[Mary]

What are your favorite frugal “healthy” meals? A lot of frugal meals are very carb heavy, I’m hoping for ideas with protein and veggies.

I’ll be making homemade freezer meals for my husband and I want to try to keep them healthy and possibly lower calorie to help with weight loss.

[Melanie]

carbs aren’t the enemy. they keep you satisfied and give you energy. spaghetti for example, you can go light on the pasta and heavy on the veggies.

including both is beneficial.

[Meagan]

Well, I’ve lost 30 lbs eating plant based – loads of carbs, and it’s super cheap.

When I make meals, I double up the recipe and then freeze quarts for future meals.

Makes meal planning and prep easier. I eat a lot and it’s super tasty.

These are some easy ones –
Lentil chili
Chickpea masala
Mexican hash brown casserole
Burrito bowls
Bbq black bean quinoa “burgers”
Veggie marinara
Lasagna
Cajun beans and rice
Jambalaya pasta

All depends on what you like. Just eat nutrient dense foods, not calorie dense foods.

[Jackie]

I like to keep homemade precooked mini meat loaves in the freezer. Thaw, warm and add veggies and a salad. Dinner done in 15 minutes.

[Barbara]

Ground turkey meatloaf, vegetarian burger or “meatloaf,” ground turkey chili, beans in any form are excellent for protein, fiber, and weight loss, Indian dal of any kind, whole grains

(brown rice, farro, millet, toasted buckwheat), white bean and tuna salad, bean salads of any kind, blue cheese salad dressing made with 50/50 yogurt and mayonnaise, Greek yogurt excellent for protein, eggs, hummus, whole grain bread sliced thin for sandwiches, low-fat cheese and dairy products, bean and lentil soups, wholewheat pasta.

[Nancy]

As a diabetic, I avoid carbs at dinner, especially pizza, pasta and rice. You can eat those in moderation at breakfast, or dinner.

We were told to eat snack size portions of desserts, such as ice cream, and I limit cake or pastries to Friday or Saturday, and eat them at breakfast or lunch time.

Diabetics can eat smaller, more frequent meals, snacks, etc.

You can pre cook proteins, then heat with preferred spices, use to top salads, or toss into soups.

Minestrone using the minimal amount of pasta, refreeze well, meatloaf, burritoes, using the smaller size, you can pre make some appetizers, which freeze well, like hot wings, teriyaki chicken, boneless breasts or thighs stuff with broccoli and cheese, or with seasoned butter.

You can lightly bread them, or not.

[Lauren]

I bought an entire quiche- broccoli, cheddar cheese. I cut into 6 pieces and tonight had a piece with 1/2 cup of yams! Delicious and healthy.

[Laura]

Kale salad from Costco with long English cucumbers, a baked chicken breast, blueberries, 1 tablespoon of Ranch dressing and pumpkin seeds.

[Traci]

I made a shaved cabbage salad this week with nectarines, apples, carrots, peppers, onions, bacon and cheese. Easily add more protein.

Cabbage is cheap so I always have some on hand.

[Cely]

For breakfast I like: mct oil, clean protein, 2 tablespoons of clean butter, and cinnamin. We eat lunch at 12:00.

Nothing to eat after 7:00 pm.

[Darla]

Stir fried dishes are not carb heavy. Sweet potatoes are good also.

[Kendall]

I found the easiest way to navigate busy weeks is to marinate and roast chicken thighs and legs and other meats in advance.

Refrigerate overnight, freeze a few hours and then vacuum pack by serving size to prevent moisture from being sucked out of the meat.

I pull out servings each morning and defrost in refrigerator.

I keep lots of fresh or frozen low carb vegetables on hand for a quick side.

Today for lunch we had a grass fed beef patty and 2 oz avocado with a fresh salad of diced cucumber, tomatoes and red onion with a lemon vinaigrette.

It was delicious, nutritious, and lower carb.

[Author]

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