The past couple of weeks have been quite hectic. Between holistic nutrition school, rehearsals for a show I’m in, auditions, and working at the Toronto International Film Festival, I’ve been ping-ponging all over the city from morning ’til night. Most days I was leaving my place by 8 a.m. and not getting back until 11 p.m. Despite my hectic schedule I was determined to keep up my healthy habits as much as possible.
Powering my days with homemade food
There are a few reasons why bringing healthy, homemade food with me wherever I go is so important to me.
1) With my many allergies it’s just easier to eat foods I’ve made myself and know exactly what’s in them rather than explaining my dietary concerns to a restaurant and risking not feeling well for the rest of the day.
2) It’s cheaper. And I’m all about saving money! Make a big batch of salad that works out to $3 a serving or buy a $12 salad every day? Pretty much a no-brainer.
3) Although there are healthy options to be found on-the-go, I think most of us end up reaching for whatever’s quickest and easiest — and eating too many of these less healthy options day-in and day-out doesn’t help us feel our best.
Getting started
It does take a little planning and effort but once you get used to it you can whip up nutritious, easy and yummy meals that will have you saving money and feeling your best! There are two big things to remember when you want to take homemade, healthy meals with you throughout the week.
1) Batch cook. Making multiple servings at once is the key to doing a little bit of work for a lot of reward. I aim to cook 3-4 servings every time I make something so I’ll have 3-4 days’ worth of lunches or dinners.
2) There’s no need to be fancy. Chopping veggies and tossing them in a pan or the oven with some oil and a source of protein is all the time I want to invest when my schedule gets busy. I highly recommend this approach because the quicker and easier it is, the more likely you are to commit to doing it regularly.
3) Do a little bit of planning ahead. The time for shopping and deciding what to cook is not in the middle of a hectic week — or you might get too overwhelmed to do it. Instead, aim to do your shopping ahead of time if you can and take a hard look at your schedule to determine when you might have a few extra half hours to do a couple big batch-cook meals. And of course, be sure your shopping and planned meals are full of nutrient-rich foods! These steps will help set you up for a nutritious, stress-free week.
A little inspiration…
If you follow me on Instagram (which you totally should! You can find me at @sheelagh.daly) you may have seen some of the yummy things I was eating this past week. But if you didn’t get a chance, I thought I’d share some of the highlights here so anyone interested in eating well during hectic weeks has a little inspiration to get them started.
Chicken curry with coconut cauliflower rice
First up we have chicken curry tossed with coconut cauliflower rice inspired by holistic nutritionist, Leanne Vogel, at Healthful Pursuit:
This recipe may sound fancy but it’s super easy if you have a food processor. Just use the grater attachment or pulse with the blade to create cauliflower rice in a flash and toss it in a pan with baked chicken, coconut milk and curry powder!
Zucchini noodle pasta
Next up was chorizo sausages with sautéed mushrooms, kale, onions and zucchini noodles tossed in tomato sauce:
Again, super easy. Just bake and then chop the sausages, add them to pan-fried veggies, and toss in the noodles and tomato sauce at the end. I got the sausages at my local farmers’ market and they really made this dish something special.
Tuna coleslaw
At one point in my week I was running really short on time. So I bought a bag of shredded cabbage and carrots, a few cans of tuna, tossed it all with some pickles and vegan mayonnaise and voilà!
I will admit it may sound weird and not look like anything special but it is seriously delicious. And such an easy meal in a pinch!
Sausages and roasted veggies
Now here is the easiest of all the meal ideas! Roasted garlic sausages paired with roasted kale, broccoli, onions and carrots.
Just chop up any vegetables you have on hand, toss them in coconut oil and bake them in the oven along with the meat or vegetarian protein of your choice and you’re good to go!
Snack time!
I do my best to bring full meals with me when I’m on-the-go because those are more likely to leave me feeling nourished and satisfied. But I also bring snacks with me because you don’t want to be around me when I’m hangry! For the last couple of weeks snack time came in the form of a big bag of mixed nuts from Bulk Barn.
This bag also once had Brazil nuts, walnuts and pecans for variety… but I ate them all before I took this picture. 😉
There you have it! A few tips and hopefully a little inspiration to get you cooking even when your schedule gets crazy. If you have any questions just let me know in the comments below!