Health and Aging

What’s On Your Plate? Smart Food Choices for Healthy Aging

Appendix 2—Sample Menus

plate with hummus and crackersPlanning a day’s worth of meals using smart food choices might seem overwhelming at first. Here are some sample menus to show you how easy it can be. These menus provide 2,000 calories a day. You might need to eat fewer or more calories, depending on your activity level and whether you are a man or a woman. You’ll find sample menus for a week at www.choosemyplate.gov/downloads/sample_menu-MyPyramid.pdf. Although it might look like the recommended amounts for a food group are not met, or are exceeded, in a single day, the average over a week meets recommendations.

Sample Menu #1

Breakfast

Breakfast burrito

  • 1 flour tortilla (8-inch diameter)
  • 1 scrambled egg
  • ⅓ cup black beans
  • 2 tablespoons salsa

½ large grapefruit

1 cup water, coffee, or tea

Lunch

Roast beef sandwich

  • 1 small whole-grain hoagie bun
  • 2 ounces lean roast beef
  • 1 slice part-skim mozzarella cheese
  • 2 slices tomato
  • ¼ cup mushrooms (cooked in 1 teaspoon corn/canola oil)
  • 1 teaspoon mustard

Baked potato wedges

  • 1 cup potato wedges (cooked in 1 teaspoon canola oil)
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup

1 cup fat-free milk

Dinner

Baked salmon on beet greens

  • 4 ounce salmon filet
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup cooked beet greens (cooked in 2 teaspoons canola oil)

Quinoa with almonds

  • ½ cup quinoa
  • ½ ounce slivered almonds

1 cup fat-free milk

Snack

1 cup cantaloupe balls

Sample Menu #2

Breakfast

Whole wheat French toast

  • 2 slices whole wheat bread
  • 3 tablespoons fat-free milk
  • ⅔ egg
  • 2 teaspoons tub margarine
  • 1 tablespoon pancake syrup

½ large grapefruit

1 cup fat-free milk

Lunch

3-bean vegetarian chili on baked potato

  • ¼ cup each cooked kidney beans, navy beans, and black beans
  • ½ cup tomato sauce
  • ¼ cup chopped onion
  • 2 tablespoon chopped jalapeno peppers
  • 1 teaspoon corn/canola oil (to cook onion and peppers)
  • ¼ cup cheese sauce
  • 1 large baked potato

½ cup cantaloupe

1 cup water, coffee, or tea

Dinner

Hawaiian pizza

  • 2 slices cheese pizza, thin crust
  • 1 ounce lean ham
  • ¼ cup pineapple
  • ¼ cup mushrooms, cooked in 1 teaspoon safflower oil

Green salad

  • 1 cup mixed salad greens
  • 4 teaspoons oil and vinegar dressing

1 cup fat-free milk

Snack

3 tablespoon hummus

5 whole wheat crackers

Sample Menu #3

Breakfast

Cold cereal

  • 1 cup shredded wheat
  • ½ cup sliced banana
  • ½ cup fat-free milk

1 slice whole wheat toast

  • 2 teaspoons all-fruit preserves

1 cup fat-free chocolate milk

Lunch

plate with sandwichTuna salad sandwich:

  • 2 slices rye bread
  • 2 ounces tuna
  • 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon chopped celery
  • ½ cup shredded lettuce

1 medium peach

1 cup fat-free milk

Dinner

Roasted chicken

  • 3 ounces cooked chicken breast

1 large sweet potato, roasted

½ cup succotash (lima beans and corn)

  • 1 teaspoon tub margarine

1 ounce whole wheat roll

  • 1 teaspoon tub margarine

1 cup water, coffee, or tea

Snacks

¼ cup dried apricots

1 cup flavored yogurt (chocolate)

Sample Menu #4

raisinsBreakfast

Creamy oatmeal (cooked in milk)

  • ½ cup uncooked oatmeal
  • 1 cup fat-free milk
  • 2 tablespoons raisins
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 cup orange juice

Lunch

Taco salad

  • 2 ounces tortilla chips
  • 2 ounces cooked ground turkey (cooked in 2 teaspoons corn oil)
  • ¼ cup kidney beans
  • ½ ounce low-fat cheddar cheese
  • ½ cup chopped lettuce
  • ½ cup avocado
  • 1 teaspoon lime juice (on avocado)
  • 2 tablespoons salsa

1 cup water, coffee, or tea

Dinner

Spinach lasagna roll-ups

  • 1 cup lasagna noodles (2 ounces dry)
  • ½ cup cooked spinach
  • ½ cup ricotta cheese
  • 1 ounce part-skim mozzarella cheese
  • ½ cup tomato sauce

1 ounce whole wheat roll

  • 1 teaspoon tub margarine

1 cup fat-free milk

Snacks

2 tablespoons raisins

1 ounce unsalted almonds

 

Publication Date: September 2011
Page Last Updated: October 5, 2012

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