Mexican Inspired Meal Prep Bowls

To be honest, I’m excited to be going back to school. It’ll be good to get out of the house and see some other humans. I’m even a little excited to make lunches again! Although I know I’ll probably be sick and tired of it after the first week. That’s why there’s this awesome thing called MEAL PREP. You just make a bunch of delicious food, throw it in containers, and store it in the fridge for when you need it next. A while ago I published a Black Bean Stew that’s great for meal preppin’, and I also have a TON of freezer meals that you can make and then just reheat in the morning. Today I made some Mexican Inspired Meal Prep Bowls, which are AMAZING and full of flavour and good stuff that’ll fill you up. Because not being full is reason number 353378 that school lunches can sometimes suck. Keyword sometimes. Your lunches won’t suck after this.

In these bowls I put a lot of veggies, some quinoa, delicious refried beans, and a KILLER homemade salsa that will knock your socks off. This can all come together in about 30 minutes, and that 30 minutes will save you from a lot of pain later on in the week. You know when you’re like, oh, I’ll just throw a random granola bar in my bag because that’s all I need, and then you seriously regret it at lunch? Problem solved. Now you can throw this in your bag instead. Just maybe don’t actually throw it because then the lid might come off and your backpack will smell like salsa.

I know I said this last year and probably every year before that too, but this year I’m really going to be more organized will meal prepping. Join me in this quest to end LLS (Lazy Lunch Syndrome). I’ll definitely be posting more meal prep recipes, and some tips and tricks for making awesome lunches. Make sure you’re following me on Instagram to stay up to date!!

Mexican Inspired Meal Prep Bowls

Serves: 2 (feel free to double or triple the recipe to prepare for the entire week)

Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
  • 1 small carrot, grated
  • 1 can of **ORGANIC** black beans; reserve 1/2 cup of the liquid, then drain and rinse the rest. Please use organic black beans, because when using the liquid you want to make sure it’s just water and salt, and there’s no preservatives.
  • 1/2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 a lemon
  • 1/4 cup loosely packed cilantro
  • A big handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
  • 1 tomato, diced
  • 1/4 of a white onion, diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the black beans and use a fork or wooden spoon to mash them a bit. After cooking for about 2 minutes, add in the liquid from the can, then stir and continue mashing. Season with salt and pepper, and about a teaspoon of lemon juice. Cook until the beans have thickened and most of the liquid is evaporated, about another couple of minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
  2. Place the diced tomato, diced onion, garlic, cilantro and the rest of the juice from the lemon in the blender, and season with some salt and pepper. Give in a few pulses until it reaches your desired consistency.
  3. Evenly divide the quinoa, corn, grated carrot, refried beans, cherry tomatoes, and salsa into two tupperware containers. Store in the fridge until needed!!

I hope you guys try these out! Have a great rest of your Monday, and an awesome first day at school, however that will look like for you!!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Rainbow Bowls

I honestly don’t have any other way to describe these bowls than rainbow😂😂 Ok maybe delicious but that doesn’t work in a title. Anyways, these bowls have EVERYTHING YOU WANT IN A BOWL. 5 million veggies? Check. Sautéed peppers and mushrooms with soy sauce? Check. An avocado filled with delicious peanut sauce? Check check and cheeeeeeck! Did I mention that this bowl also has sweet potatoes? Plus, it’s great for meal prep and will definitely power you through a long school day. After all of my ranting on how good this bowl is, you’d better go make it because IT. IS. LIT.

Rainbow Bowl

Serves: 2

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

For the salad:

  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 1 large sweet potato
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 carrots, shredded
  • 2 leaves of Kale, cut into strips
  • 1/2 a cucumber, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 5 white mushrooms
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 avocado

For the sauce:

  • 1 tbs peanut butter
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • Chilli flakes to taste
  • Water

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Peel and cut the sweet potato into 1 centimetre cubes. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and toss with 1 tbsp of olive oil, some salt and pepper. Bake in the oven for about 30-35 minutes, until soft and caramelized.
  3. Cut the bell pepper into thin strips, and slice the mushrooms. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a pan over medium heat and sauté the veggies until soft, about 5-8 minutes. Add in 1 tbsp of soy sauce and cook for an additional 2 minutes, then remove from the heat.
  4. Mix all of the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
  5. Once the sweet potatoes are finished, build your bowl with kale, carrots, cucumber, peppers and mushrooms, avocado and sweet potato. Drizzle the sauce on top and enjoy!!

Hope you fall in love with this rainbow bowl!

Yours Truly,

MyDayIsBooked;)))

Meal Prep: Black Bean Stew

Hello! I know that making a good lunch is a bit of a struggle for a lot of people, so I’m going to try and post more lunch-related recipes and tips. Meal prep is a great solution to this problem, it just takes a lttle bit of planning and organization. On the weekends, its super easy to make a big batch of something, like this Black Bean Stew, and then BOOM; you have lunch for the week. This stew is delicious and only takes 15 minutes to make, not to mention you can serve it with pretty much whatever you want to switch up your lunch time experience. Because yes, eating this black bean stew is an experience.

Black Bean Stew

Serves: 3 (Makes three lunches)

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • 1/2 a red onion, diced
  • 2 tomatoes, diced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 3 tbs of tomato paste
  • 1 tbs cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tsp chile powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 1/2 cup water
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Serving Suggestions:

  • quinoa
  • rice
  • tomato
  • lettuce
  • humms
  • sliced almonds
  • kale

Directions:

  1. In a pan over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add in the tomatoes and onions and cook for about 6-8 minutes, until both vegetables are soft.
  2. Toss the garlic, black beans, tomato paste and spices into the pan with the water. Stir and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Scoop into a reusable container on its own or with some of the above suggestions. Store in the fridge until you need it;)

It doesn’t get easier than that. This stew will leave you feeling satisfied and full. It tastes great cold, but if you pack it in a microwavable container you can always heat it up at school. Enjoy!

Yours Truly,

MyDayIsBooked;)))