The Weekly Spread: A Dietitian's Meal Plan

If you read "The Weekly Spread" last week, you know that I always start my meal planning with things I have in the house that need to be used. From now on, I'll start every post with that list so you can see how I use up leftovers.

Things I need to use up:

cottage cheese

eggplant (from the garden)

tofu

lots of lettuce

spaghetti squash (from the garden)

carrots and beets (from the garden)

What I'm planning to make:

remember that each meal needs a fruit, vegetable, grain and protein

Monday: Green salad w/garbanzo beans + stir fried tofu, hard boiled eggs, croutons, cantaloupe

Tuesday: Eggplant parmesan (image below from "Cooking for Keeps" blog) with frozen broccoli, fresh pears and store bought french bread

Wednesday: Easy Spinach Lasagna (image from myfoodandfamily.com), green salad, chopped apples

Thursday: Spaghetti squash filled with ground elk and rice, chopped apples on the side (I basically cook ground beef, add a can of salsa and leftover rice, then top with cheese and put it over cooked spaghetti squash, it's one of my favorite things to do with all of the spaghetti squash I grow in my garden)

Friday: Garbanzo bean and eggplant curry, brown rice, canned pineapple, naan bread

Saturday: kids will choose something new to make and we will go to the store for ingredients

Sunday: Elk roast with roasted potatoes, beets and carrots

The Weekly Spread: a Dietitian's Meal Plan....it starts with what's in your fridge!

What is in your fridge? It can be a scary question....but it's one I ask myself every week before meal planning. This is an unedited photo of my fridge today. Every week, when I plan my menu, I like to scan the fridge, pantry, freezer and garden before I choose what to make. It saves money + reduces waste!

This week I need to use:

from the fridge: mushrooms, a jar of tomatoes, homemade pickles, cottage cheese, eggs, zucchini, leftover pesto sauce, cream

from the freezer: cabbage and roasted bell peppers from last year, pepperonis, naan bread and pizza crust that I bought on discount and froze (did you know that you can freeze bread, it's a lifesaver!)

from the garden: leeks, lettuce, cucumbers, melons, bell peppers, tomatoes, carrots

from the pantry: last year's applesauce

This week's menu:

Monday: applesauce baked oatmeal, mushroom egg muffin cups....Novembers cooking class recipes (coming to the website soon!)

Tuesday: COOKING CLASS! Black bean soup and cornbread with honeydew melon

Wednesday: Cooking class for the childcare families! We don't like to eat the same thing 2 nights in a row, so I'm making some cottage cheese pancakes and tomato soup before class starts. (I will freeze the soup for another night and eat the cornbread with soup on Thursday)

Thursday: cabbage, leek and potato soup with sour cream and fruit from the garden

Friday: pizza with pesto sauce, zucchini, pepperoni, and fruit from the garden

Saturday: hummus, tzatiki, naan bread, garden lettuce and tomatoes

Sunday: roasted red pepper pasta w/green salad + applesauce

What are you going to make from the things lurking in your fridge/freezer/pantry?

The Weekly Spread: a Dietitians Meal Plan

You may have noticed that my meal plans have a lot of "parts." Those "parts" are the keys to healthy eating. To maximize nutrition, I try to have these 4 parts in every meal: 1)protein 2)fruit 3)vegetable 4)grain. Each food group has different nutrients, to get everything your body needs, it's important to include something from each food group.

This week, I'm going to label the parts of each meal I've planned so you can see it more clearly. I hope you are enjoying the weekly spread!

Monday: chicken and rice..next month's cook class recipe! (protein + grain), green salad (vegetable), canteloupe (fruit)

Tuesday: Lentil Lettuce wraps (protein and vegetable), grapes (fruit), brown rice (grain)

Wednesday: Cobb Salad w/hard boiled eggs and bacon! (protein and vegetable), watermelon (fruit), baguette (grain)

Thursday: Fall Harvest salad (vegetable + fruit...it has apples in it), chicken corn chowder (protein and vegetable), apple bread (grain) - these recipes are from a kid's cooking kit we subscribe to called Raddish, if you have older kids, it makes a great Christmas present.

Friday: Homemade pizza using WINCO whole wheat pizza crust (grain, protein, and vegetable), green salad (more vegetable), watermelon (fruit)

Saturday: Miso soup with greens (protein + vegetable), Rice (grain), mango smoothie (fruit)

Sunday: Elk tacos or leftovers!