IMG_8162January is always filled with goals of living a healthier lifestyle, getting fit and being a better you in the year ahead and healthy home cooked meals are such a huge part of achieving these goals as well as being beneficial for your bank account.

Despite these good intentions, every year to date my goal to ‘cook more’ has only resulted in an accumulation of cookbooks that look wonderful on my bookshelf but don’t have a single stain on their pristine pages from actual use in the kitchen. In 2015 my partner and I ate out a lot and when we cooked at home we seemed to stick to our old favourites while all of our cookbooks gathered dust on the shelf.

That is why this year I have set myself a more specific goal of making use of some of the wonderful cookbooks I own to help me save money, practice my cooking skills and live a healthier lifestyle. My aim for 2016 is to try out at least one new recipe a week from the cookbooks on my bookshelf.

IMG_8369The main problem I have always struggled with when it comes to cooking from cookbooks, particularly when you have a large collection, is that it can be a bit overwhelming. There are so many recipes to choose from and it often feels easier to just not bother and fall back into old culinary habits (spag bol anyone?). It is also easy to forget where exactly you saw that amazing recipe that you were keen to try without have any type of recipe organisation system in place.

IMG_8160A handy tip is to sit down and have a browse through your cookbooks when you have a spare hour or so and actually read and get to know the style and recipes in each book. Tabbing the recipes you want to try or writing them down on a card inside the front cover will also make it much easier to find that particular recipe down the track.

Most importantly, working the new recipes into your weekly meal plan on a Sunday evening and listing all the new ingredients you are going to require on the shopping list will help you ease your way into incorporating your new dishes.

IMG_8172One of the recipes we have tried in January – Pesto Pasta with Prawns & Prosciutto

I’m also planning on picking a new cookbook every month to make sure that I rotate through them all. February’s choice is one of my favourite recent cookbook purchases ‘The Happy Cook’ by Lola Berry. It is filled with so many delicious and healthy recipes that I have tabbed ready to try out!

Quick and easy meals are also incredibly important to myself and my partner when we arrive home from work late and tired so we have chosen a few recipes to try out from Donna Hay’s Fast Fresh & Simple and Jamie Oliver’s 15 Minute Meals.

What are your healthy lifestyle goals for 2016? Let me know in the comments below.