Lazy Sunday Meal Prep
In Just 6 Steps
This is for those weeks where you were out of town and land in the late afternoon. Or perhaps you were out all dang day watching football or had a ladies’ brunch gone long. Or maybe you just don’t want to cook.
For many reasons, we all have some Sundays when we don’t have the energy to be productive.
The good thing is that given a host of modern helpers in the grocery store, you can still set yourself up for a week of healthy meals to fuel your body without relying on takeout and running out for high sodium lunches.
All you need is a quick trip to the grocery store to stock your fridge/freezer and about a half hour in the kitchen.
Please note that I assume you already have olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper already on hand.
I have included a shopping list for you to download below, but I want to highlight the heroes of this meal plan:
Fruit:
I recommended bag of mandarins, a pint of blueberries, and a bunch of bananas on this list. That’s because they’re easy, require no prep, they’ll last the full work week, and I love them. However, if you see some sliced strawberries in the refrigerated section or cotton candy grapes are in stock, go with whatever you want. The key is to get a few fruits that you will actually want to eat through the week with a minimum amount of fuss.
Hard boiled eggs:
I fought against buying these pre-made and shelled for years. However, they are worth the extra money, because I don’t care how many articles I read or YouTube videos I watch, they are undeniably a pain in the butt to peel. Having a bag in the fridge allows you to add extra protein to your salads and have a snack with a solid hit of protein alongside some fruit.
Rotisserie chicken:
Hands down the best healthy, unprocessed protein hack. All big grocery stores sell them, and it saves you hours from prepping and roasting a chicken. Just shred and store in an airtight container in the fridge to add to quesadillas, salads – even your pizza – through the week.
Protein shakes:
These seem like an easy way out, but remember that you are arming yourself to stay on track nutritionally without a lot of time on your hands. I love and Quest and Muscle Milk (sugar free) protein shakes. They provide an ideal amount of protein to start your day and allow you to then get in a few servings of produce. I recommend both fruit and a vegetable. You always feel like you have accomplished something when you get some greens in at breakfast!
Pre-bagged salads:
These are perfect because they are not only pre-washed, but they have the greens plus delicious toppings and a dressing. All you have to do is cut open the bag and put it in a Tupperware container. Add your eggs and rotisserie chicken for a full meal.
Frozen pizza:
Yes, I am recommending a frozen people for at least two meals. However, not just any pizza. I recommend a crust with enhanced benefits. Cali’Flour is amazing for a cauliflower crust (it doesn’t have the weird consistency a lot of cauliflower crusts do), Banza has a good chickpea crust, and Quest tastes like regular pizza but is high protein. Regardless, add extra veggies on top!
Olives: I didn’t add this to the shopping list because apparently they are a divisive food. I love olives, and they work well on several of these meals, but because of that first point I put them squarely in the “optional” category.
Your 5 -Step Sunday Night Meal Plan:
(Sorry, I guess it’s 7 steps if you consider the trip to the store.) You’re going to add three things to your oven. If you can’t do it all at once, you can do it in shifts. The beauty is that it doesn’t involve active cooking time, just replacing one thing in the oven with another and sporadically checking on it.
1. Make zucchini noodles and tomatoes.
Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick spray or drizzle a bit of oil and spread it around. Put zucchini in the middle and surround with a perimeter of tomatoes. Throw a couple of teaspoons of minced garlic on it, along with salt and pepper to taste. Roast at 375 degrees for a half hour. (It will be longer if you also cook the mushrooms/peppers and pizza at the same time.) This is best served with drizzled with olive oil and topped olives and shredded chicken. I’m guessing you thought I was going to suggest marinara, but I prefer the burst cherries, garlic, oil, and salt and pepper as the perfect topping for the noodles. Also I never use zucchini as a replacement for pasta so keep this as a separate and distinct dish rather than as a substitute for something else.
2. Make peppers and mushrooms.
Place 1/3 of the bag each of peppers and mushrooms onto a foil-lined baking sheet and put in oven. Bake for a half hour.
These will go into your quesadillas for the week. You can also put any extra on the pizza when you reheat it in the microwave.
3. Make pizza.
Put some of the frozen peppers and mushrooms on top of it and add to the oven along with the zucchini and tomatoes and peppers/mushrooms. It will take longer to cook than the box says because it’s at a lower temperature and with other food in the oven, but you just have to monitor how it is cooking as you go about your night unpacking, showering, or doing a sheet mask while watching your shows. Check every 5 – 10 minutes after the first 15. An added bonus is some olives to top it all off.
4. Shred rotisserie chicken.
Put it in some Tupperware in the fridge and throw away the container. Easy.
5. Microwave green beans.
Pierce/cut the bag per the instructions and microwave. Put in Tupperware and douse in vinegar (whatever you have on hand) and a drizzle of olive oil, along with salt and pepper to taste, and if you like a kick, crushed red pepper. (Optional: you can add on some olives if you have them.)
6. Prep your breakfast and lunch tomorrow.
That means put a protein shake in the fridge, throw some blueberries in a baggie, and some mandarins and/or banana in your work bag. Then choose a lunch from the ideas below.
Your meals for the week:
1. Meatballs and marinara over riced veggies. Throw on some crushed red pepper for good measure.
2. Zucchini noodles, tomatoes, and meatballs or shredded chicken. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and some olives.
3. Quesadillas with shredded chicken, shredded cheddar, peppers and mushrooms, and remnants of extra greens from the pre-bagged salads.
4. Pre-bagged salads with shredded chicken and hard boiled eggs.
5. Frozen pizza with extra veggies (and add some shredded chicken or sliced meatballs on top for an added protein boost).
6. Protein shakes with fruit and veggies.
In addition to each of these meals (as explicitly spelled out in the 6th), add a side of fruit and/or salad or green beans. Add a Kind bar in here and there to hit your sweet tooth, and you have five days of work week meals that will keep you on track to achieve your nutritional goals and keep you from vending machine runs and last minute lunches you grabbed from across the street because you ran out of time.