Weekly Meal Prep Menu: No. 7

It’s time to get your prep on with Weekly Meal Prep Menu: No. 7 !

Bonus: It’s Freezer-friendly

Hey there! Welcome to the Weekly Meal Prep series where each week we feature 2 entrees, 1 breakfast, 1 salad and 1 snack or treat (and sometimes, a bonus recipe). Our Weekly Meal Plan Menus are designed to serve 4 people – or fewer if you don’t mind leftovers. This won’t be enough to feed you or your family for the entire week but it’s enough to put a good dent in the week. Feel free to add additional recipes or staple items like hard-boiled eggs, fresh fruit, cut veggies, tossed green salads, salad dressings and more as your time (and energy!) allows.

To get the recipes, just click the image or link to get the printable recipe. You’ll find the grocery list after the recipes – just click the link below the photo to download and print.

Weekly Meal Prep Menu: No. 7

#mealprepseries

Instant Pot Chicken Sweet Potato Curry –  (includes directions for Slow Cooker) A really great curry dish can take hours to prepare what with all the slow simmering and mixing of spices but not this one! This one’s a true “curry in a hurry” thanks to the Instant Pot and just a few key spices. Serve it over cauliflower rice for a hearty meal – and leave off the cashews if you’re looking for a nut-free dish.

Shepherd’s Pie with Sweet Potato Topping –  This is one of our most popular recipes – and for good reason! It’s simple to prepares and incredibly filling and comforting. If you have the freezer space, we recommend doubling the recipe and making two pies (trust us, you’re gonna want them later!) Although you can bake them from frozen, we recommend allowing them to thaw 24-48 hours in the fridge before baking to cut your oven time in half. Glass pie plate (like these) work well for dishes that go from freezer or fridge to oven.

Apricot-Basil Breakfast Meatballs – Meatballs for breakfast? Oh, heck yeah! Think of them as cute little sausage patties with rounded edges 🙂 

These breakfast meatballs are surprisingly delicious thanks to the sweetness of the apricots and the savory basil and garlic. We also love that they’re easy to reheat from frozen (hello, did not plan ahead moments…) just pop them in a small skillet over medium-hight heat with a little splash of water then cover and allow them to get hot while you sip your coffee.

Cauliflower Rice –  Cauliflower ‘rice’ is an excellent way to get more vegetables into your diet and it’s a low-carb alternative to rice and other grains. Sure, you can buy riced cauliflower already done – both fresh and frozen- but you’ll be paying extra for the convenience (almost twice as much). Thankfully it’s easy to make your own at home using a food processor or a box grater. Freeze individual or meal-size portions in a plastic zip-top bags and you’ve got your own super-convenient frozen Cauliflower Rice that just needs a quick stir in a hot skillet before serving.

Lemon Blueberry Muffins (from Paleo Running Momma) – These tender, lemony muffins studded with fresh blueberries are the perfect compliment to our Apricot-Basil Breakfast Meatballs when you need a no-fuss breakfast-from-the-freezer way to start your day.

Pro Tip: Line your muffin pan with these handy silicone muffin cups and your muffins will never stick to the pan again (Bonus: They’re also great for dividing up sections in lunch containers!) 

CLICK HERE to download the printable Grocery List 

Tips for rocking this Freezer-friendly Meal Prep Menu

• Start by preparing the Chicken Sweet Potato Curry, cutting enough sweet potatoes for this recipe and for the Shepherd’s Pie (i.e. peel and dice all of the sweet potatoes). If you have an Instant Pot, lucky you! You’ll have this recipe done in no time flat. If you don’t have an Instant Pot you should seriously consider getting one (because they are THE BEST thing ever) then pull out your Slow Cooker and proceed according to the recipe directions.
  • When the Curry is done, portion it out into freezer-safe containers with lids and allow it to cool on the counter for awhile before transferring it to the fridge to cool completely. Once completely cooled you’ll transfer it to the freezer until ready to thaw, reheat and eat.
• Next, move onto the Shepherd’s Pie with Sweet Potato Topping – Prepare up through Step 8 (don’t bake it yet!) then transfer uncovered dish to the fridge to cool completely before wrapping in foil and freezing.
  • Pro Tip: If you have an Instant Pot you can use that to steam the sweet potatoes while you make the filling. Here’s how: Place cubed sweet potatoes in a steamer basket inside the Instant Pot. Add 1 cup water or broth. Lock the lid in place and select “Steam” – set time for 10 minutes. Use quick pressure release when cooking time is up. Mash potatoes using a bit of the cooking liquid as needed to make them silky smooth. Lick the spoon or masher. 
  • To serve: Thaw pie in fridge for 24-48 hours for best results. Place on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 400ºF oven for 30-35 minutes or until heated through. If baking from frozen, we recommend doubling the baking time to allow filling to reach a minimum of 165ºF.
• Now it’s time for the Apricot-Basil Breakfast Meatballs. Start by preheating your oven to 400°F and lining a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Prepare these according to the recipe directions and allow meatballs to cool before transferring them to a freezer-safe container with lid or a zip-top bag. Cool meatballs in fridge before freezing them.
• Take a minute to clean up and wipe things down before pulling out the food processor or grater to prepare the Cauliflower Rice. Prepare according to recipe directions up through Step 4. Transfer the raw riced cauliflower to a zip-top bag. Lay bag(s) flat in the freezer (placing then on a plate or small baking tray is helpful here). For a visual tutorial, see this post. That’s it – you’re almost done. Now it’s time to sweep the floor because ricing cauliflower can be a little messy.
• Turn your oven down to 350ºF and pull out everything you’ll need for the Paleo Lemon Blueberry Muffins. Grease a 12-cup muffin pan really well or line them with paper or silicone muffin cups (<– these are a lifesaver… no kidding). Prepare according to the recipe and allow muffins to cool completely before freezing.

Looking for more Meal Prep Menus? Get them all HERE

We often carve out time for a mid-week meal prep to carry us though the weekend. The same ‘rules’ apply here – 5 recipes and 1-2 hours max in the kitchen. Even if you can’t pull off a full prep, making just 2 recipes can go a long way toward saving your sanity in the second half of the week.

Don’t forget to take some photos of your meal prep!

Hashtag your meal prep photos #mealprepseries on Instagram so that we can see all of your delicious meal prep photos! 

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