Do you cook your own meals, or do you buy pre-made foods. If you do make your own meals, what are your favorite recipes? I'm particularly looking for dinner recipes.

Also, how many calories do you eat per day?

I cook nearly every night - I've often thought that being okay with making food has been one of the key to my long term success. Pre-made foods are very expensive and I am in this for life, so for me, it was imperative that I found a sustainable plan.

When I was losing weight I ate between 1400-1600 calories a day.

It's hard to give recipes when I don't know what you like. What I found helpful was picturing my plate divided into four equal sections. When I made dinner, I tried to make 50% of the plate vegetables, 25% of the plate a lean protein and 25% of the plate a healthy carbohydrate.

Here are examples of dinners I ate while losing weight and that I still eat today:

* Pork loin stir fry with tons of veggies over a measured serving of brown rice.
* Turkey tacos with tons of lettuce/tomato, 3 corn shells
* Home made spaghetti sauce with chicken sausage over a measured serving of whole wheat pasta
* Maple glazed salmon over brown rice with broccoli
* Small grilled steak, baked sweet potato, roasted brussel sprouts
* Fluffy 3 egg omelette, stuffed with vegetables, a little feta cheese, a little shrimp, topped with tomatillo sauce
* Big pot of home made tomato/leek/spinach/chick pea soup, topped with a little parmesan cheese and a piece of whole grain bread
* Corn and red bean pita pockets, with sweet potato fries on the side
* Turkey burger on a whole wheat bun, side of steamed sugar snap peas
* Huge salad with crisp romaine, grilled chicken, edamame, water chestnuts, madarin oranges, broccoli slaw and Asian peanut dressing (measured)
* Chicken parmesan over spaghetti squash with a green vegetable
* Sweet potato, black bean, quinoa quesadillas (2 whole wheat tortillas), topped with tons of salsa and some low fat sour cream

Me and my boyfriend cook all our meals at home and we eat out once a week, on Saturday. It's a lot easier and we make healthy alternatives to our favorites!

-homemade quesadilla with lowfat cheese, veggies, and whole wheat tortillas
-chili with 99% fat free turkey meat
-turkey burgers and sweet potato 'fries'
-fried brown rice and grilled chicken
-lasagna with 2% cheeses and ricotta
-grilled shrimp and chicken skewers
-brown rice, red beans, and turkey sausage- my LA boyfriends fav!
-whole wheat pasta and grilled chicken

the list goes on but its fun and easy! not cheap tho!

Hubby and I take turns cooking. I'm more health and calorie-conscious, but he's getting better. We do buy a few meal kits from Aldi, but mostly cook from scratch The stir fry kits we buy at the Aldi are really good and I believe they're all under $4 (and there's leftovers). They all contain three servings most under 200 calories (I think the fried rice is a a tiny bit over 200 calories. The ones without rice are are around 160 to 180 calories for each serving.

If we split the meal, that's under 300 calories. Sometimes we'll throw in an extra bag of frozen mixed vegetables (california or a stir fry blend). If we use the extra veggies, there's usually leftovers for someone for lunch the next day.

Just because I've recently streamlined my calorie counting lately, I have a handy list of 'go to' dinner meals:

apricot ginger chicken, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (457)
beef stew, potatoes, mixed veg, salad w/dressing (548)
chicken with tomato sauce & cheese, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (495)
chili with cheese, multi-grain tostidos, salad w/dressing (617)
dry-rub pork ribs, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (768)
chicken fajitas, multi-grain tortilla, salad w/dressing (610)
beef/turkey burgers, condiments, potato chips, salad w/dressing (721)
italian pork steaks, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (679)
sun-dried tomato meatloaf, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (594)
meat sauce with pasta, parmesan cheese, salad w/dressing (672)
mediterranean chicken, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (502)
chicken fajita pizza, salad w/dressing (760)
pork tenderloin w/balsamic sauce, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (505)
pork tenderloin w/bourbon sauce, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (576)
pork tenderloin w/pear chutney, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (515)
sirloin steak, corn, butter, salad w/dressing (652)
szechewan stir-fry, salad w/dressing (555)
tandoori chicken, mixed veg, butter, salad w/dressing (460)
tourtierre shepherd's pie, salad w/dressing (532)

It's a pretty wide range, and I avoid the higher ones (usually only one of those 700+ ones each week). I usually eat ~1800 calories a day but don't aim for specific goals each day. I've been choosing one of three breakfasts, one of two morning snacks, one of six lunches, and one of hmmm... about 19 dinner options there. I pretty much have the same afternoon and evening snack at the moment (but only because I enjoy them, eventually I'll change them).

I'm definitely a planner / bulk cooking person. The chili, beef stew, tourtierre mixture, meat sauce, hamburgers, pizza and meat loaf are pretty much thaw and cook (pizza and burgers from frozen actually). The rest of the stuff in the freezer is raw individually packaged meats that I'll thaw overnight in the fridge and make into whatever I feel like. I'm seriously over the top with the cooking / prep stuff (but always kind of have been). In my break between semesters I'll roast beef and chicken, smoke pork and turkey and package up for lunches as well. Likely make some more soup as well when I have time. However, it works out well since when I was busy at the end of the semester I didn't have to think to eat well.

Wow. What amazing information you guys have provided me. thanks!

I personally make my own meals.

I am a *huge* lover of Italian food. So thinking of giving up my most favorite high carb pasta sauce loaded delights was frightening to me....

I made last night for the first time whole wheat pasta...it was really good & isn't a big difference from regular pasta. The calorie difference is huge though, so much better for you!
I also made my own pasta sauce...more of a marinara. I did not add meat to it, to cut down on fat content. However, you could easily make your own meat sauce using ground turkey. I used fresh tomatoes, halved them & squeezed out the insides into a dish. I used about 6 tomatoes, that made roughly 3 cups of sauce. I then added Italian seasoning (oregano, basil etc.) then I added a small amount of pepper, sea salt, and fresh garlic.
Store bought pasta sauce is loaded with empty calories, and high fructose corn syrup (which your body does not need)
It was a delicious meal, it was good for me, and I didn't have a carb crash like I normally would with pasta.

I ate a good sized garden salad prior to eating the pasta, and probably only wanted a cup of the pasta.

Good luck in your cooking adventures!

(I also love fresh tilapia filets, with a tbsp of EVOO, fresh lemon, ground pepper, and dill weed. I make a boat out of tin foil & cook it on the grill until its flaky....delicious & so low in calories. Serve with some minute brown rice & steamed asparagus for a filling yet healthy meal!)

I love to cook