It is November.
In a word – Ewe.
It’s cold, it’s dark and the days although ‘shorter’ feel like they’re hella long.
After a long day of work with never ending deadlines, picking up the kids, fielding complaints about the new teacher, and then coming home knowing you need to feed the troops can take a toll. Especially for moms.
Recently I attended a talk with John Gray, author of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, and he said that ‘coming home’ actually raises the stress hormone (cortisol) in women and decreases it for men. #gofigure
With all the demands of the day (and homelife) resting (mostly) on our shoulders, it’s no wonder something as ‘easy’ as making dinner can make us feel overwhelmed.
I know the feeling all TOO well which is why I wanted to dedicate this blog to easy, healthy meals that you can throw together for your family in a pinch!
Shrimp Tacos
This meal is fresh, tasty, healthy and done in under 20 min! Taco Tuesday can happen any day..right?
Ingredients:
- 1lb frozen, tail-less peeled shrimp
- 3 tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 1 small mango
- Juice of 2 limes
- Fresh cilantro
- Plain greek yogurt
- Soft taco shells, whole wheat
- 2 tbs taco seasoning (you can buy this pre-mixed if you are in an extra hurry!)
How to:
- Chop tomatoes, mango, cilantro, and red onion
- Mix vegetables together in bowl with the juice of 1 lime and set aside
- Pan fry shrimp from frozen with remaining lime juice and taco seasoning
- Top taco shells with shrimp, pico de gallo, greek yogurt (in place of sour cream), and hot sauce if desired!
Pumpkin Chilli
The best part about this meal is that you can put together about 90% of it in the morning, making the after school rush a little less…well, rushed!
Ingredients:
- 1lb ground turkey or chicken
- 2 sweet potatoes, chopped
- 1 white onion
- 1 can pure pumpkin
- 1 can chopped tomatoes (no salt added)
- 1-3 jalapeno peppers (depending on your spice preference!)
- 1 cup black beans
- .5 cup plain greek yogurt
- 3 green onion shoots
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbs cinnamon
- 1 tbs chilli powder
How to:
- Pan fry ground meat with onions until cooked
- Add all ingredients to slow cooker except yogurt
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours
- Once ready, add salt and pepper to taste
- Top with a dollop of greek yogurt and green onion
Sesame Noodles
This one serves as a big reminder that carbs are not the enemy! However, if you are really trying to avoid them, you can sub or cut the noodles serving in half with your favourite type of zoodle. I make these at least 2x per month and am always satisfied.
Ingredients:
- Chicken or Smoked tofu for protein
- Ramen noodles (eyeball how many for how many you are serving)
- 1 red onion
- ½ cup shredded carrots
- 2 cups baby bok choy
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp chilli garlic sauce
- Knob of ginger (1 inch)
- Splash of rice wine vinegar
- ⅓ cup soya sauce
- Sesame oil
- Green onion and sesame seeds for garnish
How to:
- Pan fry chicken or tofu until cooked in sesame oil
- Set protein aside in bowl
- Add garlic, chilli garlic sauce, ginger, vinegar, soy sauce, and a splash of sesame oil to the same pan and simmer 2 minutes
- Add chopped onion, carrots, and baby bok choy and simmer until cooked
- In a separate pot, boil water and add noodles
- When cooked, add the noodles to the veggie mixture and toss in sauce
- Add protein to pan
- Add another splash of sesame oil and taste
- Add additional chili sauce, sesame oil, or soy as desired
- Serve with fresh green onion and a sprinkle of sesame seeds
Let me know if you try any of these recipes and how they turn out!