Weekly menu plan # 12 - First one with a newborn

Roast cauliflower, capsicum and chickpea salad. 

I've been seriously blessed since J was born. Friends from our new church brought us meals from Monday to Thursday for three weeks to help us through this sleep-deprived time.

The meals were delicious and such a help, it got me wondering what's available for new Mums who don't have a church community to help them out. Bellyful is the answer. It's a charity that provides meals for families with new babies or illness. Very cool. Worth supporting if you've got the time.

I really enjoyed all the different meals I got to try over the past three weeks, but now I'm in charge of our menu again so I want to focus on the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating. It seems to be the best plan for giving me energy and helping me lose weight.

I have been eating the odd Trim Healthy Mama meal over recent weeks, and especially appreciated this chocolate muffin recipe which could be grabbed and eaten one-handed while feeding J. I've made the muffins dozens of times now, each time a little differently, but I always love it.

I've also been blending up a big THM smoothie or frappe each day and storing it in a jar in the fridge so I can grab a glass when I want something refreshing and hydrating. I think these drinks are going to be a way of life for me now. They always seem to hit the spot.

With this coming week's menu plan, I'm conscious that I need clear room in the freezer for a quarter home-kill cow we're soon getting from my sister's farm. No easy task. My freezer is chocka!

Here's the menu plan I've come up with. Where the meal uses a recipe from Trim Healthy Mama, I've included the page number, and where the meal is a Trim Healthy Mama style one, I've indicated whether it's Energising (E), Satisfying (S) or Fuel Pull (FP).

Sunday
To do: Make banana yoghurt covered frozen blueberries for girls. Bake chocolate chip and chickpea cookies (recipe to come).
Breakfast: Trim Healthy pancakes from freezer, with blueberries and lime juice. E
Lunch: Tuna salad wrap (on Oat Mountain Bread). E
Dinner: Slow cooker chicken nibbles cooked with salsa, cream cheese and capsicum served on rice cooked in chicken stock for family / cauliflower rice (p. 348) for me. S
Dessert: Chocolate muffin. S
Drink: Shrinker.

Monday 
To do: Sprout mung beans for Thursday's dinner. Thaw blade steak for Tuesday's dinner.
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs served on one slice of sourdough toast. S helper
Lunch: Garlic prawns and salad. S
Dinner: Lemon chicken breasts served over Roast Cauliflower, Capsicum and Chickpea Salad. E
Dessert: Chocolate chip and chickpea cookie.
Drink: Chocolate Fat Stripping Frappe (p. 240). FP 

Tuesday
To do: Buy fresh fruit and salad vegetables. Make Berry Oat Breakfast Cake.
Breakfast: Satisfying granola (p. 237) with cream cheese and frozen raspberries. S
Lunch: Salmon salad wrap on Oat Mountain Bread. E
Dinner: Slow cooker pizza casserole made with blade steak, peas and capsicum, served with sourdough buns for family / mashed cauliflower for me. S
Dessert: Chocolate chip and chickpea cookie.
Drink: Strawberry and Lime Big Boy Smoothie (p. 242). FP

Wednesday
To do: Make yoghurt and kefir. Thaw mince and 1.5c chicken stock for Thursday's dinner.
Breakfast: Berry Oat Breakfast Cake. E
Lunch: Butter chicken on rice (from freezer).
Dinner: Leftover slow cooker pizza casserole turned into shepherd's pie.
Dessert: Berry Oat Breakfast Cake. E
Drink: Singing canary. FP

Thursday
To do: Make almond milk. Defrost lamb ribs for Friday's dinner.
Breakfast: Berry Oat Breakfast Cake. E
Lunch: Salmon salad wrap on Oat Mountain Bread.
Dinner: Asian mince (with mung beans) on rice cooked in chicken stock for family / cauliflower rice (p.348) for me. S
Dessert: Chocolate chip and chickpea cookie.
Drink: Berry kefir smoothie (p. 245). S

Friday
To do: Defrost whole chicken and cheerios.
Breakfast: Poached eggs. S
Lunch: Tuna salad wrap on Oat Mountain Bread.
Dinner: Lamb ribs with garlic, lemon and thyme served with roast vegetable medley. S
Dessert: Chocolate raspberry brownie (from freezer). S
Drink: Chocolate Decadence kefir smoothie (p. 245). S

Saturday
Breakfast: Quinoa porridge (p. 227) with cottage blueberry (p. 230).
Lunch: Cheerios and salad. S
Dinner: Roast chicken, roast vegetable salad and gravy. S
Dessert: Tummy tucking icecream (p. 368) and hot fudge sauce. S
Drink: Strawberry and Lime Big Boy Smoothie (p. 242). FP

~ Find more Craving Fresh seasonal menu plans here. ~