Meal Prep Diary: Week 2 Turkey Meatball Soup, BBQ Chicken, Salmon & MORE!

It is Sunday so that means one thing; my house turns into meal prep central! We had a very busy weekend so this week’s shopping and prep was done in the same day. Normally I like to go to the grocery store on Saturday so I have a bit more time to walk around and get what I need, but this morning we ran out of milk and that turned into me rushing to get the week’s worth of groceries in under a half hour. As always my biggest tip when grocery shopping is to work the outside perimeter FIRST, then go to the aisles. This fills up your cart with fresh foods first and leaves very little room for boxed, frozen and canned items. If you do the perimeter you hit the vegetables and fruits, meats and dairy.

The weather is now very cold around New Jersey so soup will start to become more and more a part of my meal prep. If done right it can serve as a meal replacement (as long as you have some protein/meat in the soup) and it makes a few days worth with one large pot. I also love soup and making my own means I control how much sodium is used or not used as well as oils and other hidden unhealthy items that you get when you order soup at chain restaurants or diners.

This week I also wanted to change up how I prepare basic grilled chicken so I purchased a great bbq sauce to make some pulled BBQ chicken which is a great change up from traditional grilled chicken. I also love using bbq because when you reheat the chicken it will have a great flavor, unlike plain grilled chicken which can bland when reheated.

As for greens I made some delicious brussel sprouts which I baked in the oven with some extra virgin olive oil and Mrs. Dash spices. I also made some brocolli rabe which can be a bit challenging since it can come out bitter. I boil it first in salted water, then I drain and rinse with ice cold water. After that I put it in a skillet to sautee with garlic and olive oil. I also picked up a bunch of asparagus which is a staple in my meal preps.

I always have ingredients on hand to make healthy salads to go with any meal. I usually use some sliced black olives, cucumbers, diced peppers, lettuce, carrots, celery and for dressing I just use a few capfuls of apple cider vinegar and some Mrs. Dash Italian seasoning. Skip the high calorie dressings and go with this option; plus apple cider vinegar has countless health benefits too.

I also love making salmon during the week so I usually get 2 pounds of atlantic salmon filet to make and then I also purchased some salmon stuffed with crab meat – my fiance loves that and it is easy to prepare by baking in the oven.

For healthy carbs I loaded up on some organic instant oatmeal packets, some quinoa and then I baked a few sweet potatoes. I also love to dash some cinnamon on top of the sweet potatoes as well before I eat them. I also load up on Greek non fat plain yogurts. I don’t mind going with generic stop name brand since they are usually never more than $1, and we eat so many a week I have to be a bit more conscious of spending on those. We also always load up on salt free cottage cheese as well for extra protein. I also bought some flavored flax seed which is like a smoothie texture and taste which is great to add to yogurt or to protein shakes as well for healthy fats.

Lastly I also picked up some protein bars for snacks and this week got a box of the Oh Yeah Nutrition Victory bars which are high in protein and fiber. 21 grams of protein and 18 grams of fiber per bar and they are 200 calories and use all natural sweeteners too. These come in my bag with me in case I need to snack on something between meals.

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