weekday meal plan april 22
Open this meal plan by clicking below or here.
Back again with another meal plan to help my RiverHome Co. families! Why did I start creating meal plans? I found that with two full-time working parents the most stressful parts of the day were breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack time. How was I supposed to make sure my whole family was making healthy choices when it came to food? I started created meal plans that covered ALL THE BASES, and to no surprise, meal time was SO MUCH MORE ENJOYABLE.
Meal plans take time and research to plan, so much goes into their creation, and I’m never perfect, but I am happy to share what the RiverHome Co. family is dong every week to make meal times less stressful.
In my meal plans you will find breakfast, snack, lunch, dinner, juicing, and dessert recipes that are:
family-friendly - I have 3 kids with a range of likes of dislikes that are ever-changing. The recipes I share here are kid-approved.
meal prep-ahead - Is it just me or are breakfast and lunch usually a blur? I am helping you get these two critical meals prepped ahead of time because as a full-time working mom of three, this felt like a daunting task that I needed some help with, so now I am sharing what I am doing with my community!
fresh in-season foods - As much as possible. We grow a range of veggies in our garden, but what we can’t grow we make sure are finding in-season foods in our local grocery store or farmer’s market.
balanced - We look for ethically-sourced protein, complex carbohydrates, nutrient rich vegetables, and we love fruit.
easy to make - Now, skills may vary, but I am not a chef. I am finding meals that with little skill, I know you can make.
sourdough - I will include sourdough, as fermented food is a critical component of our diet. If you are not a “sourdough-er” you can either purchase sourdough at the local bakery, or use a bread of your choice.
Meal Prep Break Down:
I break down my meal plans into breakfast prep, snack prep, and lunch prep, then, the 5 week days. I find that I only really need 5 recipes for dinner because of sports, church, or other dinner plans. I don’t tie myself down to a day, I can move the recipes around if I want! For instance, if my salad is freshly picked from our garden, I will move a salad to earlier in the week.
How to Use the Meal Prep Plan:
Open the meal plan above and print it! Put it on the fridge, send it to your spouse, whatever is going to help you! Then get the recipe cards printed and stapled together, I keep this ready on the counter all week long! (The cards themselves have links so bookmark the page on your phone/computer in case you need them!)
4-22 Meal Prep Recipe Cards: This is the really helpful part. Download the cards, print two to a sheet and staple in the corner. Now you have your recipes right at your fingertips. Hint: Prep all that you can right after you get home with your groceries. You are more likely to eat all the fresh food when it is ready to go!
My Meal Prep Essentials Linked Below:
Food Prep Containers - Great for on the go, pool and easy lunch or snack storage.
Nordicware pans - Best baking sheets.
Food processor - I have used this weekly since 2012. What a good investment and its on sale!!
Fruit containers - The genius here is the strainer.
Wide mouth jars - use for celery, cucumbers, and herbs with water at bottom to keep them fresh!
Juice Containers with lids - These are BPA free, dishwasher safe, and GREAT for on the go.
MUST HAVE JUICER - This is our juicer we have had for years. Affordable and does the job.
There is also more links on the recipe cards themselves, make sure to scan through before printing!
Meal prepping and planning is no easy task. Each meal prep week could take me 10-20 hours as they include research on nutrients, fresh, in-season foods, and making it look cohesive and user friendly in my recipe card format. My goal is to build community focused around helping each other. If this meal prep plan helped you save time and the stress of healthy meal planning for your family, then I met my goal. I want to find meals that the whole family will enjoy, so I hope you can strive for that too, with the recipes I have provided. If you have a recipe to share, please email me at hello@riverhomeco.com and I will be sure to give credit on the cards.
PLEASE share your meals and prep, and don’t forget to tag @riverhomeco.
xoxo
Erin
Founder of RiverHome Co.
NEW this week
Mother’s Day Collection
These three Mother’s Day scents embody what I think are the perfect Mother’s day gifts: Coffee, love, and a clean house. You could disagree, maybe add some flowers or a nice robe, but to me I just want to be with my loved ones, with a coffee in my hand, in a clean house.
But First, Coffee: coffee, cream, sugar
Love You Mom: amber, cocoa butter, musk
Light to Clean House: (Will not actually clean the house, but it will smell clean.) lavender, greens, jasmine
RH Co. has created this limited release, and when they sell out, they are gone. Check out now to ensure you snag these limited edition scents.
