Did you catch my title? I didn’t say meal prep, I said “food prep”. Now just because we are food prepping, does not mean that we are not planning out our meals. Sitting down and creating a menu is going to be a KEY to better nutrition in your house. I remember my mom planning a month ahead of time. (With six kids and being a teacher, planning FOOD was a priority!) On my Command Night each week I plan out my week ahead. I write down lunches, and create the dinner menu, along with blocking the nights for “dinner out”. (I’ll discuss eating out in another blog at a later time!) For now, let’s dig in…

The Weekly Menu

Planning out your week will allow you so much more sanity when you are scrambling to get your kids out the door to practice during the week. It will also make you feel like a million dollar parent when you and your kids are eating foods that will nourish and sustain all of you for the duration of the day. I don’t know about your house, but my kids are at practice for 4 hours after 7 hours of school…they need QUALITY food, not a massive amount of “snacks”. Making sure I have meals planned out allows me to ensure that each meal I provide, gives the proper amount of nutrients for each individual to pack in the energy, and not slump after 2 pm. (We all know that poor nutrients affects attention span, mobility, focus, and so many other basic functionalities.) Take the 30 minutes and plan out your meals!

Don’t over complicate your meals. When you have a crazy agenda, trying to squeeze out a meal that requires you to be in a kitchen for 2 hours in the middle of your day, sets you up for failure. Instead plan out meals that can be thrown together in under 30 minutes. (This is where your food prep comes in to assist!)

Themed Meals

It is perfectly fine to have reoccurring meals every week. We have Taco Tuesday every week, and I pack lunches on specific days according to a “theme”. (i.e. Monday-Salad, Tuesday-Nachos, Wednesday-Homemade Lunchable, Thursday-Salad, Friday-Make Your Own) The ingredients change a little, but the “theme” stays the same. I have found that not just kids, but adults, want to eat the foods they enjoy, but they want it to “appear” different. That’s why I love the idea of having “themes” to my weekly menu. It gives everyone the excitement of eating their favorite food, but it also allows them to try new foods as well.

When your household loves a particular dish or meal, use that to your advantage. I’m not telling you to cook the same exact meals every week, but create that meal as a theme on a particular night for dinner, or maybe a lunch throughout the week. If your family loves soup and salad, pick one night every week to have soup and salad. I love these nights! I tend to double my soup batches and freeze the left overs. All I have to do is throw the frozen soup in the slow cooker, turn it on, and when we get home, its warm and ready to eat (plus, the house smells amazing!) Theme meals hold a special place in my routine. They keep me sane and healthy.

Checking My List

Santa ain’t got nothing on me when it comes to my grocery list. I have an app on my phone that saves my popular product catalog. (Just fancy wording for the items I buy all the time!) I recommend either utilizing amazing apps like I have, or saving your lists from previous store visits. It saves you so much time when it comes to inventory of your kitchen. For instance, we always go through the typical amount of berries, celery, carrots, sweet potatoes, apples, bananas, lettuce, and avocados every week. Those are automatically added every week. After I have my catalog listed, I add all the fruits and veggies I need for the week according to my menu. Since I have my “theme meals” every week, I already know the basic items I will need, I just need to adjust any toppings or sides if I want to switch them up. It becomes almost too simple.

After completing my produce, deli, and dairy list (which my app does for me already!), I find a “baked item” I’m going to make for the table. I love utilizing nuts, fruit, and sometimes vegggies in these recipes. My kids love pumpkin muffins and my apple cinnamon muffins. I enjoy having something baked on the table in the morning, or afternoon, in our kitchen. It not only gives everyone a quick bite to eat for a rumbling tummy, but it also sets a warm and welcoming vibe to the room. This recipe tends to be my “quick” baked goods. There are so many boxed, or bagged, gluten free flour mixes out there, make your life a little easier! I love Bob’s Red Mill. I add my own ingredients while I’m mixing the batter. Makes one “to-do” quick and easy (and not too bad!) When I have some time, I do like to bake from scratch, or my 10 year old loves to take over the baking role in the kitchen.

Snacking can be the pitfall for many. We grab bars, bags, and sticks of products we call “food”. But, is it really? Hmmmm…The definition of food is:

Any Nutritious Substance that people or animals eat or drink or that plants absorb in order to maintain life and growth.

I just can’t bring myself to calling a Slim Jim or a bag of Doritos “food” after knowing that definition. So, what can we snack on that truly is food? The answer is in your food prep! Snacks are going to be the majority of your food prep. The veggies you pre chop, the fruit you pre rinse and jar, all of which will be ready for you to grab and go with. Trust me, it will be easier than you think!

Prepping Time

Just like Bert in “Mary Poppins”, I dance so giddy for food prep time! After creating my menus, composing my grocery list, and visiting the store, I lay everything out on my kitchen counter and asses my course of action. I grab my notebook, and start building my Food Prep Plan! Sounds daunting, but I assure you it will be easier and quicker than the amount of time one can spend in a drive thru line throughout the week, when all is said and done.

My biggest tip in writing out your plan, is to begin with the items that need to be baked, slow cooked, or simmered. These will take the longest, so start on those items first. Once those are listed, sort your vegetables and decide which ones to chop now, and which ones to put in the fridge for later in the week. I always chop my starchy veggies on prep day: celery, carrots, onions, peppers, sweet potatoes, kale, etc (I even prep lettuce in a large bowl for grabbing in my crisper drawer for 2-3 days at a time-lettuce won’t keep fresh for too long). Hold off on chopping the “watery” veggies until right before you eat them: cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, etc. These will turn into a slimy, unappetizing dish. Fruit is up next. My favorite part about fruit, is that most fruit does not require prep, just eating! But, I do wash and air dry all my fruit before I put it in its place so it is ready to eat! I also like to pre cook a container of quinoa or brown rice to have on hand when I need a heartier salad or a quick starchy side for dinner later in the week.

The plan is written out, and ready for you to start adding checks to. Time to bring out all your tools. Turn on the oven, pull out the slow cooker, bring out the cutting board, and get to work!

If chicken stock, soup, or anything that requires the slow cooker is on the plan, I start there. Once I throw all the ingredients in that pot, I mix up my “baked treat” and throw it in the oven. The fruit goes for a bath (even if it’s Organic, I still wash it), then it lays out on a towel to air dry. This is when my chopping begins. Depending on my menu, some veggies will be diced finely, some will be chopped into snack sizes. I always store the different style of chop in different containers with labels for the meal they are intended for. Always help your future self out by pre labeling and storing prep food items for meals ahead of time. This makes the week go by with less chaos (well, at least the food will). Hopefully by now your “baked goods” are done, and you have set the timer! Time to store the prepped food.

Storing The Food Prep

I like to use glass containers to store my prepped food. I find that it stays crisp, I can see what is in the container, and tastes more fresh. However, you can use whatever you have on hand. I put my berries in mason jars that are lined at the bottom with a paper towel (it draws the moisture from the berries, so you don’t a mooshie fruit in the morning). My veggies go in my glass pyrex tupperware dishes,and my soups, sauces, and stocks go in my plastic sauce containers (they fit about 3 cups of liquid in each) to be cooled. Once everything is in it’s container, I rearrange my fridge and freezer to accommodate my prep. I wait to do this until after everything is in its container, in order to visualize how much space I will actually need. If you do this before you prep, you will find yourself rearranging again anyway, so don’t waste your time! Okay, it is time to make your fridge look like something out of The Food Network Magazine.

Be sure to put the snack size veggies and fruit at a reachable level for everyone in the house. I have a basket on the lowest level of our fridge with apples, pears, and other fruits for everyone to grab. I also have celery and carrots right next to the basket in containers, and some pre bagged in ziploc snack bags for a “running out the door” moment. Try to make your food more visually appealing when you open the fridge door. Everyone will gravitate towards what they find appealing. Don’t be afraid to add wire baskets, containers, or different kinds of shelves to your food prep presentation! I even bought myself a beautiful cake stand for my table to present my baked goods. You just spent your time prepping this amazing food, you are entitled to make it look pretty! This is your work, be proud of it!

Special Extras

If you have the extra time, assist yourself with quick pre made meals that will keep for at least a few days in the fridge. Throw together a few Jarred Over Night Oats for a couple of breakfasts. Perhaps make my Mediterranean Quinoa Salad. Or, even whip up my Avocado spread for a quick lunch of Avocado Toast . Find some great recipes that you can make ahead of time, so you can enter your week knowing you are prepared for whatever life has to throw at you.

Prioritize Your Household Health

Food Prep has become a very respected part of my weekly routine. It may not always be the same day, at the same time, or even a collective one solid block of time (because let’s face it…life happens!), but I always make sure that I put it as a priority on my schedule. It is the first block of time I mark down on my schedule on Command Night. Believe me, the weeks I don’t plan out my meals and food prep, I see and feel the impact. My mind isn’t as sharp, I am exhausted, the kids tempers flare, and it seems like the entire house is completely off kilter. If you want your household to fire on all cylinders, you have to fill it up with premium fuel. Food Prep is your new best ally.