Meal Prep 2/3/20

Back to one of my all-time favorites...pasta and meatballs!  I'm glad my sister helped me chop all those carrots because that pile was never-ending! 

Meatballs 
3 lbs 80/20 ground beef
1 lb 93/7 ground beef
1/4 c (ish) italian bread crumbs
2 eggs
oregano and garlic powder to taste

Mix it all up together and shape into balls.  I made 45 (3 for each lunch).  Layer in a large pot (I fit 30 on the bottom layer and then just spread out the remaining 15 on top), cover with your favorite sauce (Prego Fresh Mushroom) cover, turn heat to medium, and cook for about 1.5 hours.  Cut open a meatball when you think they are done to make sure there is no pink.

Pasta
Cook 2 lbs of pasta according to directions on box.

Veggies
Chop about 3 lbs carrots and saute in large pot with some olive oil.  Add 1 bag frozen peas when carrots are soft.  Add garlic powder to taste. 

Meal Prep 3/4/19

Back to one of my favorites...pasta and meatballs!  

Meatballs :  3 lbs ground beef (I used 80/20 this time.  It's fattier than I normally buy, but it comes in a 3 lb package for convenience.) Mix ground beef with 2 eggs and about 1/3 cup of breadcrumbs (you know I didn't measure those breadcrumbs, I just poured them).  Shape into 25-30 balls.  Drop into a pot filled with sauce, cover and cook on medium for 90-120 minutes.  For sauce, I used a big 2 lb 13 oz jar of Prego Fresh Mushroom.  

Pasta :  1 lb of penne rigate, cooked according to package instructions.  Mixed with the sauce left in the pot after I removed the meatballs.  

Broccoli :  2 lbs fresh broccoli, coated with olive oil and garlic powder and roasted.  My oven was set to 425, I think it was actually around 475.  The broccoli roasted for 10 minutes. 

I turned the oven setting down to 395 after that to roast something else, and when it dinged to say it was at 395 I checked the thermometer I have in the oven.  It said 450.  A new oven is next on our list of big-purchase items.  As soon as we make time to go pick one out...  

Meal Prep 2/4/19

Pork-Turkey meatballs

Risotto

Broccoli

Meatballs : 1 lb ground pork, 2 lbs ground turkey, 1 egg, garlic powder.  Shape into 30 balls, place them in a single layer in a large skillet, cover, cook on medium heat.  Stir occasionally.  Add some soy sauce and mustard to the liquid that gathers in the skillet.  

Risotto : Chop some onion, brown in a saucepan with olive oil.  Add 1 lb arborio rice, stir to coat with oil.  Add enough chicken broth to cover, cook on low, adding more broth or water as it is absorbed by the rice, until the rice is done.  

Broccoli : Coat with olive oil and garlic powder, roast in the oven at 450 for 10 minutes.  

Meal Prep 1/7/19

As I typed the date in the title for this post, I realized that I most likely wrote 2018 on the last check I filled out...oops.  Time to get used to writing a new year on everything! 

After a long and relaxing break filled with family time and Netflix, I head back to work today!  While I can't say it was nice to wake up to an alarm after days of sleeping in til 10, I am ready to get back into my daily routine.  I definitely function a lot better on a set schedule! 

Ground turkey was on sale this weekend, and we really liked the turkey meatballs I made a little while back, so I decided to make them again.  Add some fried rice and roasted brussels sprouts, and we are excited for this week's lunches! 

The meatballs : 2 lbs ground turkey, one egg, scant 1/2 cup italian breadcrumbs.  Shape into 20-25 balls.  In a large lidded skillet, place meatballs in a single layer.  Pour in just enough liquid to cover the bottom of the skillet.  (Last time I used chicken broth.  I didn't have any broth this time, so I used beer...) Mix 2 tbsp mustard, 1/2 c soy sauce, and some garlic powder, and pour over the meatballs.  Cover and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally to turn the meatballs.  When they are about cooked through, remove the lid and allow most of the liquid to cook off. 


The brussels sprouts : Quarter 4 lbs brussels sprouts and spread them out on 2 large baking sheets.  Coat with olive oil, garlic powder, and a dash of salt.  Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes.  (It may take longer....I'm fairly certain that my oven runs hot.  According to the thermometer I put in it, it is running at least 25 degrees hotter than it is set to.)

The rice : 2.5 cups brown rice, 5 cups water, dash of salt, garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until water is absorbed.  Chop 5 carrots and 1/4 onion.  Cook the carrots and onions in the meatball drippings, then add the rice.  Fry the rice, adding oil as needed.  We didn't fry it too heavily or add egg like I originally intended because it was a LOT of rice.  (2.5 cups was 10 servings according to the bag, but we ended up with closer to 12-13 portions.)

Meal Prep : 10/29/18

Pasta & Meatballs

The Meatballs : 1 lb ground pork, 1 lb 93/7 ground beef, 1 lb 85/15 ground beef. 2 eggs, breadcrumbs, garlic powder.  Makes 33 meatballs.  I cooked them in approximately 72 ounces of sauce for 60-90 minutes.  The sauce was a mix of tomato-mushroom, tomato-roasted garlic, tomato-basil, and alfredo.

The Pasta : approximately 1.5 lbs of bowtie noodles.  Cook, drain, mix in sauce left in meatball pot after meatballs are removed.

The Veggies : Sauteed onion, 5 carrots, mushrooms, and 2 packages of frozen cauliflower.

The veggies were split evenly 10 ways, each lunch got 3 meatballs and 1 cup of pasta.   There was still pasta left over, so Coby's lunches each got some more pasta.  There was then about 1 serving of pasta left, so that went with the 2 last meatballs.  (The 33rd got eaten as a taste-test)

Meal Prep 10/1/18

Meatballs : 1 lb ground turkey, 1 lb ground pork, 1 egg, 2 tbsp ranch dressing, 1 tbsp minced garlic, 1 tbsp oregano, 2 tsp ground mustard.  Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.  (Makes 27)

Sweet Potatoes : (5 medium-large) chop into bite sized pieces, toss with olive oil, garlic powder, and sea salt.  Bake at 400 for 40 minutes, stirring half way. 

Green Beans : (2 lbs) Toss with olive oil, garlic powder, and sea salt.  Bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes, stirring half way. 

I was pretty excited when I realized this whole meal could be baked in the oven, at the same time.  Oven means no pots and pans to wash (just foil-line some baking sheets!) and since I could use the same temperature, I was able to cook the potatoes and beans at the same time, which saved time!

These lunches looked pretty small after last week's super full containers, so we will be supplementing with triscuits... Also I realized after I got in bed last night that I forgot to cook the cabbage I bought to go in these meals...oops.  I was too busy trying to get the cooking done so I could hang out with the girls before they left!  We do have it down to a pretty good system at least...while I am cooking, the girls help Coby with cleaning the house. 

Meal Prep Monday : 2/5/18

Pasta, Meatballs, & Veggies!

Pasta & Meatballs has always been one of my favorite meals!  I remember it being my birthday meal of choice quite a few times when I was younger. I don't make meatballs too often anymore because they do take quite a bit of time to cook, but every now and then I start craving them and decide it's worth the time. 

I'm sharing with a friend this week, so I made 10 lunches for the workweek. 

Light amount of sauce for me, extra sauce for him.  

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The pasta : 1 lb penne rigate, cooked, and covered in sauce from the meatballs. 

The meatballs : 1 lb 93/7 and 1 lb 90/10 ground beef, mixed with 2 eggs, 2 tbsp bread crumbs, garlic powder, 1 tbsp mustard, some basil and oregano.  Shaped into 33 balls. Cooked in 48 oz of Prego Hearty Mushroom tomato sauce for about 1.5 hrs.

The veggies : 3 large crowns of broccoli and 5 small carrots.  Chopped into bite-sized pieces and cooked in a skillet with some olive oil and garlic powder. 

There was enough pasta left for a small meal, and 2 meatballs.  (1 was eaten when I checked to see if they were done...)

Meatballs

Look at that big pot of tastiness.  They simmered for about 2 hours while I did some odds and ends and spent some time with my horse.  Since Thursday is my long day at school, and I needed to go for a run after that, I didn't get to start the meatballs til 6.  By the time they were done, I was pretty hungry!  They certainly did not disappoint...I had to go back for seconds!

For the sauce, I used about 1 jar of Prego HeartSmart Mushroom and about 1/2 jar of Kroger Alfredo.  It filled a 2 qt saucepan about half way.  For the meatballs, I mixed together a little bit of mustard, 1 egg, some breadcrumbs, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, and turmeric.  I used 1 lb 93% lean ground beef.  

I let the sauce heat up while I was mixing and rolling the meatballs.  Then I dropped the meatballs in the sauce.  When it started bubbling, I lowered the heat and propped a lid on top to contain the splashing.  

Simmer for about 2 hours and then eat up!

Tonight's dinner was rigatoni, meatballs, and a glass of merlot.

A wonderful trio.