The Moms' Guide to Meal Makeovers

Book excerpt: For the legions of harried moms who have tossed in the dishtowel on cooking healthy meals (or any meals!), the easiest-ever guide for bringing super nutrition back to the kitchen. Getting dinner on the table night after night can be a challenge. So it’s no surprise that busy moms often rely on fast food, takeout, and convenience meals like macaroni & cheese, chicken nuggets, and fries. The kids love it but the drawback is that little twinge of guilt moms feel every time they feed their family another not-so-healthy meal. At the end of the day, many children end up with a poor diet high in sugar, saturated fat, and calories … a major factor in the rising rates of obesity. Finally, here are realistic guidelines designed to give families a healthy meal makeover. The Moms lay out a 5-Step Meal Makeover Plan, explaining how to market good nutrition to kids, establish food rules, and make life easier in the kitchen. In The Best of the Bunch chapter they reveal which brands of kid convenience foods–hot dogs, frozen pizza, and more–are the best tasting and most nutritious ones out there. The Moms show how to stock a healthy pantry and whip up delicious anytime meals using pantry staples. They even serve up 120 reworked recipes for family favorites such as Fast-as-Boxed Macaroni & Cheese, Squishy Squash Lasagna, Cheesy Broccoli Soup, Sweet Potato Fries, and Chocolate Pudding with Toppers.