Travel meals, this week.

Boy, I am excited to be traveling again! I lied. I'm not excited at all.
I do not like this particular town, but that's life.

I did not expect to travel this week, so there wasn't much prep time and I opted for simple meals.

Here's what I got:

Breakfast: I gotta say, I'm digging this microwave egg recipe with turkey, eggs, kale, and an apple on the side.

Lunch: I'm keeping it simple with a turkey and avocado sandwich for lunches. I have become a mustard and mayo packet hoarder and bring them with me in my travel kit.

Dinner:
Monday- Soup and crackers
Tuesday- Tuna salad wraps
Wednesday- I left the hospital later than expected, so I just ate another turkey sandwich.
Thursday- I drove home, so I ate the last thing left in the fridge: turkey lunchmeat with hummus and carrots.

For reference, the grocery list:

eggs
kale
turkey lunchmeat
apples
avocado
tomato
bread
crackers
soup
larabars
wine
tuna salad kit

Last week's menu

(last) week's menu:

It's going to be a cold one, yay! I cranked up the fireplace today, but I have yet to turn on the heater. This week may force me to.

I'm glad I'm in town this week because I'll be able to cover some of my favorite plants and save them from the few hours that it will be below freezing.

I am sorry, I had pictures but I accidentally deleted them. But here's the menu.

Monday- Chili
Tuesday- Spaghetti (sauce from the freezer), Barilla GF pasta was on sale so I'm going to try it
Wednesday- Chicken soup with biscuit dumplings.
Thursday- Pizza with lots of veggies
Friday- Pot roast
Saturday/Sunday- I will be painting my bathroom, so it will be mostly snacks and leftovers

P.S. my bathroom looks really good but damn that's a lot of work.

Travel meals, this week

Are you ready for another week on the road? I am.
Five days out of town are so much easier when you plan a menu.

Here's what I planned:

Breakfast: Eggs, microwaved. Plus fruit and carrot slices.

Lunch:
Monday- Travel day. Peanut butter sandwich + apple
Tuesday and Thursday: Salad, with avocado and turkey
Wednesday: Turkey roll ups with carrot slices
Friday- Travel day. Turkey roll ups with carrot slices

Dinner:
Monday- Tuna salad wraps
Tuesday- Bbq chicken sweet potato + broccoli
Wednesday- Leftover bbq chicken sweet potato
Thursday- Cold, rainy day. Soup + crackers
Friday- At home, chili from the freezer

Snacks:
Mixed nuts + apple
Larabar

I reserved a hotel room with a big wet bar and a fridge/microwave, which made meal prep a little easier.

For reference, the grocery list:
eggs
kale
turkey lunchmeat- I like this kind because it comes in a ziplock bag
avocado x 2
apples x 4
salad kit
frozen broccoli
carrot slices
tuna salad kit
sweet potato
mixed nuts
frozen chicken tenders
bbq sauce
larabars
can of soup
crackers
water
wine

Bring from home:
mayo- I found these in a 10-pack at the grocery store.
coffee
vitamins
prunes
travel kit

Travel meal: baked sweet potato with bbq chicken and broccoli

This is one of the most successful hotel meals I've made. It was so, so good and I have enough leftovers for another meal.

I was initially going to make this meal in the crock pot, but I didn't want to lug it in my suitcase. My plan was to make it using rotisserie chicken, but after I looked at the ingredients on the rotisserie chicken, I reconsidered that plan.
(WHY are labels still allowed to claim "natural flavor" without specifying?? No, thanks.)

I looked around the grocery store and found these frozen chicken tenders that did the trick. They were expensive, $6.99 for 7 tenders but at least I know they're gluten free.

To make dinner, I washed a big, round sweet potato and poked holes in it with a fork. I microwaved it for about 4 "baked potato" settings.

Then, I microwaved the chicken tenders according to the package directions.

When they were done, I microwaved one of those broccoli "steam in bag" things.

I cut the sweet potato in half and smooshed it up a bit, then added the chopped up chicken tenders and drizzled with bbq sauce. Topped it all with a little bit of kale, because I bought a huge bunch and I'm trying to use it before it gets sad.

Served with a side of broccoli.

Now my belly is full and I'm happy.

Travel meal: turkey and avocado salad

One of the easiest things to pack for lunch is a salad, especially while traveling.

It's easy to toss veggies and accessories into a container, plus it forces me to eat those veggies my body loves so much.

This salad has:
baby spring mix
kale
sliced carrots
1/2 avocado
2 slices of turkey lunchmeat, rolled and chopped
salt, pepper
olive oil
not pictured: 1/2 a lime

I put the kale into one side of the container, then pour the olive oil onto that side and store it that side down in the fridge so that it doesn't wilt the greens. The kale is tough and can take it. When I'm ready to eat, I squeeze the lime juice over the greens, put the top back on, and shake rattle and roll to mix it all up.

Nom.

Travel meal: Tuna salad kale wraps

On the menu after a long day of travel + work in a construction zone (seriously, the foreman made me wear a hard hat and bright orange vest and told me to get better shoes): quick and easy tuna salad kale wraps.

I had a peanut butter sandwich and and apple earlier in the day, but it was not enough to sustain me through a busy afternoon.

After checking into the hotel, I headed to the grocery store and, thankfully, had already made a menu and a list so it was streamlined.

I have to say, these. hit. the. spot.

I was slightly queasy from hunger, and these made my belly so happy. I fought it for many years, but my body really likes vegetables.

For this meal, I grabbed a tuna salad kit at the grocery store, threw away the crackers, and mixed up the tuna with mayo and relish. I added some salt and pepper, too.

Washed some kale, dried it, then tore it from the main stalk. I arranged the strips of kale into little nests, then topped with the tuna salad. They were pretty easy to eat by squishing the kale nests into little taco shapes.

I enjoyed these with some carrot slices, and also some wine and potato chips, because I'm human.

Happy Monday.

simple stir fry

I ate a sensible breakfast today.

Then, I went over to my sister's house to hang out with her and her cute nugget offspring, and also I was watching my man's dog, who likes playing with their dog, and everybody had a great time. It was especially joyful for me because my (previously nonverbal) youngest nephew kept saying, "Hi Aunt Nen!" every time he saw me, and the oldest was making pretend youtube videos that were so funny, and I miss hanging out with my sister and talking about nothing/everything.

Naturally, for lunch I had two kinds of chips and some popcorn. It was all delicious and I regret nothing.

However, this evening when I got home at around 8:30, I was ravenous and craving real food, except, as usual, I have nothing in the fridge because I'm always traveling.

Usually in this case I'll grab freezer food or heat up a can of soup, but sometimes I make a stir fry.

This was heavy on the ginger, light on the soy sauce, and in my belly in less than 30 minutes.

Stir fry:

Put a pan on the stove, and turn the heat to medium.
Drizzle in some olive oil. Add a little bit of onion, plus any veggies you have in the freezer or fridge. I had broccoli and carrots and cauliflower rice.

Let that heat up for a minute. Add fresh grated ginger (I keep a peeled root in the freezer and grate it as needed) and some pepper. After a few minutes, create some space in the middle of the pan and crack an egg in it. Put a lid on and let it cook until the egg is done to your liking.

Dump everything in a bowl with a drizzle of sesame oil (which is necessary) and GF soy sauce.

Quick, simple, and delicious.

veggie-ful breakfast

Look at how pretty this is.

I still have a bunch of shredded beet and carrot and kale, so I shoved as much of it as I could into breakfast. It was actually really delicious.

Place a smallish pan on the stovetop and turn the heat to medium.

Drizzle in a bit of olive oil, a few pieces of onion, some kale that's been torn into pieces, some shredded beet and carrot, as well as any other appropriate veggies, and let that cook a little. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over it and stir. Let it cook a little more.

In the meantime, beat an egg in a bowl with a splash of water. Make sure the veggies in the pan are evenly distributed and have softened up. Pour the beaten egg over the veggies and swirl the pan so that the egg is evenly distributed. Cover and turn the heat to low. When the egg is set, it's time to eat.

Transfer to a plate and enjoy.