National Nutrition Month is an annual campaign created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. During the month of March, everyone is invited to learn about making informed food choices and developing healthful eating and physical activity habits.

March is National Nutrition Month!

Meal prepping is when you prepare meals ahead of time and store them in the fridge or freezer to eat throughout the week or at a later time. There are several ways to meal prep:

• Batch cooking: Making large quantities of a recipe with the intent to refrigerate or freeze it and then portion it out at a later time
• Individually portioned meals: Prepare a meal with the correct portion sizes and store it as ready-to-eat or heat-and-eat.
• Prepped ingredients: Wash, cut, and cook individual ingredients that will be used to create different recipes. For example, prepping vegetables and protein for a salad. This way, the ingredients are ready to be incorporated together in a meal.

• Start small- pick one meal you want to prep for the week and see how it goes
• Use the bariatric plate as a template
• Organization is key! – get together all your containers and ingredients before hand
• Buy containers that will keep portion sizes in check
• Create a solid grocery list
• Designate a specific day and time to meal prep
• Use Pinterest and other internet sources for ideas

• Save time during the week
• Save money
• Better portion control
• Always have a healthy option available
• You can modify recipes to build the perfect balanced plate

Before you begin, you will need a plan. Find recipes that you find appealing and are “meal-preppable”. This means they will be easily stored and eaten cold or reheated. Not all foods will store and reheat as well as others. When planning, remember your bariatric plate guidelines. Start with protein, then non-starchy vegetables, then lastly a small amount of carbs. Of course, pick recipes that sound appealing to you!

Make a grocery list and stick to it! Once you find your recipes, make a list of ingredients you will need to prepare these meals.”YUM! Lettuce Wrap Tacos!” Serves 4 (2 Tacos per Serving)
Ingredients

• 1/2 pound lean ground turkey
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1.5 Tbs taco seasoning
• 1 large roma tomatoes, chopped
• 1/4 ts salt
• 4 ounces shredded cheese
• 8 large romaine lettuce leaves
• 1 can drained and rinsed black beans
  • optional, can sub for canned corn
• salsa of choice

Directions

1.  Cook ground turkey in olive oil with taco seasoning until it is cooked through and crumbly, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain excess grease.
2. Prep roma tomatoes and romaine lettuce leaves.
3. Fill each lettuce leaf with 1 oz. of turkey, 1 Tbs black beans, 1Tbs tomatoes, 1 Tbs of salsa, and 1/2 oz of cheese

Meal Prep Tip: Prepare 2 tacos in meal prep containers to have 4 meals to eat throughout the week!