I have to be very careful with my diet - medical reasons. The main thing is to just keep getting back on the path that brings you the best health and not saying "forget it". Tomatoes and potatoes are my worst and I keep cheating with them. I had potatoes last night - I feel it today, but won't beat myself up over it. Worst thing is, now, they are totally on my mind because they were so goooood! When you are off and you know it, sorry but there is no happy medium. Just pick up and start again.

Maybe you are stumped and lacking ideas/recipes? I just made a cup of sprouted adzuki beans and wow, when I think of it, they have a lot of options plus loaded with nutrition (high iron for your needs). You can make a batch and eat it over three days. I mixed mine with some cooked hamburger, cumin, garlic, s&p, chili powder and served over lettuce. Very good. I also plan to add some to soup. You can have a wrap with it. Maybe having things that can be eaten over a few days available in the fridge?

Oh, and with my limited diet, I always say "Oh well, at least I'm not raw vegan". Sorry raw vegans.

It might help to keep a diary/planner/recipe list/shopping list. You can make your own or adapt a Filofax type book, or an Organization App. By having a log of the things you actually eat, you can see when you crave carbs, and when protein is easier for you, etc. By making a plan of what you think you'll be cooking/eating during a period, say a week, you can make sure to have the groceries you need and you can carve out time to do the cooking you need to do.

You can have a supply of cold turkey. You just have to be willing to do the work. Buy whatever size you think you can handle, whether it's a small bird, or a large breast, or boneless. Roast it. Vary the flavor with spice/herb rubs that are on your approved list. Put some liquid in the pan underneath to steam it and keep it moist (wine, broth, beer, water, or juice). You can also flavor it a bit by slicing a big onion to use as a "rack", and maybe throwing some carrots and celery in too. You can use the cooked veg to thicken and flavor the juices to make a gravy. Anyway, once you have your turkey cooked and cooled, slice up the whole thing, and portion it out into the amount you want to have at hand in the fridge, say four slices each. Vacuum seal and freeze, and put a new packet in the fridge to thaw as you open the package that's already there.

Other high protein, low fat items are egg whites and lowfat/nonfat plain yoghurt or cottage cheese. The latter have milk sugars, however, so balance that into your diet goals. You can also get very lean cuts of beef, and other meats. It would be worth finding some beef that works for you for the iron if you're restricted on the dark green leafies (perhaps you could give a list of your good and bad veg for more ideas). Depending on the sodium content, preserved fish (canned/smoked/pickled) is also good grab and go protein.

For balance, I also look to foods that are naturally balanced, like nuts, seeds and legumes.

For vegetables, think about the ones you like most and can have as much as you want of, and think about ways of buying/prepping/making them where you can always have some ready to go when you open the fridge. That's my big secret. I love being able to just grab a few green beans or asparagus spears to chomp on right out of the fridge.

Re your question, I think when I'm eating alone, I'm more likely to want just one thing, rather than a big meal. If I'm eating a dish of pasta (black bean pasta!), I'll throw a big handful of greens on top. I try to do the same with a sandwich, if it doesn't already have a bunch of regular sandwich veg in it, but that gets messy. :) Since I'm alone, however, I'll just pick the leaves that fall out up off the plate and eat them. :) Shameful, I know, but nutritious. ;) I also invest in snackable fruits like little tomatoes and strawberries.

I just had to drop everything to see if I had any comments. Bless you both. That gives me a place to start and I am so appreciative. You made my day and made me feel much better, I found a place locally that sells the meats that do not have the hormones or antibiotics. I have been using that but boy is it expensive. Well, we just have to cut somewhere else. I live in a small town, so do not have a lot of places available other than the chains. What are adzuki beans and never heard of the black bean pasta. Is there a catalog where I can order some things that are more healthful--like salt-free? Well, off to the store to see what I can add to my shopping list. This forum is my place to go for help. Thanks for the early tips. Barb

I get mine from this company. You can probably sprout your own. I have never done it. BTW, I don't handle very many beans but do well with adzuki beans so that is why I picked that bean. I am sure they can be replaced with any bean - black bean, chickpea, etc. A lot of bulk places have many types of beans and it is very affordable. Good luck.

http://www.shashabread.com/product_types/shasha-bio-bud

For healthy foods....make your own...cook your own beans and if possible grow your own veggies, lacking that buy organic. make your own bread and know where your eggs come from I don't eat much meat....but I do eat a lot of cheese and eggs>
I think that living alone I tend to eat one thing. For instance I will grill some chicken and eat that and a piece of bread....antoher day I will make a huge salad, eat it all and then make some more....another day it might be something strange like salmon and a big sweet potato>
If you keep the junk away your body will pretty well tell you what it needs.

Black beans and white beans have as much protein as Adzuki beans, so are good substitutes. Each has a different flavor, so you can vary your beans by rotating them. Black beans have the most iron, and white beans the least. You can find this information on the web or in books. Sprouting aids digestability. Chickpeas are higher in fat, have half the protein, and a negligible amount of iron. Use them more for richness. I add them to my bean and lentil loaf for that.

Beans are the only thing I've found to substitute for cheese. I
backslide a lot on my quest to reduce my cheese consumption, but I do
get the same satisfaction from spreading some mashed, homecooked beans
on a piece of bread. Especially since you're watching sodium, by
playing with flavoring beans, you can come up with some really
interesting and tempting dishes. Bean paste (mashed) is also great glue
for making vegetables stick to your sandwich. :) And it all keeps well
in the fridge. :)

I use Tolerant black bean pasta because there's nothing else in it. They make a few other shapes, and make red lentil pasta too. There are other brands that are just as good. This is just what my local store has that I like. The thing about it is that you have to watch it. It cooks very quickly, and the line between under and over is very small. I try to catch it just before it's all the way cooked--edible but on the uncooked side of al dente--and pour it into a colander. I don't rinse or cool it so it's still cooking in its own heat and moisture, and finishes when I put it back on the heat in the sauce. It's very unpleasant overcooked, but supremely delicious when it's just right.

Regarding groceries, yes, yes, yes, invest in yourself and don't scrimp on foods that are good for you. Patronize the good meats place. Talk to the butcher. Get friendly. Ask him to tip you off to good specials. One of the great things about meats, is that you don't need to eat a lot to get great benefit. There are perverse cuts out there. No one should eat a 20 oz. rib eye steak alone at one sitting. Four to six ounces of beef should give you half your daily requirement of protein. You can stretch that by following the general recommendations to use meat as part of something else rather than sitting down to a slab.

You can get anything you can't find locally online, but talk to the managers at the grocery stores you do have close to you. If you find a product that you like, they may be able to get it in for you and sell it to you for less than you'd have to pay online. You could even get ambitious, if there's one who's actually interested in the foods you want--you could start a club at the store, or a recipe circle, or help create demo events.

It will probably help if you have a plan. A list of the things you need to (and can) eat and how you will get them into your diet. I had to look up goitrogens and see it's a pretty big list that would greatly affect my own diet so I feel for you. If you have to go hormone and antibiotic free meat then just do it and make up for the extra dollars in other areas. Yes, I know, that's easy for me to say. I'm not huge fan of beans but have found some ways of using them that I do like and I'm sure with experimentation you can too.

I don't know if it works for your medical conditions but I always liked Julia Child's advice to not worry so much about every meal but to have balance over the course of a week.

>black bean pasta!)

Plllog, do you know of any black bean pasta that isn't made in China? I really like it but the only brands available here locally are all Chinese and I'm not comfortable with that.

Yes! Tolerant, the brand I use and linked above, clearly states Made in USA, as well as heckshers from USA Organic, the NonGMO Project, Certified Gluten Free, Certified Vegan Org, and Orthodox Union (kosher). The company is Canadian, part of MXO Global, and the organic certification is by Ecocert ICO Ltd. The packaging could be all one big lie, but I hope not. You'd think that OU, at least, would catch them out if they're too bad. :) I first found it at Whole Foods, though it's not always on the shelf there. Amazon has it, and the website says Costco. I see they've also added green lentil pasta in penne, elbows and shells. The black bean and red lentil are rotini, penne and "mini-fertuccini" which are really more like a mini-pappardelle.

Barb, I have realized that you said you had an iron problem, but it was my assumption that you were low on iron. The black bean pasta has a lot of iron. If you have to restrict iron, that's obviously another story.

If you don't like meat, then try a vegetarian diet. Don't force yourself to eat anythng you really don't care for. There's no need. There are lots of bouncing vegetarians out there!

As hubby and I have gotten older, we just don't enjoy chewing large cuts of meat anymore, nor do we need to consume as much protein FROM meat as we once did when we were more active. Maybe it's how the meat is prepared and the large portions you no longer care for? Swallowing also gets more difficult the older you get, and you may want to check that with your doctor.

-I cut chicken breasts into 2-oz. portions, or use chicken tenderloins or thigh/leg or boneless thigh portions. We enjoy meatloaf several times a month (due to the leftovers - the meal that keeps on giving...;-) - and I pan-fry thin slices of meatloaf to reheat it, or I'll make it in a muffin tin and reheat in the toaster oven or microwave.

-Give me shredded pork roast over a pork steak or chop any day (which is so inexpensive even I can purchase one on my $10/week meat budget). I can turn shredded pork into many things in LOTS of recipes.

-I'd rather have some kind of breakfast meat (I need to have some protein with breakfast, or good-quality meat alternative - peanut butter, egg, high-protein gluten-free breads - homemade, made with almond flour/coconut flour), etc.-, and go vegetarian for lunch and/or supper. We always go vegetarian on Friday, and many meals during the week - using plant protein like: quinoa, buckwheat, pulses, black rice, pumpkin seeds/aka pepitas (1-oz. = 9 g. protein), sunflower seeds, bean sprouts, almonds and almond pulp leftover from making almond milk, peanuts/peanut butter - even some vegetables like asparagus, cauliflower, spinach, broccoli, mushrooms are fairly good sources....

-Breakfast meat is usually a 1/2-serving, so less meat to consume during that meal. I make sausage out of ground turkey, pre-cook it (scrambled/crumbled), store it in portion bags in the freezer, and it's a breakfast favorite (low-fat, low-sodium). You can mix small amounts of meat in with scrambled eggs and baked in waffles. I also add unflavored isolated whey protein powder to some gluten-free foods to increase the protein.

-I enjoy beans as burgers (make my own and keep a stack in the freezer), and beans in soup or chili (with or without meat). I use chili as a topping for a baked potato or in a Taco Salad (a la Wendy's style). I also use a lot of lentils - in tacos or instead of beans in chili, as a snack food (sprouted, seasoned, and dehydrated), Lentil & Oat Waffles....

-There are a lot of high-protein foods you can make that don't include meat, or you can add small portions of finely chopped meat to dishes - eggs with sausage crumbles, soups, casseroles, pizza (which I often make on a tortilla with leftover bits of veggies and meat), Mexican entrees of all kinds. You can also drink homemade meat broth, which I love all year long, and think of it as the "elixir of life". Add chopped roasted turkey or chicken to bread dressing ingredients and bake it in a muffin tin for individual servings - Thanksgiving without all the fuss. I make several chicken dishes using only small portions of chicken and cannellini (white kidney) beans to make a whole serving of protein. Especially quick one-pan meals or stir-fry.

-Grainlady

I don't remember the brand, but I like the organic chicken breasts that are sold in a package of 6 or so and are individually wrapped. Easy to pull one out of the freezer for a quick saute.

Thanks very much, plllog!

I buy chicken breasts and freeze in small portions. You can cook them up very quickly to add protein easily. I make beans in the crockpot over the weekend and then freeze in small portions. I do most of my cooking over the weekends. The freezer is your friend! I make "clean out the fridge" soup and roast up a big pan of vegetable over the weekend. This all can be frozen in individual serving sizes. I got some portioned plastic dinner containers for my dad but find myself thawing one out and having it for dinner often. I can make a lot of them in one weekend, will last me rest of the month. Is great for casseroles and something like mashed squash or mashed potatoes. Kale and coleslaw salads can be made ahead of time and will keep for a few days, along with other types of chopped salads like tabouleh and texas caviar, for example.

Lots of excellent suggestions upthread. Here's my contribution:

When I was having nutritional challenges, it was really overwhelming to wade through the mountain of information and try to incorporate them into my diet and lifestyle. I was at my wit's end until a holistic practitioner told me to eat foods with just one ingredient. Really made everything so simple.

Don't think I have a perfectly "well balanced" diet - isn't that what vitamins are for? I have come around to eating a protein breakfast when I get up & it keeps me going w/ good energy for many hours. I don't vary things much; every morning I have 2 eggs, either boiled or an omelet plus a dish of fresh fruit in season & a big (16 ounce) cup of green tea - now & then I eat a cup of lowfat cottage cheese instead of eggs. I also take a multi daily vitamin (not 1 of those super dooper ultra health food store vits, but a one-a-day type from Trader Joe's) in the morning.

I try to eat some fresh fruit or veggies w/ every meal - in @ least the same proportion as the protein component. Lunch is similar to breakfast; high protein, little or no grain plus some fresh fruit or veg.

In the evening I loosen up - sometimes I just snack, other times I have a proper meal - just depends on what's available & most decidedly not "well balanced". I do find a late afternoon snack of some nuts or cheese is helpful in keeping me from getting 'hangry'. And I drink decaf green tea (another 16 ounces) in the afternoon as well.

I buy/eat organic. I suspect that pesticide residues can contribute to fatigue & less than optimal health.

Processed foods that are fortified with inorganic minerals and synthetic vitamins, as well as vitamin/mineral supplements, make me very ill - literally - all kinds of stomach issues that can include vomiting. If I want to get really sick -- just eat a bowl of highly-fortified TOTAL Cereal, or take a vitamin/mineral supplement. That's my body reacting to something that is really BAD for me!

So NO THANKS to vitamin/mineral supplements and fortifying foods. I'll get my nutrients from FOOD, by choosing a wide variety of WHOLE foods, which is why I grow as much as possible. Even in the winter I use my "garden-in-a-jar" for sprouts, grow micro-greens and wheatgrass and juice it, make good natural sources of probiotics with water kefir and milk kefir, using real kefir grains, mill my own flour from whole grains/seeds/beans.

There are soooooo many things wrong with the Standard American Diet (sugar, chemicals, unhealthy fat, and too much sodium) - without very many naturally- occurring vitamins, minerals, fibers and antioxidants in them. Vitamin C (the synthetic isolate - ascorbic acid) found in Tang is nothing like the complex vitamin C found in an orange. There are so many food-related illnesses and conditions, and taking a" pill" or "supplement" to cover any inadequacies is a lot of advertising hooey!

-Grainlady

It seems obvious, but nothing is going to change unless you change something...so you have to be willing to change to make your diet a greater priority.

I'd suggest looking at the OMNI heart diet which gives you portions and balance for a basic healthy diet.

Or if you want to go more simply, take the advice from Michael Pollan who summarizes the best of the majority of healthy diet plans as follows: 1) eat real food; 2) eat mostly plants; 3) don't eat too much.

I only cook for 2 instead of one. But I make full use of the microwave. When I cook, I make many servings and then have "planned overs" so there are many nights I don't have to cook at all. Think about cooking on the weekends and having planned overs the rest of the week. Think about freezing some of the larger recipes so that you have a ready stock of frozen soup or meat servings ready to go for those nights when you're too tired to cook.

grainlady, my Mom used to get stomach sick from certain foods...cereals and chips especially...took her awhile to figure out it was from the BHA and BHT preservatives used in processed foods.

Barb, a friend was talking about making meals for her kids and reminded me: You specifically mentioned protein and iron (I think you wanted more iron, since it was in apposition to dark green leaves, but if it's the other way, please forgive me and ignore this).

Hemp hearts--hulled hemp seeds (about the size of sesame seeds)--have very little carbohydrate, plenty of fiber, lots of protein and lots of iron. They also have lot of fat, but mostly the good kind, though some saturated as well. If you have something like pasta and are trying to get more protein and iron into it, you can sprinkle on a few tablespoons of hemp hearts. They have a slightly nutty, mild and rich taste, and they're fairly soft in texture--noticeable, but not to wreck a dish. You can also add them to soup or cereal. It wouldn't do to become lazy and rely on them for the bulk of your nutrition, but if you just need a little extra of what you're not getting enough of, it's an easy addition. You should be able to find them locally, but they're also easy to get online.