food prep while doing Whole30

I’ve always set aside time during the week to prep food ahead of time. This just makes my week less stressful and keeps my sanity. I do this most weeks, all year.

But while on Whole30, planning ahead becomes very necessary (it was mandatory for me) in order to stay compliant throughout the week. I was trying to meal plan ahead of time with the criteria of having 1 serving protein, 2 servings veggies at each meal. Fruits and larabars were my snacks. I had to make 2 trips to the supermarket every week because by mid-week, we were out of produce. I just didn’t have room in my fridge to store a week’s worth of produce.

Here are some snapshots I took while on Week 2 & Week 3 of following Whole 30. We bought meat and other proteins in bulk on Week 1.

This is my Trader Joe’s basket.

Roasted veggies for the week. (before they went in the oven).

I found a new method of making cauliflower rice. I roast the cauliflower first, then pulse it in the food processor afterwards until the texture resembles rice. My old method was to process the raw cauliflower first then cook it on the stove top, or microwave. I like this new method better because the leftovers are less soggy and has more flavor.

If I’m out on business lunch, I scan the menu for their salads. I usually order cobb salad, no cheese and no dressing. I then ask for olive oil & balsamic vinegar on the side.

Finding slow cooker recipes has been a time saver. I made this Crock Pot Balsamic Roast and froze half for the following week. I added a whole bag of carrots and glad I did, I loved the flavor the carrots after it was cooked. Next time I make this, I would double the onions, since it shrinks a lot anyways after being cooked.

Roast served with garlic cauliflower mash.

Another crock pot recipe I’m enjoying is Damn Fine Chicken recipe, but made in the crock pot. I’ve made this twice now, don’t skip the browning in the broiler step, it gives the chicken better texture.

I buy a big bag of chopped cauliflower from Costco and make garlic mashed for the week. This is delish and is a great side for dinner.

My dinner plate with garlic mash cauliflower, damn fine chicken and stir fry brussels sprouts.

I cooked the whole bag of shaved brussels sprouts from Trader joes, and sautee with onions and chicken sausage.

Cabbage with green apples. This recipe is from a Paleo cookbook (I’ve forgotten the name at the moment). This is great eaten warm or cold, and last a whole week in the fridge.

I also made my own taco seasoning and added it to ground meat, I eat the seasoned ground beef with my taco salad for lunch. I used Tessemae’s Southwest Ranch dressing, I’m on my second bottle of this dressing, love it!