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Guest post by Melissa Joa
Pre plan for the week
Have at least 3 sources of protein available. Cook chicken, sausage, ground beef, flank steak, sausage patties etc.
Try to have different meat sources throughout the week.
Prep a container of chopped veggies to grab on the go – carrots, parsnips, zucchini, cucumber, celery, snap peas, broccoli, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, jicama(crunchy & refreshing), bell peppers.
If you’re a dip person – “Hummus” without beans, made with vegetables (Google paleo hummus recipes). Guacamole, lemon dill in paleo mayo, mashed egg salad, tuna salad etc.
Pre make and store in fridge!
Have a variety of salads available – green leafy lettuces, coleslaw, broccoli slaw, broccoli salad, or create your own.
Make enough for left overs!
Pre-prep
Cauliflower rice: Processor whole head of cauliflower and portion out into labelled Ziploc and freeze.
Spaghetti squash: Cut in half, scrape seeds, put in baking dish with .5″ water in bottom. Bake at 400 until tender and you can stick fork into it and pull off the skin. Portion into labelled Ziploc and freeze.
Cauliflower mash: Per 1 head cauliflower add 1 cup broth. Chop cauliflower, place in pot with broth and favourite spices. Boil til tender. Blender smooth. Spoon into ice cube tray. Freeze. Then pop out and put in labelled Ziploc bag. When ready to use, melt in pot. Great to add coconut cream and curry or balsamic sautéed onions and mushrooms for “bangers and mash”
You can also use the ice cube tray for butternut squash purée, acorn squash purée, beet puree, sweet potato purée. Great to make a quick soup, add to chili or stews, or make a vegetable soufflé.
Making vegetable “noodles”: A couple kitchen tools are required a mandolin slicer or a spiralizer. Use to make fresh salads(jicama, carrot, zucchini etc), root veg hash(parsnips, beets, squash, sweet potato), lasagna(zucchini, butternut squash, sweet potato noodles – use a mandolin), fettuccini or spaghetti noodles use the(zucchini, butternut squash, sweet potato – use a spiralizer or spaghetti squash). You can portion into labelled Ziploc and freeze.
Bonus tips
You don’t need to salt your food until its time to serve. The salt dissipates while cooking. Using it while creating a dish/meal doesn’t always make it taste saltier, it just increases your sodium intake. Waiting until your meal is completely cooked and ready to serve is the best time to add salt.
Add salt to onions to help tenderize while sautéing. A pinch of baking soda helps too.
Baking soda and salt have their own complimenting chemical reaction.
Melissa is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist (RHN). A mother of three and an avid CrossFitter, Melissa specializes in whole body health – balancing the foundations of digestion and the body’s systems, along with lifestyle, emotional, and energetic support.
You can contact Melissa at melissajoa@shaw.ca