Sunday Prep Series Week Three

Well, this is it, mamas! Jenn is providing us with the last guest post in the series. She’ll show us a lineup of healthy & delicious meals for the week. Remember, we do all the cooking on Sunday (in under 2 hours) and it will provide your family with lunch and dinner through mid-week. For breakfast, try these smoothie packs!

We’d like to extend a great big THANK YOU to Jenn Wolfe for giving us a glimpse into her kitchen the past few Sundays. She’s answered all of our questions and provided inspiration and advice for making wellness a priority for the entire family. 

Of course, we have a few last questions for her. We need every burning question answered! But, don’t worry! If you still have questions for Jenn after the meal prep series is done, her contact info is at the end of this post. 

Now that we’re going to be shopping on our own, can you tell us the best way to navigate the grocery store?

Absolutely! Learning how to work the grocery store to your advantage is key! To get clean, whole foods you will mainly stay around the perimeter of the store. Going up and down aisles leads you to bags and boxes of foods with several ingredients. Many of the ingredients you can’t pronounce or recognize, and guess what? Your body won’t either! 

What’s the best way to turn our favorite recipes into meal plans for the week?

Great question! I think about the foods I love and create meals out of them. For instance, this week’s Pad Thai is a favorite of ours, but with a couple simple switches of ingredients and pasta it can be made much healthier. There are plenty of healthy substitutes. I share these with my clients to allow them to feel they aren’t being deprived while making small daily adjustments to meet their personal wellness goals. Remember to keep it simple, keep variety in your meals week to week, and avoid processed foods. 
 

What tips do you have for getting the family on board with making health a priority?

I’ve always cooked one meal and everyone eats that meal. Thankfully we have no dietary restrictions (other than mine), and my girls and husband eat (and like) everything. If you aren’t as lucky, and you’ve been struggling to find a meal everyone will eat, I think starting out basic is key. Choose a protein everyone likes, choose a vegetable everyone likes, and play around with the starch or complex carb. Then the next week, play around with a different food group while sticking with your safe foods for 2 of the 3 meals. No one will go hungry. Let’s face it, if they are hungry enough- they will eat!
 

Ok, ladies! Let’s get shopping.

Shrimp  Pad Thai


18oz raw shrimp (2 bags if you are feeding 4 people) OR chicken breasts or shrimp isn’t your thing
4oz (56g) flat brown rice noodles
3 tbsp garlic paste
1 red bell pepper
1 cup mushrooms (chopped)
1 cup green onions (chopped)
1.5 cup bean sprouts
Fresh cilantro

Sauce:
1/4 cup rice vinegar (or fish sauce)
1/8 cup coconut aminos (low sodium soy sauce)
1/8 cup red chili pepper sauce
2 tbsp coconut sugar
Juice from 1 lime

  1. Boil brown rice noodles. Drain and set aside. Do not OVERCOOK- they get mushy!
  2. Chop veggies- bell pepper, mushrooms, green onions, limes, cilantro.
  3. Peel and devein shrimp OR slice chicken breast into small pieces.
  4. In a bowl, mix rice vinegar or fish sauce, coconut sugar, red chili pepper sauce, & fresh lime juice.
  5. Spray a nonstick skillet with coconut oil, then add garlic paste.
  6. Toss in Shrimp OR chicken breast pieces and cook.
  7. Finally, add noodles, then fresh veggies and the sauce.

Note: This is Sunday dinner for us because we’re using shrimp. If you’re using chicken, it will last longer in the fridge.

 

Stuffed Chicken with Spinach and Feta


1  tablespoon olive oil, divided
1  medium onion, chopped
10 oz spinach, fresh
1  teaspoon zest of lemon
1⁄4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1  teaspoon table salt, divided
1⁄2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1  lb boneless skinless chicken breast

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large nonstick skillet heat 1 teaspoon oil and saute onion until golden, about 5 minutes.
  3. Wilt spinach (steam spinach or heat damp spinach over medium heat in nonstick pan); stir in zest, feta, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, set aside.
  4. Slice chicken breast in half lengthwise and place even amount of spinach mixture on each breast.
  5. Roll up and secure with toothpicks.
  6. Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper.
  7. In same skillet, heat remaining oil over medium-high heat.
  8. Cook chicken, turning occasionally, until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes.
  9. Remove toothpicks.
  10. Cook 30 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165F.

Cucumber Quinoa Salad


1 English cucumber, diced
2 cups chilled, cooked quinoa (Cook the night before to save time on Sunday)
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup julienned or roughly-chopped fresh basil leaves
1 batch Lemony Italian vinaigrette (see below)*

*You can also use Italian dressing or Braggs Vinaigrette instead of making your own 

Lemon Italian Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning, homemade or store-bought
pinch of salt and black pepper

Turkey Taco stuffed sweet potatoes

2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tsp olive oil

1 ¼ cup canned crushed tomatoes
¼ cup grated pepper Jack cheese
2 tbsp minced flat-leaf parsley

1 Package of Mrs. Dash Taco Seasoning OR these ingredients:
1 ¼ tsp ground cumin, divided
¼ + ⅛ tsp salt
¼ + ⅛ tsp ground pepper
¾ lb. lean ground turkey
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp paprika

  1. Pierce sweet potatoes all over using a fork.
  2. Cook in the microwave on HIGH until tender when pierced with a fork, 4 to 5 minutes per side.
  3. Let potatoes rest until cool enough to handle.
  4. Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise. Carefully scoop the flesh out of the potatoes and place in a medium-sized bowl. Reserve the skins.
  5. With back of a fork, mash potato flesh until most lumps are gone. Stir in olive oil, ½ teaspoon cumin, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
  6. Divide mashed sweet potato evenly between the potato skins. Place on baking sheet.
  7. While the potatoes are cooking, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly coat with cooking spray.
  8. Add ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through.
  9. Stir in garlic, chili powder, remaining ¾ teaspoon cumin, oregano, paprika, and remaining ⅛ teaspoon salt and pepper OR 1 package Mrs. Dash Taco Seasoning.
  10. Cook for 1 minute. Stir in crushed tomatoes.
  11. Spoon the turkey mixture into each sweet potato.
  12. Heat Potatoes in oven or Microwave when you are ready to eat.
  13. Top with grated cheese if desired.

Chicken, Beans and Cauliflower

1 lb chicken breast

4 garlic cloves

2 green bell peppers

3 tbsp green onions

1 Large Onion

2 tbsp Mina Harissa OR red chili pepper, red bell pepper, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, vinegar & salt

1 15oz can Tomato Sauce

Salt and Pepper

EVOO

2lbs or cauliflower OR buy already RICED in the frozen sections of grocery store

2 14oz cans of low sodium black beans

  1. If you’re making your own RICED cauliflower you will need a food processor. Add cauliflower florets in batches and process until “rice” forms. If you process too much it will turn to mush. Transfer to a bowl.
  2. Preheat a large and deep non-stick skillet on medium heat and add EVOO. Add cauliflower rice and cook for 3-4 mins. (If you bought frozen, skip step 1 and cook now.) It should be golden brown. Season with salt and pepper and add to bowl.
  3. Add more EVOO to skillet and add onion, garlic and green bell peppers. Cook for 7 minutes.
  4. Add Chicken and cook for 5 more minutes.
  5. Add tomato sauce, black beans, and Mina Harissa. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer for 10 mins.
  6. Remove from Heat. Add rice and sprinkle green onions on top.
  7. Serve on its own or with extra brown rice for those hungry people In your family!

* Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Hard Boiled Eggs

  1. Put as many eggs as you can eat in 4 days in a pot. They have to be covered in water.
  2. Bring to a boil.
  3. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
  4. Pour cold water over and when you can handle peel and store in zip lock baggies. This makes it easy to grab and go! 

More photos of the finished product!

Here’s how to contact Jenn for guidance on health and wellness, information on AdvoCare and the 24 Day Challenge:

Website: www.wellnesswithwolfe.com

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: Jenn Wolfe /jennifer.wolfe.77715

Instagram: @wolfe.jenn

Do you know of a mom with something to share in a guest post or series of guest posts? Contact us!

Sunday Prep Series Week 2

Written by Glens Falls Mom, featuring Jenn Wolfe

Welcome back to our Sunday Prep Series! If you’re just tuning in for the first time, take a look back at last week’s post for some introductions and the tips & tricks to help get started with Sunday meal prep. We’re prepping breakfast, lunches, and dinners in under 2 hours. Yes. Seriously. 2 hours. (I tried it myself, and every last dish was clean by the 2 hour mark. I even had to stop halfway through to feed my 5 month old!)

Thanks to the fabulous Jenn Wolfe for letting us have a peek into her kitchen again this Sunday! Jenn is a local mom, teacher, and business owner who makes health and wellness a priority in her house every day. She loves to post ideas for meal prep, so we asked her to share, and she agreed! 

We’re starting off this week’s posts with a few more questions for Jenn. 

Thank you for joining us for the second post in our Sunday Prep Series! Let’s get into some of the details of prep day. Can you tell us about the kitchen equipment we might want to keep on hand for Sunday Prep?

This Sunday’s food prep will include the use of a crock pot, baking sheets, muffin tins, large mixing bowls, cutting boards and knives. Most of these items are staples in anyone’s kitchen. If you don’t have a crock pot, I seriously encourage you to get one! 

Tell us about freezing on Wednesdays. Why Wednesday? What’s the process like?

Assessing your leftover foods is important to do on Wednesdays because you shouldn’t let cooked food last more than 3-4 days. Luckily in my house between my kids and my husband we rarely have to freeze food, but when we do I use freezer safe containers that stack easily.

How do you recommend we organize our Sunday Prep recipe ideas? Tell us more about how you pick your recipes and how you mix it up from time to time.

I wish I could say I was super organized! The truth is I often shop first, and then figure out what I am going to do either while I’m walking around looking at ingredients and what looks good (I avoid shopping when I’m hungry), or when I get home. I try to avoid boredom with food. Last week was full of chicken recipes, and although they were different, I knew I wanted more variety this week. I made the meatloaf cups a few weeks ago, and my husband and kids LOVED them, so I knew that would be a good fit. The crock pot recipe is always a crowd pleaser. To better answer your question, I mix and match protein (chicken, ground turkey, pot roast, steak), spices, and pair them with a different grain or starch each week.

One last question…we’ll make it a fun one! What’s your favorite local activity to do when you’re done with meal prep on Sunday?

I’m a HUGE fan of being outside. If I’m not coaching my girls sports teams, I love to drag them up mountains. We call it “Girls Day”. One of our favorites is Sleeping Beauty. We hike to the top and then I reward them for hiking by taking them down to Shelving Rock waterfall. We spend the afternoon splashing away and enjoy a picnic lunch. We’ve made some great memories out in nature!

We know what you’re really here for…the recipes! Here’s what you’ll need from the market this week:

 

Remember our tip…try to shop on a day other than Sunday to avoid burnout. You don’t want to spend the entire day shopping and cooking, unless you like that sort of thing! 

Groceries

Other general cooking tips to keep in mind:

Focus on the meal you struggle with most. If you rush to get breakfast in, make some easy eggs cups, make ahead breakfast sandwiches, etc. If you struggle with lunch/dinner, prep those items you need most.

Make a plan, stick to your grocery list. This is time and money saving! I’ve found Hannaford To Go to be extremely helpful. Don’t try to shop and prep in one day, that can be overwhelming.

Keep it simple! Don’t attempt several new recipes. It will monopolize your time and you will never want to do it again. Think/shop/cook in food groups and then mix and match.

Mix things up. You don’t want to be bored. Food should be fun!

Have plenty of storage containers and zip lock baggies handy.

Here’s how Jenn says a typical Sunday should go:

A typical Sunday prep takes me about 2 hours start to finish, including clean up. I make and focus on lunches and dinners.

I also make hard boiled eggs and I bag nuts for when we are on the go or as salad toppers.

I plan for 3-4 days. If I get to Wednesday and I find I have a lot of leftovers, I will freeze and use later.

Food prep shouldn’t be overwhelming, start small, and keep it simple.

Maximize your time in the kitchen by:

Chopping veggies while protein is cooking. You can also chop them the night before and store in a zip lock bag.
 
Lay out all ingredients on your kitchen table or counter so you save less trips to the pantry or fridge.

Clean as you go. I always make sure my dishwasher is empty and ready to be loaded. It’s much less overwhelming when you finish and don’t have a sink full of dishes!
 

Dinner Prep

Make a few dinners ahead on Sunday, and you’ll have a quick, ready-to-go dinner for the weeknights!

Turkey Meatloaf Cups

Mix ground turkey (1-2 packages) in a large bowl with…
1 egg
¾ cup milk
1 cup flour
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
Chopped onions
Chopped peppers (Use the tops of the pepper you’re slicing for the cups- less waste)
 
Slice peppers into thick rings
Lay on baking sheet (Use parchment paper for easier clean up!)
Fill cups with meat loaf mixture
If you have left over meat loaf mixture- freeze or put into a muffin tin and bake
Add ketchup and sriracha to the tops of each cup (If you like it spicier…add sriracha to mixture too)
Bake at 350 for 30-40 mins or until ground turkey is done
Cooking time will vary depending on thickness of the cups
 
Turkey Meatloaf Cups
 

Slow Cooker Chicken Burrito Bowls

Combine chicken thighs, 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, ½ cup chicken stock, chili powder and cumin
Make sure Chicken is covered
Add more stock if needed
Cover with lid; cook on high for 3-4 hours
Add 1 cup of rice, black beans, chopped onions and remaining chicken broth
Replace lid and continue cooking on low for another 3-4 hours
Check rice in the last hour of cooking, stirring occasionally 
(6-8 hours total cooking time)
 
Notes:
If it’s too dry, add more chicken broth
If rice is cooked but there’s too much liquid, take lid off and let cook on high to evaporate liquid
You can also cook rice separately and add the black beans/onions in the last 30 minutes of cooking time
Top with salsa or other desired toppings!
 
 

Sausage, Peppers, Onions Over Rice

Cook turkey sausage in a large saute pan
While turkey cooks, slice peppers and onions
Remove sausage when cooked 
Add peppers and onions to the pan, using remnants of sausage for extra flavor
When peppers are cooked, chop and store with peppers and onions
(Total cook time 25 minutes)
 
Notes:
We will eat over brown rice during the week
Batch cook the rice so it is already cooked for use in other recipes
 
 
 

Lunch Prep

Chicken & Salad

Chicken this week will be cooked three ways to serve over salads. Use mushrooms and cucumbers in salad along with any other salad toppings you like! To prepare the 3 types of chicken, use aluminum foil in the pan to separate. On baking sheet, lay down parchment paper and roll aluminum foil to create “walls” between each flavor of chicken.

  1. Sriracha/Lime Chicken
  2. Lemon/Garlic Chicken
  3. Buffalo Chicken

Evenly coat in sauce and place lemon or lime slices on chicken. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Place on salads when cooled.

Breakfast

Egg White Muffins

Grease muffin tin with olive oil or coconut oil
Pour in egg whites
Bake at 350 for 20 mins or until fully cooked
*Add turkey sausage, spinach, tomatoes, or whatever you like to jazz these up!
 
 

Here’s how to contact Jenn for guidance on health and wellness, information on AdvoCare and the 24 Day Challenge:

Website: www.wellnesswithwolfe.com

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: Jenn Wolfe /jennifer.wolfe.77715

Instagram: @wolfe.jenn

A special thank you to Jenn for helping us with this series! Keep following along for the next post in our Sunday Prep Series.