Set Yourself Up For Success: 20+ Ways to Meal Prep
:extract_cover():upscale()/2016/03/25/579/n/1922729/edc61ef6_edit_img_cover_file_40652500_1458723600_5-salads.jpg)
Sunday is definitely not a day of rest in my house. It's the day I plan out meals for the week, hit the grocery store, and prep food ahead of time. It takes probably three hours or more, but it totally sets me up to have a healthy and stress-free week. Here are some ideas broken down by meal. If this sounds overwhelming, even just picking a few to do will make a huge difference.
Breakfast:
- Cook up plain steel cut oatmeal in the slow cooker that you can flavor as you please. Or go for this pumpkin pie oatmeal or a big batch of carrot cake oatmeal. Not a fan of oats? Go for this slow-cooker apple pie quinoa.
- Make a week's worth of smoothie freezer packs.
- Prep a week's worth of overnight oats. Here are some creative flavor combos like chocolate coconut almond overnight oats.
- Make a bake-ahead breakfast you can warm up each morning.
- Bake up some grab-and-go oatmeal breakfast bars.
- Mix up some healthy pancake mix.
Snacks:
- Make a big batch of these chocolate peanut butter protein balls you can keep in the fridge for snack time. If you're not into chocolate, try these three-ingredient vegan protein balls.
- Roast chickpeas for a sweet snack.
- Cut up fruits like melon, pineapple, mango, and strawberries, so you can grab some easily when sweet cravings strike.
- Make a week's worth of hummus and carrot sticks in mason jars.
- Freeze up a sweet snack you can enjoy all week like these yogurt-covered frozen grapes, these yogurt-covered banana pops, or these smoothie popsicles.
- Bake up some fruity snacks like these banana chips, chewy dried mango, or dried cantaloupe.
- How about some DIY energy bars like these homemade Larabars or these chocolate almond protein bars?
Lunch:
- Make five mason jar salads that will stay fresh all week.
- Make a big batch of soup you can enjoy all week.
- Boil eggs to slice into your salads.
- Marinate or bake tofu for salads.
Dinner:
- Cook up and freeze whole grains.
- Chop veggies like peppers, sweet potato, onion, and cauliflower to roast or to use in recipes later in the week.
- Make big bowl of salad so you can grab small portions each night.
- Use your slow cooker to make a batch of beans.
- Use ice cube trays to freeze greens or pureed beans to add to soups, sauces, or smoothies.