Our Weekly Menu: Whole 30 Edition

Nothing like a Monday after a long holiday weekend to give you a hard reminder about reality, huh? Fortunately, I get an extra day to ease back into the daily grind, but that doesn’t mean I’m not hitting the ground running today…there’s a lot of catching up to do after being out of town!

I wanted to stick with my new routine of sharing our weekly menu with you all! When we got back from Arizona, I decided I wanted to do a little mini Whole 30 (really more like a Whole 7) to reset my eating habits a little and help myself feel better overall. It’s not even that I went off the rails over Thanksgiving, but I wanted to remind myself that I don’t need gluten-free bread, paleo treats (aka sugar), and cheese in my everyday life 😉 In fact, it is relatively easy to ditch those things, and I know I feel so much better on a Whole30 type of diet. When I mentioned it to Travis, he said he too was on board with a week of clean eating…so we are in this together!

For those of you that are not familiar with the Whole30, it is intended to be a 30-day total reset of your diet to help alter your eating habits, learn how your body reacts to the most common craving-inducing, blood sugar disrupting, gut-damaging, inflammatory food groups, and to empower you to know that you can do ANYTHING you put your mind to!

Here is what you CAN eat:

REAL FOOD 🙂 Eat a moderate amount of protein, seafood, eggs, etc. Eat lots of vegetables, some fruit, some safe starches (sweet and white potatoes), healthy, natural fats, nuts, seasonings, spices, etc.

Here is what to avoid:

NO added sugar of any kind (not honey, not maple syrup, nada).

No Alcohol (I know, total bummer).

No grains and no legumes (beans, peanuts, soy, lentils, etc).

No Dairy.

Lastly, no baked goods/treats/chips, even if they contain only Whole30 approved ingredients, because these types of foods only perpetuate certain bad habits.  (I take this one with a grain of salt now, but did abide when I did my first Whole30.)

Travis and I did our first (and only true) Whole30 in 2013 and it really rocked our world. For the first week, we had no idea what to eat and felt really overwhelmed reading the labels on everything and trying really hard to abide by the rules. We nearly quit about 15 times, but by the end of week 2, we got into a groove and decided since we had made it that far, we might as well finish! (This is where the “I can do anything I put my mind to” part comes in!)

Since then, I have used these little mini Whole30 type resets to help remind myself that I can cook, enjoy, and thrive off of the rules and guidelines of the program…especially when it is only for a week! 😉

(For more information about the Whole30 Program, visit their site here! Whole30)

So, for those of you in a similar boat looking to clean up your act for a week or so between now and when the next holiday craziness begins (Chocolate Covered Peppermint Oreos, anyone?) here is a week of super simple, delicious, satisfying Whole30 compliant meals!

I used a few of my Weekly Meal Planning Tips to ensure a variety of proteins, cuisines, and vegetables. I will make enough dinner each night to have leftovers for lunch the next day (a lifesaver). I’ll keep in mind any after-work activities and plan accordingly (if I am busy, I will choose a faster meal or something with shorter cooking time). Lastly, I will be flexible and scrap the plan if something else comes up….liiiiike an anniversary perhaps? Forgot about that when I made the menu, but I think we will celebrate next Sunday 🙂

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Sunday

Balsamic Roasted Chicken Breats, Veggies, and Baby Potatoes.

On Sunday, we started off our Whole30 dinners with a super simple, one sheet pan meal that tasted absolutely amazing! Here’s what I did:

1. Marinate the chicken (I used bone-in breasts) in about 1/4 cup avo oil, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, about 4 cloves of fresh garlic (minced), a couple shakes of: salt, pepper, thyme, and oregano. I added everything to a big ziplock and let it soak in for about 30 minutes.
2. In the meantime, chop the Brussels Sprouts, carrots, onion, and potatoes into chunks. Add them all to a sheet pan and drizzle with avo oil, season with salt & pepper, and give everything a good mix.
3. Add the breasts to the pan and pour the marinade over everything.
4. Cook at 400º for about an hour (depending on the size of the breasts), stirring the veggies occasionally. 

The balsamic carmelizes around the veggies and creates the yummiest glaze, without any extra effort! The chicken was perfectly tender and moist. It was a wonderfully satisfying meal to start off our week of healthy eating!

Monday

Beef & Bacon Meatloaf

(Dang that sounds manly…)

Is meatloaf Monday thing yet? I keep trying to make it a thing.

Anyway, I have a very yummy Italian Turkey Meatloaf Recipe on the blog already that I make pretty frequently and love. However, I wanted to change things up a bit this time with a more traditional/classic meatloaf, like the one my mom used to make and we would use the leftovers for meatloaf sandwiches on sourdough bread…anyone else out there do this?

While there won’t be any bread involved this time, I am looking forward to tweaking/playing around with a recipe similar to this one, and might even share it on the blog soon if it turns out well 🙂

I will also serve the loaf with roasted baby potatoes and broccoli, to keep the sides super simple!

Tuesday

Chicken Fajitas

I HAD to do some form of Taco Tuesday and Fajitas jumped into my head. I made a Hawaiian Fusion Steak Fajita Recipe a while back, but I wanted to keep it super simple this week and use chicken. I like to season and cook the meat first, set it aside, and then do the same with the bell peppers and onions before adding everything all together at the end. I think that helps make sure everything gets cooked evenly and browned just right. I might make some Stupid Easy Paleo Tortillas to go along, or just serve with lots of fresh guacamole and salsa!

Wednesday

Asian Garlic Chicken and Green Beans

There is a small Chinese Resturant nearby that serves this dish and, in my pre-paleo days, it was ALL I would order! I am going to do my best to recreate the yummy-ness using coconut aminos, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and LOTS of garlic, of course! I will serve the chicken and green beans over cauliflower rice (frozen, pre-riced cauliflower that is…no shame in my game!)

Thursday

Meatballs and Spaghetti Squash

It’s time for some Italian in our lives! I am going to make beef meatballs seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, and Italian seasoning (might throw a tablespoon or 2 of almond flour to help bind) and place them all on a baking dish. I’ll bake them for around 15-20 minutes at 425º.

I’ll make the spaghetti squash in the Instant Pot (my new favorite use of the IP…it only takes around 7 minutes!!)

Lastly, I will steam up some artichokes and then dip them in a little homemade Balsamic Vinegarette (just equal parts oil and vinegar and S&P blended up).

Friday

Chicken Piccata

I am really excited for this one! I will use my recipe that I posted a while back (but use ghee instead of butter to keep it dairy free). This time, I plan on serving it with zucchini noodles (zoodles) rather than the mashed potatoes, and asparagus.

Saturday

Chicken, Bacon, Spinach, & Mushroom Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

I think the name says it all! I plan on roasting a bunch of sweet potaters in the oven, grilling up some seasoned chicken thighs, and sauteeing the bacon, mushrooms, and spinach on the stove top. Once everything is done, we’ll pile all the “toppings” onto the potatoes and dig in! I think BBQ sauce would take this to the next level, but to stay sugar-free, sauce-free will be just fine!

I might also serve this with roasted Brussels sprouts or broccoli, or a side salad. We’ll see what the mood is come Saturday. 🙂

Sunday

I was going to keep the Whole30 going for one extra day, but since our anniversary is this week, I think I will call it good at 7 days so we can go out to dinner and celebrate 🙂

Don’t worry though, I will have more yummy, healthy, wholesome recipes and meal plan ideas for you next week!

If you want to check out how any of these recipes turn out, follow me on Instagram where I will post our dinners each night, as well as some other Whole30 meals that are getting us through the week!

Have a great one!