r/MealPrepSunday

Cottage Cheese Lasagna (8 servings)
Calories: 502
Fat: 12g
Carbs: 47g
Protein: 50g

Ingredients
- 2lb 93% lean ground turkey
- 4 cups marinara sauce
- 3 cups low fat cottage cheese
- 2 cups fat free mozzarella
- 40g grated Parmesan cheese
- Lasagna noodles

The lasagna is one I’ve been doing for years and is just a double batch of a recipe I’ll put in the comments. Preheat the oven to 350F. Cook the turkey until cooked through with salt, pepper, and garlic, then drain off fat. While that’s cooking, stir together the cottage cheese and Parmesan with some Italian seasoning. Once meat is done, combine it with the marinara. In a greased 13x9 pan, start with 1/3 of the meat sauce, then layer on oven ready lasagna noodles. For me it took four noodles. Then, put half of the cottage cheese mixture on the noodles. Make another layer of meat, noodle, then cheese, then finish with the last of the meat. Once that’s done, top with the mozzarella evenly spread across the top. Cover with aluminum foil, then bake for 20 minutes, remove the foil, and finish off with 10 more minutes uncovered

I usually do this with some sort of veggie, this week it’s a big ole bag of frozen broccoli I did up in salt, pepper, and garlic

Savory Breakfast Muffins (22 servings)
Calories: 290
Fat: 8g
Carbs: 27g
Protein: 28g

Ingredients
- 3lb 93% lean ground turkey
- 3 cups low fat cottage cheese
- 12 large eggs
- 1/4 cup sugar free maple syrup
- 3 cups fat free cheddar
- 3/4 cup milk (I used fat free ultrafiltered milk)
- Diced vegetables of your choice (I used bell pepper and onion)
- 4.5 cups flour
- 2 tbsp baking powder

I tried something similar last time I made breakfast using biscuit dough, but wasn’t thrilled with the end result. This week was another shamelessly stolen recipe I’ll link below in the comments that scratches that same itch but came together a lot better, except I tripled the ingredients. Preheat oven to 400F. Cook the turkey until cooked through with salt, pepper, and garlic, then remove meat from the pan. Toss diced veggies into the fat still into the pan, then cook until softened. While that’s all going, mix together your eggs, cottage cheese, syrup, and milk as well as some salt. Once that’s combined, fold in the flour and baking powder. Then add in the turkey, veggies, and cheese. Once fully combined, divide evenly into greased cupcake trays and bake for 25 minutes. My batch ended up making 45 muffins, which I’m gonna have 2 of each morning

As the title says. This time I added two poblanos along with the serranos, I’ll be doing that again. And a 1lb pack of bacon because that’s all I could find. Forgot to add when I made the recipe book, but a splash of vinegar at the end helps.

Recipe’s based on the serious eats one, this is just what it’s turned into. Makes 14 1-cup servings plus 1-2 bowls. I’ve been making it all on the stovetop nowadays too.

Rice made normally in a rice cooker with some vegetable oil and cilantro thrown in while it cooks.

See the last photo for a live picture of me enjoying the fruits of my labor.

Been a lot of real sad struggling beginner posts this week so since I've been doing this for 5+ years continuously I want to help those just starting out.

I freeze all of my preps and regularly only cook twice a month or less. This is my religion.

I'm making 5 burrito bowls. This is so fast I'm doing this while actual dinner cooks. This is just a side quest on the counter in between. This is how you build variety in the freezer so I never eat the same thing all week, or even two days in a row.
Recipe and info/tips in comments.

2.2kg lamb leg was on sale so… eating lamb for the whole week. I don’t know why the Salsa Verde looks like vomit in the end, I swear it looked good in the pot

Lamb Vindaloo: lamb, vindaloo sauce, carrots, green onion, onion.

Lamb with Salsa Verde: lamb, jalapeño, green bell pepper, onion, tomatillo

This week I mainly prepped veggies, and also some hardboiled eggs to use in deviled eggs, or just as a snack throughout the week. I always prep ingredients, not whole meals, so I have some flexibility throughout the week. For instance, I have two meals with spinach planned, and one with broccoli. But which option I'll have with my sausages, my tteokbokki or rice bowl, I'll decide on the day, and I'll season accordingly. I can also still change whether I want rice, or switch it to glass noodles, rice noodles, grains, etc. I also have different pickled and fermented items to choose as a side. It's the perfect mix for me between having things ready so I can have a meal on the table in a few minutes, while still having a different meal every day, and not being locked in to what I thought I would be in the mood for days earlier.

This was the base recipe I used: https://www.budgetbytes.com/african-peanut-stew-vegan/

I included the optional rice (though I used basmati) but didn't add the cilantro or chopped peanuts. I included a whole bunch of collard greens instead of just half a bunch. I used vegetable bouillon and water instead of vegetable broth, paprika instead of crushed red pepper, ground ginger instead of grated ginger, and butter instead of olive oil.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but it's really delicious! It was definitely some effort to make though, especially since I sprained my wrist this morning and then had to chop a pretty sizable sweet potato.

Ingredients (2 servings)

For the chicken stir-fry:

200–250 g boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 cup broccoli florets

1 carrot, sliced

½ red bell pepper, chopped

¼ red onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp honey

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp sesame seeds

1–2 tbsp cooking oil

2–3 tbsp water, as needed

For the rice:

1 cup uncooked white rice

Water, as required

A pinch of salt (optional)

Made a post for September that a lot of people liked so I wanted to share what I made for my October meal preps. I'm a doctor in residency so I don't have a ton of free time. I also need to hit my macros and as good as the hospital cafeteria food is, it's basically slop as far as macros go (though a little slop after a long night shift ain't so bad). Because of all that, I do a lot of meal prepping. Below are links to all the recipes- variety of Instagram and TT recipes I have saved to my folders and notes app. Some miscellaneous thoughts below that.

For recipes: I initially included the links to the IG posts, but IG doxxes you when you share a link via the app, so I will tell you where to find the recipe on IG and if you really want to cook them, you can look them up there. E: /u/Cantaloupeasleep502 posted the links in the comments; goated for that

Red Pesto chicken gnocchi: @taylorschneidur post from 7/6

Supreme pizza bowls, tomato boursin chicken pasta, artichoke spinach chicken pasta, caramelized onion pasta, sweet potato sausage egg bake: @adamwolfefitness posts from 9/11, 9/13, 9/25, 9/26, and 9/27, respectively

Smores Rice crispy treat: @noahperlotfit post from 8/31

Also a few more desserts I plan on making and one frozen meat dish but my freezer is completely packed right now, so will have to hold off.

Thoughts:

- Was way too ambitious this month. I got excited with how many good recipes I was saving (compounded with being hungry all the time in my cut) so I spent way too much and came close to wasting food with how little storage I have. Next month, I plan on calculating the number of meals I need and buying based on that.

- Costco chicken thighs have shit macros. I made the dumb mistake of not checking the nutrition label before purchasing 25 lbs of it and I was dumbstruck when I entered it into Cronometer. These recipes would be much better with chicken thighs from another place that aren't as fatty

- The sweet potato egg bake would benefit from the whole 16 oz of turkey sausage instead of 10 oz. Also, my Walmart doesn't have the sweet potato tots but sweet potato fries worked pretty well

-After not having had a dishwasher, oven that got to temp, space to do a lot of cooking, or good stove for the last 4 years, I sincerely appreciate living in an apartment that has everything.

Happy to answer any questions

Kids asked for chipotle tonight, so we made burrito bowls with taco meat. Had tons leftover and packed 4 burrito bowls into the freezer. Rice, black beans, ground beef and shredded cheddar. Will top with fresh salsa, sour cream and avocados when they get eaten.

Recipe: rice, canned black beans, ground beef, taco seasoning, 1/2 block cheddar cheese

Makes: 3-4 large bowls
Prep: ~20 minutes
Cook: ~30 minutes
Total: ~50 minutes

Cilantro-Lime Rice
1 cup long-grain white rice
1¾ cups chicken broth or water
1 tbsp butter or olive oil
½ tsp kosher salt
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
Juice of ½ lime
Rinse the rice until the water is mostly clear. Bring the broth, rice, butter, salt, garlic powder, pepper and cumin to a boil. Cover, reduce to low and cook about 15–18 minutes, or according to the rice package.
Remove from heat and let it sit covered for 5–10 minutes. Fluff with a fork, then fold in the cilantro and fresh lime juice.

Roasted Corn & Black Beans
1½ cups corn, frozen or drained canned
1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp garlic powder
Salt and black pepper to taste
Juice of ½ lime
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil and corn and let the corn cook without stirring constantly so some kernels develop a little char, about 4–5 minutes.
Add the black beans, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika and garlic powder. Cook another 2–3 minutes, just until the beans are hot. Finish with lime juice and season with salt and pepper.

Saucy Chipotle Chicken & Peppers
This looks like the star of your bowls.
1½ lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 large red bell pepper, sliced
1 medium yellow or white onion, sliced
1 tbsp avocado or olive oil
2–3 chipotle peppers in adobo, finely chopped
2 tbsp adobo sauce from the can
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
½ tsp black pepper
½ cup chicken broth
1 tbsp honey or brown sugar
Juice of ½ lime
Cut the chicken into roughly 1-inch chunks. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the oil. Add the chicken in a single layer and sear for about 3–4 minutes before turning. Continue cooking until the exterior has good color. It doesn’t need to be completely cooked yet.
Remove the chicken temporarily and add the onion and red bell pepper. Cook 4–5 minutes, leaving them slightly crisp.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook about 30 seconds. Stir in the chopped chipotles, adobo sauce, chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, garlic powder and onion powder.
Pour in the chicken broth and add the honey. Stir everything together, scraping the browned bits from the pan.
Return the chicken and any juices to the skillet. Simmer 5–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken reaches 165°F and the sauce reduces enough to thoroughly coat the chicken, peppers and onions.
Finish with the lime juice. Taste and adjust the salt, lime or adobo sauce. You want it smoky, tangy, moderately spicy and slightly sweet.

Lime Crema
The white drizzle in your finished bowls looks perfect for a simple crema.
½ cup sour cream or Mexican crema
1–2 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp water
Pinch of salt
Whisk until smooth. Add just enough water to make it thin enough to drizzle.

Doubled this recipe using 1 pack of frozen spinach as the veggie. Browned ground turkey meat that I seasoned myself since it was cheaper than buying turkey sausage already made (plus I didn't have to deal with removing the casing). Used this recipe to make the turkey sausage. I substituted half of the AP flour for oat/buckwheat flour blend for a little more protein and fiber. This was my first time making them I'll probably use all oat flour next time around.

All the raw ingredients were $24, making this $1 per muffin and we have milk, eggs, cheese and green onion leftover (that's going in "fancy" ramen tonight!)

Family had some this morning with a hashbrown. Going to store in a zip bag in the freezer. Plan on thawing overnight then warming in the toaster oven/air fryer on low heat to warm through.

Straight out the oven these were fantastic. The turkey sausage seasoning is very reminiscent of Thanksgiving stuffing mix. Will add more spice (in the form of cayenne pepper) next time.

steamed: mustard greens, beets, kabocha + pumpkin
baked: crispy extra firm tofu marinated* overnight then tossed in corn starch and baked for 30 mins @ 375°
base: farro, barley, lentils and white beans cooked in a miso dashi broth mixed with shiitake + oyster mushrooms sautéed with scallion and garlic
*marinade/sauce: tahini, tamari, mirin, rice vinegar, sesame oil, lemon juice, miso, maple syrup, ginger, chili flakes

I’ll will sometimes add lemon, kimchi, sprouts, avocado, or extra protein to my bowl when I eat. delicious hot or cold. I’m not vegetarian but meals like these make me feel amazing!!! I wish I prepped like this every week 😭

I made this eggplant pasta recipe last weekend: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/240955/eggplant-pasta/

I added some parmesan, and I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was! I'm not a big eggplant person, and the recipe could've used a tad more flavor, but it was nice and hearty while also getting some good fruits and vegetables in!