Dinner, anyone else have this problem?

Eat the dinner with your family, but make better choices when preparing it. Use your same seasonings, but replace the higher fat items with lower fat, comparable ones. For meatloaf, use 90% lean beef. The 93% is too dense. Use whole wheat bread for the bread crumbs. Use egg whites rather than whole eggs.
You can get creative and make lighter versions of a lot of favorite meals. My guess is they'll never even notice.

I agree with Becka77--if you're the one doing the cooking, you set the menu! I mean, you could try "lightening up" their favourites, but if you stick to your guns, then your entire family will probably be better for it because they'd be eating healthy stuff, and if they hate it so much they'll help out by cooking supper once in a while (which frees up time for you to do important things like work out or take a nap ).

I agree choose wiser when you cook and eat the same. I have been cooking with better things, and my husband and kids love the new foods. Try using turkey burger or ground turkey. I use it a lot and my husband prefers it unless were having burgers.

haha, this is exactly what my mom said years ago when she started weight watchers (she's kept off 35 lbs for close to ten years!). my dad acquiesced of course!

above @ becka77 ... oops

Being a Southern Girl myself, I'm pretty sure the Southern Husband will notice the difference between traditional foods and those sneaky healthy ones. But the Southern Husband also instinctively knows that If Mama Ain't Happy, Ain't Nobody Happy. I'm sure his own Mama taught him that. (I have a kitschy sign hanging near the stove to remind my Yankee husband.)

His Mama probably also taught him to Eat What He's Served or cook for himself. His Mama likely also fed him plenty of greens and vegetables to go along with the less healthy stuff.

Don't let him fool you into thinking he's the King of the Castle. A Southern Boy grows up knowing who runs the house, and it's not him.

Most of these ladies have great advice! I agree, make healthier versions and eat smaller portion sizes. Good luck to you

If you're making dishes like chilis serve them with a large portion of green veg instead of the rice and add some other veg into the chili. I made it last week - made enough for 4 portions which each worked out at about 300 calories and then instead of doing rice, one day I served it with a large courgette (zuccini) which I sliced up and fried with a spray of olive oil, the next day I served it with a large portion of runner beans. It was great, and hubby really liked it.

I agree with making wiser choices on the ingredients you put in. I don't look at meatloaf and chili as unhealthy meals. I either use 90% or above ground beef, or I use ground turkey (we can't tell the difference in chili or spaghetti... it is different for meatloaf but I have a good turkey meatloaf recipe too).

You can usually substitute turkey or lean ground beef with no problems... same for skim/lowfat milk and cheeses. (I will admit that full fat cheese usually tastes better though!).

I can't think of any other ideas but if you want to post some recipes or meals you usually cook I'd be glad to try to make them over for you! I love doing things like that!

Oh, and we are from the South as well... and have no problems with most of the substitutions I do. We've also started trying to do fish more often, which is low-calorie. If you don't like grilled/broiled, then you can pan-fry in olive oil (going sparingly on both the "breading" and oil, of course) or do baked "fried" fish. I made oven-friend tilapia not too long ago and we loved it and it was low-calorie as well. You can also really watch the sides you put with your meal and that affects the healthiness/calories too. We love steamed broccoli (which is SO good for you) and green beans cooked in chicken broth.

I can't imagine cooking a different meal for my family than for myself. Why would I serve them food that I am not willing to eat? I may have different sides for myself sometimes (passing on fries when we have burgers, or eating less starches), but I would never have something completely different! I will admit that there are nights when I will not be home for supper that I grab a salad and tell them to have a guy's night though... which in my house usually means mac and cheese and hotdogs.

If you're the one doing the cooking, make whatever the heck you want, the rest of the family can eat it or starve!

I agree somewhat but I also know how hard it is to not please everyone. Currently my daughter, son-in-law,and their two boys are living with me and my husband. I try and make the main dish the same for everyone but I might include some things they all like that I don't eat (baked fries or another vegetable) I eat separate foods sometimes because I eat fish and no one else does. When they move into their house it will be back to normal because my husband does not cook so he is willing to eat what I make. I have modified some down home recipes so we can still have things we love. I make my biscuits with whole wheat flour and they are delicious. I buy only sugar free desserts and if they want something else it is on them to provide it. Good luck on coming up with a compromise.:flowerforyou:

I have a family of 5 too and can't say I really have this problem.

I cook Shepherds Pie, Roast Dinner, Curry, Spaghetti Bolognese and even Lasagne etc but I make them the low-fat way and I measure out my serving, having extra veg or salad if I think my portion looks mean, ,lol.
My kids really enjoy stir-fry and Fajitas and get excited when I make those.

The only time I cook seperate meals is when I am making something like Pie, I know I don't really enjoy or like pastry so will buy a pack of 4 individual pies, so that there isn't enough for me to have one, then I will have something quick like beans or tinned mackerel on toast. It doesn't bother me that they are eating something different, as I wouldn't have enjoyed the high-fat option anyway.

My husband is quite fussy as in the types of meat he will eat, but luckily the ones he refuses to eat are the higher-fat options such as lamb, pork and duck. We eat a lot of chicken, turkey, lean beef and prawns in this house.

I used to cook for the kids seperately when they were younger but I got so sick of cooking twice in an evening, so now we all have the same thing 95% of the time, and if someone doesn't like what is on offer, then tough!