How to Meal Prep as a Mom (GIVEAWAY)

<<GIVEAWAY DETAILS TOWARD END OF POST>>

I rummage through my diaper bag backpack as one child screams to be fed, then the other one. I am searching through all the zippers and pockets for anything that’ll serve as a snack. All I can come up with is a crumpled granola bar that I can’t be confident was a recent addition to my bag because I’m pretty sure I haven’t purchased that brand of granola bar in months.

I stand in line for overpriced, over-salted food that’ll work in the pinch I’m in. As I wait, I prepare a bottle for my daughter. My son is still hungry. People are staring.

And guess what? I get to do it all over again if dinnertime rolls around and I’m not quite ready.

***

If this has happened to you, isn’t parenthood great?

That scenario only had to play out once. Because once is all it takes to never want it to happen again.

So grab your food storage containers and enter: meal planning. I can’t promise I’m the greatest at it, but I’ve learned enough to establish a routine that works for me and my family. No more crying kids while I only come up with a handful of crumbs and quarters from the bottom of my bag.

When you’re a mom of two, meal planning isn’t as easy as you’d think. Mainly because the banshees who think they run my house also think I’m a pretty fun and cool mom and they want to hang out, listen to music, and have dance parties with me. While I’m nothing if not incredibly grateful that I’m their form of entertainment, meal prepping has to be done either during nap (if both kids nap), after they’ve gone to bed for the evening, or when my husband is off work. Let me break down each of these.

1. Nap time: For both my kids to nap at the same time would be a miracle and therefore, only happens very rarely.
2. Bedtime: If you aren’t utterly exhausted at the end of the day after caring for youngsters, I need to suck some of your energy like a Dementor because when the lights are out, I’d always prefer to curl up for a snooze.
3. Husband’s work schedule: His schedule isn’t the most conducive to me getting some alone time for leisure or meal prepping.

My meal preps are realistic. Meaning, I’m not making large items that are one-and-done or take way too long or that won’t feed us at least twice. These kinds of foods and meals are great for some, but not very feasible or efficient for my family. Instead, I like to prep a variety of ingredients and then use those ingredients throughout many dishes.

Take this roasted medley of brussels sprouts and potatoes, for instance (recipe below). They took just 30 minutes to make, including prep time and then I used my Ello Dura-Glass food storage container to keep them in. When we’re ready to use, I can throw these in salads, macro bowls, or just as they are onto a plate and paired with a protein.

Sometimes I even have my protein ready too. Again, I use the new Ello products for this. I make the chicken and keep in the fridge for a quick addition to tacos, breakfast burritos or pasta. Or, I make a batch of chicken salad (this recipe is below too) because it’s a classic favorite of mine and perfect for #momlife.

One thing I’ve noticed is I’m more likely to meal prep if I have solid accessories to work with. These new Ello Dura-Glass containers are my jam! LET ME TELL YOU WHY, MMKAY? (I’m excited!)

• Functionality. These containers are microwave safe, oven safe, freezer safe, and dishwasher safe. I have those kitchen items that I have to hand wash and after loading the dishwasher with everything that has piled up during the day, those hand wash only items just sit there and I stare at them with scorn. Having containers that I can just throw in the wash is ideal. Also, easy-to-pair color matching lids!!!!!!
• Durability. The silicone sleeve can be kept on during cleaning, which is fantastic, but it also serves as protection against chips and scratches.
• Quality. Ello products are free of BPA, phthalates, PVC, lead, and cadmium. Also, since these containers are glass, you won’t smell a weird combination of your last handful of meals. These containers don’t stain either.

My recap of the snacking situation makes this next point super obvious, but you want to also prep your snacks if you have young kids around. We like to pack the snack container with pretzels for Max, and we use the lunch container for his sandwich and sides if we know we’re going to be away from the house for a little bit longer.

This is how Ello breaks down the sizes:

• Blue: The leftover saver that’s big enough for leftovers and baking (5 cups)
• Red: The lunch buddy that fits a full meal (3.4 cups)
• Green: The side piece that perfectly fits sides and smaller portions (1.75 cups)
• Orange: The little guy for dressings, sauces, snacks (1 cup)

<<If you want to win a set of one of each of these containers, check out my post on Instagram!>>

Other meal prep ideas: peel and cut carrots into 1/4 inch strips, pre-make dressings, cook ground meats (use in taco salads, as burgers, etc), make double batches of soup for freezer storage, and steam then freeze zucchini and cauliflower to add to smoothies later.

Meal prepping doesn’t have to be a scary and time consuming task! You don’t have to look over your cookbooks and food blogs to get dinner inspiration and cook those meals, which can take hours and hours in the kitchen. Start thinking of meal prepping as prepping ingredients more than prepping meals. The more you do it, the easier it’ll become for you to then take those individual ingredients (dips, sauces, meat) and build a new dish entirely instead of relying on recipes.

But, if you want to rely on recipes, go ahead and start with the ones below! 😉

Ello and I partnered on this blog post. As always, the wording and opinions in this post are 100% my own and not influenced by a brand/influencer partnership in any way whatsoever. Thank you for supporting the brands that support The Foodie Patootie!

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

Brussels Sprouts

• 1 pound brussels sprouts, stem removed and cut into halves or fourths, depending on size (just make sure all pieces are roughly the same size)
• Salt, pepper, red pepper flakes to taste

Roasted Potatoes

• 4-5 red potatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• Salt and pepper to taste

Citrus-Herb Chicken Salad

• 1 pound chicken tenderloins
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Zest of 1/2 orange
• Juice of 1/2 orange
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of dried parsley
• 4 large basil leaves, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 3 tablespoons plain greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup dried cherries, roughly chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A couple dashes of hot sauce (optional)

Directions:

Brussels Sprouts

1. Preheat oven to 400*F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Add brussels sprouts to baking sheet and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes.
2. Bake for 20 minutes, or until brussels are tender.

Roasted Potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 400*F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Add potatoes to baking sheet and toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika.
2. Bake for 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

Citrus-Herb Chicken Salad

1. Make the chicken marinade by combining olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, orange zest, orange juice, parsley, garlic, and basil in a stoage container and toss to combine. Marinate for several hours before grilling. Grill on medium until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Once chicken is cooked, remove to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes before chopping.
2. In a large bowl combine mayonnaise, green yogurt, mustard, celery, dried cherries, salt, pepper, and hot sauce (if using). Add chopped chicken. Toss to combine and store for quick and easy lunches.

Depending on the size of your oven and the size of your vegetables, you may choose to cook at the same time on the same baking sheet, but don't overcrowd the pan or you may not be able to achieve crispiness.