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Five Things to Meal Prep to Make Your Week Easier.

by Stephanie

Five Things to Meal Prep to Make Your Week Easier.

Do you ever wonder what you could do to make meals a bit easier to handle during your busy weeks?

I’m here to tell you there is! You can meal prep a few foods on the weekend to ease up your time.

Recently I made red lentil dahl and with it, I made a batch of quinoa. One cup of dry quinoa results in about three cups of cooked quinoa.

We didn’t eat all of it, in fact, there was quite a bit leftover so I packed it in a container and stored it in the fridge.

The next morning I wanted to eggs for breakfast so I heated up the quinoa and threw a couple of fried eggs on top.

For lunch a couple of days later, I had the leftover red lentil dahl with more quinoa.

What’s my point? If you cook something like quinoa once, you can get a lot of mileage out of it during the week and you have to think less about what you want to eat.

This is great if you don’t really like to meal plan.

Just cook a bunch of food and eat it together in different forms during the week.

Here are five foods to meal prep on Sunday in larger batches to eat all week.

1. Oats and other grains

My daughter likes oatmeal so I’ll either make her a bigger batch of plain oatmeal (I try to hide cinnamon and chia in it!) or baked oatmeal that she can eat all week. 

Oatmeal will keep for longer than you think so make a big batch and if you don’t think you’ll eat it, freeze it.

Eat it with: 

  • berries
  • nuts
  • seeds like hemp, sunflower, and pumpkin
  • real maple syrup

In terms of other grains, it’s super easy to make a big batch and store it all week. Do this with quinoa as I mentioned, rice, buckwheat, and millet. 

Once it’s done, you just have to heat and serve.

2. Greens

When you get home from the grocery store, wash your greens and store them in a container with a paper towel or tea towel. Store herbs like cilantro and parsley in the fridge in mason jars filled with water and covered with plastic bags.

When greens are washed you’re more likely to eat them before they get brown and slimy and the paper towel helps them stay fresh for longer.

It’s easy to take handfuls of greens at a time to use as you need them.

Eat them with:

  • smoothies
  • salads
  • on top of grains
  • as a side dish to your meals
  • eggs
  • soups

3. Roasted veggies

Roast a bunch of veggies like sweet potatoes, potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and butternut squash and eat them in different ways all week. Once they’re cooked, they’ll last for at least 4 days in the fridge and they’re easy to heat up.

Eat them with:

  • eggs
  • salads
  • tacos
  • fish
  • chicken

4. Granola

Making your own granola isn’t as hard as you might think! The benefit is that it’s cheaper and you can control the ingredients and the sugar content. Make a big batch on the weekend to enjoy all week!

Eat it with:

  • yogurt
  • milk 
  • fruit
  • as a snack on the go

5. Cut veggies and prepped fruit

Prepping produce all at once is the best use of your time. Cut carrots and celery and store them in water. 

You don’t have to make pretty and even sticks! I just make sure they are washed, trim the ends and store them in water. Easy peasy.

Change out the water once a week and they’ll last a couple of weeks in the fridge!

In terms of fruit, wash strawberries and blueberries and store them in a lined container. I’ve been storing strawberries uncovered in the fridge and they last perfectly fine for the week.

Blueberries last the week if not longer when they’re washed and covered with a lid.

This has been a game-changer for me. We eat them more often and they never go bad anymore.

Eat them with:

  • smoothies
  • cereal/granola
  • yogurt
  • milk and nuts
  • on their own
  • with hummus and guac (the veggies!)
  • stirfrys
  • salads 
  • stews

Meal prep these five things on the weekend it’ll make your life easier during the week I promise you! Try it and let me know how it works for you.



P.S.: Follow me on Instagram to get weekly tips and tricks!

P.P.S.: Get other kitchen tips here!


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Follow me on Instagram • @lealoulemonade

Don't forget to pick up my new Salads + Bowls reci Don't forget to pick up my new Salads + Bowls recipe book!⁠
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It has 10 super yummy and simple recipes to get you through the summer when you just don't feel like cooking.⁠
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💛Three Bean Salad⁠
💛Tropical Chicken Salad⁠
💛Chicken & Apricot Salad⁠
💛Deconstructed Falafel⁠
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💛Soba Noodle Bowl⁠
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💛Salmon & Rice Bowl⁠
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My neighbour went on a road trip and before she le My neighbour went on a road trip and before she left she gave me some veggies she had in her fridge. ⁠
⁠
I decided to make a simple soup with them along with a few other bits of food I had in the fridge. ⁠
⁠
Here's what I made:⁠
⁠
⭐Nice Neighbour Fridge Soup⭐⁠
⁠
💚3 small ribs of celery⁠
💚1 cup of cabbage, chopped⁠
💚1 cup of kale, chopped⁠
💚1 can of chickpeas⁠
💚1-2 'cakes' of ramen noodles⁠
💚6 cups of water or broth⁠
💚2-3 tbsp tamari⁠
💚3 cloves of garlic⁠
💚1/4 cup cilantro⁠
💚1-2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil⁠
💚1 tbsp chicken bone broth powder from Organika (optional)⁠
⁠
👉🏻In a heated pan, add the olive oil⁠
👉🏻Saute the celery and cabbage until translucent⁠
👉🏻Add the chickpeas and garlic and cook for 3 minutes being mindful not to burn the garlic.⁠
👉🏻Add the water/broth, tamari and bone broth; cook for 5 more minutes⁠
👉🏻Add the kale and cook until slightly wilted⁠
⁠
While that simmers on low...⁠
👉🏻Boil a pot of water for the ramen noodles and cook according to the package instructions.⁠
⁠
👉🏻Once the noodles are done, add some to a soup bowl and top with soup, add cilantro & eat!⁠
⁠
P.S. This would be SO good with leftover shredded chicken!⁠
⁠
Get more recipes like this one at lealoucooks.com under the recipe tab.
One of the best ways to save time is prepping your One of the best ways to save time is prepping your meal ingredients in advance.⁠
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When the weather gets nicer, I personally want to spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the sun. ⁠
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Does that sound like you too?⁠
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Grab your bowl and head outside for dinner!⁠
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Sounds good to me.⁠
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This month, I have a new recipe book called Salad + Bowls. It includes 10 fresh and simple recipes to ease into summer.⁠
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Get it here: @lealoucooks or directly here>> https://bit.ly/saladsbowls⁠
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New in the shop!⁠
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I love making salads and bowls for meals because most of the ingredients can be prepped in advance and thrown together for quick meals.⁠
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That means you can spend more time outside enjoying the sun and less time inside planning your meals.⁠
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These meals are quick, full of flavour, and as fresh as they can get. They’re also made with nutrient-dense ingredients that will keep you full longer.⁠
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Salads + Bowls Recipe Book comes with 10 delightful recipes to enjoy all summer long.⁠
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Link in profile @lealoucooks or get it directly here>> https://bit.ly/saladsbowls⁠
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About Stephanie

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Hey! I'm Stephanie. I'm a Writer, Culinary Nutrition Expert and Cooking Instructor helping families cook nourishing meals. Read more about me {here}.

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