For Beginners and the Best Cooks 15 TO PLAN MEALS WISELY

_ Wehave three great groups of foods—those that regulate, those that

build tissue and those that supply heat and energy. I describe in this section the principal foods that belong in each group and give you some hints on how to use them.

1. Choose one food at least from each group for each meal.

2. Make very generous use of the foods which are “regulating’’—by reason of their vitamins, minerals or laxative qualities.

3. Serve fruit at least once a day—preferably more often.

4. Serve at least two vegetables daily—one of them or an additional vegetable raw whenever possible.

5. Remember the desirable milk quota—a quart a day for each growing child, a pint for each adult—to be taken as a beverage and in cooked foods; milk contains valuable minerals and vitamins.

6. Plan to make all foods attractive in appearance, with pleasant con- trasts for the eye and contrasts also in the textures of the foods. Particular attention should be paid to make valuable foods popular in any way it can be done.

7. Plan the meals for several days together, in outline at least—but in any case plan one whole day at a time. Advanced planning helps in getting variety and interest into the meals, and aids economy in buying, and making full use of, food materials including left-overs.

8. In using left-overs, try to allow a day to elapse before bringing the same food back to the table—and it is usually wise to let it re-appear in a different form.

Group I. FOODS THAT ARE REGULATING

The general idea is that we eat food, and thus supply nourishment to build up and renew our bodies—and to “‘keep us going,” or in other words, to supply energy and heat. But there is another piece of work for our food to do, which is just as important—almost more so! That is—to “‘regulate the body machine.”

It is. not a bad idea to think of the body as a machine which, if it is going to work smoothly and well, must be kept well tended, as well as. supplied with fuel. To regulate the human machine, then, foods are needed which are gently laxative in a natural way, and which contain minerals and vitamins. |