PREPARATION IS KEY: Simple & healthy salad to take for lunch or to have all prepped for dinner when you get home!

There’s no time like the present time to focus on yourself! For me, preparation has always been the key to success when it comes to sticking to a clean diet.  Not only is a clean, healthy way of eating a great way to get rid of that holiday bloat, but it really puts your mind in a positive, motivated place.  You really can’t fail if you take the time to set yourself up for success!

Many of us are in the midst of the Fixx360 which really reiterated to me the importance of meal prepping for a successful week!  I truly believe if you can carve out a little time each week to thoughtfully plan a menu, shop for the ingredients and prep in advance you really can’t fail.  The meals do not have to be fancy by any means. A big batch of grilled chicken, hard-boiled eggs and washed and cut fruit and veggies goes a long way! The idea is that if you are stocked with healthy options you are less likely to grab something “easy” and often times not the best choice.  

Since I really enjoy rolling up my sleeves and spending some time in the kitchen, I decided to compile a list of my 5 current go-to meal prep recipes and show you how versatile they are! Over the next 5 weeks, I will be sharing these simple yet delicious recipes so be sure to check your email!

Mediterranean Farro Salad

A friend of mine recently introduced this salad to me at a birthday brunch we both attended.  I’ve probably made it 6 times since then! I’m a sucker for mediterranean flavors. What I love most about this salad is the use of farro, which I think is a highly underused grain.  What many people don’t realize is that farro actually contains a higher concentration of protein and fiber than quinoa. Farro has a bit of a chewy texture (in a good way!) making it a great addition to soups and salads.

This farro salad can be enjoyed on it’s own or as a side dish, and the longer it sits in the fridge the better it gets!  The recipes says up to two days in the fridge, but personally i’ve let it go more than that and it’s just as delicious on Day 4!  

I love opening up a can of tuna and mixing it in with my salad for some added protein.  It also pairs beautifully with a piece of grilled chicken or fish. You can really tailor the recipe to your liking.  I love to add a little bit of fresh dill to it! If you like olives, throw some kalamatas in for some extra briney tang! If you’re going dairy free, simply omit the feta.  The flavors are still magical! Quite frankly, if you’re just not feeling the farro, quinoa makes an awesome substitution in this salad.

Salad Ingredients:
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup uncooked farro, rinsed and drained
1 large cucumber, seeded and finely-diced
2/3 cup finely-diced roasted red peppers
1/2 cup finely-diced sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Half of a small red onion, finely diced (about 2/3 cup)
1/4 cup finely-chopped fresh parsley

Greek Vinaigrette Ingredients:
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
Pinch of garlic powder
Pinch of salt
Pinch of black pepper

Directions:
Stir together stock and farro in a medium saucepan, and cook according to package instructions until al dente.  Remove from heat, and drain off any extra stock once the farro is cooked. Let farro cool for at least 10 minutes.  Transfer farro to a large mixing bowl, and add in remaining ingredients, including the vinaigrette. Toss until combined.

SOURCE: Gimme Some Oven

This blog post was written by Rachel DiGiorgio, one of our clients in Wakefield! We love when she posts her recipes on her social media, and we’re so excited that she took the time to write one up for us. Enjoy!

Nothing screams “Fall is Coming” like all of the warm flavors of fall! Although I love the indulgence of the holiday season, my waistline probably would not appreciate me eating a giant turkey dinner, with all the fixings, on a regular basis. I mean, we all need a cheat meal here and there, but after crushing workout after workout it’s so important to fuel our bodies with foods that are going to work with us not against us. After all, what you put into your body is more than half the battle.

When I’m brainstorming a weekly menu, I’m always trying to find ways to “lighten up” some of our favorites but still make it something everyone in my family will eat. I’m still working on my four year old’s picky palate but she’s getting there :). Cooking is my passion so I want to keep it fun and creative, but at the same time simple enough to be able to prepare it in between homework, sports and whatever else we have going on in our busy family of 5.

One of my newest creations is the perfect solution to the comfort of a turkey dinner disguised in a simple, healthy meal that is on the table in under an hour. My Ground Turkey Stuffed Acorn Squash take all of your favorite holiday flavors and combine them in a delicious mashup of Autumn delight.

The preparation is basically a three step process (prepare the squash, prepare the turkey mixture and bake the stuffed squash). I still believe this is an easy weeknight meal to whip up!

First, depending on the size of the acorn squash you’ll need 2 or 3. The ones I found were HUGE so I bought 2 which makes 4 servings since they are cut in half and stuffed with the ground turkey filling.

Preheat your oven to 400°. Cut the acorn squash in half and spoon out the seeds. Brush the inside of each squash half with avocado oil (or olive oil), season with salt and pepper and a sprinkle of brown sugar per half. To me, brown sugar is just one of those iconic Fall flavors that help give this recipe a subtle hint of sweet along with all the savory goodness. Once these are seasoned and good to go, pop them in the oven until tender. This should take about 30 minutes, depending on your oven. They should be fork tender before taking them out.

Here is what the finished squash looks like. You can see in the picture of tiny little pool of liquidy brown sugar has formed in the bottom of each squash. Can you even imagine how good this is going to taste with perfectly seasoned ground turkey???

While the squash is cooking, it’s time to prepare the turkey. Heat 1 tablespoon of avocado oil in a saute pan. Once the oil is hot, add lean ground turkey and brown until fully cooked. Season the ground turkey with salt, pepper, onion & garlic powder, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg and freshly chopped sage. Ground sage is a good substitution but nothing really beats fresh herbs. Once the turkey is cooked and seasoned, add 1 cup of chicken broth and 2 cups of brown rice.

My absolute favorite brown rice short cut is the frozen organic brown rice from Trader Joe’s. This drastically reduces prep time for any recipe using brown rice as it only takes 3 minutes in the microwave! You’re also more than welcome to cook the brown rice on the stovetop if you’re just not that into microwaves. Once you’ve cooked the rice, you just open the bag and add it to the turkey mixture. Bring the mixture to a simmer and then stir in a cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch, 2 tablespoons water) to thicken the mixture just a bit.

The next step really takes the recipe to that next level of festive deliciousness. Nothing embodies fall and Thanksgiving more than cranberries! Once the mixture has thickened enough, add a half cup of fresh cranberries. I had some in my freezer from last year, so I tossed some of those in since they end to be a seasonal find at the grocery store, but you can also find them year round in the frozen food section. Once those are just tender, you’re ready to add the turkey mixture to your squash! Fill each squash with a heaping scoop until you’ve used all of it. My final touch is optional, but I think it’s worth it for the contrast of texture and for the eye appeal. I’m a little over the top like that though. Not only do I want the food to taste amazing, but I sure as heck want it to look pretty on the plate….ya know, so i can take a photograph and post it to my Instagram story!

Melt about 1 tablespoon or so of butter. I love the Kerrygold grass fed butter…and let’s be honest a little butter never hurt anyone. A little. I said a LITTLE. Once the butter melts, add 2 tablespoons of whole wheat bread crumbs and stir around until it’s all mixed up in a yummy, buttery, crumbly little topping. Sprinkle the breadcrumb topping over each of the stuffed squash and then put back into the oven for about 10 minutes, just until everything is heated throughout and crispy.

Finally, get that meal on the table and pretend it’s Thanksgiving! The kicker is this meal won’t make you feel guilty or tired! These taste amazing reheated so definitely feel free to double the recipe so you have some leftovers. Having leftovers in the fridge is the key to making good decisions for a healthy week!

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°.  Cut acorn squash in half, spoon out seeds and discard the seeds.  Place acorn squash on a cookie sheet and drizzle with avocado oil. Season each half with salt & pepper and brown sugar.  Roast in oven for 30 minutes or until fork tender. Remove from oven and set aside.
2. While the squash is roasting, heat 1 tablespoon of avocado oil in a saute pan.  Once the oil is hot, add the lean ground turkey. Brown turkey until fully cooked.  Season turkey with sage, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, garlic and onion powder. Season additionally with salt & pepper to taste.
3. Add cooked brown rice and chicken broth.  Bring to boil. Once mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat, add cornstarch & water mixture and simmer until thickened.  Finally, stir in cranberries and cook 1-2 minutes until the cranberries are tender.
4. Divide the turkey mixture amongst the squash halves.
5. Saute butter until melted.  Add whole wheat breadcrumb until toasted.  1-2 minutes.
6. Sprinkle toasted breadcrumb on ground turkey stuffed squash and bake in oven for 10 minutes until heated through and the breadcrumbs are golden brown.

Move over donut shops –  there is a new donut in town.

Who doesn’t love donuts? The sweet breakfast staple isn’t usually what you think of when you think of “healthy recipe”. We get that.

What if we told you that Laura has whipped up her magic again, to create a delicious and protein packed version of everyones favorite guilty pleasure?!

Well, she’s done just that.

Laura Houston, front desk rockstar and blogger behind SomeThymes Paleo, shared this easy to follow recipe that will have everyone craving these guilt-free donuts.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Cup almond flour
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cacao
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
• 4 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon Himalayan salt (or sea salt)
• ¼ cup dairy free chocolate chips plus a handful to top

This recipe will make 6 donuts.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 F
2. Grease your donut pan and set aside (I use Trader Joes Coconut spray)
3. In a small bowl, mix together your eggs and maple syrup and set aside
4. In a medium sized bowl, add your remaining ingredients. Then, add your liquids and whisk until nice and smooth
5. Fill each donut cavity half way and tap the pan a few times to get any air bubbles out
6. Top with additional chocolate chips
7. Bake for 12 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean
8. Let donuts cool a minute in the pan and remove carefully, if they’re tricky to get out I’ll use an offset spatulate to help flip them out of the pan

What’s better than chocolate on Valentine’s Day?

Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Hearts!

Laura Houston from our Front Desk & SomeThymes Paleo has once again shared an awesome recipe that is full on flavor and perfect for this week (and really every week during the year, in my opinion).

Who is ready to mix up their #ROWmance week with a few of these?!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 packages (3 cups) dark chocolate Enjoy Life morsels
• ½ cup creamy almond butter
• ½ cup almond flour

You can use any dark chocolate you want – Enjoy Life brand is dairy, nut and soy free, so it’s a great choice if you have any allergies.

This recipe makes 24 hearts.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a small bowl combine your almond butter and almond flour. Mix thoroughly
2. In a microwave safe bowl, or double boiler, melt your dark chocolate
3. You have a few options for assembly. I used my wilton silicone heart molds, but you can use a mini cupcake pan with liners or any other small molds you might have.
4. Fill your molds ¼ of the way with dark chocolate
5. Place 1 teaspoon of your almond mixture
6. Top off with dark chocolate
7. Place in freezer until they’ve set
8. Keep in fridge
9. ENJOY!

So, are we ready to make and try these? Don’t forget to share on social with us!