In week 3 of the Take Back Dinnertime Challenge (Get Inspired), we’re tackling food inspiration.
Readers always tell me they want to branch out from the same old meals. Getting out of a food rut isn’t be easy but it doesn’t have to be hard either.
So here are some simple steps you can take to jazz up your nightly dinners without giving up what’s familiar. Don’t miss the giveaway at the end of the post.
1. Keep new recipes in one place:
I have a word document entitled “New Recipes to Try.” Every time I see a recipe I like, I copy and paste the URL in that file. When it comes time for my weekly meal plan, I check that file to see if I want to make any of the meals.
If the meal turns out then I transfer it to my “Jacobsen Meals” document. I print out all the recipes and include them in one folder. My goal is to gather a good variety of recipe and meal ideas for the years to come.
2. Tag recipes in (old and new) cookbooks:
When I first get a cookbook I look through it and try a couple of recipes — and then the cookbook sits. When I’m looking for meal inspiration I go through old cookbooks and tag the recipes I want to try.
Bottom line: don’t forget about your cookbooks!
3. Do weekly online searches:
I find most of my meal inspiration online. I store and save recipes on All Recipes where I check the comments and never choose a meal that has less than 4 stars. I also like Cooking Light and any recipe I find through Google.
I turn to my fellow RDs for inspiration including Estela at Weekly Bite, the Meal Makeover Moms, and Jill Castle’s Dinner Bar (family style meals) at Just the Right Byte. Other healthy resources include Six O’clock Scramble, Super Healthy Kids and Simple Bites.
4. Try new recipes on a regular basis: I incorporate a new recipe every week or two. While I reserve the right not to make the new meal if it’s a stressful day, I make it a point to keep the new meals coming. (Hint: skip new meals on Fridays!)
When choosing a recipe, I try to pick something that has familiar ingredients with only one or two new items. I also consider my children’s food preferences and ability to chew food.
5. Keep your child’s future taste buds in mind:
If I waited for approval on new meals from my kids, especially Big A, we’d never branch out. My husband and I carefully decide whether or not a meal is worth making again. It has to be kid-friendly enough, but it does not need to be something they chow down the first time they try it. As they get older, they will have more say.
On nights we try something new, I always make sure there are familiar sides that my kids are likely to eat.
6. Don’t give up: I know too well what it’s like to have dinner failures. It’s enough to make you run to the tried and true meals. But I’ve learned that you have to take the good with the bad — and the bad will happen more than you like. For every 4 or so new meals that I make, one ends up a winner.
The good news? With time I’ve gotten much better at choosing new recipes so the failures aren’t so bad — they’re just not worth a repeat performance.
Don’t miss this week’s Real Simple video about getting inspired. And for a fun bonus, Real Simple is offering 5 free issues of their Family issue.
To enter leave a comment about where you go for meal inspiration. For an extra entry, share with someone through facebook, twitter or email. Just leave another comment. This will run until Monday September 12th.
My meal inspiration usually comes from the great ladies over at Our Best Bites. I love their recipes because they very rarely include something I don’t already have on hand. I have yet to try a recipe from there that I didn’t like.
I will admit it; I don’t buy cookbooks. I have the staple Better Homes & Gardens picnic table looking cookbook (in the breast cancer pink, of course – I think this particular cookbook is a kitchen requirement and no kitchen should be without it) and OBB’s cookbook, but that’s it. With the internet, I just do not see the point of spending the money on a cookbook (with the select few of course).
My meal inspiration comes from a lot of the same places as you. I also take at least one evening per month to flip through my cookbooks and tag or write down the new or already tried recipes that I’d like to make again. I enjoy cookbooks, but only buy them if there are tons of recipes in them I’m excited to try. Allrecipes disappoints me because most reviewers give 5 stars then comment how they changed the entire recipe – that to me does not ensure a good recipe. I use theirs as a base recipe for something I’m not 100% sure how to make, then I put my own twist on it to make it my own. Recipes I find online, I bookmark in a Recipes folder so I can always go back to it.
When we find a new recipe that is worth repeating, I put it in a googledoc spreadsheet I’ve created for meal menus. It lists the entrees, sides, etc that we have enjoyed. When I am meal planning and can’t think of anything, we visit that sheet and pick some recipes.
Mostly, I use the internet. Our Best Bites, AllRecipes, Annie’s Eats, and For the Love of Cooking are a few of my faves. Pinterest is my latest find for all kinds of great things – including recipes!
My inspiration is primarily found online through some great food blogs – many similar to those already mentioned, as well as more general recipe sites. In terms of cookbooks, I’m partial to America’s Test Kitchen, but like many others, too. In my opinion there needs to be a great photo to accompany the recipe – I like to have a visual of the finished product.
Anne – I agree about allrecipes, they disappoint me too. I also find some of the comments that are listed near the top are not the most current. I prefer the rating system and photos on tasty kitchen.
I subscribe to a few magazines that I always try one or two new recipes… need a better way to keep my favorites, tho! Agree with others about allrecipes – tho I do like their ingredient search. Might have to check out Our Best Bites
I love the tip about adding familiar sides to new meals. What a great strategy for introducing the new stuff. Isn’t it something like 10-20 times offering a new food for children to accept it? Obviously, this isn’t every case but you just have to keep on trying!
For meal inspiration, I turn to what’s in season! I am a CSA member this year, so I’m often inspired by what has arrived in my basket. I love looking in magazines — Cooking Light, Rachael Ray, Bon Appetit — and food blogs. I’d love to win the 5 issues of Real Simple Family!
P.S. Thanks for the shout out! I’ll be sure to share your link on Twitter …
I received a family recipe box filled with recipes from grandmas, aunts, uncles, and cousins when I got married, so I like to look there. I have also found some great recipes on Whole Foods website and on different blogs that I follow.
I really enjoy Taste of Home magazine. I always find new recipes to try in there.
I check many of the sites you mentioned but just today found a family meal section at Marthastewart.com. We tried th sesame broccoli beef stir fry ( with added black beans) which was quick, tasty and well-liked by all!
I lobe Cooking Light recipes. They are usually healthy and well-tested. The reviews can be very helpful too.