Meal prepping has become trendy in today’s society of creating a healthier eating lifestyle. Googling “meal prep”, brings a plethora of sites of blogs, video tutorials, articles on how to – where to – when to meal prep. There is merchandise for your purchasing pleasure of specifically designed meal prep food containers, bags and of course with technology always at the forefront, we ask – is there an app for that?
The old adage of “the more things change, the more they stay the same” bolds true with the engagement of preparing meals for the week to ensure you are consistent with whatever diet, new lifestyle, health group, etc. I say this because growing up in the Jackson household, consisting of father, mother and six children, planning what to eat was vital to survival both in life and finance. That still holds true today, no matter the size of the family.
My childhood home, housed two generations of taste buds and appetites. Food choices for us, as children, were very simple – we ate what was prepared and liked it. As my mama would say “if you hungry you’ll eat what you have”. Both parents were great cooks and always made sure there was something to feed their six growing and many times, very greedy, children.
Seven years ago, my home housed three generations of the Jackson clan. The generational composition of the family: Traditional/Silent Generation (1931); Baby Boomer (1958); Millennial (1992); and Centennials (1996 and 1997). Food choices with this mix can be troublesome if you approach meal planning in an attempt to please everyone’s individualistic taste buds.
My mama from the Traditional/Silent Generation always would say “I’m a country girl” when it came to food preferences. Her taste simple – Fish and grits, be it for breakfast, lunch or dinner, this was her favorite meal. Lord help me, if I happen to add roasted sweet potatoes to the plate, she tells the Lord thank you so fast, it sounds like she’s speaking in tongues.
By way of the Millennial and Centennials, you have to remember that they grew up eating based on food choices made by the elders of the clan. As times change, we create a twist or two to the very same dishes prepared many decades ago. For example, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, one of the great comfort food meals. Prepared as then using ground chuck or beef and the potatoes made with lots of cream and butter. If within your household the consumption of beef has decreased or an absolute do not eat anymore, today there are many alternatives. Ground turkey or chicken is readily available and prepares well as a meatloaf. Also, should the use of creams and butters become a family health issue, again readily available alternatives exist – using chicken broth instead of milk or cream. With the goal for a healthier home, I switched out dairy staples to plant-based/vegan alternatives and over the years the family did not even noticed.
Food staples are key to ensure meal planning/prepping is not an arduous chore. No matter the generation, there will always be common items to maintain within your pantry and fridge. The Jackson clan required rice (tri-color quinoa and brown rice blend), onions, potatoes (sweet potatoes), milk (cashew or almond), bread (sprouted ancient grains with seeds), fruits (organic when possible), fresh and frozen vegetables (organic when possible). The parentheticals are another one of unnoticed switch-outs.
I plan, prepare, cook from history. That history was made from what was shown to me in the kitchen, from the garden, in the grocery stores, what my daddy produced from his hunting and fishing excursions. Food choices reflect and represent the personality of the home. We as a family eat from history and recreate those memories, although with some twists as life passes on.
Great and healthier food choices are made when we engage our family in conversations in those moments when certain dishes evoke memories. Those choices, of course, change as life dictates better choices to extend or even more so, enhance our quality of life. It is possible to create a health conscious dish/meal while also birthing new traditions that marry to the old ones.
In the attempt to encourage others in your household to eat, live and be well – lead by example. Someone is always watching.
– Brenda Jackson