Planned, Prepped, and Productive: Real Food Cooking for Busy Moms

5 Best Fast Foods That You Can Make At HomeHomemade Frozen HamburgersMake and freeze hamburgers so when it’s dinner time, instead of staring at a chunk of ground beef and wondering what to make, you have an almost prepared meal. You can even cook the burgers in advance and freeze them if you desire, but I usually prefer them fresh-cooked!Homemade Pizza CrustI LOVE homemade pizza, but making it at home isn’t usually the fastest and easiest option. Making the dough can be messy, and if it requires a rise it takes awhile to put this meal on the table. I combat this problem by making pizza crusts and freezing them. Then when I’m ready to eat, all I have to do is add toppings and bake!You can freeze pizza dough, but I usually find that I prefer to parbake the crust and freeze it that way. I usually make mini personal pizza crusts so they take up less room in the freezer.Homemade Chicken TendeI’ve got a stellar recipe for homemade chicken tenders here on the blog, and while I love them and they come together pretty quickly, I have found that I love them even MORE if I make them in advance and freeze them. You can even cook them from frozen straight out of the freezer making the fastest weeknight meal ever!Homemade Bean BurritosHomemade bean burritos got my husband through college, they’re the perfect quick lunch to stock your freezer with. Simply fill your tortilla with refried beans, cheese, and maybe your favorite enchilada sauce, wrap them up and throw them in the freezer. When you’re ready to eat them, simply microwave for 5-7 minutes if they’re still frozen, or 2-3 minutes if they have been thawed!Homemade French FriesIs there a more comforting food than french fries? I love storing my freezer with my own freezer french fries. Potatoes don’t freeze well if you just throw them in the freezer, so I chop the potatoes into french fry shapes, boil them until their barely cooked through but still quite firm, and lay them out on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper to freeze them. If you’re freezer isn’t big enough for a sheet pan, use a couple of plates. Once they have frozen for a few hours, put them in a large ziploc and freeze until you are ready to use.To bake your homemade french fries, simply give them a good coating of oil and bake at 425 for about twenty minutes until they are starting to brown. Give them a good salting after and enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce!I hope that this has sparked some ideas for making convenient, homemade fast foods to help curve fast food cravings and get cooking more meals from scratch! If you are interested in more, please check out my resources below!Resources:Studies show homemade is healthierLearn more about making meals at home as stress free as possible in my mini course, meal plan magic!

10 Steps To Make Your Meal Prep Party A SuccessStep #1: Invite Your Friends And Schedule A TimeYou’ll want a full day to make sure you get everything done (bonus if you can get done early!)Step #2: Gather Preferences And Allergies:You would hate for your friends to come help with meals only to go home with meals they can’t eat or that they don’t like. If they have allergies or preferences, try asking them what kinds of meals they have at home to combat their allergy.Step #3: Plan Your Menu For Your Meal Prep Party:Be sure you research what meals freeze well and try to be efficient in your planning (ie use the same base recipe for shredded chicken or pork to save time!Step #4: Gather Supplies And Staples:When you are preparing a large volume of food you might not have everything you need in one kitchen. Write out everything you think you’ll need and see what your guests can bring. I also like to take inventory of staple items to avoid buying things at the store that we already have.Step #5: Order Or Pick-Up Your GroceriesI love using grocery pickup when I have a meal prep party because it’s such a large volume of food, it’s so convenient to just pick it up at the store instead of shopping for it, but you can shop any way you like. Don’t forget to stock up on freezer bags, and potentially some disposable pans depending on what you are cooking.Step #6: Make A General Schedule And Timeline For Your Meal Prep Party:If you use my FREE guide and recipes, this part is already done for you. You will be much more efficient if you assign out everyone’s tasks ahead of time so you spend less time delegating and figuring out what to do, and more time doing. If there will be kids at your party, I recommend having one person with the kids at all times to minimize fights and give your guests a break from standing. This person can rotate with the other guests every hour or so.Step #7: Get Slow-Cookers Started Early Before Guests Arrive:During my meal prep party, I found myself waiting on slow cookers so if you have the chance, get them started before everyone gets there and you might be able to get done a little earlier.Step #7: Plan Lunch:You will be cooking for a good chunk of the day and you’re going to get hungry! It doesn’t have to be fancy, but plan to either bring sandwiches or order a pizza so no one gets too hangry while you are meal-prepping.Step #9: Plan Entertainment For Any Kids:If you have kids, you’ll definitely need them to be on their best behavior for this to work (Find some extra tips for cooking with kids here) Try planning some really fun activities for them to do while you cook and maybe even purchase some brand new crafts and toys to try to hold their attention for longer! They can also help out with age-appropriate tasks in the kitchen.Step #10: Bring Coolers And Ice:We all cleared out space in our freezers for our meal-prepped meals that we knew we would be bringing home, but we didn’t think about how we were going to keep our meals cold (and safe) as we were preparing them. We ended up getting some boxes and filling them with ice, but that wasn’t the best solution. We decided the easiest way to solve this problem the next time is for each guest to bring their own cooler and ice to transport their meals home in to get int o the freezer.…and just in case you missed it, here’s one more chance to get your FREE printable guide that will make planning your meal prep party a breeze!

This make-ahead christmas brunch menu will allow you to prepare for the holiday in advance so you can enjoy time with your family instead of slaving away in the kitchen.Have you noticed, that as a mom during the holidays somehow everyone is laughing, talking playing games, having fun…and somehow you’re STILL cooking, STILL cleaning, STILL making sure that everyone else has a great time, but you don’t get to be a part of it?Well, let me tell you that I am not about to sit on the sidelines while my family enjoys holiday festivities.…but I am also not willing to give up my holiday food traditions either.Enter…this make-ahead christmas brunch menu.I love making a fancy christmas brunch for my family to enjoy after they open all their presents Christmas morning…but it can be hard to make that happen with everything else going on.To solve the problem, I created this simple but elegant Christmas brunch menu that can be made almost entirely ahead of time.So What’s On The Christmas Brunch Menu?Get your complete make-ahead Christmas brunch menu here!I’m so glad you asked.For a brunch I like to default to a little formula. I want to serve something sweet, something savory, something that grows in the ground, and a drink.Make-Ahead Christmas Brunch Main Dish: QuicheFor our something savory we are going with quiche. Quiche is a great dish to make-ahead because it freezes and reheats wonderfully.Another reason I like to serve quiche is because if I’m thinking ahead, I can make the crust for the quiche when I am making my thanksgiving pies and freeze it until I need it.The quiche I use is a sage cranberry sausage quiche to give some seasonal holiday vibes.Make-Ahead Christmas Brunch Side: Sweet RollsFor something sweet, I serve sweet rolls. Is there anything more quintessentially Christmas than sweet rolls?To make these ahead, I use a technique called parbaking.Parbaking means exactly what it sounds like…partially baking.This allows you to finish the baking process on the day you eat them so they smell amazing and taste fresh (instead of dry which might happen if you baked them all the way through and then froze them.I love this technique for all sorts of bread products, but it works great for sweet rolls because they are a bit time consuming to make. Making them ahead makes it do-able for a holiday breakfast without a huge mess.Bonus: You can freeze the glaze ahead as well in little baggies for the easiest sweet brunch treat ever!You can use this method for any type of sweet roll. Simply bake for about 2/3 of the time suggested, remove from the oven and cool, then cover and freeze. When you are ready to bake, bake again checking them at about 15 minutes (they will likely take about 25 minutes to bake).Rolls can be cooked from frozen instead of thawed, but it will take a bit longer.Since it’s Christmas I went for a classic orange roll.Make Ahead Side: Fruit SaladI always try to include a fruit or vegetable at every party for a little balance…but doing this ahead of time is tricky as fruits and vegetables don’t hold very well.So for this fruit salad, I use canned fruit so it can be thrown together the day before or the day of by only opening a few cans.I’m sticking with the seasonal citrus theme here with a grapefruit, mandarin orange, and pomegranate salad with lime and fresh mint.Note: if you’re not a grapefruit fan (i’m still deciding if grapefruit and I are friends) you can use canned pears in it’s place!Christmas Brunch Drink: Non-Alcoholic MimosasTo me, a fancy drin

Cooking with kids.This topic is humbling to say the least.Sometimes I invite my kids into the kitchen and we all laugh and have fun, everything turns out delicious and I gloat to myself about what an amazing mama I am.But many times, it starts out great but in the end the oil goes in the wrong bowl, the egg my son has been vigorously whisking for 20 minutes gets splashed on the floor and I find myself turning to yelling and wondering why I even try.The truth is, cooking with kids is tough. Let’s get real here. Anything with kids is tough. But despite the challenges, I am amazed at what my kids have learned from being in the kitchen with me.What Kids Learn From CookingMath-my 4 year old’s math skills blow my mindFine motor skills-stirring, cracking eggs, etc…Patience-Both in waiting for food to be done and waiting for mom to be availableThat they can do hard things-Many of the tasks are challenging but they can learn them in a (relatively) safe environmentTaking turns/sharingBasic nutrition-This kind of food grows in the ground etc…Chemistry-We have to add eggs to keep this together or the oil on the outside of the veggies helps them get brown and crispCreativityWith all of those benefits, I say that things taking a little (or a lot) longer and occasional mishaps and frustration make it worth it to have them there with me.I like to think of having my preschoolers and toddlers in the kitchen with me as an investment in the future. I imagine myself someday sitting on the couch browsing social media while my perfectly competent young teenager takes their turn making dinner.A girl can dream, right?So, how exactly do you go about welcoming your kids into the kitchen with you while maintaining your sanity.As I started out with, none of these tips are going to work every single time, and there may be times that it’s Daniel Tiger to the rescue and that’s totally okay…but with these tips you should be able to stretch out the time you are able to cook and feel a little more peace while doing so.9 Tips For Cooking With Kids In The KitchenStart with a clean kitchen– It can be frustrating to clean something knowing you are about to get it dirty, but starting clean ensures all your dishes are ready for you and that there’s a spot in the sink for all the new dishes you are about to dirty. This will save you time allowing you to get the task done quicker ( in those little one’s attention spans).Give your kids one on one time BEFORE you start cooking-This is my golden tip for getting kids to cooperate with ANYTHING. If their cup is filled, they will be more cooperative and able to give you the time and help you need to get your tasks done, so put your phone away and engage and play with them for 15-30 minutes before you start cooking.Cook in the mornings when kids are in a good mood– Dinner time is everyone’s cranky hour in our house (ahem, including mine) so why add cooking to that already stressful time. So many dishes can be made-ahead, and if you can’t make everything ahead you can at least chop your veggies, measure your ingredients, pre-cook your grains so that dinner at night comes together in a snap. Take out your recipe in the morning and decide what you can do right then to make your evening go more smoothly.Invite children to help with age-appropriate tasks– I love to let my young kids (4 and under) gather ingredients, crack eggs, dump ingredients, stir, etc…)Set kids up with an engaging activity at the kitchen table-When they are checked out of helping or you run out of appropriate tasks, it’s totally okay to let them be done, but let them stay close to you. They will like feeling welcome and you’ll get more done with them close by (and be able to stop squabbl

I am so excited about this week's episode of the podcast all about decision fatigue. Have you ever felt like at the end of the day a simple question from your child like can I have a snack is enough to make your head explode? There have been times where I have sat thinking about a question as simple as that for 5 minutes running through all of the options.  Well, they just had a snack an hour ago, are they really hungry? What if they don't eat their dinner? They need to learn to eat when food is on the table.Did they eat that last snack? Maybe they actually are hungry. I probably am a terrible mother. The cycle goes on and on. What is decision fatigue?The idea of decision fatigue (coined by Roy F Baumeister) is that our ability to make decisions decreases the more decisions we have to make. This is idea is well illustrated by a Princeton University study that found that judges were more likely to deny parole in the afternoon after he had already had a lot of hearings. Subconsciously after so many hearings the judge makes the safest choice by denying parole. How does decision fatigue affect you and your meal plan? All humans (and if you are mom I'm gonna say this applies double to you) are faced with a billion decisions every day. If you are faced with a brownie at 8:00 PM when you are mentally exhausted you will probably eat it even if you are trying to avoid sugar or make a positively lifestyle change. You probably think this is because you have no willpower, but the truth is, your decision-making brain is tired and unable to make decisions as effectively as it could earlier in the day. Every decision we make depletes our energy for the next decision. How can we overcome decision fatigue?There are lots of ways that decision fatigue can be overcome, but here are the 6 ways I suggest overcoming decision fatigue specifically as it relates to your meal plan. 6 ways to overcome decision fatigueStop making the same decision over and over- You don't have to head to the pinterest drawing board every time you meal plan. You know that meal planning will happen every week, so why not automate it as much as possible. Make a list of your family's favorite meals and draw from that list instead of a blank slate when you're deciding what to make for dinner. Delegate Decisions-You know who LOVE to make decisions? Your kids. They would be thrilled if you let them pick out what to eat, what to wear, what to do. Let them be involved in the process. If your kids are old enough you could assign them each a day to plan what's for dinner, give a day to your husband too and your meal plan is half-finished! You don't have to do it all and often the people around us want to help with our heavy load. Develop routines and be consistent about them-A routine is basically a decision that you've automated. Once you have exercised every morning for a year, you are no longer really making the decision to exercise. It's become automatic. You can (and if you are a mom I think you should) develop routines for just about everything. Meal time, snack time, play time, chore time. If you designate times for these activities they will get done and you will get to spend less mental energy thinking about them. Lump similar decisions together-This is similar to the first tip but slightly different. I think the best way to illustrate this idea is to think about productivity. How productive would it be to go throughout your day deciding every hour what you will do next? I don't know about you, but the thought of doing that drives me crazy. Instead, I can start as part of my morning routine planning out wh

Have you spent loads of time planning menus that never get put on the table? Maybe you think you don't have time to meal plan so you use a meal planning app or download a free meal plan from your favorite blogger to save time. You want to succeed at menu planning and make homemade meals a bigger part of your life, but every time you try you end up with a garbage can full of takeout wrappers and a fridge full of rotting produce. You guys. I have totally been there. Today I want to share just one tiny mistake that most people make when they get started with meal planning. You plan your menu before you plan your life. Why a weekly planning session is key to your meal plan successI get it, taking the time to plan your weeks in detail takes time, and after all, you are already taking the time to plan your menu so you don't feel like you have time to plan your week in detail too. I promise though, this little nugget of information will skyrocket the likelihood of the meals you plan actually making it to the table. Your menu should be planned about your life, instead of your life planned around your menu. The way I make this happen is by scheduling a weekly planning session. Yes you read that right. I plan to plan. Every Sunday I take anywhere from 1-2 hours planning my life and then planning my menu after I KNOW that Wednesday I'm only going to be home for 45 seconds. When I can see on paper that I have 8 million things to do on Wednesday, I'm not going to be dumb enough to plan that 12-layer lasagna that takes 2 hours in the oven. Nope. Nevagonnahappen. Instead, that'll be my grilled cheese night. Or crockpot night. Or night I pop something homemade in the oven from my freezer from another time that I planned well and was super prepared. What exactly should I plan in my weekly planning session? Your weekly planning session should include everything predictable in your life. This means taking note of every doctor's appointment, play date, work meeting, you name it. Your planning session should also include all of the unscheduled things that absolutely must get done (laundry, grocery shopping, lawn mowing etc...)After you have all of these things out on paper, you'll have a much more realistic idea of how much time you have to dedicate to cooking and meal prep. I've created a meal plan planner template that outlines everything you should be thinking about during your weekly planning session. DOWNLOAD THE FREE PLANNER TEMPLATE FOR MEAL PLANNINGWhat about the days that "life happens"Guys. I'm a mom of 3 littles. I know that days get unexpectedly crazy. In fact, today (my only dedicated workday this week) I have an unexpected 4-hour commitment to head to in 20 minutes. We have also had the 7 plagues run through our house in the past month. Oh, and my daughter's going through a potty-training regression (I have dealt with more bodily fluids in the last 4 months from sickness, diapers, and potty training than any human wants to deal with for a lifetime. Also, there's usually at least one of my 3 children in my bed by 5 am ever morning. By 6:30 everyone's awake and ready to start the day. <

A planner or a planner app (or both) ($10-$50) – The first step toward perfecting your meal plan is perfecting your life plan. Planning your days helps you know what days to plan more elaborate meals and what days to keep it simple. Here are my favorite planners!Basic Paper PlannerGoogle CalendarTodoistEvernoteFREE CUSTOM PLANNER TEMPLATEA Chest Freezer ($300)– Meal Prepping is addicting and you’ll want plenty of space to keep things organized! Get one on facebook marketplace or craigslist to save money!Chest FreezerA Slow Cooker or Pressure Cooker (or both!) ($25-$100)– Slow cookers and pressure cookers make meal-prepping meat an absolute breeze! Use either to make a big batch of meat to keep in your freezer and add to dishes all week long. If you’re looking for something easy to meal prep, try my meal prep shredded chicken recipe here.Slow CookerStovetop Pressure CookerInstant PotContainers ($25-50)-I promise you’re going to need to up your tupperware collection when you start meal-prepping. You’ve got to have somewhere to put all of that meal prepped goodness. There are lots of containers designed just for meal prep, and while they are neat…you really don’t need anything fancy! Just a package of regular old tupperware and a few different sizes of ziploc bags will get you started just fine. I will link to my favorite containers below if you’re interestedRestaurant Storage ContainersReusable Ziploc bagsChef’s Knife ($40-$150)-If you hate cooking, you’re probably using a terrible knife. A good knife makes cooking SOOOO much easier. If you do have a good knife, make sure you’re getting it sharpened frequently as this can also influence how much you enjoy being in the kitchen. If you’ve already got a good sharp chef’s knife, you may also consider getting a paring knife (my 2nd most used knife)Good Starter Chef’s KnifeParing KnifeGeorge Foreman Grill( $25-$50)-Affectionately called George at our house, this is the easiest way to meal prep grilled chicken for salads, pastas, wraps, you name it! Get the biggest one you can to meal prep more at once!George Foreman GrillOrganizing Bins ($1-$20)-Organization in the kitchen is key, and organizing bins are perfect for keeping everything in it’s place. The container store or Target have some super cute options…but I usually opt for my local dollar store for the least expensive option!Organization BinsFood Processor ($25)-A Chef’s knife is great, but it’s no match for pureed foods like pestos and salsas. A food processor makes these dishes come together in a matter of seconds.My favorite Food ProcessorKitchen Shears ($10)-Some jobs are just better with scissors, get a pair of kitchen shears and you’ll be shocked at how much you use them!Kitchen ShearsThermometer ($10-$40)-Food safety is important, and a thermometer insures you are cooking your meat to a safe temperature. I also love using one to avoid overcooking my meat until i

Meal prep your thanksgiving dinner to make time for the important things like spending time with loved ones and actually enjoying that big feast! Many aspects of the meal can be made in advance without affecting quality (or even improving the quality) read on to see what dishes you can meal prep, and what things you really should for that day!Do you get stressed just thinking about hosting Thanksgiving? From thawing, to brining, to cleaning your house, to all the side dishes, making sure everything goes off without a hitch can be stressful! The last 9 years I have made it my mission to create the perfect Thanksgiving timeline complete with delicious traditional recipes and exactly what to do and when to do it. I can honestly say that it has taken this long to find the perfect combination of recipes and I'm beyond excited to share this free resource with you that will simplify your Thanksgiving Day allowing you to spend time with your family being grateful. Instead of running around the kitchen like a turkey with your head cut off. This free resource is a gold mine of information and will simplify your Thanksgiving Dinner by a mile because you don't have to hunt down recipes, or even write your own grocery list (it's all done for you!)FREE Stress-Free Thanksgiving Dinner GuideI've included links in this post to recipes already on the blog, but a few are available only in the freebie so you'll definitely want to be sure to sign up below. [oceanwp_library id="5587"] How to meal prep your Thanksgiving for a Stress Free holidayWhat to outsource to meal prep your ThanksgivingSome Pies-I save pumpkin and apple to make myself because to me they are the must-have Thanksgiving Day pies!Drinks-It’s so fun for guests to pick up a fun specialty drink for everyone to try, I love the specialty drinks at Trader Joes!Appetizers-You definitely want something for your guests to munch on as they arrive to tide them over until the meal begins and keep them out of your hair.  But making appetizers the day of is an added stress that I never want to deal with.  I like to make a dip or spread and then ask each guest to bring crackers or veggies to go with it to keep everything cohesive but also to take most of the work off of me and onto someone elseSomeone’s specialty-If you know someone has a really great recipe for any of the rest of the dishes on your list feel free to have them bring it and take one thing off your list of things to do!What to prepare in advance for your Thanksgiving Day Meal When you meal prep your Thanksgiving you can actually enjoy your holiday instead of beiing stuck in the kitchen all day. These are my favorite things to prepare at least partially in advance to relive stress and overwhelm. Gravy -You can absolutely make Gravy the day of, but I find it so stressful trying to get the hot broth to cool enough to skim the fat off of and making one more thing in that last hour before dinner.  I choose to make my gravy ahead from turkey parts and keep it in the freezer so on the day of all I have to do is thaw and serveStuffing-Stuffing is magical and it turns out it tastes BETTER when made partially ahead of time.  Put the whole casserole together the day before and let the broth really soak into that bread and all you have to do the day of is throw it in the oven. Rolls (Maybe)-Fresh rolls are absolutely amazing, but Rolls are the bane of my existence on Thanksgiving day.  They never seem to rise in the correct amount of time and planning the oven around t

Today on the podcast I’m talking all about frozen raw chicken.The Frozen Raw Chicken ProbleAKA the bane of my existence.I literally can’t count how many times I have gone to make dinner only to discover that (crayaaap…) the chicken is a rock hard block in the freezer still.So I then begin the twenty minute long process of running water over it which is working at a snail’s pace….or microwaving it in 30 second bursts to get it thaw before cooking it.This is, of course, if I wasn’t feeling lazy on the day I froze the chicken and that I actually separated the chicken breasts before freezing them.If I didn’t, then I’ve got the giant frozen chicken brick of death and I can send my ideas of a homemade dinner that night straight to club aintnevagonnahappen!How To Avoid The Frozen Raw Chicken ProblemWhile you could decide that you’re never going to forget to thaw your raw chicken again and get hyper-organized in the kitchen…this problem (for me) is one that never seems to go away. So here’s how I combat it.Unless there is a crazy sale on chicken or I am throwing a super fancy dinner party where I want everything to be 100% fresh and delicious, I don’t let the frozen chicken problem even begin.How?By cooking the chicken before it ever hits the freezer.Why Pre-Cooked Chicken Is Way More Useful Than Raw Chicken In Your FreezerPre-cooking your chicken is a surefire way to insure that you can have dinner on the table in 15-20 minutes every night.The type of chicken you cook and freeze will act as a springboard for the what’s for dinner question and thawing is easy! Just reheat until warm!Sure, this won’t work for every dish…but a good chunk of dishes that we make on a regular basis call for pre-cooking the chicken anyway. Grill chicken before adding to a salad, poach chicken before adding it to a soup, you get the picture.So why not have that step done, and never have to remember to thaw that pesky chicken again?Here are my favorite 2 recipes for preparing cooked chicken to keep in my freezer for quick meals all week long.How To Meal Prep Chicken For Quick Meals All Week LongMeal Prep Grilled Chicken (No marinade!)Slow cooker meal prep shredded chickenHow To Use Meal Prep Grilled Chicken And Meal Prep Shredded ChickenMeal Prep Grilled Chicken-Goes great in salads, pastas, quesadillas, pitas, wraps,Meal Prep Shredded Chicken-tastes awesome in chicken salad, soups/strews, hearty dips, casserolesHow Long Will Pre-Cooked Chicken Last In The Freezer?Pre-cooked chicken will last in the freezer for 3-4 months (but trust me…yours will never last this long…once you start making this a habit you’ll be addicted to how fast cooking becomes and you will be grabbing it out for almost every meal!If you want to learn more about how to rock your meal plan, be sure to check out my free mini-course!Featured LinksHow to thaw meat safelyHow long does chicken last in the refrigerator or freezer?Meal Prep grilled chicken (no marinade!)Slow Cooker Meal Prep Shredded Chicken

Hi Everyone, this week's episode on the podcast is all about the different types of meal prep, and how you can use them to strategize your meal plan saving you the most amount of time possible in the kitchen (can I get a woot-woot!)I spent the first two episodes trying to get you jazzed about trying this, and helping you to convince yourself that homemade meals are something you are absolutely capable of...in fact, with a little time you might even find cooking fun!Let's jump right into the types of meal prep (in order of types I use least to types I use most and why!)As always, please listen to the podcast to get the most out of your time as I go into much more detail there!Types of Meal PrepThe Dump Recipe MethodThe dump recipe method involves putting all of the raw ingredients for a recipe into a gallon ziploc bag and freezing it.  When it's time to cook, you dump the whole bag into a slow cooker for dinner.  This method is one of the easiest methods, but it's not my very favorite because I prefer traditional cooking methods and I feel like veggies tend to get mushy when cooked for the same amount of time as meat.The Cook Now, Eat Later MethodThis method is essentially glorified leftovers.  You make a meal start to finish it and portion it out to eat throughout the week.  I like this method a little better than the dump recipe method, but I get bored eating the same thing every day and I feel like the quality of the meals starts to diminish throughout the week. The Box Meal MethodThis method uses the same technique as the meal prep box companies that have become so successful in recent meals.  To make cooking go super quick, you gather your ingredients in advance and even do your chopping so that on the night you want to cook all of the prep is done and it goes super fast! I love this method for meal prep and use it most often in combination with my other favorite method (below!)The Create your own convenience food methodThis method involves making your own version of all of those things at the grocery store designed to save you time.  Think frozen meatballs, rotisserie chicken, frozen fried rice, etc...This is a great way to have fast and easy meals with wholesome ingredients that you get to control.  When you combine this method with the box meal method you can have truly delicious meals made entirely from scratch in 15-20  minutes every time!Helpful links about the types of meal prepEasiest-Ever Dump DinnersTop 20 Freezable RecipesUse Mis En Place to Make Meal Prep EasierNext week we're going over a very specific problem that I have run into while cooking more times than I can count, tune in to see if you've had the same problem and see my strategies for overcoming it.  Can't wait to talk next week!Happy cooking!