Happy Friday, NGPTers! This week’s edition of Friendly Feasting is a little different than usual. When it comes to the sustainability of our nutrition plan, clients (or potential clients) generally have concern about one of the following:
- Boredom with the foods / need more variety, to which I say…READ MY BLOG!
- No time to cook or make different things, to which I say…here are some ideas!
Instead of a recipe I’m giving you suggestions on how to cook once, and then dress up a basic chicken breast. When you are ready to cook up a boatload of chicken to last you the week, trim off any visible fat then bake, boil, or grill. Cook as many as you think you (and your family) will eat in the next few days. Store the cooked chicken in air-tight containers in the fridge so they are ready to eat when you need them. Store excess servings in the freezer. Now, you have a meal base that you can jazz up to make a little differently each day. Check out these ideas and links to former blogs:
- Top with or dip bites into a simple single item such as yellow, brown, spicy, or Dijon mustard; salsa; guacamole; or no-sugar-added spaghetti sauce. Serve plain or over cooked brown rice, quinoa, miracle noodles, or spiralized zucchini noodles.
- Make a chicken breast sandwich on Ezekiel bread or English muffin (most prefer them toasted) with lettuce, tomato, and other approved toppings.
- Cut the chicken into slices and load them into an Ezekiel tortilla or large lettuce leaves to make a wrap.
- Dice cooked chicken and top a big veggie salad for a fresh spring or summer meal.
- Shred boiled chicken and mix with veganaise (1 Tbsp = 1 fat), mustard, and spices for a tasty chicken salad to eat on its own, on Ezekiel bread, or on a veggie salad.
- Use sauces and seasonings from other blogs to add to your pre-cooked meat for faster meals:
- http://www.wemeltyou.com/friendly-feasting-mustard-lime-chicken-salad-dressing/
- http://www.wemeltyou.com/friendly-feasting-chipotle-maple-bbq-spicy-peanut-sauce-taco-seasoning/
- http://www.wemeltyou.com/friendly-feasting-vegan-broccoli-rice-casserole-red-curry-carrot-sauce/
- http://www.wemeltyou.com/friendly-feasting-main-dish-repost-ii/ BBQ – you don’t have to start with raw meat and use a slow cooker; just whip up the sauce ingredients on the stove top and pour over chicken breasts or stir into shredded chicken
Save time and money buying in bulk:
Buy a couple large packages of chicken breasts when they are on sale. Trim off excess fat; then, baggie them up into various portion sizes. I might make a few baggies with 1 chicken breast each for a single meal for myself, some with 2-3 breasts for cooking for a group or making a larger dish/soup, and a baggie or two with 1-2 diced chicken breasts so they’re already prepped and ready for a stir-fry, soup, or recipe calling for such. This is also the time to throw in lemon or lime juice and spices or other meltdown-friendly marinade into one or more of the baggies that you will be using in the next day or two. What I won’t be using soon, I put in the freezer. Pulling out a single baggie to thaw as needed saves time in thawing the meat and decreases prep time so that dinner is on the table faster!
I hope this blog gives you some peace of mind about cooking, variety, and plan sustainability. Do you have a fabulous way to top or use a basic chicken breast? Let us know on the NGPT Facebook page or current bootcamper Facebook page, or email me! Meanwhile, feast with chicken, feast with variations, and as always…FEAST ON!!!
~Coach Lauren
