Meal Prep Monday Podcast™

In episode 174, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares how she’s used the same habit formation tools she uses for meal planning toward a new family goal - teaching kids Spanish. The hardest part about meal prep isn’t the chopping and cooking, it’s forming the weekly habit so that meal prep becomes a way of life. It’s the same way for other habits! Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! Ep #77 - Creating Prompts for New Habits (Habit Stacking): https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep77/ Flip Flop Spanish - https://www.flipflopspanish.com/

This page contains affiliate links. Thank you for your support! Prep Dish founder and meal prep expert, Allison Schaaf, talks about perhaps the #1 road trip key to success with kids: Snacks. Road trip snacks for kids (and adults!) are essential for the flexibility in routine a road trip requires. With meal times thrown off, kids may need more snacks on road trips. Keep in mind, your kids may eat less at meals if they’ve had a snack, but that beats a meltdown in my book! My Ten Favorite Road Trip Snacks for Kids: 1. Fruit - Apples, berries, oranges, bananas. Bonus - fruit is hydrating, unlike salty snacks! 2. Crackers 3. Cheese sticks 4. Chips or popcorn 5. Meat sticks 6. Baby carrots 7. Olives 8. Nuts 9. Veggie sticks or a veggie tray 10. Almond Butter Rice Crispie Bars (or other homemade treat) Bonus - If you buy eggs at an Airbnb, hard boil any leftover eggs for the road! ‌ Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 ‌ Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! Planning a Road Trip with Kids: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep171 Road Trip Meals with Kids: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep172 Kids Cook Real Food (

Meal prep expert and travel enthusiast, Allison Schaaf, shares tips on road trip meals with kids. ‌ 1. Road Trip Breakfast If you’re staying in a hotel, definitely look for one with included breakfast. If you’re staying at an Airbnb, pick up some easy breakfast supplies so you don’t have to rush out to find breakfast for the kiddos first thing in the morning. ‌ 2. Restaurants with Kids When going to restaurants, especially if you have little kids, try to find somewhere where they can run around a bit outside either before the food comes or after they’re done eating. ‌ 3. Gluten Free on Road Trips I also highly recommend the Find Me Gluten Free app if anyone in your family is gluten free. It shows all of the restaurants with gluten free options in the area. ‌ Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 ‌ Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! Planning a Road Trip with Kids: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep171 Find Me Gluten Free app: https://www.findmeglutenfree.com/

This page contains affiliate links. Thank you for your support! Meal Prep Monday host, Allison Schaaf, shares 4 tips on road tripping with kids based on her recent East Coast family roadtrip. ‌ 1. Choosing Your Route Roadtrippers is a great app to use to plan locations and route. Think about the total driving time and don’t forget to consider high traffic times in cities. ‌ 2. Where to Stay We mostly did Airbnbs and hotels, though staying with family or friends can be a great option as well depending on the ages of your kids and the sleep situation. Don’t forget to consider laundry! Kids go through a lot of clothes and, for an extended road trip, you’ll likely want to include some spots with laundry. Airbnbs are often not as budget-friendly though, especially if you’re only staying one night, so you may want to balance out hotels and house rentals. Tip: Give yourself a buffer. We stayed in many spots for just one night but we planned the last stop for three nights. That way we had a buffer if it took longer to get there. It also gave us a chance to really relax before we returned home. ‌ 3. Buying Ahead We ordered a box of Dry Farm Wines (https://tracking.dryfarmwines.com/aff_c?offer_id=1&aff_id=1378

Prep Dish founder and Meal Prep expert Allison Schaaf shares 11 changes you can make at the grocery store to save money, without sacrificing quality. ‌ 1. Swap Packaged Snacks for Whole Foods / Larger Packages For example, swap apple slices for apple sauce pouches. Not only is this less expensive, it’s also healthier and better for jaw development. 2. Switch Ground Meat for Beans I sometimes do half and half, or ¼ beans with ¾ ground meat to stretch the meal further. I’ve also added in mushrooms to bulk up a meal. 3. Buy Large Packages of Oats Instead of Small Packets There is a huge price difference here! 4. Swap for Cheaper Seafood If you’re a Prep Dish subscriber and you see halibut on the menu, know that swapping out proteins is usually pretty easy. You could use any white fish in place of halibut. You can interchange trout and salmon as well. Just make sure to adjust the cooking times. Don’t hesitate to ask the person behind the fish counter! 5. Substitute a Different Ground Meat If your freezer is stocked with ground beef, use that in place of bison or turkey! Again, make sure to adjust the cooking time as needed. 6. For Steak, Choose a Smaller Amount You can save money by buying a smaller amount of steak and bulking up the sides. You can also swap portobello mushrooms 7. Go Homemade for Salad Dressings This is SO easy, SO much healthier and SO much less expensive! Olive oil and balsamic vinegar is a super easy combo but we have a lot of great ones on our meal plans. 8. Buy Shrimp on Sale if Buying Frozen This applies to other items as well! Stock up when you see it on sale. 9. Purchase Ugly Fruits & Veggies There are a few companies now selling misshapen produce that would otherwise be tossed. I use Imperfect Foods. 10. Grow Your Own Herbs If you use our Prep Dish meal plans, you know we use a lot of fresh herbs. They provide a ton of flavor and elevate meals. Some are pretty easy to grow at home. Mint is pretty easy and rosemary is quite easy where I live. Ask around about your area! 11. Have a plan! This is the best way to save money at the grocery store. Our Prep Dish meal plans do this for you and make sure your meals actually use the perishable items on your grocery list so you’re not left with half packages of produce. ‌ Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 ‌ Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! DIY Salad Dressing Tips & Recipes: https://prepdish.com/roundups/diy-salad-dressing-tips/ Video on How I Cook with Herbs: https://youtu.be/0E1Kxd_NZ1A

Today’s episode is inspired by Ramit Sethi’s book, I Will Teach You to Be Rich. What would a “rich life” entail for you? Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares 3 small splurges that make her life feel rich. Identify these small items now, as they’d be lovely Mother’s Day treats! ‌ 1. Fresh Flowers I used to seldom buy fresh flowers because it felt so extravagant but I’ve realized it’s totally worth it for how much joy it brings me. Sometimes I even double up and buy two bouquets! ‌ 2. New Ink Pens in Different Colors I like handwriting certain things like planning and brainstorming and I love color coding. ‌ 3. Socks Every few years, I like getting all new socks, all matching. This makes laundry so easy! ‌ Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 ‌ Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! Ramit Sethi’s I Will Teach You to Be Rich: https://www.amazon.com/I-Will-Teach-You-to-Be-Rich-audiobook/dp/B07QR7GYF7/ref=sr_1_1?hvadid=580750738778&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9018993&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15617017042697245632&hvtargid=kwd-679898583771&hydadcr=22594_13493210&keywords=i+will+teach+you+to+be+rich+ramit&qid=1682361526&sr=8-1 Batching is Freedom - How to Create More Time in Your Day: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep141/  

Meal Prep expert Allison Schaaf discusses the nutritional and culinary considerations of salt. She highlights the high sodium content in canned items, store-bought broth, and processed meats. She emphasizes the importance of balancing sodium intake with potassium. Culinary tips include salting meat before cooking, sprinkling salt from a height, and tasting food as you go. Allison also mentions the role of salt in enhancing flavors, reducing salt intake with a final sprinkling trick, and making healthy food tasty and easy.

Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares a personal update on the many animals living at her country home. Chickens - We’re up to 19. We find that 15-20+ works well for us. We replenished with 12 baby chicks in the fall and they’re now almost fully grown. Goats - Our first goat was a surprise! She showed up at our house and we couldn’t find out where she came from and we kept her. We now have three goats. We may try to milk in the future if one of the females has a baby. Bees - We did lose one hive in a freeze but still have 5 or 6 going strong. I’m looking forward to getting the boys involved as they get older! ‌ Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! Backyard Chickens: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep28/ How We Got Our Pet Goat: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep104/ Our Surprise Baby Goat: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep110/ Our Beekeeping Adventures: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep98/

Meal Prep expert Allison Schaaf shares 5 simple food waste solutions: 1. Make a Soup with leftover veggies. 2. Freeze fruit for smoothies. 3. Make Broth with veggie scraps. 4. Feed scraps to animals. 5. Compost anything else. Also, learn about meal planning to avoid buying unnecessary food.

In episode #165, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares 7 no-prep vegetables she’s loving lately. The inspiration for this was a personal favorite, whole roasted carrots! (Watch a reel on how to do this on Instagram @ prepdish if you’d like to see!) ‌ 7 Super Easy Veggie Sides ‌ Whole Roasted Carrots Wash, drizzle w/ olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast for an hour to an hour and a half at 325F. You can do a higher temperature for less time if you have something else in the oven (e.g., 375F for an hour) but make sure they don’t burn! These are also great as a base for carrot soup. 2. Baby Greens Baby spinach or baby kale are so nice to have on hand because you can just toss them into a sauce or with meat in a pan with no prep. They also cook quickly! 3. Whole Roasted Spaghetti Squash Similar to the carrots, this takes a long time but very little effort. I like to combine this with actual spaghetti and find that it mixes in quite nicely. I roast it completely whole on a baking sheet - it’s tough to cut raw! Make sure to let it cool before cutting. Scoop the seeds out and serve! 4. Cherry Tomatoes & Sliced Mushrooms I like to combine these because they cook for a similar amount of time. These are nice roasted together. They’re also tasty sauteed, such as with a pasta or an omelet. 5. Baked Sweet Potatoes I throw these in any time the oven is already on. Sweet potatoes are a popular side dish in my house and I also love making sweet potato pancakes on Saturdays. 6. Baked Potatoes Similar to sweet potatoes, this is such an easy no-prep side dish. 7. Roasted Garlic I slice off the very top of a head of garlic, drizzle it with olive oil and salt, wrap in foil and roast for about an hour at a lower temperature. Connect with Allison: PrepDish.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prepdish/ Get your FREE mealplan at PrepDish.com/podcast OR text the word mealprep to 33777 Resources mentioned in this podcast: Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans! 15 Easy, Healthy Side Dishes: https://prepdish.com/roundups/easy-healthy-side-dishes/