Meal Plan Week 13

For the meal plan week 13 our summer weather is just about here. It is getting hotter and we are starting to find we are feeling less and less like we want to cook with any heat in the house. Our BBQ tank will be filled and used a bit this week. 

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Meal Plan Week 13

Meal Plan Week 13 In-Depth and Top Tips

Monday

Chicken Caesar Salad with Plant Based Dressing

These were such a hit with the kids a couple of weeks ago they wanted to take the leftovers for lunch the day after and have been asking for this meal again. How could we say no?! Last time we grilled the breasts. This time we will bake them.

To cook the chicken:

To cook the chicken we will trim 4 breasts into strips but another boneless cut like thighs can be used and trimmed. Cooked them in an oven safe casserole dish with a tiny bit of olive oil just enough to coat the dish and meat, not to boil the chicken in the oil, 4 minced cloves of garlic. Mix the chicken around to make sure they are all slightly oiled. Cook for 15 minutes, flip and then sprinkle on a bit of gluten free bread crumbs to add texture. Cook for an additional 10-15 mins until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165F.

For the salad:

3 heads of Romaine lettuce chopped or torn in bite sized pieces tossed with either a pre-made plant based Caesar dressing like President’s choice plant based caesar dressing (contains Mustard) or a homemade one like this recipe we love from Ambitious Kitchen that uses (Sesame) tahini as a base for it. With the recipe we omit the mustard and add a bit of horseradish and turmeric instead. We have also used pureed chickpeas instead of tahini and it has been super tasty.

Making croutons:

The kids ate almost all the croutons as they were fresh out of the oven last time, To make gluten free croutons take 5 slices of gluten free top 8 free bread, like Little Northern Bakehouse or Carbonaut Gluten Free and cut it in crouton sized cubes. Put the bread in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil mixing so all the pieces get coated lightly. Sprinkle on garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper and mix again. 

Lay the bread out in a single layer on 1-2 parchment lined cookie sheets. Broil for 2-3 mins watching carefully so they do not burn, flip the croutons to ensure all sides are toasted and broil 1-2 mins on each side until done. Really watch them as they can catch quickly, if they burn. Remove from the oven and let cool before using.

If croutons are not for you try topping the salad with roasted chickpeas.

Top Tip: 

Grate on Violife dairy free Parm-like cheese or Follow Your Heart/Earth Island Parm like Shreds.

Tuesday

Soy Free Beef Stir Fry and Rice

This Soy Free Stir Fry can be made with beef as in the original recipe or the protein can be switched out for pork, chicken, turkey, bison, venison, or lamb. This is a great meal to make to use up all the raw veggies that need finishing in the fridge. The meat can be marinated the night before to make the cooking of the stir fry super quick.

Top Tip: 

Use the rice that the family likes best. It can be basmati, white, brown, long grain whichever works best for them. If rice is not a safe food try it with quinoa instead. 

Wednesday

Meatballs and Mashed Potatoes

We usually make turkey meatballs but we will use beef this week. Instead of plain with gravy we will use some leftover Root Beer BBQ Sauce from last week’s meal plan. When the meatballs are ready to go in the oven we will pour a bit of the BBQ sauce in the dish and roll the balls around in it and finish the cooking. 

Top Tip: 

Mashed potatoes and steamed frozen peas will be on the plate alongside the meatballs this Wednesday night.

Thursday

Make Your Own Subs and Cut Veggies

Using free from allergens hot dog buns like the ones from Little Northern Bakehouse. Leftover meatballs, safe packaged deli meats like the Maple Leaf Naturals or Applegate Products (contains celery powder). Ham, chicken, turkey, bacon, dairy free cheese slices (like these from Violife or Daiya) as a base for the sandwich. Avocado, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions, peppers, olives, cucumbers, and hot peppers are all toppings that our family loves and likes on certain subs.

If we want to get fancy we will choose one favourite from the sub places we used to go to and try to recreate that. Steak and cheese, Blt, cold cut trio, for example are some of the kids’ favourites we try and make at home.

Top Tip:

We ask the kids to let us know in the morning what they like on their subs so we can minimise what needs prepping for dinner. If we are tight on the budget we will offer one kind of meat for everyone, and let the kids choose from a few of the vegetable toppings that we already have for other meals of their lunches and use them. 

Friday

Chicken Pineapple Burgers and Fries

We will marinade chicken breasts that have been sliced thinner to look kind of like butterflies in a cut that is called butterflying. The marinade will be a variation of a teriyaki flavour. To make teriyaki marinade from scratch this is our recipe: combine ½ C + 2 Tbsps Coconut Aminos, 4 cloves Garlic, ¼ C Rice Vinegar (unseasoned), 1 tablespoon Fresh Ginger, finely minced, 2 Tbsps Neutral Oil. Marinade for 2 hours or upto overnight before cooking.

Use a ring of either canned or slices of fresh pineapple that has been brushed with oil and grilled 2-3 mins on the BBQ. Barbecue the chicken and pineapple until cooked. Top with the pineapple, lettuce, and the gluten free buns with a bit of safe mayonnaise, like Hellman's Vegan or  Mama Yo! Mayonnaise.

To make the fries, cook in the air fryer from peeled and soaked russet potatoes. Slice in fry sized bits, boil for 3-4 minutes and drain. Cover with a tea towel to steam dry a bit. then coat in neutral oil and cook for 28 minutes in the air fryer at 380F shaking every 5-8 minutes, or cook as per the machine's instructions.

Top Tip: 

We will use Little Northern Bakehouse buns as they are top 8 free. To save time instead of making the marinade from scratch there is a top 8 free version from  Naked Natural Foods teriyaki coconut aminos.

Saturday

Cauliflower Steaks on the BBQ and Pasta Salad

We will be cutting a couple of heads of cauliflower in 2 inch thick sections the width of the whole cauliflower. Brush the chunk with a neutral oil, a bit of paprika, season with salt and pepper. Flip the steaks when each side is cooked for about 10-15 minutes a side we think. 

We haven’t tried this one before and have seen some recipes call for parboiling the cauliflower and some don’t. We are trying them without boiling them this week and seeing how we like them. Watch them closely. Move from the direct heat to indirect heat, like the barbecue’s top shelf, if they start to burn.

Top Tip: 

To make the pasta salad use ½ a pound of gluten free Rotini or Fusilli, like Barilla or Catelli. Cook, drain and chill the pasta. Toss it with orange pepper, halved grape tomatoes, diced red onions, green olives, and broccoli all chopped and mixed in. There should be around 2-3 cups of veggies when all chopped up. The dressing is ¼ C white wine vinegar, ½ olive oil, 1 clove minced garlic, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon oregano, ½ teaspoon thyme, ¼ teaspoon sugar, ⅛ teaspoon sweet paprika, to taste salt and pepper. Mix the dressing and then toss with the vegetables and chilled pasta.

Sunday 

Picnic With Sandwiches 

We make different sandwiches for the family. It may be chicken salad from our Chicken Papaya Recipe, not-tuna chickpea salad, Daiya cream cheese or Boursin plant based spread and cucumbers, or meat like ham and salami. Etc. We want things that are easy to pack and don’t need re-heating. 

Not tuna sandwiches, for us, are boiled chickpeas, chilled and mixed with vegan mayo, a bit of finely diced celery, fresh dill, onion, salt, pepper, and a dash of turmeric. It is how we would prepare tuna for a salad or sandwich before. We also would sometimes put in a chopped pickle or allergen safe relish.

We will bring any leftover pasta salad, cut up fruit like watermelon, and a treat of plain potato chips. Not all chips are safe, some have been switching to soybean oil in the recent past. We check our food packages every time we buy them due to food shortages and lots of manufacturers changing suppliers or recipes as a result.

Top Tip:  

Check that any packaged deli meats are safe as many contain wheat or dairy and can have cross contact with other allergens. We avoid the deli counter at our grocers as many meats are cut and stored all together and they cannot guarantee they are free from allergens.

We Love Feedback!

Did you make any of the meals we did let us know? What is on your meal plan this week? Drop a comment on this post or tag us on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok.

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We have to remind everyone that we are not medical professionals or dietitians, so these meal plans are not balanced for nutrition, they are for information purposes only. Please discuss any dietary concerns, changes, or proper meal plans with your medical team.

Always check the labels for any products to make sure they are right for you. We also encourage you to contact the manufacturers in addition to checking that the process of manufacturing is also safe for you, and that there aren’t shared lines. One product or ingredients may be safe for one person but not another. Always check the products and ingredients before purchasing.