Ah yes moms, we are in the thick of it.
Spring and summer season sports are in full force. Obviously we are in baseball mode, but I know soccer and lacrosse have also started up and are keeping parents everywhere running from one field to the next. The other weekend I calculated that we had spent almost fifteen hours on a baseball field and/or driving to and from one. What the actual heck. When I write it out like that, well, I sound legitimately insane. WHO DOES THAT.
And yet I know I’m not the only one. We are all doing it, somehow surviving the crazy. My one girlfriend has three multi travel sport kids and averages twelve to fifteen games per weekend. I can’t even calculate those hours as I can’t do math that high. Anytime I feel overwhelmed I think about her and I bow down. My four to six games seems like a walk in the park.
One thing I’ve found that really helps me during these busy weekend is making a great recipe on Friday that can stretch for the weekend games. It’s just comforting to know I’ve got some delicious healthy food ready to go in the fridge that is easily packable. Major bonus that it saves me from living on salted hot pretzels and nachos for three months. Although now that I say that, that doesn’t sound all that bad.
I digress. We are trying to stay healthy here. Without further ado, my meal prep meals for busy sport weekends. I hope a recipe or two sticks out to you!
Spring Quinoa Salad: Serious short cut here, buy the Trader Joes frozen quinoa packets. They are ready in minutes. Then you just mix up some peas, tons of fresh herbs, some feta, and a little crisp bacon (you can skip if you’d like!). It all gets tossed together with a zippy lemon vinaigrette which comes together in four simple ingredients. Could not be easier.
Chicken tortellini pesto bowls: This is a heartier one with the pasta but I’ve found it’s great to have in the fridge for after later games as generally everyone likes most of what is in it. You can keep ingredients seperate too and only combine the ones you want. Everything is then swirled up with a pesto sauce. Yum!
Detox Moroccan spiced glow bowls: Oh my goodness my friends this one is goooooood. So many flavors. So much health. You get hummus. And cucumbers. And protein from the chick peas. Don’t forget a fresh lemon to squeeze on top! I can’t say enough good things about this one, please try it out.
BBQ chicken quinoa salad with avocado: Another serious favorite and so easy! Be sure to use the short cut rule again with the quinoa. The rotisserie chicken also makes it easy and I use store bought bbq sauce drizzled on top as well as mixed up with the chicken. I buy a few avocados, half them when packing my meal, and add in fresh for each game. This helps not having your avocado go brown in the salad.
Cous cous salad with smoked paprika: This one is an oldie but goodie my friends. You get tiny pearls of pasta mixed together with spinach, tomatoes, feta, roasted red peppers (you can use jarred as a short cut!), nuts of your choice (slivered almonds work great), and plenty of fresh herbs. Toss it all together with a simple olive oil dressing that is spiked with smoked paprika. Very fresh and unique flavors going on in this one.
So there you go! Five solid options that are waaaaay better than the concession stand offerings of who knows what. Although I did enjoy a seriously greasy cheeseburger post Miami that was out of this world. Just saying.
C
