Meal Prep Day - Stuffed Peppers over Sauteed Red Cabbage, Shredded Dijon Chicken with Brown Rice, Baked Cod, Broccoli and Red Potatos

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged.  The last six month have been a roller coaster of emotions, pains, attempts, failures and basic down right depression.  But when all else fails?  Try Try Again.  I have new goals and a plan to reach them.

Sunday I spent the day on Meal Prep. WHAT?  BUT IT"S SPRINGTIME, BE OUTSIDE, WORK IN THE YARD, GO KAYAKING......NOPE IT'S NE OHIO.  IT SNOWED AND HAILED. So I stayed in and cooked. ALOT

I can't stress enough how important meal prep is. I have proven this over and over again. Without some level of meal prep, it's hard to be successful in staying on track with your nutrition. Meal prep can look like a lot of things.  It could be just grocery shopping so you have the foods you need on hand.  It could include meal planning, where you lay out the plan of what you are eating through out each day for the week.  Or it could be full blown meal prep where you spend a day making each meal you plan to eat for the whole week!  I went full blown meal prep this week!!

My new favorite website.  http://fitmencook.com/   Go check it out!!

I chose to follow his post for Epic $75 Meal Prep 2016  http://fitmencook.com/epic-75-meal-prep-2016/  with some alterations.

I didn't do the breakfast wrap, I don't have time in the morning to put any meal together!  I did make his breakfast casserole, I'll blog about this separately.

Meal 1

Honey Mustard Chicken with Long Grain Brown Rice

Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 3 3/4 cups cooked long grain brown rice
• 1 3/4 lb (794g) chicken breasts
• 1/3 cup Dijon mustard (you can add more according to your preferences)
• 1/2 cup raw honey
• 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce (or Bragg Liquid Aminos)  *totally used Bragg
• 1 tablespoon garlic (paste or minced)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)  *Oh yeah

1. Spray the inside of a slow cooker with olive oil and then toss in the chicken breasts.
2. Then, toss in low sodium soy sauce, honey, Dijon, garlic and a little cayenne for some heat.
3. Stir it up and then add the chicken breasts.
4. Add the top to the slow cooker, then cook on high for 3 or 4 hours.
5. Add brown rice & water to a rice cooker (or a small pot) and let it cook for about 25 minutes.
6. When the chicken breasts have nearly finished cooking (about 1 hour left of cooking), remove the chicken breasts from the slow cooker, place them in a bowl, and pull them apart using forks. Once you have shredded the chicken, place the chicken back into the slow cooker, mix it in with the sauce and continue cooking for the remainder of the time.
7. Once the chicken has finished cooking, build your meal. Add 3/4-cup brown rice to a meal prep container and top with shredded chicken.

I followed this one pretty much as written!   If you are not a fan of the taste of leftover chicken, this dish is for you.  Be sure to add the sauce to the chicken in each container.  Makes it so yummy!!

 Approximate macros for 1 of 5 servings: 286 calories, 37g protein, 24g carbs, 2g fat, 1g fiber, 17g sugar

 Meal 2

Spicy Cod, Roasted Potatoes & Broccoli

 Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 2lb (907g) wild-caught cod
•  1.8lb (816g) broccoli crowns
•  1.7lb (771g) red potatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• pinches of sea salt & pepper
• spray olive oil

 Steps:

1. Set oven to 400F.
2. Prep the vegetables by chopping the potatoes and broccoli into chunks.
3. Place the vegetables on a nonstick baking sheet (or parchment paper or aluminum foil) and spray with olive oil. Add a few pinches of sea salt and pepper and mix the veggies together using your hands to ensure each piece is coated.
4. Roast the veggies in the oven for about 25 minutes, until the potatoes have softened and the edges of the broccoli have turned brown.
5. While the veggies are roasting, prepare the cod. Rub the cod with olive oil, smoked paprika, sea salt & pepper(and a pinch of cayenne pepper if you want a little heat). **see below
6. Place the cod on a nonstick baking sheet and bake in the oven for 18 to 20 minutes; ensuring the cod flesh has turned white.
7. Prepare the meal by adding a portion of roasted vegetables to a container and then a few pieces of cod fillet.

** I changed it up a bit with the seasonings, so use what you like.  Just watch the salt.  Some pre-mixed seasonings for fish have a lot of sodium in them.  I also am not shy with cayenne pepper. I really like how well COD holds up when reheated. 

Approximate macros for 1 of 5 servings:  300 calories, 32g protein, 32g carbs, 4g fat, 4g fiber, 3g sugar

 Meal 3

 

Bison-stuffed Poblano Peppers with Sautéed Purple Cabbage

 Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 24oz (680g) lean ground bison (store didn't have this so I used a mixture of turkey and sirlon. I would not do this again, the meat turned out way to dry)
• 5 to 6 poblano peppers (store didn't have these either, so I used green peppers, which ended up to big for a serving and contributed to the dryness)
• 1 1/4 cup reduced fat mozzarella - didn't use
• 3/4 cup no salt added black beans
• 3/4 cup golden corn
• 1/2 cup no salt tomato sauce
• 1/3 cup chipotle peppers in adobo  This added great flavor!
• 1/3 cup chopped green onion
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika (optional)  YEP
• Cabbage
  • ~8 cups shredded purple cabbage
  • 1 tablespoon garlic (paste or minced)
  • sea salt & pepper to taste
  • spray olive oil
  • I threw in one sauteed onion for flavor and a splash of red wine vinegar at the end of cooking.  I was surprised at how much I liked this!!

 Steps:

1. Set oven to 400F.
2. Skim the top off a poblano pepper, carve out the inside using a knife or “grapefruit spoon,” and remove the stem and seeds. Repeat for the remaining peppers.
3. Chop the canned chipotle peppers into small pieces.
4. In a large bowl, mix together bison, black beans, corn, chipotle peppers, tomato sauce, cumin and green onion.
5. Evenly divide and stuff the meat mixture into the poblano peppers.
6. Place the stuffed peppers in a baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.
7. Bake for the peppers for 30 minutes in the oven. Once the peppers have finished baking, remove the foil, and if desired, top each pepper with about 1/4 cup mozzarella, then place the foil back on top and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes to melt the cheese.
8. While the peppers are baking in the oven, prepare the cabbage by chopping it up so it becomes shredded.
9. Set a large nonstick skillet on medium high heat and spray it with olive oil. Once the skillet is hot, toss in the garlic and cabbage. Cook the cabbage until it begins to soften, about 6 minutes. Continually stir and flip the cabbage using a spatula so it does not burn in the skillet. You still want a little bit of crunch in the cabbage so don’t over cook them.
10. Season to taste with sea salt & pepper.
11. Build the meal by adding sauteed cabbage to a meal prep container and then placing a stuffed poblano pepper on top.

 Approximate macros for 1 of 5 meals:

472 calories, 37g protein, 27g carbs, 26g fat, 6g fiber, 6g sugar

I love the message of this website!  fitmencook.com

My message is simple: “Our bodies are built in the kitchen, Sculpted in the gym.”