Every Saturday I make a huge grocery haul and get my essentials for the week. I also plan out a few different recipes/meals to make for lunches and dinners and of course I make my usual breakfast items. This week was no exception!
Today I planned out my meals and they include: lentil soup, beef stew, oven baked non-CAFO chicken wings, protein waffles, oatmeal, and wild salmon! Typically we have 1-2 servings of salmon weekly at dinnertime – I will make some kind of veggie to go with it and maybe sweet potatoes or rice (depends on if we had rice for lunch or not, and also how hard we worked out that day). The chicken wings were purchased from Whole Foods however you don’t necessarily have to shop at Whole Foods. My main rule with meat is to look for something that was not factory farmed…so you don’t want to jump for the cheapest meat. I look for meat that says humanely raised, if possible, and also words like “no antibiotics or hormones used” or “free range” or “pasture raised”. Whole Foods meat is NOT that expensive like some people want to claim. For example, their animal welfare rated chicken breasts are 4.49/lb and if you compare to Publix chicken breasts – which I believe the Greenwise brand is 4.99/lb. The wings from Whole Foods were on sale for 3.99/lb and with our Prime membership we get 10% discount on top of already sale-priced items! Not bad prices at all.
For the lentil soup I simply google “lentil soup” and find some ideas…and I won’t follow them exactly but for the most part it will taste about the same. Lentils are very cheap, filling, delicious and nutritious and excellent for those on a budget. You can really get creative with the soup and add whatever veggie you would like! For this week I found a good recipe by Alton Brown on Food Network
I plan to also bake a massive batch of chicken breasts (3-4 lbs) like I always do and we will eat the chicken along with the lentil soup for lunches. I will likely roast a large tray of veggies as well to nibble on. For the chicken breasts – I simply season with a little olive oil, pink salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, chili powder and garlic powder. My fav condiments are German mustard or dijon mustard for the chicken!
For the beef stew – we simply googled “beef stew” and I also typed in “paleo” and we (Brian and I) picked up some Grassfed stew meat, carrots, celery, beef broth (organic), organic red potatoes, mushrooms, onion and garlic! We don’t follow recipes exactly, but we do use them as a guide but tailor to our personal preferences. We plan to make this TONIGHT (Sunday) which will last us at least two or three nights of dinners (probably closer to 3). For this meat, we do choose to splurge since we do not eat red meat often at all. We chose step 4 pasture-raised beef at 9.99/lb (compared to step 1 grain-fed meat at 4.99/lb)
Breakfast is the same….I like my routine so I typically do my protein waffles and/or baked oatmeal with berries of some sort. I picked up some delicious looking Siggi’s yogurt with no sugar added as well to top on the oatmeal!
I shop on Saturday so that Sunday is simply my cooking day (after a good workout that morning, usually legs). Meal prep does not have to be difficult…it just takes a little bit of brainstorming and thought, and then a couple of hours prepping all of the food. Stick to the basics if that’s easier – but also consider making a large pot of soup or stew as this tends to go further!
EXAMPLE GROCERY LIST
- Bananas
- lemons, limes
- Fresh or frozen Broccoli
- Fresh Brussels sprouts
- Bell peppers (green if not organic..if red, try to buy organic)
- Onions
- Jalapeno pepper
- Spaghetti squash
- Apples (preferably organic)
- Spinach (try to buy organic if possible)
- Whole carrots/colorful carrots
- Mixed greens/arugula
- Shredded cabbage mix (for salads)
- Mushrooms
- Sweet potatoes
- Old fashioned oats / quick cooking oats (non-GMO preferred/organic)
- Chia seeds
- Unsweetened canned coconut milk or unsweetened almond milk
- Dry green lentils
- Frozen berries of choice
- Eggs
- Chicken
- Frozen salmon, wild if possible
- Ground turkey or chicken
- Ground beef
- Applegate brand smoked turkey or chicken
- Natural peanut butter
- Almond butter
- Kerrygold butter
- Olive oil
- Protein powder
- Chomp sticks (beef or turkey or both)
- Bragg’s Apple cider vinegar
- Dijon mustard
- Unsweetened fruit preserve (St Dalfour brand is good option; for salad dressings)
- Unsweetened (preferably organic) jarred pizza sauce
- Brown rice/wild rice/quinoa – pick one
CLEAR OUT THE KITCHEN….TOSS THE FOLLOWING. NOT EXTENSIVE LIST:
- Refined sugar (instead, choose pure 100% maple syrup or coconut palm sugar)
- Brown sugar
- Refined flours/white flour/wheat flour (instead choose coconut flour, almond meal/flour, gluten free flour)
- Canola oil/margarine/vegetable oils (instead choose Kerrygold Grassfed Butter or Ghee or olive oils/avocado oil/coconut oil)
- Cooking sprays with “propellant” (they make brands without this added. Read labels)
- Packaged/processed cookies/cakes/candy
- Microwaveable meals with artificial ingredients/preservatives
- Condiments/jarred items with corn syrup or sodium benzoate
- Cereals with added sugars and artificial colors/flavors
- Yogurt with added sugar/artificial colors/flavors
- Conventional milk/dairy
- Expired spices (yes, these expire! Do a pantry/spice cabinet clean out!)
- Conventional salt – switch to Pink Himalayan! I order 2lb bag for $9 on Amazon
Happy Shopping!
Kelly Hayman Fitness 