Hey, friend!
This week's meal plan is as well-rounded as it is tasty. It includes some vegan and vegetarian recipes, but also works in heartier, meaty meals. None of the ingredients are exotic or super pricey (they can all be found at Aldi, in fact! You know how I roll...) and the prep-ahead work is going to be simple and straightforward. Enjoy!
As always, feel free to switch the days around according to your schedule. I've highlighted some of our evening plans here, just to illustrate why I choose to cook specific meals on specific days. It'll give you an idea of how to place low-prep meals on busy days and save recipes that require more attention for days that you have more time to dedicate to meal prep/cooking.
Come back next week, as I'll be introducing downloadable grocery lists! You'll see how we use the ends of the ingredients you've purchased this week to become the beginning of next week's meal plan. So hang onto those scraps!
Here's what I had on hand in my refrigerator/pantry
Green lentils
Pearl barley
Radishes
Vegan garlic sauce
Tomato paste
Frozen spinach
Roasted red peppers
2 Dozen farm eggs
And here's the meal plan! Underlined (linked) recipes will take you directly to the recipes I use. And, as always, you can find them on my Weekly Meal Plan Recipes board on Pinterest. Otherwise, I'll list out my own recipes at the end of the post!
MONDAY
Dinner: Panda Express Copycat Black Pepper Chicken (basically this looked like a tasty way to use up the rest of the celery I'm buying for Friday's recipe, and something the kids will also enjoy. They'll AT LEAST eat the rice, with some raw veggies on the side.)
TUESDAY
Charlie is having surgery early in the morning, so I'll prep everything for this meal on Monday
Dinner: Roasted Buddha bowl (I'm using my leftover vegan garlic sauce from last week's flatbread instead of making the hippie sauce, and subbing the quinoa for the pearl barley that was already in my pantry)
Double the amount of cauliflower you roast on prep day. You'll use some in Wednesday's frittata recipe.
WEDNESDAY
We have yoga from 5:30-6:45, will come home and do a quick dinner/bedtime for the kids, then are having friends over for dinner after the kids go to bed.
Dinner (kids): Scrambled eggs, veggies, and slices of smoked mozzarella
Dinner (adults): Midwestern sausage, roasted cauliflower, frozen spinach and smoked mozzarella frittata (recipe below) Feel free to leave out the sausage to make this vegetarian! We're asking our friends to bring a salad to go with the frittata.
THURSDAY
Bible study at 6:00. We eat dinner early, then run out the door.
You'll only use 1/4 lb of sausage for this recipe, so save the rest of the package. It is going to be used in the Midwestern frittata.
A couple of tweaks to this recipe: Feel free to leave out the dried cherries, greek olives and basil on this one. I plan to. Also, I'm using tomato paste and white wine instead of marinara sauce.
FRIDAY
Dinner: Lentils from Ottolenghi's Plenty topped with poached eggs and greek yogurt (ignore the eggplant part)
Absolutely make more of this recipe to have on-hand for lunches throughout the week, especially if you move it to an earlier day. It keeps incredibly well in the fridge and can be eaten cold or at room temperature.
Breakfasts
• Grain-free granola and almond milk
• Oatmeal (with honey for the kids, with superfoods for me and Ry)
• Greek yogurt with apple slices and honey
• Bananas (the girls always start the day with a banana -- it's an easy way for us to pacify them for a few minutes in the morning while we have coffee)
• Smoothies (frozen spinach and berries blended with coconut water, peanut butter and pea protein powder)
Lunches
Because a lot of these meals can be prepped in advance, I'll likely double some of the recipes (like the Buddha bowl veg and the black pepper chicken and rice) for us to have throughout the week.
We'll fill in the gaps with our favorite snacky foods. See my list from last week, especially if you're looking for quick kiddo food ideas!
PREP AHEAD
You can do any (or all) of these steps ahead of time to save yourself stress at dinnertime. Choose one day and knock it all out, or take it day-by-day, when you have a little time to dedicate to the kitchen.
• Roast all the veggies for the Buddha bowl
• Marinate the chicken for Black Pepper Chicken recipe, store in a large zip top bag, in the refrigerator
• Make granola and store in a large plastic bag or air-tight container at room temperature
• Cook the lentils according to Ottolenghi's recipe, store in an air-tight container, in the refrigerator
• Brown the sausage for the frittata
RECIPES
Midwestern Frittata
Serves four - with a salad on the side
Ingredients:
1 Head of cauliflower, roasted and cut into bite-size pieces
8 Eggs
4 Tbsp Greek yogurt
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tsp Sweet smoked paprika
3 Tbsp finely chopped green onions
2 oz Aged cheddar, grated
5 oz Smoked mozzarella, grated
Salt and pepper
3 Tbsp Olive oil
1/2 Cup Frozen spinach, thawed and drained of as much liquid as possible
3 Links mild Italian sausage, removed from the casing
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375.
In a large glass measuring cup (or any old mixing bowl), whisk together the eggs, greek yogurt, paprika, and dijon until well combined. Stir in 1/2 the cheeses and the green onions. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
In a medium sized oven-proof frying pan over medium heat, add 1 Tbsp of the olive oil. Once the oil is warm, add in the sausage and cook, breaking into small pieces, until all of it is browned. Add in the roasted cauliflower. Sauté for a minute while over the heat, to warm the cauliflower. Lower the heat to low and pour in the egg mixture. Use a fork to ensure the cauliflower and sausage are evenly distributed in the pan. Sprinkle in the drained, cooked spinach, and scatter the rest of the cheese on top. The eggs should be in the pan on low for a total of about 5 minutes.
Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 10-12 minutes, until the frittata is set. It can be a little soft in the middle, if you want (that's how I like it). Remove from the oven and allow to rest a couple minutes before slicing into wedges. Serve with your favorite hot sauce.
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