Meal Prep Monday : 2/13 - 2/17

This week I had to do my cooking on Saturday instead of Sunday, since I was gone just about all day Sunday for the 10 miler in Blacksburg.  I didn't feel like being too productive on Saturday, so I went for something simple.

Lunch This Week

Chicken Breast

Pesto Pasta

Carrots & Cabbage

Chicken Breast : I had a pizza night with my friends a few weeks ago, and ended up with a jar of artichokes and a jar of sun-dried tomatoes to finish on my own.  Once I had eaten them, there was still lots of liquid left in the jars, that I didn't want to just dump out.  In a sudden moment of inspiration, I dumped out both jars into a pot with some chicken breast, added enough broth to cover the chicken, and poached the chicken.  It came out delicious and tender.  I happened to buy both artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes this weekend because they are yummy, and because I wanted to cook chicken that way again.  Except this time I stole the liquid out of the jars before I actually ate the food out of them.  

Place two chicken breasts in the bottom of a saucepan.  Add artichoke and sun dried tomato liquids, then add chicken or vegetable broth until the chicken is well covered.  Add a generous amount of garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, uncovered.  Once a boil is reached, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and let sit for 15-20 minutes.  Remove the chicken from the liquid and shred, it should be very tender.  Last time I made this, I let the chicken sit in the liquid to keep it extra moist and just cut off the amount I needed each day.  This week I didn't want the "extra work" during the week so I just portioned it out. 

Pesto Pasta : I believe I cooked slightly less than 1/2 pound.  Cook pasta according to directions on box.  Toss with a generous amount of pesto, and a dollop of alfredo sauce.  

Carrots and Cabbage : I chopped about 5 carrots and sauteed them with some olive oil.  I covered the pan for a little bit at the beginning to help them soften faster.  I divided the carrots into my five lunch containers, then used the same pan to cook some finely chopped cabbage.  I didn't have a lot of cabbage left, so there wasn't very much to divide up in my container, just a spoonful for each.  I also added a tiny bit of sauteed onions to each container.  

The meal : Thin layer of carrots, spoonful of cabbage, covered with a serving of pasta, topped with some shredded chicken.  

Like last week, I will be supplementing each meal with some green grapes (on sale again!) or sugar snap peas.