March 9, 2006

I was trying to figure out the direction the workshop presenter was going with her talk. On the table in the front of the room, she had a large glass jar with a pile of stones nearby. Chatting cheerfully, she proceeded to carefully fill the jar with the large stones until the jar was filled to the top.

“Do you think we can squeeze in any more stones?” she asked. “No,” we answered, although most of us were probably thinking it was a trick question.

She next picked up a container with smaller stones and poured those in around the large ones. “Do you think we can fit in anything else?” she asked.

“Yes!” we all said in unison. We weren’t about to be tricked again. She laughed. Sure enough, she pulled out another container with gravel. This time the jar was truly packed, or so we thought.

“Can we squeeze in anything else?” she asked. There were some hesitant nods but mainly people didn’t dare say anything. She smiled and pulled out a pitcher of water and filled the jar even more.

It turned out to be an interesting analogy she had learned from reading a Stephen Covey book about time management. Most of us pack our days (the jar) full of activities (the stones, gravel and water). We have just 24 hours, and about one-third of that time is spent sleeping.

As I thought about this, I wondered how we might apply this information to prioritizing our time for one of the basic necessities of life, healthy eating. While it may seem that eating out saves time (although usually not money), consider the time spent driving there, waiting to be seated, waiting for the meal and driving back home.

One of the best time-saving and health-promoting tips actually takes a little time up front: Plan your menus and your shopping trips. To get started, consider these tips to save time and promote better health:

• Look at store ads to provide ideas for menus. Aim for a wide variety of foods from all the MyPyramid food groups and then write down menus for a week. Save your list of menu ideas, perhaps in a binder, and include the shopping list with the menus. You may want to recycle your menu ideas in a few weeks.
• Consider items on your menu that allow you to cook once and eat twice. For example, having a roast for Sunday dinner provides the basis for roast beef sandwiches on Monday. Leftover grilled chicken can be used in soups, fajitas or other dishes.
• Consider using a computer to make your list. That way you can leave your staple items, such as milk, eggs, bread and juice, and add your needed items to the list. Or keep your list on your refrigerator so family members can add to the list during the week.
• If you know the store layout well enough, make a list based on the layout with subheadings such as “fresh produce,” “canned goods,” “meats” and “breads.” Some grocery stores provide a map.
• Before you go to the store, have a snack. Otherwise, it’s tempting to add many items to your shopping cart.
• Involve all family members in the cooking, cleanup and planning process. You may want to make a list of “jobs” for them, too.
• Consider speed-scratch cooking, where you use some prepared mixes and dress them up with added ingredients.

Here’s an example of a “speed-scratch” casserole with just five ingredients that’s on the table in 25 minutes.

Quick Taco-Mac

1 lb. ground beef or ground turkey
1 packet taco seasoning
1 (14.5-oz.) can whole tomatoes, undrained, or 1 (15-oz.) can tomato sauce
1 c. water
1 box macaroni and cheese

In medium skillet, brown ground meat and stir until crumbly. Drain fat. If using canned whole tomatoes, cut or break up the tomatoes. Stir in rest of ingredients, including the cheese packet from the macaroni and cheese. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese, if desired.

Makes six servings. Each serving has 247 calories, 30 grams of carbohydrate, 4 grams of fat and 1 gram of fiber.

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Source: Julie Garden-Robinson, (701) 231-7187, jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, richard.mattern@ndsu.nodak.edu

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