For this week’s meal prep, rather than doing “lunches” and “dinners,” I just prepped four different dishes that can be eaten as either meal. For breakfast, I portioned out rolled oats with ground flax, chia seeds, and salt that I’ll cook in the microwave with frozen berries Afternoon snack is apples with almond butter.

Monegasque Spinach Soup: chicken broth with spinach, egg, cheese, barley, and (the secret ingredient) nutmeg. I like this soup because it’s a nice break from garlic and onion based meals. This recipe calls for orzo, but barley works better for meal prep because it doesn’t get soggy.

Quiche w/ Salad: I sautéed onions, orange bell pepper, and garlic, and added diced tomatoes, eggs, and low-fat milk. This quiche is a little lighter than most because I skipped the heavy cream and cheese. I served it with a simple salad of red leaf lettuce that I drizzled with a creamy balsamic vinaigrette just before eating.

Butternut Squash Mash w/ Chicken and Asparagus: I started by sautéeing butternut squash cubes with chopped leeks, garlic, and thyme, then I added strong chicken broth and let simmer. When it was done cooking, I mashed the squash with a fork. I marinated the chicken breasts in garlic, thyme, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and then baked in the oven, and I baked the asparagus in the same mixture.
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Dairy-Free Beef & Broccoli Mac & Cheese: this dairy free cheese sauce is made with olive oil, soy milk, flour, garlic, onion, mustard, and nutritional yeast. I used whole wheat rotini pasta, lean ground beef, and steamed broccoli.

This recent meal prep is a bit on the lighter side, but still beautiful and plenty delicious! I was able to throw it together super quick because it required very little cooking. I just had to cook the barley, which I did the day before so it could cool.

Breakfast: Nutty fruit salad! I chopped up some banana, pear, and orange, and added grapes, sliced almonds, chopped walnuts and pecans, lemon juice, and almond extract.

Lunch: Salads! I started with a layer of barley (yes, barley can be used in things other than soups and beer!), then added a layer of arugula and topped with grape tomatoes, sliced cucumber, sliced hard boiled egg, and shredded red but purple cabbage. When it’s time to eat I’ll add a drizzle of Brianna’s poppy seed dressing.

Snack: Roasted red bell pepper hummus with carrot sticks and tiny apples.

Dinner: Ramen! Since these rice ramen noodles take FOREVER to cook in the microwave, I left the veggies raw so they don’t end up overcooked. I used bok choy, mushrooms, green onion, and cilantro, barbecued pork, and two pouches of beef or chicken broth concentrate. I’ll add hot water and microwave for ten minutes when it’s time to eat.