Meal Prep 3/1/20

Ground Turkey, Risotto, and Broccoli

3 lbs ground turkey ($9.99)

1+ lb arborio rice ($3.00)

2 lbs broccoli ($9.23)

I cooked the turkey in a wok with blueberry barbecue sauce and added some chopped mushrooms at the end.  I made the risotto with chopped onion and chicken broth (64 oz @ $3.98).  I roasted the broccoli at 400 for 30 minutes. 

Makes 12-15 meals, depending on size.  ($2.19-$1.75 per meal)

Meal Prep 4/1/19

Last week's lunches were delicious, but there was something in those brats that tore us up!  I don't know if it was just the fact that they are full of preservatives and we are not used to eating such processed food, or if it was something else, but by Wednesday I was eating around the brats and throwing them out.  I hate wasting food, but my stomach thanked me for not eating them any more.  This is the downside to eating healthy, if you want to call it a downside... The further away I get from processed foods, the harder it is for my stomach to handle them on the rare occasions when I do eat them.

After last week, I felt like we needed something much lighter this week, so I decided to make tuna risotto.  With double the veggies.

Risotto : Chop 1 sweet onion and brown in olive oil in a large pot.  When onion is browned, add minced garlic to taste, and 1 pound of arborio rice. Stir to coat rice with oil, then add enough chicken broth to cover the rice.  Simmer, adding chicken broth as necessary.  If you run out of chicken broth, use water.  I used 32 oz of broth and about 2 cups of water. Chop 8 or 9 mushrooms and add them with the last 1/2 cup or so of water.  Rice is done when it is creamy and not crunchy.

Tuna : Open and drain 3 12oz cans of tuna.  Add to the risotto after it has been removed from the heat and mix well.

Veggies : Chop and roast 2 lbs of Brussels sprouts in the oven around 450 for 10 minutes.  Chop 10-11 medium carrots.  Sauté in a skillet with olive oil and garlic powder to taste.

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 12/10/18

Veggies : Quarter 1.5 lbs brussels sprouts, spread on a baking pan, coat with olive oil and garlic powder, bake for 15 minutes at 400.  Spread 2 lbs green beans on another baking pan, coat with olive oil and garlic powder, bake for 10 minutes at 400, stir, then bake another 7-10 minutes. 

Pork Roast : Cover with garlic powder and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour.

Risotto : Chop 1/3 sweet onion and cook in olive oil until translucent.  Add 1 lb arborio rice and stir to coat in oil, then add 1/2 cup wine.  When the wine is just about cooked off, add enough water to cover the rice.  Add salt, garlic powder or other seasonings to taste.  Simmer and add water as necessary until rice is smooth and creamy.  Add a handful of chopped mushrooms with the last bit of water.

**I only had 1/2 bag of arborio rice, and 1/2 bag of brown rice, so I made two pots of risotto.  Half our lunches have delicious creamy arborio risotto, and the other half have slightly crunchy brown risotto because I can't ever get brown rice to completely lose its crunch...

Meal Prep Monday : 3/5/18

Tuna Risotto, Beans & Beans

The Risotto : 

2.5 c arborio rice

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp bacon grease

3 small cloves garlic

garlic powder( (to taste)

1/2 sweet onion

1/3 bottle of chardonnay

1.5 qt chicken broth (approx.)

2 carrots

3/4 small head of cabbage

1 pacakge mushrooms

2, 12z cans of tuna

Chop the onion and saute in butter and bacon grease.  Add wine and chopped garlic when almost translucent and cook til the wine is gone.  Add rice, stir well, add enough chicken broth to cover.  Cook on low, adding more broth each time it is absorbed.  Grate the carrots and add them when the rice is creamy and fully cooked.  Add some garlic powder if desired. Chop the cabbage and mushrooms, cook them in olive oil, then add to the risotto. Remove from heat and stir well.  Drain the tuna and add it to the risotto.  

The black beans : Put 6 oz black beans into a pot, fill with water to about an inch above the beans, add some salt, cook on low with a lid til soft.  

The green beans : 32 oz green beans, chopped and steamed/sauteed in olive oil with some garlic powder. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Makes approximately 12 lunches. 

10 lunches

leftovers, 2-3 lunches worth

Meal Prep Monday : 3/13-3/17

Lunch This Week

Baked Chicken Thighs

Risotto

Peas

Chicken : I put 4 chicken thighs into an oven dish, sprinkled them with garlic powder, and cooked them at 425 for 50 minutes.

Risotto : I wanted risotto, but didn't have any broth.  I did have the leftover water from cooking black beans though.  Seemed like it would be more flavorful for the rice than plain water, so I used it to make the risotto.  It doesn't look super appealing, but it does taste good.  I sauteed onions in olive oil, then added the rice, then the black bean water a cup at a time.  I added a grated carrot somewhere along the way.  And of course lots of garlic powder.  

Peas : I didn't feel like putting work into cooking a vegetable this week, so I just grabbed a bag of frozen peas out of the freezer. 

Meatless Friday will most likely be pasta with a pouch of salmon.