Make ahead Meals for a Week On-the-Run

I always dread these weeks: The ones where I have to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner away from home unless I want to eat at 4am and 9pm due to  a heavy work schedule.   But, I know with a little planning, at least my meals can be healthy and tasty!  This week's theme is meals on the go!

PS---I won a shiny trophy at my Crossfit Competition!  Must be all those good meals I am eating :-) (I think Pioneer Valley Crossfit coaching has something to do with it too)

 

Recipes

crustless quiche

sausage spinach skillet (I added a sliced apple)

Ground chicken curry

How to cook spaghetti squash

Meal Plan

Last week, I realized that the only lunch I am really loving is my sandwiches.  So, I will try and alter them a little bit each day, just in case my readers are not as boring as I am and want to mix it up for lunch a bit.

Breakfasts

3 days: crustless quiche (made in advance) with 2 cups salad greens on side

2 days: smothie with 1 cup frozen cherries, 1 cup almond milk, 1 scoop protein, 1 cup spinach

Lunches

every day: sandwich on paleo bread, crudites, piece of fruit

Sandwich options: 

turkey with pepper jelly, cheddar, romaine lettuce

ham with stone ground mustard, apple, spinach, and sprouts

Turkey with stone ground mustard, pear, sprouts

ham with honey mustard, cheddar, romaine lettuce                  

Dinners

2 days: chicken apple sausage skillet with roasted potatoes

3 days: ground chicken curry with vegetables served with spaghetti squash

(I will make both ahead and the meals are great for travelling because they are 1-dishers!)...I will try to include some salad greens on the side to encourage veggie intake as well!

Snacks (1-2 per day)

Ants on a log: 2 celery stalks with 2 Tbsp. nut butter and raisins on top

greek yogurt with flax seed

last resort: protein shake!

Shopping list (tried to make this a little more user friendly by specifying where to find foods in the store!)

Produce:

1 red onion

1 white or yellow onion

garlic

broccoli or other desired veggies for chicken curry

salad greens

spinach (1-2 bags)

romaine lettuce (1 head)

2-3 sweet potatoes

2-3 lbs small potatoes for roasting

6 apples

1 pear

1 package sprouts

celery (and any other veggies like carrots and peppers for crudites)

cherry tomatoes

parsley

Dairy:

8 ounces feta

3 ounces cheddar cheese for sandwiches

milk or milk substitute (I use almond)

6 eggs (or could also go with 10-12 egg whites here)

parmesan cheese

Meat:

1/2 lb ham (deli)

1/2 lb turkey (deli)

package chicken or turkey sausage

Other:

1 can tomatoes

curry powder

fish sauce

nutmeg

salt and pepper

mustard (stone ground and honey mustard)

pepper jelly

frozen cherries

protein powder

paleo bread (or other desired bread for sandwiches)

olive oil for cooking

ghee or butter for cooking

nut butter

raisins

pine nuts

Easy Peasy Week!

We hosted a Mexican fiesta last night, and while it was fun and awesome...

 

 

...it resulted in a Sunday morning full of clean up and a Laura who is not so thrilled about messing up her pretty kitchen again today J 

 

So, this week is for those who sometimes feel the same!  I am also planning on going out to dinner at some point this week, and soups are great for freezing and reheating when you make too much!

Recipes

Protein Pancakes    

Rotisserie Chicken Salad and Rotisserie Chicken Soup

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup (I omitted the milk all together and used chicken stock in place, and took out the bouillon cubes…however, you could make this vegan by following the instructions or using veggie broth in place of milk!)

 

Meal Plan

Breakfasts

Greek yogurt with flax and banana (2 days)
Protein pancakes (3 days)

Lunches

Paleo bread sandwich with boars blackened turkey, mustard, lettuce, tomato, and onion, crudités and apple (3 days)

Rotisserie chicken salad on bed of spinach with dried cranberries, walnuts, red onion and cucumber (2 days)

Dinners

Rotisserie chicken soup (2 days)

Breakfast for dinner (1 day): 3 egg omelette made with goat cheese, red peppers, spinach, and red onion with a side of greens (also with goat cheese, red peppers, and red onion on top!)

Butternut squash and apple soup (2 days) with 4-6 ounces Boars head black forest ham rollups

Snacks (1-2 per day, depending on exercise level)

Apple with almond butter (2 days)

Smoothie with 1 scoop whey protein, 1 cup almond milk, 1-2 cups spinach, 1 cup frozen cherries (2-4 days)

Greek yogurt with flax (3 days)

Grocery List

large butternut squash (3 lbs.), 3 red onions, 9 medium apples (any cooking variety), peeled, cored and diced, nutmeg, ginger, salt, pepper, 3 leeks, 1 lb celery, 1 lb carrots (plus more celery for chicken salad and carrots for crudités), 1 red pepper (plus an extra pepper or 2 for crudités), 1 white onion, garlic, 2 bananas, 2 grapefruit, 1 lb spinach, 1 small head of lettuce for sandwiches, 2 cups cottage cheese, 10 eggs, 6 Greek yogurts (plain), ½ cup goat cheese, 1 carton liquid egg whites, 1 bag frozen cherries, whey protein, almond milk, 1 lb Boars head turkey, 1 lb boars head ham (don’t need this much for 1 person, but there is a certain husband in my house that likes to break in to the deli meat), 1 rotisserie chicken, 1 cup chicken stock, 4 cups chicken broth, almond butter, flax seed meal, gluten free oats, Julian bakery paleo bread (or other bread of your choice for sandwiches), mustard.

 

Rotisserie Chicken Recipes

I am often left with half a rotisserie chicken (I buy a whole one and eat half for dinner when I'm in a rush!) and I'm not a huge fan of reheating it.  These are two recipes I use to make the most of "the other half",  so I don't waste my pricey Whole Foods chicken!

1. For lunches: "Cleaned up" Rotisserie Chicken salad

Ingredients: 1 cup greek yogurt, 1/2 Rotisserie chicken (skin removed and chopped in to pieces), 1 cup chopped celery, 1 small red onion chopped, 2 Tbsp deli style mustard, salt and pepper and garlic powder to taste.

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Makes about 4 cups (4 servings) of chicken salad.  I like to put mine on top of apple slices, on a salad, or in a sandwich for a yummy lunch!

2. For dinners or healing a cold or flu :-): Chicken and veggie soup

Ingredients: 1/2 rotisserie chicken (chopped-you can leave skin on or take it off, depending on preference), 2-3 cups chicken broth, 1/2 lb carrots, 1/2 lb celery, 1 onion, 2 garlic cloves,  1-2 leeks, salt and pepper to taste, oil (just enough to saute)

Sauté veggies in olive oil or coconut oil. Add broth and chicken. Cook on low for 1 hour. Serve on its own or mix in 1/2 cup rice per bowl (makes 3 large or 5-6 small bowls)