There is a girl in my office whose husband had a major surgery that would likely remove him from a work environment for a couple years. It was devastating to our office. Because the economy is so bad, some of the staff got together and created a plan. They would serve "Leftovers with Love" meaning any leftovers could be put on a plate and wrapped in aluminum foil; then frozen and delivered to the couple and their teenage daughter. That way they could pull something out of the freezer, microwave it, and have a quick, healthy meal.

Now, I love being a vegetarian, and I love teaching my patients to eat healthily. But I don't try to push my beliefs on people. And at the same time, I don't know how to cook meat! I had a few dishes in mind, that I knew would taste good, but all were Italian related. I had heard most people were going to go for an Italian menu because it is known to freeze well. After a good bit of deliberation I had a plan. Uncle Ben's sells microwaveable wild rice packets. They are well seasoned and heat in 90 seconds. I had bought them for my dad when my mom was out of town, and I knew my father would get home too late to think about balanced meals. There were also some boxes of frozen vegetables, which I have shared in posts before, already seasoned (although sometimes with lots of butter and fat) that could also be microwaved in their pouches yielding little effort and some additional substance in case there was a box of frozen chicken legs or something that another coworker might provide.

Dessert options included frozen banana pancakes with pre=made mixtures of cinnamon and powdered sugar for sprinkling on top. If I ran out of time to cook the pancackes, I thought of Publix Vanilla Yogurt and whole frozen strawberries, which can be put in individual containers and frozen. The result, especially toward the end of a hot Florida summer, is scrumptious. I knew these could also double as lunch additions or breakfast foods, and truth be known, I didn't know what their needs were. All I could do was offer options.

I only learned a few years ago that fruits and vegetables are healthiest fresh or frozen. Surprisingly, frozen vegetables are "flash frozen" quickly and generally at their peak of ripeness, which in truth means they might be better frozen than fresh given the fact that fresh foods are often picked rather green and lose more vitamins and minerals the longer the time between the farm and the dinner table. Canned vegetables are the least healthy. Also, in the case of this family, frozen was much wiser given the unknown hours at the hospital and doctor's offices. Fresh foods, even bread, go bad quite quickly in Florida. Currently, the fresh ingredients in my fridge include tomatoes, pears, black olives, lettuce and carrots. I have onions, orange and yellow bell peppers, spinach, carrots, broccoli, lime juice, strawberries, and bananas in my freezer right now. There may be more, but that's all I can think of from an upstairs room. The frozen options yield more variety, but if the season is right, fresh foods are divine. We had a great crop of strawberries and peaches this year. We had lots of those fresh. It's a shame the seasons don't last longer.