Happy Monday folks!!! Well, it’s a new year. And with a new year often comes resolutions. One that frequently tops peoples list is to eat better, whether it be to lose weight, maintain or simply feel better. Often this resolution fails within months either because of too strict of restrictions or inadequate menu planning. If you know what you are going to eat over the course of the day it can make it easier to avoid getting stuck in the situation of being overly hungry, which pretty much always leads to crummy food choices. Especially at the end of the day when you are getting home from work and just want to eat dinner then relax before bed. If you don’t have a plan for dinner it’s a lot more tempting to swing through that drive through or arrange for pick-up/delivery.

Maybe eating better isn’t necessarily on your resolution list but it’s something that is important to you anyway. Regardless of whether it’s at the center of your goals, healthy eating should be a part of everyone’s life. But our lives are busy and with the laundry list of things you have to tackle, it can be hard to find time to think about what to put on the table every night. This can be especially difficult if you are newer to healthy eating.

That’s where we come in! We’ve got you covered with five nights of healthy, dietitian-approved menu ideas to get you through the week. Whether its recipes we created ourselves or ones we’ve found, if we think you’ll like it, we’re going to share it. Even better we’ll give you tips about each recipe, straight from the registered dietitian’s (RD) mouth. Come back next Monday for five more and then five more the week after that! We’ll keep ‘em coming as long as you want ‘em because sometimes we all need a little help to get it all done.

Now onto the food…

This week we have five delicious menus with recipes that were created by a bunch of very talented ladies!

MONDAY | Lemon Broccoli Pasta
RD tips: This one can be cooked in 30 minutes or less so is perfect for a busy Monday! Use whole wheat spiraled pasta for added fiber. Substitute the recommended amount of butter with 2 Tbsp of olive oil then double the amount of lemon juice added towards the end for a heart healthier version.

TUESDAY | Hummus Crusted Chicken with Quinoa Tabbuleh Salad
RD tip: The hummus crusted chicken recipe is total amaze-balls (in my professional opinion). Pairing it with the quinoa salad makes for a mini mediterranean night. Yum!

WEDNESDAY | Slow Cooker Winter Squash Beef Stew
RD tip: Gotta love a good stew. Word to the wise, cook this recipe on high. Not any fault by the author but I interpreted “slow cook” to mean “low” and by the end of 6-8 hours by vegetables were still crunchy. It took several more hours on high to get my veggies right but once I did, it was quite tasty. So, set your crockpot to high from the get-go for the perfect stew.

THURSDAY | Pan Seared Cod in White Wine Tomato Basil Sauce with Basil Pear Salad
RD tip: Eating fish twice a week can help to keep your heart healthy! Fish is full of omega-3 fats which have protective benefits. This menu will get you half way there. Add tuna to your lunch one day or order salmon if you go out to eat this weekend to get the rest of the recommended amount.

FRIDAY | Black Bean Stuffed Peppers
RD tips: For canned beans, try using the “no sodium added” option or at least rinse your beans to remove as much added salt as possible. You can also choose to use dried beans! About 3/4 cup of dried beans yields one 15 ounce can after being cooked. Since it takes an hour or more to cook dried beans, and thats after a period of soaking, you might want to consider pre-cooking the beans the night before making this recipe so they are ready to go when you walk in the door and need to start putting ingredients together. The morning before, rinse beans and place into a bowl of water before you leave for work or starting your day. That evening, drain and add to pot with clean water twice the height of the bean, bring to a boil then cover, reduce heat and simmer until tender (check after 1 hour). Skip the cheese for reduced fat/calories!

Here’s to a happy and healthy week!!
Brooke & Erica