Dinner 911

After posting last night I was too tired to do my prep.  Just like all emergencies the key is to stay calm and have at least one back up plan.  Whenever I miss prepping my meal plan there are several back up plans to fall back on. 

Plan "A" we could have a "PICK UP STICKS' dinner and eat right out of our boxes but because it was the end of the week our boxes were pretty picked over. 

Okay on to plan "B".  I could go to my "EXPRESS DINNER LIST" in the front of my recipe binder and pick one of the many choices.  I also keep this list in my google docs so I can refer to it even if I do not have my recipe binder handy. The dinners listed here are made from ingredients I always have on hand such as egg dishes, salads and sandwiches. Plan "B" however was only going to solve only one of my meal emergencies. I needed breakfast, lunch and dinner and if I am lucky a snack! 

So on to Plan "C".  My "FREEZER FALL BACK PLAN".  It includes soups, meatloaf muffin cups, cooked taco meat, breakfast cookies (my version of homemade granola bars), frozen leftover meals in small Pyrex containers made up like TV dinners and any recipes I had doubled over the past few weeks and had frozen.  I did a combo of plans "B" and "C" to save the day and avoid picking up dinner which would have taken more time and money!

Today's 911 Menu
Breakfast cookies- with almond butter spread on top to add a powerful protein and slices of apples fanned on top to add a colorful carb
Snack-cheese, almonds and orange slices
Lunch-Leftover baked potatoes topped with taco meat and cheese
Lunch box-homemade beef jerky, fruit and yogurt parfait and cucumber slices (few minutes of prep this morning, I sliced them when I sliced the apples and oranges)
Dinner-Scrambled eggs topped with cheddar cheese and steamed broccoli
Looking Ahead to the rest of the week and to avoid any more meal mayhem, I made extra eggs so I could make breakfast burritos for another meal this week.  Then I had everyone pitch in to make our prep boxes for the week.  Which we munched on while making them so that became our evening snack!

Luckily I was using a recycled weekly menu plan from another week so that saved me time plus I had already done my shopping on the way back from visiting my folks on Saturday night.  The grocery stores are empty at 11pm so I decide to do my shopping then instead of Sunday.  My Sunday shopping time was supposed to be used to write my post; being a first time poster that took longer then I thought.  Being well rested is just as important as eating healthy so I chose sleep instead of prepping last night.  Thank goodness for back up plans!  They saved the day!!

Here is one of my "FREEZER FALL BACKS" that made breakfast a snap today!

Breakfast Cookies

1 cup butter, softened 1 cup peanut butter 1 cup sucanat or brown sugar (organic) 2 eggs, beaten 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour or ground oats 1 teaspoon baking powder, aluminum free 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1 pinch salt, Celtic sea 1 3/4 cup whole oats 1 Granny Smith apple, grated fine 1 carrot, grated fine 1 cup raisins 1/4 cup coconut, unsweetened flaked or grated

Preheat oven to 350° and line baking sheets with parchment paper. Cream together butter, peanut butter and sucanat. Blend in eggs. In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Gradually add to peanut butter mixture. Stir in oatmeal, apple, carrot, raisins and coconut. Drop by tablespoons on to baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes until edges just become brown. Cool completely. Cookies may be frozen after baking.

Good luck with any dinner emergencies you might have this week.  Just remember to take it one prep at a time! Chef Jackie