5 Days Meal Preparation - Thinking Ahead!

Too busy during the week to prepare the perfect meals? Here is a easy way to do it! :)

How to organize your meals for 5 working days :

1. Think about what you want to eat depending on the time of the day;

2. Organize your shopping list;

3. Do shopping;

Note: This should be happening in the weekend, for you to be prepared for the next week.

4. Clean and prepare everything for cooking;

5. Cook the meals.

First of all, you have to think about what you want to eat or drink in the morning. Everybody knows that is very hard to wake up early and make something for breakfast right away in order to arrive on time at work. That being said, we can make a milkshake to drink right away and eat something light, like muffins that work great with it or with tea and coffee.

Banana Milkshake

This banana milkshake is as easy as 1-2-3. Feel free to add any extra flare or ingredients if you’d like.

Is simple and packed with protein, fiber, and potassium. Blend it up this week for a healthy banana smoothie breakfast!

Ingredients:

- 2 cups frozen sliced bananas

- 1 cup sweetened almond milk

- 1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation:

Take 2-3 bananas and put them in the blender with the almond milk, Greek yogurt and add a bit of vanilla extract. Blend all of the ingredients well and you are good to go. Keep in mind that you can add whatever you like for topping.

Strawberry Smoothie

This simple Strawberry milkshake is a refreshing reminder that basic can be beautiful. It’s healthy, cool, and creamy, offers protein and nutrients, and it’s friendly, fruity flavor and pretty pink color makes it widely appealing, whether you are blending it up for kids or for yourself.

Ingredients:

- 1 cup whole frozen strawberries

- 2 teaspoons honey

- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

- 3/4 cup water

Put them all in a powerful blender and you are ready to really start your morning!

Chocolate muffins

This classic chocolate muffin recipe will make perfectly soft and rich in chocolate flavour muffins every time, so you can rest assured they will be a success with your friends and family.

Ingredients:

- 3/4 cups self raising flour

- 1/3 cup backing cocoa

- 1/2 cup caster sugar

- 125g butter 2 eggs

- 185ml light & creamy evaporated milk

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-1 cup dark chocolate bits

Preparation:

Step 1

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line twelve 1/3-cup capacity muffin pans with large paper cases. Sift flour and cocoa into a bowl. Add sugar and stir until well combined. Whisk butter, eggs, evaporated milk and vanilla in a large jug.

Step 2

Add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir until just combined. Gently fold through chocolate bits. Spoon the mixture evenly into prepared paper cases. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve lightly dusted with cocoa and enjoy yourself!

Morning coffee, the best coffee!

In addition, you can make yourself a delicious cup of coffee. If you`re looking for something sweet and light, it doesn`t get any more basic than this. Honey and cinnamon are two of the least processed substances you can find, and you can use organic milk. Coconut milk tends to be sweetest, and almond milk adds a nutty flavor that blends well with other ingredients.

For the following afternoons we can prepare something that is healthy and and the same time satiable and light, like a soup with vegetables or a potato salad. Because this soup recipe is flexible, at your own choice you can add grilled chicken or sour cream. After this, you can make yourself a good cup of tea to relax and enjoy yourself for the rest of the day.

Potato Salad

Seasoned roasted sweet potatoes, crunchy vegetables and a simple three ingredient dressing bring it all together in perfect harmony.

Ingredients:

- 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes peels cut in bite size chunks

- 4 tablespoons olive oil

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

- 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

- 1 small onion chopped

- 11/2 cups corn 2 stalks celery chopped

- 1 red bell pepper diced small

- 3 scallions chopped

Dressing:

Ingredients:

- 1/3 cup mayonnaise

- 1/3 cup salsa

- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. Combine sweet potatoes, 3 tablespoons olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and crushed red pepper (if desired) in a large Ziploc style bag and shake to coat.

3. Place on parchment covered baking and roast until fork tender; 30-35 minutes. Cool completely.

4. In small bowl whisk together mayonnaise, salsa and lime juice.

5. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat and swirl to coat pan.

6. Add chopped onion and corn to the hot skillet; flip every 2-3 minutes with a spatula. Cook 7-10 minutes or until the corn is light golden brown. Cool it down.

7. In a large bowl combine sweet potatoes, corn and onions, celery, red bell peppers, and scallions. Add the salsa dressing and stir gently to combine.

Creamy Soup

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon clarified butter

-2 fresh garlic cloves minced

- 1 large yellow onion diced

- 3 stalks crisp celery

- sliced 2 medium zucchini

- chopped 2 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth, or broth/stock of choice

Preparation:

1. Melt butter/ghee in a medium pot over medium-high heat.

2. Add garlic, onions, and celery, then saute for 3-4 minutes until veggies begin to soften.

3. Add zucchini, potatoes, broth and bring to a boil.

4. Once boiling, cover and reduce the heat to a low simmer.

5. Cook for 20 minutes or until veggies are fork tender. Taste and season with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to your taste.

6. Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth and creamy, then stir in the plain Greek yogurt.

Enjoy it!

Dessert

For dessert, we can make a delicious banana bread that you would find quite wonderful.

Banana Bread

Banana bread is a moist, cake-like bread that is a made using ripe, mashed bananas. It’s a “quick bread” which means the leavening agents in the batter are baking soda and baking powder, and not yeast, like regular bread recipes, so it’s ready to bake right away.

Ingredients:

- 1 stick butter

- 3 large ripe bananas

- 2 large eggs

- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

- 2 cups all purpose flour

- 1 cup granulated sugar

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray or grease with butter and set aside.

3. Add the stick of butter to a large bowl and microwave for 1 minute, or until melted.

4. Add the bananas to the same bowl and mash with a fork.

5. Add the vanilla extract and egg to the bowl and use the same fork to mash and stir until no yellow streaks of egg remain.

6. In a second large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

7. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix together with a spatula just until combined.

8. Pour the batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.

At the end of the day, we can prepare something that requires more time in preparation, so in this manner I thought that a Potato Gems, Bacon and Zucchini Slice can be perfect. In addition to this, we can make even some garlic bread that works just fine and creates an interesting flavor mix with this recipe.

Potato Gems, Bacon and Zucchini Slice

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

- 4 shortcut bacon rashers

- Roughly chopped 8 eggs

- 1/2 cup of milk

- 1/2 cup caramelized onion relish

- 1/2 x 1kg packet frozen potato gems

- thawed 2 zucchini, coarsely grated into long, thin strips

- 1/2 cup frozen peas

- 1/2 cup grated cheddar

Mixed salad leaves, to serve.

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 200C/180C fan-forced.

2. Lightly grease a 4cm-deep, 20cm x 28cm rectangular roasting pan.

3. Heat oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat.

4. Add bacon.

5. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until golden and crisp.

6. Meanwhile, whisk eggs, cream, milk and 2 tablespoons relish together until combined. Season with salt and pepper.

7. Sprinkle 2/3 of the potato gems over base of prepared pan.

8. Top with bacon and 3/4 of the zucchini. Gently pour over egg mixture.

9. Sprinkle with peas. Dollop with remaining relish.

10. Sprinkle with cheese and remaining potato gems.

11. Bake, uncovered, for 30 to 35 minutes or until browned and set. Stand for 10 minutes. Cut into slices. Serve with salad leaves.

Garlic Bread

Instructions:

For the garlic bread all you have to do is to spread some butter on the bread, and than sprinkle smashed garlic all over it. Put it in the over, and you are good to go. :)

Dessert

For dessert, i have the perfect recipe for a light ice-cream that is easy to make!

Light Vanilla Ice-Cream

Ingredients:

- 4 cups nonfat milk

- divided 1/4 cup corn syrup

- 3 large egg yolks

- 1/4 cup cornstarch

- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract

- 2 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff

Preparation:

Step 1:

Combine 3¾ cups milk and corn syrup in a large heavy saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the corn syrup, until steaming. Meanwhile, whisk together egg yolks, cornstarch and the remaining ¼ cup cold milk in a medium bowl until smooth. Gradually whisk 1 cup hot milk into the egg-yolk mixture; then pour the egg-yolk mixture into the hot milk in the pan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture boils and thickens, 3 to 5 minutes. (Because the custard is thickened with cornstarch, it will not curdle when it boils.)

Step 2:

Transfer the custard to a large clean bowl and place a piece of wax paper directly over the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Cool completely. Whisk in Fluff and vanilla until as smooth as possible. (The mixture will be a little lumpy; lumps will break down during stir-freezing.) Pour into the canister of an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.