  So sometimes, I ask my husband.  My husband usually says, "Whatever the kids want", which brings us right back to Tacos.   Or sometimes he says, "How about something for the grill?"  This is not really an answer.  I need specifics.  Specifically, what kind of protein would you like? How do you want it seasoned?  Dry rub, sauce, glaze, marinade, brine?  Do you have a recipe for that?  And what will we have to go with it?  There's the kicker.  What exactly are we going to have to go with it? What would go with it?  A recommendation I frequently read is "Serve with a simple tossed salad and a baguette."  And it's a great recommendation. Super easy.  But I already did that yesterday.   

  Sometimes I ask my friends what I should make for dinner.  Maybe they're getting tired of this line of questioning.  The other day one of them actually handed me a package of spaghetti and a jar of vodka sauce right out of her cupboard.  I love my friends.  They are always there for me.  Of course, I couldn't exactly ask her, "Do you have any protein to go with that?"   I have also tried asking the internet.  The internet does not seem to understand my problem.  I don't really need a hundred billion recipes for what to do with chicken breasts.  A hundred billion recipes will not solve my dinner problem.  What I need is well-balanced and varied total-package dinner MENUS.

  As far as I can tell, nobody else is going to solve my dinner problem for me.  I will have to continue to solve it myself.  But maybe, just maybe, I can help solve somebody else's dinner problems in the process.  Maybe I can take something that is already challenging and make it even more challenging by writing a blog about it.  I am not sure why I think this is a good idea.  But anyway, here is what I propose to do:  Every week, I will plan at least 6 dinner menus, sometimes 7.  They will be well-balanced and varied.  They will not include a "simple tossed salad and a baguette" more than once a week.   They will be affordable; they will have to be, because they will be the menus I am actually going to serve my family. They will not (usually) take forever to make.  They will always include at least one thing that can reasonably be expected to please most children most of the time, and which they can fill up on if all else fails.  In other words, I will try to be considerate of the children, without catering to them.  I will give them plenty of opportunities to expand their nutritional horizons.

I should probably tell you at this point that I am a nutritionist, that is, a Registered Dietitian.  Don't let that scare you.  I promise you that I have never once cooked one of those bland or boring, yet nutritionally virtuous meals that people often associate with healthful eating.  I have, on the other hand, been known to serve a Chocolate Pecan Babka for dinner.  In a totally balanced way.  Because I am an educated professional, I can make a balanced meal out of almost anything, even frosting.  (I'm just kidding about the frosting.  Sort of.)

OK, so let's get things started with the first meal.  Tonight for dinner I am going to make:

Corn Off the Cob
Green Salad with Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette
(there it is, you won't see it again for another week, I promise)

All the bases are covered.  We have ground beef for protein, pasta shells for carbohydrate, and two vegetables (one is starchy, one is not; one is cooked, and one is raw), as well as a source of calcium.   The shells are rich, and the sides are light.  The corn is a second carbohydrate in this meal; technically you only need one.  You could omit the corn and still have a balanced meal.  I've included it because it provides more variety which makes the meal more interesting, and because corn just seems to go with Mexican foods.  It's sweetness is a nice balance to spicy flavors.

The nutritionist in me wants me to tell you that I purchased lean ground beef and light cream cheese for this recipe.  I will probably not put sour cream on it, because I just don't think it needs it.  I'm using fresh corn and cutting it off the cob, because it is August and corn is in season and our local farm has the most wonderful corn in the whole wide world.  And because I obviously have a lot of time on my hands today.  If I didn't, or if corn weren't in season, I would use frozen.  To cook it, saute the corn over medium-low heat in a small amount of butter for about 8-10 minutes, and season with salt and pepper.

At this point, I have no idea what I'm going to have for dinner tomorrow, let alone the rest of the week, but I will get working on that right away.  As soon as I figure it out I'll let you know.   :)

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