We all know the scene well. One of the kids has after-school activities like soccer, karate
and swimming. The other one wants to go
to the mall with their friends. With constant coming and going, the only avenues of communication are
cell phones and notes left on the refrigerator. That does not take into consideration work and social projects
you and your spouse are involved in. Basically everyone is going every which way and you are stretched way
too thin.
That is where the concept for Dream Dinners, a new business that simplifies meal preparation fits in. They enable families to continue the tradition of family dinner time in spite of our hectic schedules.
Keeping the Family Connected
Keeping your busy family connected is no easy task. Making a difference in your children's lives
requires face-time, and there is no better way to do it than having
dinner together a couple of times a week. Several organizations have
published studies on the benefits of family meals. Here are just a few of the documented benefits
from regular family meals:
A 2004
study of 4,746 children 11 to 18 years old, published in The Archives of
Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, found that frequent family meals were
associated with a lower risk of smoking, drinking and using marijuana;
with a lower incidence of depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts; and
with better grades. Source document available by subscription only.
In 2006, a survey of 12 to 17 year-olds, by the National Center on Addiction
and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA), found that teenagers
who reported eating two or fewer dinners a week with family members were
more than one and a half times as likely to smoke, drink or use illegal
substances than were teenagers who had five to seven family dinners. Read the latest report from CASA here ...
A
study from the University
of Minnesota found that adolescent girls who reported having more
frequent family meals and a positive atmosphere during those meals were
less likely to have eating disorders.
Help with Meal Planning & Preparation
I know what you are
thinking, "These are great facts, but how am I supposed to pull
together dinner with the little time I have?" Some families resort to take out, but that can get expensive and is
generally not the healthiest. Other
families make easy to prepare meals, like macaroni and cheese or other pasta,
but these are not exactly the most nutritious. So what can you do?
A new and emerging option is the meal assembly
industry. Some call it "Assemble and
Freeze", others call it "Make and Take", but whatever it is called it all works
on the same principal. Dream Dinners in New
Hampshire (North Hampton and Bedford) are the place to go for help with family dinners. Here's how it works according to Tina Gleisner, busy owner of My Handyman:
At a time that fits your busy schedule, you go online to plan next months dinner menus. You have 14 main dishes to pick from - chicken, beef, pork, pasta and fish ... my husband is thrilled that we can now eat fish at home. You also pick the most convenient time to get your meals, including evenings and Saturdays.
When you arrive at the
store ... all the shopping and prep-work has been done for you. You are given recipe cards based on what you ordered, and all you have to do is assemble your meals
according to your family's taste (omitting onions for my husband). It is fun going to each meal station - the ingredients and correct measuring utensils are waiting for you, along with the zip lock bags you use to take the meals home and freeze them until cooking time.
The last step in your meal preparation is applying the instructions (printed on sticky labels) to one of the food bags and putting all bags for one meal into one large bag for safe storing.
You can assemble a months
worth of meals in about an hour for 2 people; under 2 hours for a family of 4 to 6). I love not having to clean anything up. When you finish your last meal, a Dream Dinner team member helps you load all your meals into a cooler for transporting home.
The hardest part is remembering to take a dinner out of the freezer in the morning (defrosting just takes more time). The first person home can easily follow the cooking instruction label that is right inside the bag. Best of all, it's a nutritious
meal that you have made yourself!
The
14-meal menu changes monthly, so you can provide your family with a variety of
great meals. They give you great tips on what to serve with the main dish plus the nutritional content of each meal. What does it cost? The price of each meal varies, but is generally between $3 and $4
per serving, which is a bargain compared to eating out.
