Meal Prep Monday Podcast™

In episode 194, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf discusses one of the advantages of meal planning, and how it provides many opportunities to add variety to your meals. Allison offers seven top ways to diversify your plate such as: ‌ Think Seasonally: Looking to produce that’s harvested in the fall and winter can lend to cooking up more soups, stews, and chilis when the temperature drops, and doing more grilling, or making a summer salad the basis of your meal in the warmer months can add some seasonal variety to your meal prep. ‌ Change the Protein: Can you substitute something else instead of your usual go-to, or try a different cut of meat? The farmer’s market might offer something different, or try visiting your local grocery store’s fish counter to see what you haven’t tried yet. If you use the Prep Dish meal plans, try swapping out the protein in a family favorite meal to add variety. ‌ Taste the Rainbow: Color can be a great way to incorporate variety into your diet. There are different nutrients represented in the natural pigments of foods, and adding in a diverse range of hues to your meals can up your nutritional game. ‌ Look to New Cuisines: We tend to gravitate toward a certain favorite cuisine profile and add it as a heavy rotation when we’re making meals. Perhaps Mexican food or Italian makes its rounds weekly in your home. If you’ve avoided cooking up some recipes because they seem too involved or complicated, you could be missing out on a variety of new flavors that you’d otherwise enjoy. Is there a new cuisine you could try? ‌ Add Texture: There’s a tendency to offer up softer foods, especially when cooking for kids. However, we’re doing them a disservice by avoiding tougher or crunchier foods because children and adults alike can benefit from deep jaw stimulation through the process of chewing food. Try representing many different types of textures when planning your family’s meals. ‌ Temperature Check: Consider temperature when meal prepping. As a nod back to seasonal meal prep, planning out a chilled gazpacho in the heat of the summer, or a soothing bowl of soup to ward off the winter’s cold can add just the right variety your family needs. ‌ Change the Composition: How are you serving up your meals? Assess whether you usually navigate toward stir-frys, or perhaps the plate is often served up with a protein, vegetable, and starch separated out. See how mixing up the way food is served offers more variety in your meals. ‌ 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!

In Episode 190, Allison Schaaf, founder of Prep Dish, chats about a recent vacation she and her family took to Panama and offers her best tips for flying with kids. Pro tip: snacks are essential! ‌ Allison’s top tricks for a better flying experience with kids include Having age and experience in your corner. The more children are exposed to air travel, the easier flying becomes. And as children get older, they tend to have (and create) an easier experience with air travel. Going on longer flights from the start helps make the shorter trips more palatable for all. Finding direct flights and avoiding time changes if possible. When traveling for pleasure, attempting to choose destinations that offer direct flights and are in your same time zone can be incredibly helpful for kids. You’ll avoid jet lag adjustments and the hustle of catching connecting flights, and be able to focus on exploring a new place with your family. Investing in a color reveal activity book, such as the Melissa & Doug Water Wow sets. These types of kids’ activities are luggage friendly as you only need one “coloring” accessory and can provide a lot of in-flight entertainment for the family. Brining new toys or activities to enjoy on the plane. This does not necessarily mean needing to purchase several items for your kids, but could include some items that the kids haven’t played with recently. Resurrected toys and activities for the win! Using books as entertainment or travel distractions. There’s nothing quite like getting lost in a good book or audio book to pass the time during a flight. Remembering to pack the headphones for in-flight screens or music. These can be a great way to entertain kids during their air travel. Snacks, snacks, and more snacks! Having a variety of snacks and bottled water on hand is really helpful while flying, especially if something gets delayed or doesn’t go as planned. Don’t stress! ‌ 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: Activity book: https://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Reusable-Water-Reveal-Activity/dp/B08DJYTWGG?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&th=1 ‌ Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans!

What are some of host and dietician Allison Schaaf’s current favorite gluten free foods and drinks? Allison discusses her top picks in episode 192! Highlights include: Siete Brand Enchilada Sauce. This brand has tasty tortillas and tortilla chips as well. Primal Kitchen Buffalo Sauce Holidaily Brewing Co. Big Henry IPA LMNT electrolyte in the Chocolate flavor, prepared warm with a splash of your favorite milk! 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! ‌ Be a guest on the Meal Prep Monday Podcast: info@prepdish.com https://sietefoods.com/collections/enchilada-sauce https://www.primalkitchen.com/products/original-buffalo-sauce https://holidailybrewing.com/beers/ https://drinklmnt.com/products/lmnt-recharge-electrolyte-drink?variant=31703777181719

In Episode 191, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf discusses batching her fitness routine, and the option of making adjustments when enthusiasm dwindles. Many healthy habits can work well if they are batched. Allison has talked about the importance of strength training and incorporating this healthy habit into her life with this approach. For a while, Allison was batching her weightlifting with a trainer and this worked great. But, as seasons of life evolved, Allison found herself feeling lukewarm about her scheduled strength training. After an honest discussion with her coach, the strength training goals were approached from a different angle: Allison would focus on one type of lifting four times per week, but in shorter intervals instead of batching her lifts two days per week as she had been doing. This new method, essentially un-batching her workouts, renewed Allison’s enthusiasm for her healthy habit and has been working well in this season of life. This mental shift was a big part of getting back Allison’s motivation to keep striving for her fitness goals. Other healthy habits that Allison continues to batch are laundry, errands, work tasks, and meal prep. Are there healthy habits in your life that may be over-batched? Daily life rhythms evolve and change over time. If you’re in a season where a healthy habit approach is not serving you optimally, it may be a great time to see if dialing back a batched approach is just what you need. 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! Ep137 Strength Training: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep137/

Before diving into her recommended memoirs to read this fall, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf announces an exciting opportunity for Prep Dish customers to share their meal prep stories, and offers a support resource for October’s National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month in Episode 190. ‌ Announcement: You’ve used Prep Dish in your home, now we’d love to hear from you on the Meal Prep Monday Podcast! Allison is opening up the opportunity to share your own personal experience with Prep Dish as a guest on her show. No previous podcast experience is required and we’d love to hear your story - how you shop for food, plan your meal prep, and create Prep Dish masterpieces for yourself and your family. If interested, please inquire at info@prepdish.com. ‌ October is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. The Miscarriage Hope Desk (http://miscarriagehopedesk.com ), founded by Allison Schaaf, is a helpful resource and community for anyone whose personal story involves miscarriage, recurrent pregnancy loss, or infant loss. ‌ Allison has been enjoying several memoirs recently through Libby (a public library downloadable book collection), books borrowed from the library, or through Audible. Her top memoirs to check out this season include: Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey (audio is read by Matthew and very entertaining) Elizabeth Taylor: The Grit and Glamor of an Icon by Kate Ansersen Brower Never Broken: Songs Are Only Half the Story by Jewel (audio is read & sung by Jewel) Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry Inside Out: A Memoir by Demi Moore The Happy Texan: Adventures of a Rock & Roll Truck Driver by Michael Inman (Allison’s neighbor - your local community is made up of people with many wonderful stories to tell!). ‌ 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! ‌ Be a guest on the Meal Prep Monday Podcast: info@prepdish.com Miscarriage Hope Desk: http://miscarriagehopedesk.com Audio Books Libby, by OverDrive App: http://overdrive.com Audible: http://Audible.com

Episode 189 highlights easy vacation meals for family from Allison Schaaf, Prep Dish founder and travel enthusiast. Allison covers a recent trip to Panama that she and her family took and discusses ideas about how to handle meal prep and meals while traveling. She notes the benefit of splitting time between a hotel and an Airbnb as it relates to both local flavors and familiar tastes. ‌ Allison’s recommendations include: ‌ Using the “Find Me Gluten Free” app if you or someone in your family needs a Gluten Free menu. This app creates an easy way to navigate local restaurants to meet everyone’s dietary needs and experience authentic cuisine while traveling. Making sure to stock up on snacks and water bottles, whether you’re staying at a hotel or an Airbnb. Snacks, regardless of the traveler’s age, are essential while vacationing! Setting out to maintain a good balance of eating meals out versus eating meals in when you’re vacationing with your family. It’s always exciting to enjoy a location-specific culinary experience, but familiar flavors from home are comforting, especially to children. Experiencing local produce through your senses. Shopping at a local market during international or domestic US travel allows you and your family to really immerse yourselves in the sight, feel, aroma, and preparation of authentic local cuisine. ‌ 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: App: https://www.findmeglutenfree.com/ Get your free trial at prepdish.com/mpm for two weeks of free meal plans!

In Episode 188, Prep Dish founder Allison Shaaf shares a brief history of Prep Dish and her behind the scenes experience in the Prep Dish test kitchen. Allison discusses some of her most noteworthy takeaways from testing recipes in the kitchen. ‌ Allison’s biggest takeaways from testing meal plan recipes include ‌ Accountability: the meal plan editor relies on Allison’s feedback from the meals she’s editing each week to optimize recipe success. From a customer’s viewpoint, there’s also accountability on a financial and time investment with the Prep Dish menus. Expanding her family’s meal experience and flavor palate. Being part of the Prep Dish test kitchen process gives Allison’s family something new to try and the opportunity to stick to the original recipe without incorporating substitutions. They have experienced many new flavors and pleasant surprises among some new family-approved recipes. Opportunities to delegate the food shopping and preparation. Being in the test kitchen really helps Allison think like a Prep Dish customer instead of solely wearing the home chef’s hat. Delegating food shopping, food preparation, and dish day serving instructions allows everyone in her family to participate in the family’s meal prep process. ‌ 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!

This post includes affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Prep Dish! ‌ In Episode 187, Prep Dish founder Allison Shaaf discusses a recent evaluation and update of her family’s meal prep schedule, including when grocery orders are made, food shopping takes place, and when food is prepared. ‌ As a new school year begins, one season changes to another, or even as family dynamics evolve, it can be helpful to reevaluate what’s working in the meal prep process in your home and what could be updated to reflect a rhythm that optimizes your time, energy, and season of life. ‌ Allison shares how recently switching up the day of the week that her grocery order takes place and the day she’ll schedule the food pickup and prep truly lightens the meal workload when she’s spending time with her family. Allison also continues to use helpful tools like curbside pickup at her local grocery store and a Butcher Box subscription to enhance this recently updated food prep routine. ‌ 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! ‌ Butcher Box: https://butcherbox.pxf.io/YgeMMm (

In episode 186, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares how applying the concepts of consistency and batching to swim lessons for her kids has encouraged huge progress. As part of encouraging consistency, we’ve had to build the habit of getting in the pool every day. For us, habit stacking has been huge for this. We either get in the pool right before lunch or right after dinner, using mealtimes as a touchstone for building our swimming habit. This same idea of honing skills and building habits a little bit at a time can be applied to meal prep and our Prep Dish meal plans as well. If you’re not in the habit of meal prep or even of cooking home-cooked meals, you don’t have to go all-in and risk burning out. You can incorporate one part at a time until the habit is strong. 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: Ep #141: Batching is Freedom: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep141/

In episode 185 of Meal Prep Monday, Prep Dish founder Allison Schaaf shares 4 things she learned from hosting a half birthday party for her son, including tips for make ahead party food. What’s on the menu? Grapes Orange Wedges Bell Peppers Popcorn Cheese Sticks Cheese Board Cake and Ice Cream Lots of Beverage Options My Takeaways: 1. I loved the approach of low stress food, with a focus on the cake and ice cream. I made a homemade strawberry cream cheese frosting. I also made a honey ice cream with honey from our bees. 2. I kept in mind having foods that were easy to grab in individual portions for the kids. The oranges were cut into wedges. The popcorn was in individual cups. The bell peppers were the mini size. I used scissors to cut the grapes in mini bunches. All of these touches were easy but made the food more approachable and kid friendly. 3. I made a last minute purchase of coconut water and that went over really well. It’s a nice item to include for a summer party. 4. I included a nicer option for the adults, a cheese board with fancy cheeses and things. 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! Prep Dish Party Menus: https://prepdish.com/shop/party/ 10 Considerations on Beekeeping: https://prepdish.com/podcast-show-notes/ep98/ Prep Dish Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1537447836539716/