7-Day Menu Planner, week of 10/27/19

(This post was edited to correct a formatting error!  The recipes are the same!)

The hardest part of eating right is planning, but it's also the most important part!  Hopefully this blog can give you some good ideas to help keep you on track.  

You may have noticed that earlier posts included wheat flour and coconut sugar (as do some of those listed below).  I still think that's a good way to start the journey... cut out white sugar and white flour first.  Replace with honey, coconut sugar, wheat flour.  Once you get comfortable with that, replace any kind of sweetener with monk fruit sweetener (Lankata makes a good one, available on Amazon), then replace wheat flour with coconut flour and almond flour.  That's just a general rule of thumb, and know that there are lots of options out there for flour replacements.  Those two just happen to be my favorite.  I don't necessarily follow Keto or Atkins or whatever label you want to put on it, but I do tend to eat low carb and high protein.  I do not add extra fat although I am not afraid of fat.  I use real butter, I love a good piece of well marbled beef, and love love love to eat cheese!  My biggest rule is no sugar and no grains.  So what do I eat?!  Let's see what this week looks like!

Tri Tip with Roasted Vegetables

SUNDAY - Tri Tip Roast with roasted vegetables - This is such a beautiful cut of meat!  Roasting it over the vegetables gives them an extra pop of flavor.  The rub in this recipe calls for coconut sugar.  You can easily sub monk fruit if you have kicked sugar.

Meatballs and marinara

MONDAY - Meatballs and marinara - I love this marinara recipe!  It's easy and amazingly good.  You don't have to add the wine, but I definitely prefer it that way.  You can halve the meatball recipe if you are cooking for one or two, but I like to make them all and freeze any extra. 


TUESDAY - Thai Chicken Pizza Instant Pot Recipe- This is a good recipe for starting out.  If you don't eat wheat, you can just skip that part and eat the chicken over rice (if you're still eating grains), or just by itself.  This recipe also calls for honey.

WEDNESDAY - Barbecue Beef Sandwiches - We get whole wheat hamburger buns from Trader Joe's for these.  They don't have any added sugar!  (I won't eat the bread with mine... but that's just me!)  You can use shredded leftover roast beef or one pound of hamburger.  

Barbecue Sauce (you will have extra to freeze!)

• 6 oz. can tomato paste

•  2 oz. apple cider vinegar

• 3 oz. water

• 2 TBSP blackstrap molasses

• 1 TBSP honey

• 1TBSP prepared mustard

Brown a pound of hamburger (or use shredded beef).  Stir in barbecue sauce until desired consistency.  Some people like a little more or less of the sauce. You be the judge!  Save any leftover sauce for next time!

THURSDAY - Pumpkin Chipotle Soup - This soup is really good.  It might sound like an odd combination, but adding chipotle gives it just the right kick.  Don't try to kick it up by adding more than what is called for, though.  People have tried that and regretted it.  It just isn't the same.  You can add cooked, shredded chicken to this for protein.

FRIDAY - Baked chicken and acorn squash -  Season chicken breasts with a drizzle of olive oil and Italian seasoning and bake at 350 about 30 minutes. 
To make acorn squash, cut in half and remove all seeds.  Place face down on a baking sheet and cook for about 30 minutes at 350.

SATURDAY - Chili - Always a go to because it's easy and has basic ingredients.  Pretty sure you can make this however you want.  My standard recipe (which may change depending on what's in the cupboard/fridge!):

One pound grass fed ground beef)

1/2 cup chopped onion

26 ounce can crushed tomatoes,

1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup chopped green, yellow, and/or red peppers

2 TBSP chili seasoning

And because sometimes life calls for dessert...
Cheesecake!
And more dessert options! Some may contain grains.