Hey everyone 🙂 So this week I decided to just be kind to myself and meal prepped everything in one afternoon, so I could focus on other things and not have to worry about -What’s for dinner?!- every night this week lol. It took maybe 2 hours total, using already cooked chicken and Italian sausage. This gave us 4 easy dinners of 4 servings each so me and my daughter will have these for lunches and dinners, but each recipe feeds 4-5 people. I’m also on a calorie deficit so my meals are usually all around 400-500 calories. I hope this gives you some ideas on what to feed your little family!
Below are the recipes for what I made, using the measurements I mentioned.
So first I cooked a whole frozen chicken in my instant pot. I just put it in frozen, poured 1 cup broth over it and added a bunch of seasonings like Rotisserie chicken spices, salt, pepper etc and cooked it for 1hr in my instant pot. It gave me 12oz white meat and 8oz dark meat which I split into 2 meals. I also cooked 1 lb of Italian sausage and drained it. Which gave me 11 ounces cooked which I also split in half.
Creamy Parmesan Sausage Soup (4 servings of 1.5 cups):
5.5 oz cooked Italian sausage (half a pound uncooked, drained), 4 cups broth, 4oz pasta, 1/2 small onion, 3/4 of a yellow pepper, 3 cloves garlic, 1 cup chopped tomatoes, 1.5 cups spinach chopped, 2 Tbsp margarine, 4 Tbsp flour, 1/2 cup half & half, 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan, 1/2 cup water & seasonings (1 tsp parsley, 1/2 tsp onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper or anything you like! Cook the sausage and drain. Cook onion and pepper in margarine a few minutes, add garlic then add the flour. Cook a few minutes and slowly whisk in 4 cups broth. Bring to a boil, add seasonings, sausage, tomatoes and pasta. Cook for 13-15 minutes or until pasta is done. Add half & half, Parmesan, water, spinach and cook until everything is combined.
Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings (4 servings of 2 cups each):
2 cups chicken broth, 1 can cream of celery and 1 can cream of chicken soup (or any cream soups), 1 lb (500g) potato gnocchi, 10oz cooked chicken (about 2 cups), 1.5 cups sliced carrots (mine were a bit thick and still kind of crunchy after 6hrs lol..so I would do thin slices), 1/2 small onion, 1/4 tsp salt and pepper, 1/2 tsp onion and garlic powder, parsley, 1/4 cup half & half. Mix your broth with the cans of soup and seasonings. Add everything else but the half & half. Cook on low 6-8hrs. Add half & half. You can also add a chicken breast whole that you add, cook on low 8hrs and just shred and add back to the crockpot.
The BEST and EASIEST Instant Pot Spaghetti (4 servings):
8 oz dry spaghetti broken in half (or any pasta), 2 cups water, any veggies you like – I used 3/4 of a yellow pepper, 5.5 oz cooked Italian sausage (or any cooked protein you like). You can use the saute function and a bit of oil and cook up half a pound chicken breast chunks or ground beef/turkey) and then add your ingredients on top. Layer your meat and veggies and top with water. Lay down your noodles in a criss cross way on top of the water/meat and veggies, then add your full jar of sauce on top. Do not mix. If using a marinara sauce your calories will be lower than mine. Cook on high 7 mins and do a quick release. Stir. I like to put the cover back on for a few minutes to let it absorb more water. Perfection every time! Serve with a bit of Parmesan and some garlic toast! Yummm.
Chicken, Rice & Ritz Casserole (4 servings):
3 cups cooked rice, 10 oz cooked chicken (about 2 cups), 1 can cream of chicken, 1/2 cup light sour cream, 50 ritz crackers crushed, 4 Tbsp (1/4 cup) melted margarine, 1 tsp ranch seasoning (optional). Mix the rice, chicken, cream soup, sour cream and 1 tsp ranch seasoning, and some onion powder, salt and pepper. Add to a 8×8 dish and spread. Sprinkle crushed ritz and drizzle melted margarine on top. I also added a bit more ranch seasoning on top and parsley. Bake at 350 on lower rack for about 15mins. I served mine with some veggies on the side!
And there you have it, 4 easy calorie-friendly dinners! 🙂 I hope you enjoyed!
Please feel free to Like, Comment & Subscribe and let me know what you think! 🙂
Don’t forget to also check out my Facebook page for recipe details, bonus small grocery hauls and extra random content!
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?…
Thank you all for watching!
– Mel