Modern times have made people lazier, which essentially affect their feeding habits and in the long haul their general health. Over the weekends most find it more convenient to lounge on the couch and enjoy movie marathons instead of going to the local market to shop.
What most people fail to realize is that, taking one trip to the market over the weekend is easier and more convenient than going to shop for groceries multiple times a week during the working week. If one makes a grocery list and makes a meal plan, the shopping for grocery becomes an even easier task without the stress of coming home in the evenings and staring at the fridge aimlessly wondering what’s for dinner.
Here is an example of an easy and ideal grocery list and meal plan
Grocery list
- One bunch parsley
- 1 head of broccoli
- 1 head of cauliflower
- 2 bags of salad greens
- Sweet potatoes
- 1 avocado
- 1 lemon
- 1 head of garlic
- 100% whole wheat sandwich bread
- Whole wheat pita bread
- 1 pack of whole wheat tortillas
- Natural almond butter
- 1 tin of anchovies
- 1 jar of black olives
- Fennel seeds
- Red pepper flakes
- 1 dozen eggs
- 1 wedge of parmesan cheese
- Low fat cheddar cheese
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 pouch of smoked salmon
- Pantry items
- Long grain brown rice
- Rolled oats
- 1 can of low mercury tuna
- 1 can of no salt added chick peas
- Low sodium chicken broth
- No salt added tomato sauce
- Salsa
- Raisins
- Dijon mustard
- Extra virgin olive oil
- White wine vinegar
- Cooking spray
- Salt
- Pepper
- Sugar
Prep recipes
Roman style roast chicken (serves 1)
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons of fennel seeds
- ¼ teas spoon of red pepper flakes
- ½ tea spoon of salt
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Cooking spray
Directions
Pre heat oven to 350 degrees
In a large mixing bowl combine fennel seeds red pepper flakes, garlic and oil. Add chicken thighs and toss to properly coat the mixture. Spray the baking sheet with the cooking spray, and arrange the chicken in a uniform layer. Roast for approximately 25 to 30 minutes or until the chicken registers 165 degrees on the thermometer.
All-purpose vinaigrette
Ingredients
- ½ a cup of extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup of white wine vinegar
- ¼ cup of water
- 2 table spoons of minced shallots
- 1 tea spoon of Dijon mustard
- ¼ tea spoon of salt
- 1/8 tea spoon of sugar
- Pepper
Directions
Combine all the ingredients in a mason jar while adding pepper according to preference to taste. Shake the mixture well to blend all the ingredients. This mixture can be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks. Before each use, bring to room temperature prior to shaking and serving.
Roasted vegetables
Ingredients
- 1 head of broccoli broken down into florets
- 1 head of cauliflower broken down into florets
- 1 sweet potato cut into cubes
- 1 tea spoon of extra virgin oil
- Salt and pepper
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray the sheet with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, toss together all the vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Put the mixture into the baking sheet, spreading it out evenly. Roast for approximately 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown. Cool and store in containers for a week.
Herbed brown rice
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups of long grain brown rice
- 2 1/3 cups of water
- 1 tea spoon of olive oil
- ¼ tea spoon of salt
- ½ cup of chopped parsley leaves
Directions
Pre heat oven to 375 degrees
Place the rice in an 8X8 baking dish, add boiling water to the rice and add salt and the oil. Cover tightly with an aluminum foil and bake for an hour. Remove from the oven and stir in the parsley. Cool and store in the fridge for a week.
7 day meal plan
Sunday
Breakfast: whole wheat toast with salsa scrambled eggs
Lunch: /4 cup of herbed brown rice accompanied with salad greens mixed with 3 ounces of tuna, and two table spoons of the vinaigrette.
Dinner: herbed brown rice accompanied with 2 roast chicken thighs and some roasted vegetables.
Monday
Breakfast: oatmeal with raisins and almond butter
Lunch: salad greens with ½ a cup of rinsed and drained chick peas and a tea spoon of vinaigrette, stuffed into toasted whole wheat pita bread.
Dinner: roasted vegetable frittata ( ½ a cup of roasted vegetables stirred into two beaten eggs, poured into a skillet and baked at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or until mixture sets.)
Tuesday
Breakfast: Whole wheat toast served with an eighth of avocado and two ounces of smoked salmon
Lunch: salad greens with ½ a cup of chopped chicken thighs incorporated into it. Add one table spoon of grated parmesan cheese and vinaigrette.
Dinner: roast veggies quesadilla. (Chop ½ a cup of roasted vegetables tossed with an ounce of cheddar cheese, served between two tortillas and cooked on a low heat skillet until brown on both sides.) Serve the quesadilla with an eighth of mashed avocado and salsa.
Wednesday
Breakfast: burrito (scrambled eggs with salsa and avocado wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla)
Lunch: hummus and pita bread. (Puree ½ cup of chick peas with one crushed garlic clove and vinaigrette stuffed into pita bread.)
Dinner: Italian chicken soup. (1 crushed garlic clove, ½ cup of diced leftover chicken, ½ cup of roasted veggies, and ¼ cup of the brown rice with 2 cups of the chicken broth. Heat over low heat until steaming)
Thursday
Breakfast: oatmeal with raisins and almond butter.
Lunch: salad greens with ½ cup of chick peas and vinaigrette and stuffed in pita bread.
Dinner: chicken with tomatoes and olives. In a sauce pan, add one tea spoon of olive oil, 4 olives and anchovies. Add a ¼ cup of tomato sauce and one chicken thigh cook till hot and top with parsley.
Friday
Breakfast: whole wheat toast with scrambled eggs and salsa
Lunch: ¼ cup of chick peas with 1/8 of diced avocado, 1 table spoon of vinaigrette served with salad greens.
Dinner: brown rice with roasted vegetable casserole. Put 1 cup of roasted veggies, 1 cup of brown rice, 1 egg, and 1 cup of chopped parsley in a skillet. Drizzle two table spoons of cheddar cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until cheese has melted. Reserve some for next day’s lunch. Serve with salad greens and vinaigrette.
Saturday
Breakfast: whole wheat toast with 1/8 of avocado and smoked salmon.
Lunch: left over rice with the vegetable casserole.
Dinner: pita pizza. Split pita bread and spread tomato sauce on each half. Top with roasted veggies, olives and two table spoons of grated parmesan cheese. Broil until the pizza is hot and cheese browned. Roughly for two minutes.
Featured Image: DepositPhotos/rmarmion
Posted on March 24, 2023