Being a divorced working mom certainly has its challenges. Trying to balance a job, run a business, raise the kids, run errands, manage a household, adhere to social obligations, work out and still find time to have some fun can feel overwhelming and stressful.

One huge source of anxiety might seem trivial to some, but I can tell you it troubles me to no end. I ask myself on a daily basis: What are we having for dinner tonight?

I have to believe that most parents – regardless of gender, marital status or job status – share my angst in figuring out what to cook every night, whether or not to go out or stay in, how to please everyone’s taste buds and diets, and how to get your family to sit down together at the dinner table and talk for an hour or so.

So, when I attended a recent networking meeting and met Anita Brown, a North Shore culinary coach who teaches men, women and kids how to cook and be comfortable in their kitchens, I felt an opportunity arise.

I cornered Brown and explained my dilemma. She assured me that I am not alone.

“People live busy lives, and having dinner together has declined,” said Brown, who holds a chef certification from Kendall College and who previously served as the cooking school director for Bloomingdale’s and Treasure Island Foods. “Excuses I hear are, ‘We don’t have time,’ ‘The kids have too many activities,’ ‘We all have different diets and I don’t have time to cook for everyone.’ The damage as a result of that is communication and relationships suffer.”

Brown, who worked as corporate trainer for 34 years before starting her culinary coaching business in 2007, said there are many benefits to sitting down with your family and having dinner on a consistent basis.

“Dinner is an opportunity to really talk to each other,” Brown said. “When you communicate, you support each other, problem solve and plan. This is a forum to relax and show each other your love.”

Brown also said that kids acquire social skills and dining etiquette at family dinners. Additionally, they learn about food, nutrition and how to prepare and cook meals.

“Kids should be included in shopping, prepping and cooking,” Brown said. “Even kids as young as 5 can help in some way, which is instilling habits and traditions in them that will be beneficial throughout life.”

I asked Brown for some tips for family dinners with the following goals in mind:

• Everyone eats together.
• Every person enjoys the meal.
• The meal is nutritious.
• The meal complies with dietary restrictions one or more family members might have.
• The cost is reasonable.

Here are 8 tips that promote togetherness, nutrition and good taste!

1. Plan ahead

Most people have a day off on the weekends. During a day off, prepare a shopping list for a few simple recipes. Do the prep work for the meals all at once. Cut up veggies, put salads into sealable plastic bags, cook chicken. If you are really pressed for time, buy pre-cut veggies. The meals will then take only a few minutes to prepare each week night.

2. Embrace leftovers

Take advantage of leftover food and do something to make them exciting. For example, heat leftover pizza adding fresh basil and more cheese or veggies. Or, cut up leftover chicken and make a salad that includes crushed taco chips, veggies and grated cheese.

3. Recreate homemade versions of favorite restaurant dishes

Ask your kids what their favorite menu items are at local restaurants. You’d be surprised at how easy you can recreate them.

4. Check out recipe websites

Websites like Cafe Delights and Ellie Kreiger offer recipe ideas that are healthy, delicious and relatively easy to prepare.

5. Make the same dish for everyone

Making different meals for each family member is not only time consuming, but it’s sending the wrong message. Everyone should eat the same dish. If there are different taste buds or dietary restrictions, try putting sauces and dressings on the side. Your family will get used to it.

6. Buy bagged salads

More and more stores are carrying bagged salads to make prep time shorter. And, if you don’t care for the dressing that comes with it, try buying a quality dressing and using that instead. Wildfire’s dressings, which they sell at the carryout counter are delicious.

7. Add wine to the menu

Adults only, of course, but serving wine at dinner creates a festive, relaxed atmosphere and can lengthen the time spent at the table. That said, excessive drinking sets a bad example for the kids, so limit wine to one or two glasses.

8. Have kids prepare dessert

It will make them feel special and like they took part in the meal.

Here’s the thing about having dinner together as a family at home: Not every dinner has to be elaborate. A simple meal like baked chicken, a salad, bread and store-bought cookies for dessert can be just as enjoyable if not more than a meal that includes Champagne, filet mignon and creme brulee.

What makes a happy, healthy family dinner isn’t what food you serve, but rather the intangibles that nurture us. Hearing about your teenage daughter’s crush, listening to a recap of your son’s basketball game or reminiscing about funny things the kids did when they were younger brings laughter, warmth, support, encouragement, and love to the dinner table. Bon appetit!