Meg's Meal Planning

dinner

Quinoa bowl with kale and roasted chickpeas

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Roasted chickpeas give this power salad a fun crunch with every bite. Quinoa, kale, strawberries, and feta cheese add up to a delicious and healthy dinner. Make a larger batch and serve it as a side at your next BBQ or picnic. 

Quinoa, kale, roasted chickpeas

It’s mid-June in Connecticut and that can only mean one thing – strawberry season! There is nothing like a sweet, juicy strawberry for a summer treat! My family just completed our first pick-your-own trip of the season. Noah enjoyed eating as many as his little fingers could find! Now with a fridge stocked full of strawberries, there is only one question: what to do with them?  I’ll definitely be making this homemade strawberry jam! It’s sweet and will easily replace any store brand you’ve bought before.

Picking strawberries

Noah loved eating lots of strawberries!

Besides adding strawberries to my oatmeal and yogurt, I like incorporating them into my meals, like this kale salad with strawberries and edamame or with this quinoa bowl.

Quinoa bowls have become one of my favorite items to make. Why? Because they are so simple, a great way to use up any leftovers in the fridge, and you can be as creative as you’d like! Click here to read about my simple sirloin steak quinoa bowl or a sweet potato and spinach buddha bowl.

What you’ll love about this quinoa bowl is the crunch in every bite from the roasted chickpeas. You can attempt to make your own, but I’ve heard from other people they never come out as crunchy. I used sea salt chickpeas from Biena. This also make an amazing little snack!

Quinoa bowl with roasted chickpeas

Quinoa bowl with kale and roasted chickpeas
 
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Roasted chickpeas give this power salad a fun crunch with every bite. Quinoa, kale, strawberries, and feta cheese add up to a delicious and healthy dinner. Make a larger batch and serve it as a side at your next BBQ or picnic.
Author:
Recipe type: Quinoa Bowl
Cuisine: American
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • ½ cup uncooked quinoa
  • 1 cup kale, chopped
  • ¼ cup roasted chickpeas
  • ⅓ cup feta cheese
  • handful strawberries, washed and sliced
  • Trader Joe's Champagne Pear Vinaigrette or your choice of dressing
Instructions
  1. Cook quinoa according to package directions.
  2. Once cooked, add kale and stir. The heat from the quinoa will wilt the kale slightly.
  3. Transer quinoa and kale to a serving bowl.
  4. Add roasted chickpeas, feta cheese, and strawberries. Stir.
  5. Top with salad dressing.

 

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Quinoa bowl with kale and roasted chickpeas

Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Crust Pizza

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Trader Joe’s healthy and easy cauliflower crust pizza makes a great week night meal. This pizza is loaded with pesto, cherry tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella cheese. It’s the best crispy gluten-free pizza ever. 

Trader Joe's cauliflower crust pizza

If you missed my instagram story last week, let me fill you in on a little dinner mishap. Last Tuesday (my late night at work), I put dinner in the crockpot before leaving. My husband was out for the night, so I was looking forward to not cooking.  Bu low and behold, I came home to a cold and OFF crockpot. A little, busy-bee toddler (I won’t mention names) decided to turn it off before leaving for daycare in the morning! My raw meat sat out for over 10 hours. YUCK! So scrap that idea.

Trader Joe’s cauliflower crust pizza to the rescue. I picked up the cauliflower pizza a couple weeks ago and was waiting for a good night to use it. Thank goodness! I followed the directions on the box for cooking: 12 minutes one side, flip, 12 minutes the other side. I did broil it for an even crispier crust, but found I only need to broil it for 2 minutes instead of the recommended 4-5 minutes, so just make sure to watch yours.

Cauliflower crust pizza

I topped mine with pesto, sautéed cherry tomatoes, lots of shredded mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil. Easy peasy!

Trader Joe's Cauliflower Crust Pizza
 
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Trader Joe's healthy and easy cauliflower crust pizza makes a great week night meal. This pizza is loaded with pesto, cherry tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella cheese. It's the best crispy gluten-free pizza ever.
Author:
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • 1 Trader Joe's cauliflower pizza crust
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
  • 4 tbsp pesto
  • ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • Handful fresh basil, chopped
Instructions
  1. Cook pizza crust according to package directions. I recommend broiling for a crispy crust.
  2. Meanwhile sauté cherry tomatoes in a pan until starting to burst, about 5 minutes.
  3. After baking and broiling the pain crust plain, remove from oven.
  4. Layer on pesto, cherry tomatoes, and cheese. Broil for another 2-4 minutes.
  5. Remove from oven and sprinkle on fresh basil.

 

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TJ's cauliflower crust pizza

One pan BBQ Pulled Pork Enchiladas

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This is a great way to use up left over pulled pork. One pan BBQ pulled pork enchiladas is cheesy, hearty, and damn delicious. 

Pulled pork enchilada

Who doesn’t love pulled pork? It’s an easy dinner to throw in the crockpot and a great meal when entertaining, but often there are lots of leftovers. Sure, you can reheat and eat it the exact same way, but why not change it up and enjoy something different?!

Insert one pan BBQ pulled pork enchiladas. This hearty dinner taste delicious, is super cheesy, and has minimal clean up. A win all around.

pork enchilada

If you have a well stocked pantry, you already have most of the ingredients, like black beans and diced tomatoes. If you’re looking for ideas for stocking your pantry, check out my meal planning tips.

One pan BBQ Pulled Pork Enchiladas
 
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This is a great way to use up left over pulled pork. One pan BBQ pulled pork enchiladas is cheesy, hearty, and damn delicious.
Author:
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 3-4
Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ jalapeno pepper, minced
  • ½ cup onion, diced
  • 16 oz prepackaged BBQ pulled pork or left overs
  • 8 corn tortillas, cut into bite size pieces
  • 10 oz enchilada sauce
  • 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
  • 14.5 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • ½ cup shredded Mexican cheese
  • ¼ cup cilantro, diced
Instructions
  1. Heat olive oil in cast iron skillet over medium heat.
  2. Add jalapeño pepper and onion, saute about 3 minutes.
  3. Add pulled pork, tortillas, enchilada sauce, diced tomatoes, and black beans. Stir together, cover and let simmer for 5 minutes.
  4. Remove from heat, add cheese, and let it sit covered for 1 minute or until cheese melts.
  5. Add cilantro.

 

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One pot pulled pork enchiladas

Baked Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Cheese, Spinach, and Sun-dried Tomatoes

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Healthy stuffed chicken breasts with feta cheese, mozzarella cheese, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes tastes like a gourmet meal you would order in a restaurant. But you’ll enjoy this easy meal in the comfort of your own home!

stuffed chicken

Chicken breast is the most versatile protein. Often when I cook them at home, I add it to salads or wraps for extra protein. Seasoned minimally with just salt and pepper, it’s pretty boring. But this recipe is anything but boring. The chicken breasts have a perfect sear and are stuffed to the brim.

Marinated in a sun-dried tomato pesto and stuffed with feta and mozzarella cheese oozing out, this chicken dish is a must have! The spinach and sun-dried tomatoes mix well with the melting cheeses. Trust me, you’ll want to make extra to eat the rest of the week.

spinach, cheese, and sun-dried tomato stuffed chicken

Baked Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Cheese, Spinach, and Sun-dried Tomatoes
 
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Healthy stuffed chicken breasts with feta cheese, mozzarella cheese, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes tastes like a gourmet meal you would order in a restaurant. But you'll enjoy this easy meal in the comfort of your own home!
Author:
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp sun-dried tomato pesto
  • 2 large chicken breasts
  • ½ cup fresh spinach, chopped
  • ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes
  • ½ cup feta cheese
  • ½ cup shredded mozzarella
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Rub sun-dried tomato pesto on both sides of chicken breasts. Using a sharp knife, cut through the long side of the chicken breasts about ¾ of the way through.
  3. In a small bowl add the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, feta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Stir together.
  4. Add the cheese mixture to the chicken breasts, stuffing as much as you can. If it all doesn't fit that's okay.
  5. Carefully transfer to a baking dish (spray with cooking spray first). Bake for 20-30 minutes or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees.

 

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Baked stuffed chicken breasts

Garlic Zucchini Noodles with Turkey Meatballs

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Homemade browned turkey meatballs mixed in a garlic butter lemon sauce paired with zucchini noodles are delicious and are sure to please the whole family. 

Zucchini noodles

These are the most delicious meatballs ever. Period. I usually bake my meatballs, sometimes cook in marinara, but now I’m always going to sear them. The outside browned beautifully, but the inside is moist and tender. You’ll want to eat them all at once.

Have you every cooked zucchini noodles? They must be the fastest dinner ingredient of all time. Cook them for only a couple of minutes to maintain a little crunch.

Zucchini noodles with turkey meatballs

Garlic Zucchini Noodles with Turkey Meatballs
 
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Homemade browned turkey meatballs mixed in a garlic butter lemon sauce paired with zucchini noodles are delicious and are sure to please the whole family.
Author:
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • ½ cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 lb ground turkey
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • Red pepper flakes (optional)
  • 4 zucchinis, spiralized
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, add the garlic, mozzarella cheese, Italian seasoning, cilantro, breadcrumbs, and ground turkey. Use your hands and mix ingredients. Form 1 inch balls and set aside on a plate.
  2. Melt 1 tbsp butter in large saute pan over medium heat. Add meatballs to pan and brown on all sides for 10 minutes, turning frequently. Set aside.
  3. Add 1 tbsp of butter, lemon juice and red pepper flakes into pan.
  4. Add zucchini noodles. Toss and stir for 1 minute. If you prefer a softer noodle, cook for 3-4 minutes.
  5. Add turkey meatballs to noodles. Toss together and serve immediately.

 

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Turkey meatballs and zucchini noodles

Easy BBQ Chicken Flatbread

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Crispy and crunchy flatbread with BBQ chicken hits the spot every time. Use premade flatbread for a 30-minute meal. 

BBQ pizza

I could eat this pizza every day; it’s that good. One of the most disappointing things about homemade pizza is when the crust doesn’t come out crispy. I’ve learned a good trick when using uncooked dough – preheat the pizza stone for 30 minutes, then add the pizza dough. But with this recipe, no need to worry about a soft crust.

Using a premade flatbread is a foolproof way to avoid these issues. This recipe is great when having friends over because it’s low maintenance. It also makes a great party snack; just slice the pizza into strips for an easy appetizer. And the left overs, if there are any, taste just as good. You can also use pulled pork, instead of chicken for this recipe.

BBQ flatbread

Easy BBQ Chicken Flatbread
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Pizza
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 package pre-made flatbread
  • 1 cup chopped chicken or 1 cup pulled pork
  • 3 tbsp & ⅓ BBQ sauce (separate)
  • ¼ cup red onion, chopped
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  2. Cook flatbread directly on over rack for 6-7 minutes.
  3. While it is cooking, combine chicken and 3 tbsp BBQ sauce in a small bowl.
  4. Remove flatbread from oven, spread on ⅓ cup BBQ sauce. Top with red onion and mozzarella cheese.
  5. Bake at 425 degrees for 5-8 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
  6. Sprinkle on cilantro.

 

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Flatbread

Vegetarian Quinoa Bowls with Cilantro Lime Dressing

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This cilantro lime dressing is tangy and just a little sweet. You’ll want to use it on top of everything, like this easy and healthy vegetarian quinoa bowl. 

Quinoa bowl

Finally the weather is getting nice and the only thing my son wants to do when we get home at the end of the day is “PLAY OUTSIDE” as he nicely tells me in his sweet two-year-old voice. I love it; we easily stay out until 6 or 6:30 pm, but just like a typical two year old, he has no patience to let me cook dinner. Insert easy vegetarian quinoa bowl to the rescue!

My favorite part about these quinoa bowls is many of the items can be prepped in advance or cooked a day or two before with another dinner. Having a baked sweet potato another night? Cook an extra one to use in this recipe.

cilantro lime dressing

The cook time for this recipe assumes you already have the sweet potato cooked. If you don’t, remember to allow for an extra 45 minutes for that to bake in the oven or you can cook it in the microwave.

Easy Vegetarian Quinoa Bowls with Cilantro Lime Dressing
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Quinoa Bowl
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa
  • ½ cup red onion, chopped
  • 1 cup red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup baked sweet potato, cubed
  • 1 cup avocado, diced
  • For the cilantro lime dressing:
  • ½ cup vanilla greek yogurt
  • 6 tbsp mayo
  • 6 tbsp lime juice
  • 3 garlic gloves, minced
  • 1 cup cilantro, chopped
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Cook the quinoa according to package directions.
  2. In a large bowl combine the red onion, red bell pepper, sweet potato, and avocado.
  3. In a small bowl combine the greek yogurt, mayo, lime juice, garlic, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
  4. Once the quinoa has finished cooking, add it to the large bowl. Then add the cilantro lime dressing. Toss together.

 

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Vegetarian quinoa bowl and cilantro lime dressing

Italian Cheese Tortellini Salad

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Cheese tortellini mixed with cherry tomatoes, marinated artichokes, garlic, and pesto makes a perfect pasta salad. Serve it as a side or dinner, perfect for cook-outs, BBQ’s, summer picnics, and potlucks.

Italian cheese tortellini salad

As soon as the weather starts getting nice, I get excited to start my garden. Fresh basil is the number one item I plant every year. Making homemade pesto like this tastes fabulous and freezes great. I made the pesto in this recipe last summer and stored it in ice cube trays in my freezer.

Italian cheese tortellini salad needs to be your go-to pasta salad for the summer. Your family and friends will thank you for not making another salad with mayonnaise! Add whatever protein topping you like; I did chicken, but I bet grilled shrimp would taste just as good.

pesto cheese tortellini

If using homemade pesto, make in advance to make this a 15 minute dinner recipe!

Italian Cheese Tortellini Salad
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Pasta salad
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 3-4
Ingredients
  • 1 lb cheese tortellini
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, washed
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ cup red onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup marinated artichokes, coarsely chopped
  • 1 lb chicken strips, seasoned with salt and pepper
  • ½ cup homemade pesto
Instructions
  1. Cook cheese tortellini according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water.
  2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in sauté pan over medium heat. Add red onion and cook until they begin to brown, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Remove and add to a large serving bowl.
  3. In same pan, add 1 tbsp olive oil and cook chicken strips over medium heat until cooked through, about 9 minutes, flipping half way through.
  4. Once pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the large serving bowl with the red onion and garlic.
  5. Add in cherry tomatoes, artichokes, and chicken.
  6. Stir in pesto. Add pasta one 1 tbsp at a time to thin out if needed.

 

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Italian pesto cheese tortellini salad

Healthy Pan Seared Salmon with Mango Salsa

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Pan seared salmon with a mango, red pepper, and red onion salsa is fresh, healthy, and delicious. Transport yourself to a Caribbean beach with this easy dinner idea. 

pan seared salmon

The warm weather is slowly coming to Connecticut. We just had our first Spring day in the 70’s and I’m already thinking of my garden and all the fresh, homemade salsa! Last year I grew tomatoes and peppers and used them both in my peach salsa and blueberry basil salsa.

I wanted to grill the salmon for this recipe, but my husband claims I didn’t ask him to make sure we had gas for the grill. It’s what I like to call selective hearing! Oh well, it all worked out because pan searing this salmon then finishing it in the oven is my favorite way to cook salmon if its not on the grill. Plus, it allowed me to prep the salsa at the same time, making this a 30-minute meal!

salmon with mango salsa

To find the recipe for the blackened salmon, click here. Prepare it exactly as follows and pair it with this tasty mango salsa for a quick and fun dinner!

Healthy Pan Seared Salmon with Mango Salsa
 
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Pan seared salmon with a mango, red pepper, and red onion salsa is fresh, healthy, and delicious. Transport yourself to a Caribbean beach with this easy dinner idea.
Author:
Recipe type: Appetizer, Salsa
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2-3
Ingredients
  • 1 cup mango, diced
  • 1 cup red bell pepper, diced
  • ¼ cup red onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tbsp fresh cilantro, diced
  • Salt to taste
Instructions
  1. Mix mango, red bell pepper, red onion, lime juice, and cilantro in a bowl.
  2. Add salt to taste and stir.
  3. Serve with blackened salmon, chicken, or with tortilla chips.

 

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Healthy pan seared salmon

BBQ Chicken & Bacon Grilled Cheese

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BBQ chicken and bacon grilled cheese is everything you want a sandwich to be. It’s loaded with tender chicken, melted Monterey Jack cheese, and bacon! Try out this quick dinner idea tonight! 

BBQ CHICKEN

Looking for a gourmet meal to impress your kids or hubby/wife? No need to tell them this bbq chicken and bacon grilled cheese is actually very simple. A layer of crispy bacon and gooey cheese packs this sandwich with flavor.

 

BBQ Chicken & Bacon Grilled Cheese
 
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Author:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 4 slices of sourdough bread
  • 4 slices of bacon
  • 2-4 chicken breasts
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • ¼ tsp roasted garlic seasoning
  • ¼ cup bbq sauce
  • 4-6 slices of Monterey Jack cheese
Instructions
  1. Heat panini maker and toast bread slices until golden brown, flipping.
  2. Heat frying pan over medium heat and cook bacon.
  3. Meanwhile, season chicken with salt, pepper, and roasted garlic seasoning and start cooking on panini grill. Cook about 5 minutes, flipping half way through.
  4. Brush BBQ sauce on all sides of chicken and continue cooking another 1-2 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 F.
  5. Top chicken pieces with cheese, but don't close the lid. Let cheese start to melt.
  6. Layer chicken and bacon on sourdough bread.

 

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BBQ chicken and bacon grilled cheese