It’s Time to Meal Prep for Easier Weekday Meals

Do you find yourself yearning for easier meal times during the weekdays? It’s time to meal prep to make weekday meals easier. Are you needing that? Or is it just me.

Weekend prep makes for easier weekday meals here.

If your weekdays are becoming full of activities that take you away from the kitchen or leave you too tired to care about weekday meal prep, raise your right hand.

I hear you.

My teaching days this time of year were brutal. My family knew that little cooking could or would occur during those crazy days of end of the year lists to complete that took me home later than usual.

If you are one of those crazy parents on the soccer, baseball or traveling ball teams, I see you. This time of year may leave you left to drive throughs that wreak havoc on food budgets and waist lines and are often less than healthy in the long run.

So, how do you prep to make weekday meals easier?

I got you.

1. Look for recipes that you can make in advance and can be added to your weekday meals.
2. Select ingredients for 30 minute meals or less and add to your weekend shopping list to make weekday prep easier.
3. Depending on your family size, look for recipes that will hold well when you make them and cover more than one meal.
4. Recipes that hold well in the refrigerator or freezer are perfect.
5. PLAN well. Find favorite recipes; make your grocery list; and set a schedule to get meals prepped for at least one week.
6. If you are making lunches, buy containers that you can reuse each week to fill on the weekends and ready for grabbing and adding to lunchboxes or add to your freezer.
7. If you add casseroles, such as, lasagna to the freezer for later baking, you may be able to add those to the fridge the morning of the day you want to cook them to reduce cooking time.
8. Individual servings of recipes (that freeze well) are perfect added to the freezer to have for a quick meal. Just add to microwave safe containers to heat and eat. Perfect for those left at home to fend for themselves! Make sure you give guidelines to those who need them!

Here are a few meal prep recipes that I love to prep ahead to have easy weekday meals ready–

Meatloaf

This is by far our favorite “make ahead”meal prep recipe and just warm entree. Using mini loaf pans has been the key for me! We split one mini loaf meatloaf for a meal…but, your bigger appetite folks may need more…so plan accordingly.

Just make this recipe, bake, cool and add to individual freezer containers for your weekday meals. Don’t forget to label and date!

Add a baked potato and a salad and you are set! (Microwave those potatoes for a fast weekday meal!)

Chili:

Whatever chili you choose, make it and place it in individual serving containers. Label with name and date and add it to the freezer. Just microwave or add to the stove for quick eating. Made ahead and ready in minutes! Just plan to have cheese or sour cream for serving on your grocery list!

• sweet potato chili
• gluten free chili

Taco Favorites

Does your family love Tacos? We are huge fans no matter what time of year! Just prep that taco seasoning ahead to make taco meat or taco soup. You will thank me later!

• Taco Seasoning– make packets of the seasoning to cut down on time making tacos.
• Taco Soup– make the soup ahead of time and, like chili, add it to the fridge or freezer in individual containers.
• Taco Lettuce Wraps– prepare the taco meat on the weekend and add to container sizes to suit your family and add to the fridge or freezer. Just warm and add to lettuce or taco shells with toppings. Saves a huge amount of time on the weekdays.

Salads

• Marinated Vegetable Salad. This recipe is perfect made ahead. The flavors just get better after several days. Make it and have it ready for a great summer side to grilled burgers, entrees or even sandwiches.

• Potato salad. A perfect side when the weather gets warm. For outdoor picnics, BBQs or just added to an entree. TIP: make just enough on a weekend where it will last a couple of days before everyone tires of it!

• Cranberry Chicken Pasta Salad– although we don’t think of cranberry during warmer months, this pasta salad is a great one to make and tuck into the fridge for lunches or light dinners. We love this one soooo much!

Make Ahead Desserts

Here’s my BEST tip for prepping desserts. Simply add individual serving size containers of cake, cobblers, or cookies to the freezer. Don’t forget to label and date!

I promise that when you need a dessert, and you warm those in the microwave for a few seconds, you will thank me. Just add sliced strawberries to the pound cake…or whipped cream to the cobblers or ice cream to your favorite cookies.

You’re welcome!

This one freezes really well:

• Pound cake

Breads

This is one food group that is the EASIEST to make and freeze. Mini loaves of my favorite breads are baked and added to ziplock bags and labeled to be warmed and enjoyed later. The EASIEST meal prep ever!

Cinnamon rolls– so good to have made ahead, warm in the microwave and grab for a fast and easy breakfast. Breakfast sandwiches made and individually frozen are a favorite, too.

Even these cornbread muffins can be made, frozen and added to freezer bags to be individually warmed for those weekday meals in a hurry. Just a tip on those–wrap individually with parchment if adding to one large bag OR bag individually so that you can easily remove the number you need.

Zucchini Bread will be so easy as zucchini will soon be abundantly in season. Small mini loaves of these are always made and frozen ready for the next time they are needed for a quick morning or easy dessert. Warmed in the oven and served with coffee, you will thank me.

Although we usually think of Pumpkin Bread as a fall favorite, my family will love this ANY time of the year. Again, these are great to add to the freezer to have for desserts or weekend mornings with coffee to bring joy. Whether large loaves or small ones, I’d recommend wrapping them in parchment and adding them to ziplock bags or storage containers and labeling/dating to make sure we know what’s in the container!

Do you need more Meal Prep Tips?

1. Just making yourself Meal Prep is the big deal.
2. Setting aside the time and adding it to the calendar.
3. Making good choices for meal planning. And then follow through will provide the BEST results.
4. Look for ways to prep things that you won’t freeze or do completely…like chopping amounts of onions, veggies, measuring things for a recipe that will save time on weekdays.
5. There are LOTS of sites that provide large amount recipes for making and portioning ahead. For me? Tried and trued favorite recipes are really the only ones that I want to try. Years ago a friend and I took the leap of faith in preparing food in bulk quantities using THEIR recipes. Some were NOT good creating a lot of food that we did not love. That tip alone has been the most valuable.
6. If you have favorite recipes, try freezing a small amount and see if you love the results when rewarming them.
7. One, last tip! When grilling burgers or pork loin servings, wrap them individually in parchment paper and add to ziplock bags in the fridge of freezer for quick and easy rewarming results. We do this ALL of the time! Grill lots on the weekend and enjoy later during the week!

Hope this helps your family when feet are under your table in the months ahead!

Meal Prep Supplies:

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Hope these meal prep recipes have helped you have easier weekday meal preps!

Happy Prepping Friends!