Methods are Many.... Principles are Few

Methods are Many,

Principles are Few,

Methods often Change,

Principles never Do.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Life and Lifestyle should be based on Principles.

Once the Principles are defined, the Methods of putting the Principles into action can vary.

I have a few Life Principles that I have espoused many times in this blog such as:

• Stay out of Debt.
• Be Positive.
• Take Care of Yourself first.

And 2 components of taking care of yourself is Eating Right and Managing Your Schedule / Stress.

Here's one method for doing both.

Cook several healthy meals ahead of time and prepackage them for the week ahead!

And here I am doing it in one of the simplest, some might say, crudest way possible.... next to a camp fire and grill.

One burner Coleman Stove... Small Camp Table... Camp Chair.

And all the usual and healthy suspects.....

Bag of Kale

Sliced Squash and Zucchini

Sliced Sweet Onion, Red Bell Pepper, Hatch Chile Peppers, Jalapeno Peppers

Carrot Sticks

Diced HEB Pork and Venison sausage

4 Pork Chops preseasoned with Meat Tenderizer, Salt and Pepper and my mix of Hot Madras Curry Powder, Ground Red Pepper, Cumin and Turmeric.

Ok.... not so healthy but I do enjoy a good Pipe Smoke every once in a while.

Method in progress....

Yes.... there is some fat in this sausage but as sausage goes, it's pretty lean.... and after cooking the sausage, I left the drippings in the skillet ....

And cooked the veggies in it..... Taste is important too!

Had the music going while I was out on the motel patio cooking and smoking.....

And Puddle of Mudd is one of my favorite groups.

Part of the Post Grunge movement but still have those songs of despair and angst....

Right up my alley!

Only a cast iron skillet at high heat can give you this kind of beautiful texture and caramelization....

Notice these veggies are not cooked to death and maintain their beautiful color and nutrients.

Using these little Screen shots of what's playing on my iPhone is a technique I have used for some time.

Resolving to NOT COMPROMISE YOUR PRINCIPLES and doing whatever it takes to MAKE IT HAPPEN fits right in with the whole "I will not bow" message...

Progress continues.... As the skillets of Pork Chops, Diced Sausage and Veggies are cooked, I just portion them out into individual containers that I had staged for that purpose.

Sound like a Plan?

Anything of importance requires a Plan.

How important is your Health?

What is your Plan for maintaining it?

And there is the result....

7 beautiful meals all ready to go for the week ahead!

7 kinds of veggies with a Pork Chop underneath.

Same veggie medley with diced sausage.

I had some roasted chicken left from the Colossal Chicken I bought at Kroger's so I heated that up as the last round in the cast iron skillet with some of the Salt - Pepper - African Moroccan Spice Mix.

Paired it with some of the cast iron skillet sauted Kale and put it beside a Spring Mix with tomatoes, broccoli - slaw mix all dressed with EVOO and Balsamic and topped with mixed nuts, bananas with cinnamon and black grapes and sided with a Moscato - Fresca - lime refresher.

This is a meal that satisfies and fortifies on so many levels it is hard to describe.... Protein, Good Carbs, Good Sweets, Texture, Color, Tastes and Variety.....

And this is a tremendous VOLUME of food for relatively few calories.

So much, in fact, that I could only eat half....

And what could be better than this kind of meal....

With a Jessie Stone movie....

That is part of a....

Jessie Stone Movie Marathon!

It took me about an hour and 15 minutes from the time I started prep'g the veggies to the time I sat down to eat including clean-up.

If I can cook 7 nutritious, protein, power-packed meals in 75 minutes on one propane burner with one cast iron skillet outside.....

Then you can do at least that in your own home kitchen.

That's my Method for sticking to a Healthy, Nutritious Diet in front of a Busy Week.

If I can do it, you can too.