MEAL PLANNING MADE SIMPLE: THE MIX + MATCH DINNER

March 8, 2019 Cassandra Padgett

Do you like the idea of meal planning…. but find yourself rushing to prep dinner at the last second every night? I work with a lot of busy families who are the same way, and I love helping them simplify meal planning.

Why is meal planning so important?

Because when your stomach is in charge (aka you wait to cook til you’re hungry), it’s hard to make a healthy decision- that’s when you find yourseld having cookies for lunch and the drive through for snack.

Planning ahead can give you peace of mind and make the healthy choice the easy choice. (because when dinner is planned, it’s way easier/cheaper to stay home than go out.)

Dinner is often the most overwhelming meal for my clients. Here are a few strategies for making dinner planning EASY.

only plan 4 dinners. 7 is overwhelming and most people (including myself) end up going out on the weekend, having leftovers at some point, etc. Just start by planning 4!
Use the MIX + MATCH method to make life easier. Pick a protein a slow carb (aka slow-digesting carb) + a veggie. Easy peasy. Ask your family members their favorite foods in each area to make your job easier.
Then add flavor. Meal planning doesn’t have to involve complicated recipes. Stick with the basics!

p.s. need extra meal planning and nutrition support? Download my free ebook and learn how to stop emotional eating.

Done for you Healthy Menu + Grocery List

July 9, 2018 Cassandra Padgett

Hey mama,

I know how hard it can be to think up a meal plan, write out the grocery list, and figure out how you're going to execute the plan with a million things on your plate.

I wish I could figure out how to execute the million things on your plate, but I can (and did) create the meal plan and shopping list ;)

This is for a family of three, so add as you have extra family members.

I hate the concept of a "meal plan" so this is a menu. You can mix and match as you wish, depending on the day, and depending on what you feel like eating.

Here's a preview of the menu! Click below to download the whole thing. xoxo

Healthy Menu and Shopping list for the busy mom.. 7 day menu and grocery list for the busy family

Healthy menu and grocery list for the busy mom

A nutrition coach's grocery list...

April 18, 2017 Cassandra Padgett

This is going to be a long one! I wanted to share alllll of my favorite foods (nothing weird, just healthy ingredients that I use every single day). I personally believe that eating a healthy, balanced diet doesn't need to be full of weird foods and salads for every meal. I do love a good salad, but that is not all I eat! Below I'm sharing my kitchen staples. ALLL of the foods I keep stocked in my fridge, freezer, and pantry AND then I'm sharing the meals I make with them.

Zoodle Recipe Round-Up

December 15, 2016 Cassandra Padgett

(I'm moving posts from my old blog over here this week! keep a look out for some new/refreshed content for the new year.)

Zoodles are spiralized zucchini noodles...but zoodles is way more fun to say. The first time I made them, I sautéed the zoodles in olive oil and garlic with some some red bell pepper and topped with lemon and salt & pepper. So good! And SO low-cal. I seriously couldn't believe how tasty it was. They really soak up the flavor of whatever you cook them in and the texture is so surprisingly good. I had to find other ways to use them. Here are some tasty recipes I found.

Antipasto Zoodle Salad (photo 1)
Pad Thai Noodles
Shrimp Zoodles Parmesan
Lemon Garlic Zucchini Noodles (photo 2)
Zucchini Shrimp Scampi. OMG yum.
Skinny Taste Kung Pao Zoodles
Zucchini Spaghetti with Beef Bolognese (photo 3)

Do you have a favorite zoodle recipe?? Or any other fave spiralized veggie recipes, for that matter? Let me know!

p.s. if you need help meal planning, check out my free meal planner printable!