Based
on detailed time diaries kept by thousands of Americans,
mothers in 1965 spent 10.2 hours a week focused on
their children in activities such as reading with
them, feeding them or playing games. While the number
of hours dropped in the 1970s and 80s, it began rising
in the 90s and is now higher than ever at almost 14.1
hours each week.
But
ask those same moms how they feel about it, and at
least half will say they don’t have enough time
with their kids.
The
study shows how these extra hours spent with kids
have been stolen from time spent on housework, cooking,
meal cleanup and laundry. Oh, and sleep!
What
I found most interesting was that moms almost halved
the time they spent in cooking and meal cleanup. Unfortunately,
this might suggest that we’re relying more on
take-out, fast food or prepackaged frozen meals. Along
with the cost of convenience, we’re also paying
for undesirable amounts of sodium, additives, fats
and calories.
I
firmly believe that meals don’t have to be time-consuming
to be healthy; that you don’t have to face an
hour of cleanup after dinner in order to serve delicious,
home-cooked food.
Here
is a quick and easy kid-friendly recipe that can be
easily adjusted for using fresh or frozen foods, depending
on your rush level and how recently you’ve been
to the grocery store. Regardless, you can feel good
about serving it, and it won’t eat up important
time better spent with your kids!
Garlic
Fish and Potatoes
Serves 4
16
garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
1 – 1 1/2 lb. filets of white fish, such as
flounder, tilapia or sole fresh or frozen
2 russet potatoes or 16 oz. frozen hash browns (loose,
not in patties)
4 cups broccoli florets, fresh or frozen
4 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen
2 cups sliced carrots, fresh or frozen
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat
oven to 450 degrees F. Spray inside of 3 1/2- or 4-quart
cast iron Dutch oven and lid with olive oil.
Drop
whole, peeled garlic cloves into Dutch oven. Scrub
and cube potatoes and place in pot; or shake frozen
hash browns in (break apart hash browns so that they
are not frozen in a single mound). Sprinkle lightly
with sea salt and pepper, if desired. Set fish filets
in next, in a single layer as much as possible. With
thinner filets, it is ok to have multiple layers as
long as the filets are not frozen to each other. I
find it easy to separate frozen fish filets using
the tip of a knife as a lever and applying a little
pressure.
Tuck
carrots into the crevices and follow with corn and
broccoli until pot is full. Sprinkle lightly with
sea salt and pepper.
Cover
and bake for 40-53 minutes, depending upon the thickness
of the fish. Note: using frozen foods WON’T
necessarily increase cooking time! You’ll know
its ready 3 minutes after the aroma of a fully cooked
meal wafts from the oven.
Notes
Your kids won’t eat fish? Although the fish
species suggested here are very mild flavored and
a great way to introduce more fish to non-fish-eaters,
try substituting 4 pieces of chicken for a different
meal.
Don’t
be nervous about the amount of garlic! Although it
may seem like a lot, when the cloves are left whole
they impart a milder, nutty flavor.
Nutritional
Analysis per serving, based on 2 servings and using
flounder, fresh potato and carrots and frozen corn
and broccoli.
Calories 326
Protein 33g
Carbs 53g
Fat 2.8g
Cholesterol 54mg
Sodium 150mg
Fiber 11g
About
the Author
Elizabeth Yarnell is the inventor and author of
Glorious
One-Pot Meals:
A new quick & healthy approach to Dutch oven cooking.
Visit www.GloriousOnePotMeals.com
for more information on this unique, patented cooking
method and to sign up for Elizabeth’s newsletter.
