I’ve noticed the glimmer of a trend lately.
For once it’s a trend I can applaud: more and more television
stories, magazines, newspaper articles and even ads (like the side
of the milk carton) are talking about the importance of getting the
family back to the dinner table.
I’ve noticed the glimmer of a trend lately.
For once it’s a trend I can applaud: more and more television stories, magazines, newspaper articles and even ads (like the side of the milk carton) are talking about the importance of getting the family back to the dinner table.
I guess if the family is in the car eating fast food, it’s one way of being together, but still no substitute for the old-fashioned dining table version: the TV is off, nobody is reading or playing a video game and family members talk to each other.
It’s the best way for parents to transmit their values and beliefs to their children; it’s the best way for children to learn to carry their end of a conversation, and your digestive system likes it, too.
Part of the problem is that younger people are less comfortable cooking than my generation, and without a solid grounding and lots of practice, putting a meal on the table every night can seem overwhelming and not worth the bother. (Let us have a moment of silent thanks for the moms, like mine, who did so night after night for decades.)
Luckily, a number of entrepreneurial women and families have been busy figuring out ways to help.
You may have read about the “Easy Meal Prep” phenomenon, for example. It consists of businesses where you can sign up for a number of meals per month, then use their facilities and ingredients to pre-package the meals for later assembly at home. The meals are packed in precisely-labeled zipper bags or foil baking pans and frozen for use at a later (up to three months) date.
The closest one I found through searching on the Web is The Dinner A’Fare in Morgan Hill (16965 Monterey Road, No. 120; phone (408) 779-7520).
It’s part of a franchise operation, whose Web site says, “The Dinner A’Fare helps you put the silverware back on your dining room table. Imagine having the time to prepare delicious, healthy meals for your family without spending your days in the kitchen … in less than two hours you will have 12 amazing meals to bring home to your family.”
Here are a number of other Meal Prep operations within easy driving distance. Most require reservations in advance, but also welcome private parties so you could organize a group of friends for an afternoon of convivial cooking with no cleanup!
n Dream Dinners
5685 Cottle Road
San Jose CA 95123
(408) 363-3968
email: sanjoseCA@dreamdinners.
com
n Super Suppers
4980 Cherry Ave.
San Jose Ca 95118
(408) 979-9321
www.sssanjosealmadenca
.com
n 670 River Oaks Parkway
San Jose CA 95134
(408) 383-0700
sssanjoseriveroaksca.com
The December menus for The Dinner A’Fare include Prime Rib Roasts (for an extra charge) that you season and prepare, then freeze for use at a later date, such as your main holiday meal.
Other items that caught my eye on the December menu were Chili Lime Crab Cakes, Homemade Calzones, Crispy BBQ Chip Chicken and Pork with Mushroom Ragout.
I had actually heard of making a month’s worth of meals in advance, but it wasn’t until businesses like these starting offering the service that I really paid much attention.
Then one of my favorite Web sites, SavingDinner.com, offered a monthly make-ahead plan, too.
First, though, let me tell you about Saving Dinner. The brainchild of Leanne Ely, a nutritionist and cookbook author, SavingDinner.com is a subscription service that sends six dinner main-dish recipes a week, plus a shopping list and side dish suggestions, to your email in-box.
For $29.95 for 12 months, you receive menus and recipes for six or two servings, in one of the following categories: regular, low-carb, “body clutter” (weight loss with additional meal plans), frugal, crock cooker, vegetarian and heart healthy.
Free sample menus are available on the Web site, as well as a three-month trial for $9.95.
Here is the “regular” menu I received for the week of Nov. 20: (Thanksgiving menus and tips were offered separately, for free, on the Web site.)
Winter Squash Soup with spinach salad and crusty bread
Swiss Chicken with red potatoes and broccoli
Stuffed Peppers with salad and garlic bread
Shells with white beans and Tuna, with salad and whole grain rolls
Curried Macaroni and Turkey Salad, with beefsteak tomatoes and whole grain rolls
Tex Mex Pork Wraps with brown rice and black beans
The shopping list that’s included gives the amounts needed and which meals the items are for, and each recipe includes nutritional information as well as vegetarian and kosher versions.
I have found that having these menus and recipes for a framework allows me to eat a real meal more often than I would otherwise, since everything but chopping and turning on the stove has been done for me.
Here is a sample recipe:
Tex Mex Pork Wraps for Two
3/4 pound boneless pork roast
2 1/2 ounces canned tomato sauce
1/3 cup your favorite barbecue sauce
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 2/3 ounces canned diced green chiles, or to taste
4 teaspoon chili powder
1/3 teaspoon ground cumin
1/3 teaspoon dried oregano
2 flour tortillas, warmed (whole wheat, if possible)
Optional garnishes:
chopped lettuce
diced tomatoes
chopped green onions
sour cream
chopped cilantro
Step 1: Place pork roast in a slow cooker.
Step 2: In a mixing bowl, combine remaining ingredients (except tortillas and garnishes); pour over roast.
Step 3: Cover and cook on low heat setting for 8 to 10 hours.
Step 4: Shred pork with 2 forks; serve on tortillas with garnishes of your choice.
You can see that while the recipe is simple, the ingredients are all fresh, real food, and the menus do change with the seasons.
Similar philosophy went into the “Mega Menu Mailer,” which consists of instructions for preparing 22 dinner “kits,” packing, labeling and storing them, and then getting them ready to serve when the time comes. There are three basic versions, plus a new Low-Carb version, for $8.95 each.
The recipes are simliar to those in the weekly menu mailer, and by preparing the food yourself the total cost is probably quite a bit lower than the services.
Recipes from the first Mega Menu-Mailer include Baked Dill Salmon on Rice, Carolina Crock Pot Pork and Layered Lasagne, some of which I had seen before. The real prize here are the seven pages of detailed instructions for assembling all 22 recipes to the freezer-ready state. Then each meal reappears with cooking and serving instructions.
If it seems too scary to do all 22 meals (let alone invest in all those zipper bags), you could start with just a week’s worth and still be ahead of the game.
Elizabeth Gage is a writer who lives in Hollister. She can be reached at ee******@***oo.com.
