Sunday Meal Prep | Week of May 26
What I'm cooking + a few other tidbits that you didn't ask for but might enjoy.
Tomorrow is a holiday (for all my American meal prep-ers at least), so I hope you have something fun planned today. Maybe you’re out of town, going to the beach, the park, or a BBQ with friends. Whatever it is, you’re likely not meal prepping. I thought about sending this email tomorrow, but I also wanted to send over some BBQ swaps (keep reading), so I kept my Sunday email for the sake a consistency and condiments.
Since we’re on the topic, what do you think of when you hear the word meal prep? Is it a bunch of pre-made meals in individually-portioned Tupperware? Is it a full day of planning, shopping, cooking? Sure, meal prep can be this, but it can also just be mental preparation. In fact, I might go as far as to say that the mental part is the most important step in the process. Maybe I should consider changing the title of these emails to Sunday Mental Prep—lord knows we could all benefit from that!
Alright, that’s my food for thought for today. Let the mental prep begin.
WHAT I’M LOVING RIGHT NOW
Before we get cooking (or should I say, thinking about cooking), here are a few meal prep-adjacent things I’m into right now:
Healthier groceries at a discount
Thrive Market
If you've been following along here, you know I am a big fan of Thrive. They have a rigorous vetting process for everything they sell, from groceries to cleaning and personal care products. Many of the items are discounted and they are shipped straight to your door which is convenient and minimizes the impact on the environment. My friends at Thrive have generously offered you all 30% off your first order + a $60 gift card for signing up!! Pretty epic.
I buy a lot of staples there like Chia Smash, peanut butter, rice, beans, Lesser Evil snacks, cleaning supplies, Aloha bars, and more, as well as Thrive products (which are excellent). Some of my favorites include their olive oil, chickpea pasta (it’s organic and Banza is not), and this coconut cereal (my new favorite thing).
A good mom bag
Rue De Verneuil
I got an unprecedented number of DMs about this bag on Friday, so I thought I would share with you all. Here is a green version of the blue one I have. I also have my eye on this slightly smaller one. It’s perfect for travel, snacks, diapers, or all of the above.
Okay, let’s do it!
MENU | WEEK OF MAY 26
Because of the holiday, this week’s menu has 4 dinner recipes, starting tomorrow. But if you’re BBQ-ing today, here are some healthy swaps for the classics. I’ve also included a bonus dessert recipe in this week’s recipe PDF: Strawberry Shortcake. To me, this is THE dessert. For a while it was actually the only way I could distinguish between desert and dessert (two s’s for strawberry shortcake, of course). My low sugar version of the classic summer treat is gluten and dairy free, but still totally delicious. Fun to make with kids too.
SUMMER BBQ SWAPS
Burgers, Hot Dogs, & More:
Applegate Organic Hot Dogs, Tribali Foods Grass-Fed Burgers, Chicken Skewers (on the menu for tomorrow), Salmon Skewers
Buns:
Ezekiel hot dog and burger buns, Bread SRSLY gluten free buns
Condiments:
Primal Kitchen Sugar Free BBQ Sauce, Primal Kitchen Ketchup, Primal Kitchen Queso, Bubbies Kosher Dill Relish, Sauerkraut
Chippy things:
Siete Foods Tortilla Chips, Boulder Canyon Potato Chips, Lesser Evil Snacks
Sides:
Pasta salad (from last week’s menu), Spring potato salad (pictured below & on the menu for tomorrow), Spring vegetables with romesco Sauce
Mocktails:
Mint Mojito Electrolyte (in Foodwise, p. 231), Ghia + soda
Dessert:
Strawberry Shortcake (see recipe PDF)
Before we dive into this week’s menu, a quick update on our monthly giveaway! I’ve decided to open this up to all paid subscribers whether you enter or not. This means, one of you will be chosen at random for a 1:1 session with me + a gift from my favorite brand. For may we’re giving away products from Needed (my favorite collagen will be in there, of course!). If you share a photo on Instagram and tag me (@mia_rigden), you’ll get a double entry for every post.
And check out this beauty one of you DM’d me last week. It makes me unbelievably happy to know that there are people reading these emails, so please tag me in your food pics. I love seeing what you cook!
Okay, now the menu (starting with Monday!)