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Too often, we have the best plans to eat healthy, but a small schedule change can derail our resolve.  Maybe a work meeting runs late or your child has a baseball game right during dinner time.  You may think that your only choice is fast food or a frozen meal, but there are plenty of ways to get healthy food on the table quickly.

Learn to Love the Slow Cooker

The slow cooker is a busy cooks best friend.  Simply put all of the ingredients in the slow cooker in the morning, and then come home to a delicious cooked meal.  If this isn't easy enough, you can make prep even easier on yourself by putting all the ingredients in the slow cooker the night before and leaving the insert in the refrigerator overnight.  Simply start the slow cooker in the morning.

Consider Prepping on the Weekend

If you're willing to invest some time on the weekend to prepare your food for the week, you'll save yourself even more time on a busy weeknight.  For instance, you might roast a whole chicken on Sunday.  Eat that for dinner Sunday night, and then you can also make chicken salad sandwiches to eat for lunch during the week.  Perhaps also prep veggies Sunday so you can easily put together a chicken pot pie one night when you come home from work.

By spending an hour or two prepping on Sunday, you can easily shave that much time or more off your weeknight cooking time.

Make Your Own Freezer Meals

Another option is to make your own freezer meals.  You'll have all the convenience of store bought frozen foods, but your meals will be much healthier without all of the dyes and preservatives.

An easy way to do this is to double a recipe you're already cooking.  For instance, if you're making minestrone soup in the slow cooker, simply double the recipe.  You'll spend less than 10 minutes chopping the additional veggies, and in return, you'll have a meal you can eat today and another you can pull quickly from the freezer.

Have a Staple Stand By Meal

For truly crazy nights when you've had no time to cook, have a stand by meal ready.  This kind of meal should be something that comes together quickly and is composed of ingredients that you usually have on hand.  One idea might be veggie fried rice.  Simply cook some quick cook rice, use frozen veggies, and cook up an egg.  Within 20 minutes, you'll have a hot, healthy meal on the table.

If you're looking to feed your family healthy foods, recognize that all that is required is a bit of extra planning.  Using these tips, you'll be able to feed your family healthy foods faster than you can drive to go get unhealthy take out.