Sunday, February 14, 2016

A Week of Meals in Less than 2 Hours

You wake up way past your alarm in the morning and don't have time to whip something up for lunch later.  Or, maybe you've had along day at work or school.  You're tired, hungry, and the last thing you want to do is cook dinner. You have to eat something; and Domino's is just a phone call away.  A whole pizza pie later and you feel even more sluggish than before and you know you shouldn't have ate that pizza...especially after the Chinese food last night. Yikes. 
 
But what if I told you that you can avoid that entire situation by dedicating just 2 hours (or less!) of your time to cook a week's of lunches and dinners.  Yeah, you heard me right.  Put on some music, put on your apron, and get cooking.
 
In this post, I will be sharing with you my top tips for meal prepping as well as what I cook for my typical week of lunch and dinner.  These recipes are very simple and you can literally just pop them in the microwave and you've got yourself lunch and dinner in minutes.  Keep in mind that you don't have to follow my recipes exactly, especially because I know most people don't enjoy eating the same meals every day.  But I'm weird and I actually don't mind.  I usually meal prep on Sunday nights and it takes me between 1 to 2 hours depending on what's on the menu for that week in particular. 
 
Before diving into these recipes, I wanted to share with you my top tips for a successful and quick meal prep.
 
1. Buy Pre-Cut Vegetables
    If you've ever cut up a week's worth of vegetables (especially bigger ones like butternut squash or spaghetti squash) it can take up a huge chunk of time.  When I make roasted butternut squash for the week, the cutting process takes more time than the cooking itself! If you're tight on time, spend the few extra cents and buy pre-cut vegetables.  However, if you're frugal like me, go ahead and cut them yourself.
 
2. Frozen Pre-Cooked Meat is a Time Saver
     Again, cutting up and cooking meats like chicken or pork take extremely long.  Plus, raw chicken really grosses me out.  That's why I typically buy pre-cooked chicken that is frozen from places like Costco, BJ's, or Sam's Club.  All you have to do is defrost the meat for a few hours and heat it up in the microwave.  This tip is a huge time saver (and I don't have to cringe when cutting up the meat!).
 
3. 90 Second Rice is Your Best Friend
    Those 90 second packets of rice are probably one of the best time-saving inventions ever created.  Just pop them in the microwave and you've got cooked rice in a fraction of the time.
 
4. Skip the Washing and Chopping and Buy Bagged Lettuce
    At my grocery store, there is almost always a sale on bagged lettuce.  They are either two for $5 or if I'm lucky; buy one get one free.  Don't waste your time on washing and chopping your salad leaves; go for the more efficient bagged option.
 
On the menu for this week is:
-Lunch: Grilled Chicken, Butternut Squash, and Feta Cheese salad with Poppyseed dressing
-Dinner: Spaghetti Squash, Butternut Squash, Grilled Chicken and Sauteed Zucchini
 
Ingredients for 5 Lunches and 5 Dinners:
  • Butternut Squash (2)
  • Spaghetti Squash (1)
  • Chicken Breast (1 pound)
  • Zucchini
  • Salad Bags (2 bags)
  • Salad toppings of choice
  • Dressing of choice
  • Seasonings of choice
  • Cooking Spray/Cooking Oil
  • An Hour+ of Your Time and a bit of patience


Before anything, pre-heat your oven to 400 Degrees Fahrenheit. This way, the oven will be ready when it's time to cook your butternut and spaghetti squash. Go ahead and chop up your zucchini.





Onto the spaghetti squash, use those muscles to cut this tough vegetable long-ways and scoop out the seeds in the center.  Place the squash center down on an oven tray and chuck it in the oven to cook for 45 minutes. 



 I have an in-depth post on my roasted butternut squash recipe, so head on over there for detailed instructions on how to make these healthy French fry alternatives!  Once you've got the squash peeled, chopped, and seasoned to your liking, go ahead and pop them in the oven as well for 1 hour.
I debated whether or not to photograph the process of cutting the raw chicken breast, and I'm happy with my decision to skip out on that one.  However, it's pretty straightforward so go ahead and cut up your chicken or protein of choice. 
By the time you've cut your chicken and began grilling it, the spaghetti squash should be all done.  To mimic the spaghetti look, take a fork and gently scrape the squash until you've got yourself a huge bowl of thin, spaghetti-like strands.



Next, you'll want to sautée the zucchini and season it to your liking.  I used pepper and a garlic and herb seasoning.  Don't forge to check on your butternut squash and move them around so that they can cook evenly!

 
Once the hour is up for the butternut squash and your protein of choice is fully cooked, it's time to start portioning out your meals. I use a combination of Tupperware and old Chinese food containers for my meals as they are both microwave safe.  Go ahead and portion out the spaghetti squash, butternut squash, chicken, and zucchini into five of the containers for dinner.  Use the remaining chicken and butternut squash for the salads.  I recommend keeping the lettuce in their bags until you assemble your salad with the toppings and dressing to maintain freshness.
 

Congratulations, you now have a full work week's worth of lunches and dinners in less than 2 hours.  No longer will you settle for unhealthy fast food when you are tired and hungry after work and the donuts in the office won't seem so tempting when you've got yourself a healthy and satisfying salad for lunch.  "By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail."  Dedicate just over an hour of your time to whip up a week's worth of meals so that you can just pop them in the microwave when your stomach gives you the heads up.  I guarantee you will not regret jumping on the meal prep bandwagon. If you do decide to try meal prepping, do be sure to tag me on Instagram or tweet me a picture so I can see what you whip up for the week!  I hope this post will inspire and help you all to create nutritious and healthy meals that will be ready in minutes.  Thanks for reading!
Much love,
Gabriella xx





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