Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner; Fast, Cheap and Healthy

I’m all about quick and easy when it comes to feeding my family. But it has to be healthy too, which means plenty of vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein for the calories we gobble up every day. This past Sunday was a typical day for me and my kids. Here are three meals that cover the bases and taste great too:

Breakfast – Healthy French Toast                   

My spin on this uses whole grain bread, one egg and one additional white and a little low fat milk to soak the bread. After pan frying (with a little butter flavored non-stick spray) to a golden brown, I top it with plain low fat Greek yogurt, drizzle on a little honey and a little chocolate syrup, then some sliced bananas. We each had a small glass of V8 waiting for the toast to be ready.

Lunch – Hi-Protein Crackers, Apples and Cheese

I got the idea for this cracker combo from the picture on the side of the box of the new Brown Rice Triscuits, Tomato and Sweet Basil flavor. I topped the crackers with a little chunk of cottage cheese and halved grape tomatoes. We paired these cracker treats with sliced granny smith apples and cubed cheddar cheese, which I just cut up from cheese sticks.

Dinner – Easy Veggie Tortellini Soup.

The base of this is simply 50/50 veggie broth and the pasta sauce of your choice. I like roasted garlic but have used other flavors as well. While heating the base, I boil the pasta, Then, I add to the base frozen chopped spinach, frozen mixed veggies, frozen peas, canned black beans and in the picture above I threw in some leftover roasted red potatoes. When the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the soup.

After dinner we might have a couple Girl Scout cookies (‘tis the season!) or home-made frozen fruit juice popsicles. We got the molds at the Dublin Bed Bath and Beyond.

Everything on the menu is easy, yummy and dirt cheap – so enjoy with a clear conscience and a very modest dent in your pocket book!

Dan is a nationally certified personal fitness trainer and former continuing education faculty member of the National Academy of Sports Medicine and the American Council on Exercise. He is the owner and head trainer at Tri Valley Trainer in Pleasanton, which provides personal training, small group fitness and nutrition guidance. He can be reached at Dan@TriValleyTrainer.com