Hello and welcome to my first recent eats round up in forever! I think my last one was pre-Thanksgiving and that is just far too long to go without sharing delicious meals with you. Let’s dive right in.
BREAKFAST
Our favorite banana egg white oatmeal with cottage cheese, golden raisins and blueberries. Topped with peanut butter and fig preserves. Finn loves this breakfast too without the mix ins and toppings.
Cottage cheese scrambled eggs with sauerkraut, mandarin orange, English muffin with butter and cream cheese and coffee. The team at Schmidt Old Tyme sent me a big box of their delicious bread products to sample. It’s been a long time since I had English muffins in the house and YUM! These were from their 647 line which features 1/3 less calories, lower carbs and higher fiber.
Yogurt bowl with Icelandic Provisions extra creamy vanilla, Taos Bakes maple pecan and Madagascar vanilla granola, blackberries, blueberries, defrosted cherries from the freezer and peanut butter.
LUNCH
Back on my sandwich kick but after years of preferring them untoasted, I can’t get enough of these melty turkey sandwiches cooked under the broiler. My go-to combo is Duke’s mayo, avocado, sea salt, deli chicken or turkey, bread and butter sweet pickles, pepper jack cheese and Primal Kitchen spicy mustard.
Another toasty sandwich Schmidt Old Tyme Omega Me Crazy! Multigrain, a Lucy Rose apple (they are so good!) and my new pickle obsession.
Definitely recommend recreating this chopped salad! Romaine, mixed greens, cucumbers, kalamata olives, avocado, tomatoes, croutons, deli turkey, sea salt, a sprinkle of Trader Joe’s ranch seasoning (can skip this!) and ranch dressing.
Arugula tossed in olive oil, sea salt, lemon juice and honey and then topped with apples, tomatoes, dried cranberries, carrots, chopped rosemary seasoned almonds, avocado, feta, deli turkey and Trader Joe’s goddess dressing.
A Trader Joe’s Harvest Apple salad kit add roasted golden beets, chickpeas, apples, feta, avocado and deli turkey. The salad kit had cinnamon apple chips, pecans and an apple vinaigrette.
A big bowl of my lentil, cauliflower and kale vegan power soup. So healthy, nourishing and veggie-packed. Perfect thing to prep and heat up all week long. Served with toasted buttered sourdough and apple slices.
Did I mention I’ve been eating a lot of toasted turkey sandwiches? Sometimes you can’t beat a classic ruffle chip, right?
DINNER
Many great dinners to share! Here’s a sheet pan meal with a pork tenderloin cooked with Trader Joe’s Soyaki sauce. I nestled the pork tenderloin into its own foil tent so that I could be liberal with the sauce and it wouldn’t run all over the pan. Orange and white Japanese sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts were also on the pan.
My favorite homemade spaghetti sauce over spaghetti noodles with shredded cheddar cheese. Finn enthusiastically eats this spaghetti sauce that’s packed with tomatoes, onions and mushrooms so it’s on heavy rotation to get veggies in. Spaghetti night is always a good night in my opinion so no complaints here.
A crazy stuffed baked potato with butter, cottage cheese, salt, pepper, sautéed chicken sausage, roasted Brussels and shredded cheese. Looks like a lot – tasted like a dream.
I have recently become a fan of the Publix Greenwise quinoa, butternut squash and kale frozen blend. It’s a great base for a quick and easy dinner. Here it is topped with sautéed chicken sausage, shredded cheese, hummus and Bitchin’ Sauce.
Trader Joe’s frozen riced cauliflower stir fry add edamame, shrimp and scrambled egg.
Here’s a visual of how I make it. I start by sautéing the frozen blend with a bit of oil. Once it started to cook and soften, I add the shrimp and scrambled egg. Mix all together and serve with coconut aminos or soy sauce and sriracha.
Air fried tofu (that tutorial needs to happen ASAP!) over quinoa with roasted orange and white sweet potatoes, roasted green beans, shredded mozzarella and Bitchin Sauce.
My favorite buffalo chicken salad with Trader Joe’s gluten-free chicken nuggets air fried and tossed in buffalo sauce, romaine, tomatoes, carrots, avocado, croutons, Trader Joe’s ranch seasoning, ranch dressing.
Salmon with Trader Joe’s soyaki sauce and roasted with butternut squash and sautéed Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch.
The Publix frozen quinoa and squash blend with sauerkraut, hummus, Bitchin’ sauce and a fried egg.
Last and a bit random – a pulled pork tostada. My dad made these when we were visiting for Thanksgiving and omg so good. He’s been on a tostada kick lately and I can see why – like an open-faced sandwich version of a taco. Need to add these to my dinner rotation too!
Like most of the U.S., we are experiencing very cold weather in Charlotte this week so I’m in the mood to cook all the cozy food and to bake. Hopefully this leads to another great meal round up next week!
QUESTIONS
Any good tostada recipes to share?
Current favorite sandwich combo? Do you like your sandwiches plain/cold or toasted/warm?
Any cold weather/cozy recipes on your “to try” list?
Yes,.you reminded me of the sauerkraut and eggs!! Love these posts!! Also, going to find that quinoa blend on my grocery shopping trip today!
Hi Jen! I love your recent eats posts! Bit of a thought exercise for you… I’m in the midst of a Whole30, I’ve done them before, it’s day 17 and I just feel a bit meh. I think I’ll finish, I’m set up to finish and not really have a tough time with food to be honest. I know you did one a few years ago, did any major takeaways stick with you? I’ve always admired your attitude towards food and balance. Be well and wishing you a prosperous 2024!
That stuffed baked potato looks so good – I will definitely be making that!
Next on my list is chicken peanut stew, based off this recipe!
https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/african_chicken_peanut_stew/