Easy Weekly Meal Prep Ideas

Looking to add some meal prep into your week? Meal prep helps make lunches and homemade dinners a breeze! Here are some of my weekly goals as well as specific ideas for your meal preps:

WEEKLY GOALS:

Shop off a weekly grocery list

Wash and Prepare Fruits and Vegetables

Prepare Protein

Batch Cook Grains

Stock Grab and Go Breakfast Options

SHOP OFF A WEEKLY GROCERY LIST

Write or type down all the “normal” food you stock in your household and place it on a list for easy retrieval. Once a week, do your shopping, keeping as close to the list as possible!

WASH AND PREPARE ALL FRUITS AND VEGETABLES:

Plant based eating is all about eating your veggies! Making sure that produce is ready in your fridge for when you need it is an easy way to create a whole lifestyle of health! Of course you don't ONLY have to eat vegetables, but the easier they are to eat, the more likely you’ll actually eat them before they spoil! Here are some of my favorite varieties to stock at home and how I prepare them!

_ Fruit: Wash all your fruit for the week, so that anyone can go to the fridge, pick up a fruit and enjoy! Also helpful for packing up or grabbing a fruit on the go!

_ Greens: Romaine, Arugula, Spinach etc: Purchase triple washed or clean and dry greens and pack in ziplock bags surrounded by paper towels. (For Kale, stems can be removed 2-3 days in advance)

_ Herbs:

• Parsley- soak, clean and spin dry all at once, also remove stem and chop so ready to use. Store in ziploc bags or closed container.

• Basil/ Mint- keep in cup of water until ready to use. Do not wash in advance (will get black)

_ Raw salad vegetables: Clean, peel and prepare

• Carrots: Baby carrots or carrot chips are great for east snacking

• For regular carrots, wash, peel and julienne or shred

• Cucumbers- wash and dry (Persian cucumbers go bad fastest, lasts about 2-3 days cut up)

• tomatoes- wash and dry, use cherry or grape variety for salads (kept whole)

• peppers- wash and dry. Cut out seeds.

• beets- wash, dry, peel, Can be spiralized, julienned or sliced all at once if using in salads raw

• cauliflower or brocolli- clean, and dry and cut into florets.

• String beans- Chop ends, clean and dry

• Avocados (buy 4-5) and keep on counter until ripe. Then place in fridge.

_ Meal starters:

• Clean 1 bag onions, 1 bag celery, 1 bag carrots, chop small and saute.

• Place in individual baggies to freeze.

• Pull out as needed for soups, stir fries, veggie burgers and more!

_ Cooked vegetables:

• Eggplant:

• Can be washed, peeled and chopped into little cubes

• For a dinner, just take out cubes, add 3-4 tbsp oil and cook on 400 until soft with spices.

_ Mushrooms:

• Scrub and clean. Dry very well.

• To cook, place in sauce pan with 1-2 tbsp oil on the bottom, sauce until liquids are released and then drying out. Then add a splash miring and gluten free tamari and continue to cook until soft enough to eat.

_ Potatoes (white or sweet):

• Scrub to clean

• Bake 1 per week per person for dinner or slice up and soak to remove starch. Then dry until ready to roast as french fries on 400/ 420.

• Lazy method: Place in microwave safe container with a top and microwave on high for 15 minutes.

• Roast a pack of baby sweet potatoes with 2 tbsp of oil brushed on in a pyrex or roast 3 large whole for dinners or lunches.

_ Seasonal Squashes:

• Wash and dry.

• Slice and roast any variety with 2-3 tbsp oil

• Spiralize and cook zucchini over the stove to make zucchini noodles

• Cook zucchini or summer squash with 1 onion and 1 can chickpeas (in stove) until soft. (like a soup)

• Steam kabocha until soft

_ Lemons:

• Squeeze 2 pound bag and place into mason jar. Lasts 2 weeks for dressings and marinades. (Can zest outsides and store in freezer).

PREPARE YOUR PROTEIN OPTIONS:

• Open 2 cans of beans per week. Drain and rinse. Place into tupperwares to be ready to use. Kidney beans start to smell but chickpeas and white beans are fine.

• Cook 1 bag brown lentils, to use throughout the week. Alternatively, can freeze in individual portions for more single serve portions to use in salads and for dinner.

• Hard boil 6 eggs each week, to use as an easy protein option for breakfast or lunch. Lasts in fridge 1 week.

• Soy proteins: Dry out 1 block of tofu in fridge for use in the next day. Can marinate tempeh in advance.

BATCH COOK GRAINS:

Rice, quinoa, farro, millet and wheatberries are all great options to keep on hand and throw into lunches and dinners throughout the week. Each of these grains cooks differently, so check out the package instructions!

GRAB AND GO BREAKFAST OPTIONS:

Breakfast is a universally rushed meal! Think ahead in order to get the best nutritional bang for your buck every morning!

Consider some easy morning breakfasts, such as:

• Premade- hardboiled eggs

• Meal prepped fritatta cup recipes (vegan frittata cups are on the blog!)

• Oatmeal cups- Check for low in sugar varieties such as Trader Joe’s Strawberry and Vigilant Eats Cacao Goji and Bob's Red Mill Flax Oatmeal

• Fruit with nut butter packets (I like Artisana Organics Almond and Cashew Butter)

• Homemade granola with yogurt (dairy or non- dairy varieties)