Make ahead, reheat and eat, bake and serve or from fridge to table. All of these sound like a wonderful idea, but where do we find the time? I tell you from experience and from the years of making excuses as to why making food ahead was a waste of time, that it certainly is not. Once we get in our right mind (Debatable what that looks like) we are able to see that once or even twice per week if we do a little shopping, hang out in the kitchen for a bit and pack away some meals, that in the long run, we end up having more time to take our family on day outings that we’ve been promising for months, read that book that sits on the table mocking us daily, take a nap in the backyard hammock we insisted we needed three years ago and have sat in it once. You get the idea.
Look, all that I ask is to give it a try. Spend a small amount of time in your kitchen once or twice a week to make a few meals and store for a later time. It is in the long run less time than you would spend daily either in the kitchen slamming cupboards or staring into the refrigerator at the vegetables that have gone bad or driving through the fast food line. I don’t know how you like to eat, but if I eat fast food several times a week or even if I could pick my favorite sit down restaurant and eat it 3 times a week, my body and my mind would go into shock.
I have found that in the past when I have done this (in what I thought was because I didn’t have time to cook), I began to crave fast food and turn my nose up at a home cooked meal. Wait. What?? Yes, it is true. The healthier I eat, the healthier I feel and the healthier I want to eat. The fast food stop becomes a treat, rather than a necessity for fuel. I am hungry a lot quicker too and typically crave fats and sugars. My family knows that when I am hungry nothing good can come of it until I am fed. High metabolism mixed with the routine of snacking all day leads to a hot, cranky, yet silent mess of a Jessica. When I am quiet, they know I am hungry. There is this funny card I saw the other day at Trader Joe’s that says, “I am sorry for what I said when I was hungry”. I bought the all and have already mailed one out.
Make a list of the meals that you want to eat (recipes linked below for a starting point), prep one day if you want or do it all in one afternoon and then store for later.
I have a few recipes that I have found to be the best time spent in the kitchen for a meal later. I also have a link to a 15-minute one pot pasta. Seriously? Only 15 minutes? That is impossible!! Nope. It isn’t.
White Bean, Kale and Sausage Soup
Masala Chicken with Green Yogurt Sauce
Baked Oatmeal (For breakfast during the week or for the boys when I am out of town)
Next week…
What can you pre-prep and freeze to make it even easier? Chop and freeze onions, garlic, peppers, cheese, etc. Especially cost efficient when these items are on sale.
What containers do you store food in? Glass, plastic, bags?
“Whatever it is you are searching for, I hope you can eat it.”