I was away for the weekend so I ended up eating out (/weekend leftovers) on Monday and eating in on Friday – it’s all about the balance, people! And it seemed like the entire week ended up being a practice in balance as well. Buffalo sauce on non-fried chicken with sweet potato and vegetables, fried rice low on oil and loaded with veggies, ending the week with cheeseeee (with fruit and greens!) – I love finding a mix of healthy and happy when I cook.
Had in kitchen: leftover white rice from Chinese food, 3/4 of a container of ricotta cheese, 1/2 loaf of multigrain bread, peanut butter, cream cheese, small bit of sour cream, Frank’s Hot Sauce, miso, soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, paprika, chili powder, red pepper flakes, toasted sesame seeds, salt and pepper
Bought: Almond milk (just to have in the fridge), boil-in-a-bag jasmine rice, pack of 2 chicken breasts, 2 blood oranges, 1 seedless cucumber, 1 pack baby carrots (for snacks), 1 pint strawberries, 1 bag broccoli and cauliflower florets, 1 pack firm tofu, 2 avocados, 1 pack peeled garlic cloves, 1 package baby arugula, 1 bunch scallions, 2 tangerines, 2 sweet potatoes, 1 bunch bananas, 1 package pitted dates, 1 container premade tzatziki (for snacks with veggies), frozen mixed vegetables, 6 pack yogurt, loaf of crusty bread (bought day-of)
Spent: $52.26 (aka $10.45/day)
Daily Breakfast: Toast with cream cheese and PB (weird combo I learned from college but tastes really good!), and fruit
MONDAY
Lunch: Brought lunch (came straight to work from being away)
Dinner: Leftover Chinese food from the weekend
TUESDAY
Lunch: Leftover Chinese Food
Dinner: Buffalo Chicken Sweet Potato with Roasted Veggies
Comments from Claire: This was really tasty – I made a few changes to simplify it by cooking and shredding the chicken a different way (this is my favorite technique), and then I just mixed the chicken with hot sauce and some butter, salt and pepper. I also cooked the potatoes in the microwave instead of the oven to save more time. I didn’t have ranch but did have some sour cream – which I thought would balance the buffalo spice well, and also sour cream and a baked potato are a match made in heaven! – so I mixed that with some garlic powder and paprika to add a little more flavor and topped it off. While I was cooking I just through some broccoli and cauliflower in the oven with olive oil and garlic and roasted until it was nice and crispy. So good.
WEDNESDAY
Lunch: Buff Chicken Potato
Dinner: Avocado Salad with Jasmine Rice and Tofu
Comments from Claire: I saw this recipe shared on Cupcakes and Cashmere a while back, and found it the other day in an email draft I constantly update when I come across recipe ideas. I completed the meal with jasmine rice and tofu as suggested (made a baked miso-glazed version since I still have extra miso in the fridge). This was one of those meals that just felt so satisfying and also so good for the body.
THURSDAY
Lunch: Salad with Rice and Tofu
Dinner: Very Veggie Fried Rice
Claire’s Quips: I used this as a base but honestly just threw in random veggies and stirred! I had leftover white rice from that Chinese food over the weekend, and I really hate throwing food away so I decided to reuse it to make some homemade fried rice. I sauteed a bit of chopped garlic, then added frozen mixed vegetables (like this), sauteed with the rice, scrambled in eggs, mixed with some soy sauce and sesame oil, and topped with chopped scallions. Next time you get all of those extra cartons of rice – consider making this instead of throwing them out! You can add even more veggies and/or leftover meat – and it would be even healthier with brown rice! The only thing I would say is that I think I added the rice a bit too early because the whole thing ended up becoming very starchy and stuck to the pan by the end.
FRIDAY
Lunch: Leftover Fried Rice
Dinner: Ricotta and Tangerine Salad with Date Vinaigrette
Comments from Claire: Ok, so as you’ll see when you click on the link, this was actually supposed to be with clementines but for some reason I just had “tangerine” stuck in my head so I bought those on accident! It didn’t make a huge difference – and dare I say I may have actually liked it better since tangerines aren’t as sweet as clementines and since the dates are so sweet I felt like it meshed well with the other ingredients.
See you next week! To see what I’m eating in the meantime, follow me on Instagram or Twitter @ClaireLeaden
