Coming up with exciting and delicious dinners for your family can feel overwhelming, especially if you're trying to eat a healthy, well-balanced meal. In fact, finding the time, effort, and energy to create healthy meals that your kids will actually eat can feel downright impossible. But even the pickiest of eaters will love these light dinner ideas, and before you know it the following healthy meals will be part of weekly rotation with no complaints.
From different types of pizzas, tacos, and salads to all of the kebabs you could possibly want, these recipes prove that healthy dinner ideas don't have to be boring. "The components of a 'healthy' meal, whether breakfast, lunch, or dinner, are like the legs of a stool — they all need to work together to give us strength and balance," Bonnie Taub-Dix, RDN, creator of Better Than Dieting, and author of Read It Before You Eat It — Taking You from Label to Table, tells Woman's Day. "My recommendation for a meal trifecta is a combo of lean protein, whole grain carbohydrates, and healthy fats." Following Taub-Dix's trifecta allows you and your family to feel full and satisfied after eating, without relying on large portions or restrictive dieting. "As an example, a healthy plate for lunch or dinner should contain a protein like seafood, poultry, eggs, or beans; a side of veggies or salad, and a whole grain like bread, farro, brown rice, or pasta," she says. "Adding fruit to your salad boosts this meal even further." And what's even better, these simple dinner ideas are easy to prepare and quick to make so you can spend more time enjoying the meal with your family, rather than bustling around the kitchen making the dish.
With over 100 light yet filling dinner recipes, you'll never substitute flavor for substance again. Packed with tasty and fresh ingredients, these healthy recipes won't have your family scrounging the kitchen for after-dinner snacks, and there's enough variety to keep them interested every night.
