Healthy Meal planning?

CeeRawr89
CeeRawr89 Posts: 328 Member
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
Hello all! I'm a single mom with a 2 year old, and I'm looking for make ahead meals that are healthy and easy to go to! I'm looking for convenience as I work 30-40 hours a week, and I am on somewhat of a tight budget and I do weird shift work. So things I can take to work instead of just buying something at the store because it is easy. I've calculated what I was spending in a month while working ( I am a cashier at a grocery store) and YIKES it's way too much.
Please help!!!

I rarely do dairy as it makes me feel sick, and I do not do pork or most red meats.

Replies

  • em9371
    em9371 Posts: 1,047 Member
    look on skinnytaste.com, their crockpot recipes are easy to prepare, cook while you are out at work and make plenty so you have left overs :-)
    Things suck as chilli, spaghetti sauce etc that are recipes for read meat, you can easily replace with turkey mince.
  • CeeRawr89
    CeeRawr89 Posts: 328 Member
    I love cooking with turkey :) ground turkey, turkey slices, turkey chunks... so on and so forth
  • enyo123
    enyo123 Posts: 172 Member
    You know that I won't spend hours in the kitchen. If it takes longer than 30 minutes, something is going to get burned because a kid will start screaming. :-P I've been cooking with a lot of boneless, skinless chicken breasts as of late. Here's a chicken recipe I found on All Recipes:

    http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/A-Good-Easy-Garlic-Chicken/Detail.aspx?prop31=3

    I'll put my honey mustard chicken recipe up in my blog later.

    As for veggies, I love the Green Giant frozen veggies with a sauce. 4 minutes in the microwave and they're ready, and low cal.
  • cavewoman15
    cavewoman15 Posts: 278 Member
    i throw chicken breasts in the crock pot with some BBQ sauce mixture and lasts me the whole week for lunch. i make wraps or quesadillas. i can usually buy chicken for 1.99 a pound. also, grilling up chicken is a really good idea too - terriyaki, BBQ, jerk flavor. seems to take on whatever you flavor it with. the key for busy people like us is to make a whole bunch at once for the week.
  • gamehen2
    gamehen2 Posts: 45 Member
    The most-used appliance in our kitchen is our George Foreman grill. We ADORE that thing. Just throw your raw thawed meat on it and voila, 10 minutes later or less you've got grilled meat. Steamed some veggies and dinner is done. We do a bunch of chicken breasts at once, so I have them for lunch, chicken salad, chili, tacos or whatever over the next few days.
  • brooke741
    brooke741 Posts: 14
    I am a mom of three! I like to buy chicken breast in bulk. I boil some and shred/chop it up and freeze it precooked in freezer bags. It's great for everything, wraps, enchiladas, chicken quesadilla, salads, and then I leave some not cut up for grilled chicken sandwiches (I use the Foreman grill). There are many sites that have freezer meals/make ahead dinners and you can spend just one day cooking and preparing and you will be good to go for the week!
  • jcpmoore
    jcpmoore Posts: 796 Member
    My way is to cook one meal that I can modify all week. On Monday, chicken in the crock pot. Really it doesn't matter how you make it, but a simple chicken in Italian broth works best. Throw some chicken breasts (or thighs, parts, whatever you like, into the crock pot with water and/or chicken broth and a blend of spices (I use Italian). Cook them on low for 10 hours or as desired. Serve as is over rice for Monday. Make extra rice.

    Separate the leftovers for 2-3 more days into separate packages.

    Tuesday, steam some peas.Then add peas, rice and chicken to a skillet with some teriyaki sauce for chicken fried rice. Once everything is warmed and coated, push the food to one side and scramble up two eggs to mix in with the rice.

    For Wednesday, serve chicken over a bed of romaine lettuce with your choice of veggies, dressing, and light cheese.

    For Thursday, a casserole of your choice.

    The beauty of it is that none of it takes more than about 10 minutes after Monday.

    HTH
  • ashleyacee
    ashleyacee Posts: 118
    Sunday is a good time to plan your meals and grocery shop. You can prep/cook meals ahead of time and put them in containers so you have food ready for the week

    Kashi 7 grain waffles- just put them in the toaster and add some fresh fruit and almond butter :)
    Egg scramble in a mug
    Bags of frozen veggies and fruit - make quick stir frys and shakes
    Chicken breasts- season and pre cook
    Tilapia/white fish - good with salsa
    Quinoa/wild rice/brown rice - Pre cook in bulk

    The Easiest Egg Breakfast Ever...

    The Egg Mug Classic
    PER SERVING (entire mug): 95 calories, 2g fat, 490mg sodium, 3g carbs, 0g fiber, 2g sugars, 14.5g protein -- PointsPlus® value 2*

    Ingredients:
    1/2 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original)
    One wedge The Laughing Cow Light Original Swiss cheese, cut into pieces

    Directions:
    Spray a large microwave-safe mug lightly with nonstick spray. Add egg substitute and cheese and stir. Microwave for about a minute. Stir gently, and then microwave for another 30 - 45 seconds, until scramble is just set. Stir and enjoy!

    MAKES 1 SERVING
  • veggiemuncher12
    veggiemuncher12 Posts: 93 Member
    I'm in a similar situation .. I really love cooking ahead ground turkey breast, freezing it in 1 lb portions (or less) for use in spaghetti, tacos, sloppy joes, etc. Also, I make crock-pot soups and freeze in individual portions..

    Also, I highly recommend the website "Emily Bites". You can make and freeze the "cupcake" recipes that she has-they are all wonderful. This is my favorite.

    Lasagna Cupcakes (Emily Bites)

    Ingredients:
    ½ lb 95% lean ground beef
    1 ½ t Italian seasoning
    5 oz mushrooms, chopped
    16 wonton wrappers (check the produce department!)
    4 oz fat free Ricotta cheese
    1 ½ oz Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
    1 c pasta sauce (I used Wegmans brand Tomato & Basil)
    4 oz reduced fat 2% shredded Mozzarella cheese

    Directions:
    1. Pre-heat the oven to 375. Lightly mist 8 cups in a muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside.
    2. In a sauté pan or large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and Italian seasoning and brown beef, breaking it up with a spoon. Add mushrooms and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until mushrooms are browned as well.
    3. Push a wonton wrapper into the bottom of each of the eight sprayed cups in the muffin tin. Using about half of the ricotta, spoon evenly into the wonton wrappers. Follow by spooning some of the meat/mushroom mixture into each cup (using about half the total mixture) and then splitting ½ cup of the sauce between each cup. Sprinkle about half the mozzarella and half the Parmesan evenly over the top of each cup. Press another wonton wrapper on top and repeat the layering steps with the remaining ingredients.
    4. Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool 5 minutes before removing from muffin tin.

    Yields 8 lasagna cupcakes.
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