Meal Plan for First Two Weeks of September

Turner Philosophy on Food

One of the most important things I have learned on this journey is prevention.  Healthy eating, sunlight, managing stress, adequate sleep, and exercise go so far in preventing both the common cold and more serious chronic illnesses.  In regard to 'healthy eating', it seems that EVERY single person has a different opinion as to what 'healthy' means.  One person says Paleo all the way.  Another Mediterranean all the way.  And another is all into Shakeology.   We are none of the above.  I make from scratch and use little to no processed items.  I am in the kitchen a lot but currently figuring out how to make in bulk, freeze, etc. to minimize that time.  We eat tons of veggies and fruits, beans and lentils, probiotic rich dairy such as yogurt and keifer, organic chicken and turkey, farm fresh eggs when available and we can afford them, whole grains such as oats, quinoa, brown rice, etc, tons of water (juice only at Grandparents or a friends for a treat), healthy fats such as coconut oil and olive oil, and little to no sugar.  We use supplements where needed.  We try to eat like this 80% of the time.  There are certainly exceptions such as a family ice-cream outing, and we gladly eat whatever is served at a friend's house, etc.! 

Importance of meal planning

In order to stay in my grocery budget, I meal plan.  A couple days before the new month begins, I plan my menu for 2 weeks, which includes all breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.  I do a run at the beginning of the month and then halfway through the month.  There are exceptions of course, but I have truly found, the less I am in the store, the less I spend.   In order to get nutrient dense food toward the end of the two weeks, I spend a couple days cooking like crazy in the beginning of the month.  I double and triple recipes, freezing as needed.  We also eat fresh veggies in the beginning and frozen toward the end.  Apples and celery tend to last the whole time!

All about preserving my time

So to save time and avoid being in the kitchen ALL the freakin time….and since school has started for the boys around here, we are going in shifts of three….same three breakfasts, lunches, and dinner, and then we change.  I prep the food one day, pull it out of fridge, and cook in oven, etc.  Saves so much time! 

September Meal Plan

Breakfasts

blueberry oatmeal Greek yogurt pancakes  (3 breakfasts first week/ 3 breakfasts second week)

We discovered these about a year ago and since then have them 3x a week. They are AMAZING and FILLING. To feed our family, I have to double them! I make 3 batches(doubling each....so really 6 batches I guess) of dry ingredients and of wet ingredients and then the work is done for the week. When we want to eat them, all I have to do is mix a set of dry and wet put them on the griddle. If you want them to taste like cookies, use normal Greek yogurt. We use plain Greek yogurt mostly, but they are still amazing!

http://cookieandkate.com/2012/blueberry-lemon-yogurt-pancakes

Crustless quiche by Catherine Elder  (3 breakfasts first week/ 3 breakfasts second week)

5 large eggs
a few cups of spinach or kale through the food processor,
chopped onion and garlic...whatever veggies you feel like. I put them in raw....
 ½ cup coconut milk or other milk;
½ tsp baking powder;
Sea salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp. coconut oil

I triple this and we eat this three days in a row.....I whisk the liquid and toppings together and place in 3 separate containers until ready to bake.  The morning of I pull out one mixture and put it in a 9 inch round dish, top with mozzarella cheese, and put in the oven! 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until cooked through.

sweet potato, egg, veggie, goat cheese wraps: (3 breakfasts first week/ 3 breakfasts second week)

Delightful! Freezable! I always triple...it goes fast!! We did not do the spicy spices or add anything to it for dipping...I just put it in the fry pan all wrapped up with some coconut oil and serve hot.

http://cookieandkate.com/2014/healthy-freezer-breakfast-burritos-with-sweet-potato-hash/

Crock Pot Oatmeal (1 breakfast first week/ 1 breakfast second week)

1 cup steel cut oats

4 cups water

1 medium apple, peeled, cored and cut into chunks

2 TBSP maple syrup

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup whole milk or half and half or other milk substitute

Grease the bowl of your slow cooker with butter.

Add all ingredients and stir well.

Cover and set slow cooker to low.

Cook for 8-9 hours overnight.

In the morning, stir contents of slow cooker well. 

Topping suggestions:

Brown sugar

Blueberries

Toasted almonds or other nuts

Dried fruit

Butter

Milk

Note:  We found the oatmeal to be really good by adding local honey, blueberries, and almonds on top. 

Lunches

Bean and cheese quesadillas (4 lunches first week/ 4 lunches second week)

I have black beans in my freezer (just recently discovered you can freeze beans after you make them!!) that I will pull out and put between tortillas with mozzarella cheese.  Serve with salsa and guac.  These are actually quite yummy and the cheese and toppings hide the taste of beans. 

Chicken on top of a bed of greens (3 lunches first week/ 3 lunches second week)

salad with chicken, avocados, nuts, onions, feta, etc.

Dinners

(some favorites of my sister in law she passed on to us)

Baked Risotto With Grilled Veggies and Balsamic Reduction (3 dinners)

1 Garlic Clove, minced
 1 onionn, finely chopped (or 3-4 shallots)
2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Cup Arborio Rice
 1 can diced tomoatoes with basil- drained
1 tsp Dried Italian Herbs, your choice
1/2 Cup Cooking Sherry
2 Cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp Salt (if needed)
Veggies
1 Small Eggplant
 1 Bell Pepper

Reduction
Balsamic Vinegar (at least 1/2 cup...we prefer 1 cup be/ we love sauce)

saute the onion and garlic in olive oil and then add the rice for a few minutes tossing it in the oil.....add cooking sherry and stir until absorbed....add drained diced tomatoes, add the chicken stock and continue cooking until all stock absorbed

put egg plant and peppers in a pan with olive oil and cook until ready....

cook on medium heat balsamic vinegar until it reduces by half.

Place veggies on top of a bed of rice and then drizzle with balsamic reduction.  Delicious! 

Note: I tripled the rice and then divided it into three containers- one we eat right away and the others we save for the following two nights.  I chopped enough veggies for three nights, cooking one and setting the other veggies aside in containers for the following two nights.  On subsequent nights, all I will have to do is warm the rice on 200 in the oven for 30 minutes or so and sauté the already cut up veggies in the pan.   

Adapted from
http://veganyumyum.com/2007/12/baked-sundried-tomato-risotto-with-grilled-veggies-and-balsamic-reduction/

Rosemary Chicken with Zucchini paired with mashed cauliflower (3 dinners)
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/rosemary-chicken-zucchini
I use bone in chicken for more flavor. 

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/mashed-cauliflower

Homemade Pizza Nite (2 meals - Saturdays)

*add in basil, oregano, Italian seasoning to dough

top dough with sauce, mozzarella cheese, and toppings

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/pizza-dough-recipe.html

Skinny Chicken and Alfredo (3 meals)
http://iowagirleats.com/2012/03/22/skinny-chicken-broccoli-alfredo/

Roasted Sweet Potato-huevos-rancheros (3 meals)
http://naturallyella.com/roasted-sweet-potato-huevos-rancheros/
I use corn tortillas, but flour tortillas would be great as well.  The corn tortillas tend to fall a part more.  I also used feta cheese as that is what I had.  I did not use chipotle powder or paprika as spicy is not our thing.  I folded all things up in corn tortillas and fried the ones we were going to eat the first night on a griddle with coconut oil.  Each night, I will pull out desired amount and fry in coconut oil on the griddle.