Many of us in Central Texas live alone these days or have schedules that make food shopping and meal preparation challenging at best. The idea of planning menus is entirely out of the question. In some cases, our solution is fast food or snacking on whatever happens to be around with little thought for nutritional value.

But it is possible to eat a balanced diet that provides moderate sodium and fat content and about 1,500 to 1,800 calories a day (appropriate for most adults) in just 30-36 minutes a day and one flying trip to the grocery store approximately every 10 days. You just have to know how.

'Our food service director asked me to prepare a 10-day menu for a patient who was being discharged from Seton Medical Center that would provide adequate nutrition and little fuss,' says Senior Clinical Dietitian Holly Ice, RD, LD.

Armed with her specialized knowledge, Holly went shopping. She chose the neighborhood HEB , Goodhealth.coms health partner, for her food selection and picked many frozen, prepared foods, pre-packaged fresh produce and easy-to-eat fruits. She even added a few desserts from the bakery, building the calories into the meal plan. In many cases, she opted for store brands to help control cost.

'People going home from the hospital often dont have the energy for lengthy cooking projects, but they still need to eat well. It takes time and preparation to cook meals from scratch,' adds Holly. 'I personally tried each of the sample menus to make sure they actually taste good and to determine how long it took me to prepare the meals. I found the approximate preparation time for each one was 10-12 minutes.'

She points out that this menu is designed for someone in general good health as well as for someone on a heart-healthy eating plan and fine for use by people of any age. If the user has a special condition, further reductions in the sodium content might be advisable.

Hollys Quick Simple Meals menu and shopping list follows. You can substitute similar foods from any grocery story near you.

• Follow package cooking directions and use recommended single-serving amount unless otherwise indicated.
• Potatoes and sweet potatoes are microwave-baked.
• When you use only half of a prepared item, store remainder in the refrigerator until you need it again.
• When using packaged frozen foods, prepare only as much as you need, reseal and put back in the freezer.

Quick Simple Meals

	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Day 1	3 Blueberry Pancakes with maple syrup 1/2 cup orange juice Hot herbal tea	Chicken Stir Fry ( half package) Banana	Beef pot roast Microwave baked potato Green beans
Day 2	Cheerios Soy milk Banana Hot herbal tea	Deli turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with baby spinach leaves and mustard Baby carrots Oatmeal Raisin Cookie	Chicken Breast Microwave baked sweet potato half Asparagus Salad: spinach and baby greens with 2 Tbsp. walnuts Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing
Day 3	Instant oatmeal, with added 1 Tbsp. each: dried cherries and pecans Soy milk Hot herbal tea	Chicken Stir Fry (eat half) Fresh apple	Lemon Pepper fish filet Sweet potato half Green beans Salad: spinach and baby greens with 2 Tbsp. walnuts Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing
Day 4	Blueberry pancakes with maple syrup Orange juice Hot herbal tea	Chicken breast sandwich with mixed greens and mustard on whole wheat bread Baby Carrots Chocolate Chunk Cookie	Beef pot roast Microwave baked potato Broccoli
Day 5	Cheerios Soy milk Blueberries Hot herbal tea	Vegetable Lasagna Salad: baby spinach and baby mixed greens with 1 Tbsp. dried cherries Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing	Chicken breast Boil-in-bag rice (eat half) Asparagus Fresh orange
Day 6	Instant oatmeal, with added 1 Tbsp each dried cherries and pecans Soy milk Hot herbal tea	Chicken breast on half package Romaine salad Caesar dressing Slice of whole wheat bread	Lemon Pepper fish filet Baked sweet potato half Broccoli Fresh apple
Day 7	Blueberry pancakes with maple syrup Orange juice Hot herbal tea	Grilled Basil Chicken with Garlic Linguini and Tomato Basil Sauce Romaine salad Caesar Dressing Fresh orange	Teryaki Beef and Vegetables (eat half) Boil-in-bag rice (eat half) Fresh apple
Day 8	Cheerios Soy milk Blueberries Hot herbal tea	Beef pot roast Baked sweet potato half Green beans	Chicken breast Ranch Style pinto beans (half can) Broccoli Romaine salad with Caesar dressing
Day 9	Instant oatmeal, with added 1 Tbsp. each dried cherries and pecans Soy milk Hot herbal tea	Teryaki Beef and Vegetables Boil-in-bag rice (eat half) Oatmeal raisin cookie	Beef pot roast Baked potato Asparagus Salad: baby spinach and baby mixed greens with Balsamic vinaigrette dressing
Day 10	Blueberry pancakes with maple syrup Orange juice Hot herbal tea	Enchilada, cheese, organic corn and tomato dinner Ranch Style pinto beans (half can) Fresh orange	Chicken Breast Baked potato Green beans Salad: spinach and baby greens with 1 Tbsp. each walnuts and dried cherries Balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Produce:
1 pkg. Romaine salad, washed and bagged
1 pkg. Baby spinach, washed and bagged
1 pkg. Baby mixed greens, washed and bagged
Pick of Crop pkg. 4 baking potatoes
2 medium-large sweet potatoes
Small bag of baby carrots
1 container blueberries
3 apples, 3 oranges, 3 bananas



Bakery:
2 oatmeal raisin cookies
1 chocolate chunk cookie


Deli:
1/4 lb. sliced Boar's Head Oven Gold turkey breast


Bulk Foods:
1/2 lb. walnuts
1/2 lb. pecans
1/2 lb. dried cherries



Grocery Aisles:
1 loaf HEB whole wheat bread
1 small box Cheerios
1 small tin 100 % pure maple syrup
1 box instant plain oatmeal
1 can Ranch Style premium pinto beans
Box Uncle Ben's Boil-in-Bag rice
1 box Celestial Seasonings herbal tea bags: Apple Cinnamon Spice
HEB Select Caesar salad dressing
HEB Balsamic Vinaigrette salad dressing
1 small container Dijon mustard
1 small bottle extra virgin olive oil



Refrigerated section:
Quart orange juice
1/2 gal. HEB brand or SILK soy milk
1 lb. Central Market Organics butter



Frozen Foods:
Bag HEB Low Sodium Pot Roast (pkg. of 4)
Bag HEB Fully Cooked Chicken Breast (pkg. of 5)
Bag HEB Lemon Pepper Fish Filets (pkg. of 2)
Bag Birds Eye Voil Chicken Stir Fry
Bag Birds Eye Voil Teriyaki Beef and Vegetables
Box individual serving Michael Angelo Vegetable Lasagna
Box Healthy Choice Grilled Basil Chicken with Garlic Linguini and Tomato basil sauce and vegetables
Box Amy's dinner: Enchilada, cheese, organic, corn and tomatoes
Box Pillsbury Blueberry Pancakes
Bag HEB Select Asparagus Spears
Bag HEB Select Broccoli Crowns
Bag HEB Extra Fine Whole Green Beans