For those lovers of food looking for a balanced lifestyle through healthy and easy recipes
Can’t wait to have you all involved!
March madness meal prep edition… Let’s get it!
I’m excited to announce a fun new project I’m working on that combines two of my favorite things: meal prepping and the idea of competitive sports. Sure, you may not be *playing* a sport during this challenge, but I’m taking a bit of the structure from one of my favorite athletic events (March Madness) and putting my own spin on it. Interested? Here’s how it works:
The fix to all my curry cravings
I’m assuming it’s the colder temperatures and the desire to feel grounded, but lately I have been craving all things curry. I’m not talking a once and awhile type thing. It’s been almost a daily calling for the past few weeks; a craving that I am on a constant search to fulfill. With the constant dreams of a delicious curry flavored stew, I figured I am probably not alone and needed to create something for all of us to get our fix in. This delicious, vegetarian (gasp), vegetable chickpea curry is truly one of the easier meals on here to prep and reheat for lunches or dinners during the workweek. Not only does it take minimal work, but I’m a believer that these types of dishes are actually better when eaten as leftovers. Enjoy!
Meal Plans, Recipes, and Grocery Lists to Kick off 2019 on the Right Foot (in the Kitchen)
Intimidated by New Year’s resolutions? Same! I’m here to help you with my January Meal Prep E-Book
2019 is just around the corner, and you know what that means… the “New Year New You” slogan being thrown in your face every direction you look. What is up with America’s obsession of shedding our skin to reveal and find a whole new version of ourselves each turn of the calendar year? Sure, there are always things we can improve on, and goals are great and all, but what if I like the me I already am? Personally, I feel this slogan not only makes us feel “less than” in a way that we need to totally reinvent ourselves, but it can also be incredibly overwhelming. Resolutions and goals can be intimidating because there are so many directions you can take them in and such an endless amount of traits we can always improve on. Instead of trying to pile on as much change as possible, leading to more stress than you already may be feeling, lets focus on the one thing that I believe makes the largest impact on your overall health: cooking.
That is why I am flipping the slogan on its head to “New Year, Same You”, with the goal of improving your confidence in one major area: the kitchen.
Sad desk lunch: that depressing meal that you either slaved over, remembered to pack, and brought to work but has 0 flavor, or that $15 salad from the deli around the corner that lacks fresh ingredients but somehow got more and more expensive with every shred of carrot added to it. Either way, it is something you’re consuming while still at your desk, typing with one hand, forking food into your mouth with the other, realizing that this is not what meal time should be like. Lunch should be something you look forward to. It should be a mini escape from your work day, an oasis of flavor and delicious ingredients, and give you energy for the rest of your day ahead. We’ve all had sad desk lunches, but I am here to help make sure we put an end to this. As requested by many of you, I’ve rounded up some of my all time favorite lunches to meal prep. My go-to staples for a BYO lunch to bring excitement back to this meal!
The Classic BYO Lunch Staple
Whenever I hear “sad desk lunch” my mind immediately goes to salads. For most people, they’re just not exciting. Listen, I get it. Salads aren’t everyone’s favorite thing nor something most people look forward to. But, this is a salad that almost everyone enjoys (unless you’re like my mom and hate Feta… in that case, sorry!) and won’t leave you with that post lunch at your desk depression of missing the outside world and a real meal. An easy staple to batch-cook on a Sunday to pack for your week ahead all with minimal ingredients & time spent in the kitchen. A win-win!
The rib-warming deliciously healthy dinner
I recently was on a walk with my friend catching up on life and discussing potential new recipe ideas when she turned to me out of the blue and said, “I’ve been dying for a simple meatloaf recipe.” Although it was something I never really had considered creating, nor something I grew up eating, I couldn’t get the idea out of my mind for the rest of the day. When deciding what to cook for dinner it became a very easy decision: meatloaf, duh. I accepted the challenge (that my friend was unaware she was putting on me) and questioned why the heck I had never made meatloaf before. This insanely easy recipe will definitely be a staple for every single cold and cozy night this year.
The Essence of Fall in a Bowl
Want to know what it tastes like to eat the entire essence of Fall in a bowl for breakfast? I GOT YOU! I promise, this bowl embodies alllll the best parts of fall. Between the cinnamon and nutmeg warming spices and the flavorful apples (if you don’t go apple picking, is it even Fall?), you will not only devour this bowl in seconds, but also feel like you’re ready to take on every changing leaf and pumpkin patch in your future. The apple butter may seem daunting at first, but it is quite possibly the easiest thing I’ve ever made in this kitchen! If you do not have an instant pot, you can do the same method on a crock pot but cook on low for ~3 hours, or on the stove top in a covered pot on simmer for ~20 minutes (you will just have to mash the apples more than the other two methods).
A Simple 25 Minute Dinner
The other Sunday, after a weekend of traveling and having zero interest in going to a grocery store, I caved and ordered groceries online to our apartment for us to use that upcoming week. When I got home late that night I was excited to see the groceries hanging on our door until I realized that they were in fact not my order but, instead, someone else’s entirely. Since it was too late for the delivery system to do anything, I emptied the bags into our fridge and took note of what we were working with.
Trader Joe’s. Ahhhh the Mecca of all things affordable groceries. There is something about TJs that makes it impossible for me to leave with just one bag of goods. I constantly go in with a very short list of necessities and end up leaving the store with 3 full bags, a loaded backpack, and the curiosity of how the heck I am going to get home (considering I walk about 15 blocks and 3 avenues to get there). New York City problems – am I right?
I was recently hosting a cooking class demoing some dinner prep and explaining that all of the groceries for that night’s meal were from Trader Joe’s when one of the guests proclaimed that she feels lost in TJ’s and never knows what to buy. Because of that, she suggested I create some type of guide to make it easier for people to attack the store. I also later learned that another one of my friends has never successfully purchased something at Trader Joe’s because every time she enters the store she feels too overwhelmed. Once I heard that, I knew it was time to get working on this guide.
No longer will you leave TJs with a spinning head wondering what the heck you just bought to fill 5 grocery bags. Instead, you will go in prepared and come out on top with a bountiful amount of healthy and delicious ingredients along with a (semi) full wallet. It is a great feeling to know you are bettering yourself by what you put in your body all the while saving money. This guide includes my top 11 tips, what aisles to spend majority of your time in, and some of my favorite products.
At that same cooking class, another guest proclaimed how she was struggling with meal prepping because she was cooking for one. Since I have now heard this from plenty of people, and because I am determined in making meal prepping approachable and achievable, I figured what better place to cook for one with the goal of saving money than Trader Joe’s! In this four day meal plan for one you will find a meal schedule, a master grocery list (of all Trader Joe’s items), and corresponding recipes. The best part about it all? The total bill comes out to just $6 a meal. Yes, you read that right. Quit your matcha addiction and you’ll be fed for the week!
Your guide to tackling a gluten free lifestyle!
Everyone loves bread; pizza is notoriously one of the tastiest foods out there. However, some of us, unfortunately, have celiac disease, a gluten intolerance, or have been tasked with an elimination diet. Cutting out gluten can at first be pretty depressing. How the hell am I going to attack and eliminate this beast that is such a staple in the American diet!? Fortunately, as this “lifestyle” has become more prevalent, there are a ton of great options out there in both restaurant and grocery stores. Also, that is why I am here to help; providing you with a 5-day plan of gluten free meals with corresponding recipes and a master grocery list.
