Well Fed Network

Posted by Cindy Klein on Fit Fare

Are you stuck in a recipe rut? Cooking the same thing night after night? Of course, having a few go-to recipes can make mid-weeks meals easier to plan and prepare, but too many nights of the same main dish can make dinner a bore.Here are a few tips to get you re-inspired in the kitchen:

Ask Your Friends
It’s highly likely that you’re not the only one in a recipe rut; your friends are probably just as tired of their regular recipes and looking for a way out, too. Coordinate a recipe swap! Much like people have clothes recycling parties where they trade their old styles for their favorites of yours, you can have a recipe recycling party. Each person brings their two or three favorite easy mid-week meal recipes on a note card. At the party, everyone can pick up a few new friend-approved recipes and hang out with their buddies at the same time. Throw in some tasty appetizers and fun drinks, and you’ve turned recipe hunting into a full-blown party!

Ask the Web
What did we do before the Internet? It can be one of your greatest tools for updating your boring recipe file. Know you like butternut squash but tired of roasting it with olive oil and garlic? Google it and see what a wide world of dishes you can make with that veggie. Lasagna, soup, pie, oh my! There are no limits to what you can create when you mix and match ingredients in your favorite search engine.

Roam the Grocery Store
If you’re in a recipe rut, you’re probably also in a shopping rut. There are certain foods you’ll always want to keep on hand for easy cooking – things like beans and rice and canned tomatoes – but beyond that, it’s time to start roaming the aisles at your local grocery store. In fact, take it one step further and visit a new grocery store in town. Find a vegetable that you’ve never cooked before or a condiment you’ve never heard of and commit to trying a recipe with it. Consider yourself a food explorer and chart new territory in your own kitchen!

Resolve to Try One New Recipe A Month
Once you’ve collected a few new recipes, make it your mission to cook one new recipe a month. Do it consistently, and you’ve added 12 new recipes to your cooking arsenal, and chances are you’ll enjoy the experimenting so much that you’ll cook more than one new meal a month. Once you’re out of the rut, the momentum will keep you cooking and eating delicious and healthy recipes all year long.

Picture courtesy of Morguefile.com