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Weekly Meal Plan

Overnight Oats for Breakfast

Hello everyone! Thanks for bearing with me as I switched over email providers and for answering my survey questions.The overwhelming answer about challenges to making healthy choices was time. This week I made sure the recipes are not too complicated and some can be repurposed for other meals during the week. The survey also confirmed the meal plans tend to be quite popular here so I want to make sure everyone gets their recipe inspiration when you need it. Leave a note in the comments sharing which day of the week you do your meal planning.

This week I am testing out a couple of new features with the meal plan. I added in a Shopping List you can print out that highlights the extra ingredients you need to create the meals shared this week. Let me know if you find it helpful, or it a different format works better for you.

Click on the Shopping List here and you will get a pdf printable you can print, update with any additional items you need and then take it to the store. (A blank Shopping List has also been added to the Wellness Worksheets page! Sign up below if you want to get access to the page.)

Printable-shopping-list-worksheet-April

Below you will see codes assigned to some of the recipe ideas. These are to help those families who have dietary restrictions, concerns and sensitivities. The codes are assigned as follows: GF= Gluten Free, P=Paleo, DF=Dairy Free, NF= Nut Free.

Dinners

{GF= Gluten Free, P=Paleo, DF=Dairy Free, NF= Nut Free}

  • Roasted whole chicken. This recipe walks you through how to roast a chicken if you don’t have your own favorite way. Roasting a chicken is mostly hands off, you just need to plan ahead to allow enough baking time. I stuffed mine today with apples and onions. Other days it’s lemon and thyme. Use what you have on hand. Oranges are another way to infuse bright flavor into the chicken. Cook this on Sunday and use the leftovers for…
  • Chicken Quesadillas. I like to make these on nights when time is tight. I create custom ones per kid: one likes guacamole/cheese/chicken, another likes cheese/chicken, etc. I will skip the bread and instead have leftover chicken over greens with avocado, cilantro, and tomatoes for a Mexican salad.
  • One pot Quinoa and Kale- serve as a main vegetarian dish or we used it as a side dish for multiple dinners. This recipe is a guideline; keep it simple with regular lemons, walnuts instead of pine nuts and we skipped the goat cheese so it’s more kid-friendly.
  • Zesty Lime Shrimp & Avocado Salad (recipe) GF, P. This recipe lends itself to be deconstructed for picky eaters: keep shrimp and avocado separate and skip the dressing. Add a serving of brown rice pasta on the side if needed.
  • Lemon Broccoli with Beans & Bacon (recipe) DF, GF, NF. Roast broccoli ahead of time to save time during the week.
  • Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas (recipe). This will feed 6 easily so cook it for company over the weekend, or freeze half for dinner next week.

Lunch

  • Apple slices with nut or seed butter with granola on top.
  • Lunch kabobs with cheese/grapes/cucumbers/turkey for the lunch boxes, GF. (I found short kabob sticks at the grocery store.)
  • If you still have any leftover chicken, chop it up into a cranberry chicken salad and serve with bread (or apple slices for a GF lunch)

Breakfast

  • Overnight Oats: This is now on my Sunday Prep List. I make 4 in pint jars so they are ready to go in the morning. I can heat them all up quickly in a pot of hot water, or eat them cold with the toppings of everyone’s choice. Here’s a guideline on how much to put in each pint jar. You can customize this to your dietary needs by choosing gluten-free oats and/or non-dairy milk. I am loving the Almond Coconut milk blend from our local store lately. It’s great in cereals and smoothies.

Snacks

  • Stovetop Popcorn: NF- a great whole grain snack. Look for organic popping corn so it’s GMO-free.
  • Baked sweet potato chips: GF, DF, NF (recipe)
  • Yogurt frozen in the kid’s silicone cups topped with fruit. If it works out I’ll share the full details!

Lemon Broccoli and White Beans recipe

For more inspiration, see years of past dinner plans here, my Pinterest collection here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of weekly meal plans.

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The Top 15 Kitchen Tools You Need to Save Time (and they don’t cost a fortune!)

One of the biggest challenges we face in the kitchen is having enough time to cook the type of food we want to serve our family. There is an impression that cooking food from scratch will take an exorbitant amount of time. While in some cases that is true, 90% of the time it doesn’t need to be complicated. We also don’t need as many tools in our kitchen as some might think. While new gadgets can be fun, sometimes it’s the simple things that really save us time.

It’s so simple that sometimes it’s all about placement of things in the  kitchen. Do you have zones set-up that make breakfasts come together fast? A few common kitchen zones are for coffee, smoothies, cereal/oatmeal toppings, and lunch prep. You can create zones in the refrigerator too and keep lunch making supplies in one place, toast toppings in another.

I love this quote below from chef Kyle Connaughton who knows how important efficiency is in a busy kitchen.

Kitchen Organization Quote

I created a printable highlighting my 15 favorite kitchen tools that save me time everyday. Some of the tools you have heard me talk about before, while others are so simple I never thought to mention them. These workhorses in my kitchen make it possible to cook real food for my family without extra effort.

15 favorite kitchen organizing tools that save time and don't cost a lot of money

One of my favorite tips is the one about clear containers for your leftovers…are you storing them the right way in the fridge? Another tip I forgot to mention about my favorite blender: to clean it quickly add hot water and a squirt of dish soap. Blend away the last of a smoothie for a super fast clean up! Click here to get the full report!

Having an organized kitchen space is the first step towards feeling prepared to share healthy meals with others. Think about your own kitchen? Where are your issues with efficiency? Is it the clean up? Is it the meal prep? Take a look a the tools on the printable and see which ones would be helpful in your home. Which can save you the most time? Let me know what you think!

 

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