Life gets hectic in the fall. I love to cook, but there’s no shame in having help. My newest discovery is Clean & Colorful Kitchen. You can’t go wrong with a made-from-scratch meal, created from fresh and local ingredients!
I don’t have a big ACL surgery update this week. It’s basically the same. Progress will be slower now, I suppose. I’m looking forward to my one month post-op appointment with my surgeon tomorrow!
Now that I’m mobile (← I use the term loosely), I have been cooking more. However, we’ve been crazy busy too. I’m planning for holiday promos, doing tons of prep for my social media clients, and I finally started a newsletter for this blog (shameless plug to sign up)!
The day of eats I’m sharing is from my friend Teresa’s meal service: Clean & Colorful Kitchen. I’ll tell you upfront that this service and the giveaway at the end is only available in San Diego, BUT I think everyone can benefit from the meal ideas. Many of her offerings are high-protein vegetarian meals (you can request all veg) and they’re all gluten-free.
When I used to meal prep religiously my food would have looked a lot like this, which is why I LOVE picking up these meals from Teresa. I can trust her to incorporate nutrients into food in a fun, flavorful way. Even left to my own devices I couldn’t have come up with a better ingredient list than what’s in this beet bowl:
Everything comes pre-portioned with the macros listed right on the lid. Teresa and I talked a bit about how people struggle with portions control. We look at a plate and have an irrational need to fill it up.
It was because of that conversation that I almost snorted at Vegas’ comments on the portion size. After it was devoured, I heard no complaints! I had to text Teresa.
Breakfast
Vegas always brings me coffee to bed. Then I ease my way down the stairs to make our morning cocktail.
I spent most of yesterday morning working and lost track of time. Breakfast didn’t happen until 11 am… which means it’s totally normal to eat turkey muffins for breakfast. Right?
This was my first Clean & Colorful meal. I loved the turkey muffins, but the secret is in the sauce. That cup on the side? It’s filled with sriracha ketchup. I may or may not have licked the container.
Lunch
I was between the gym and an appointment, so I brought my lunch to eat on the go. This is Clean & Colorful’s Cranberry Apple Tuna Salad. People turn their noses up at tuna, but I swear to you this isn’t your cafeteria stinky, mayonnaise-soaked scoop ‘o slop.
While I was eating this between appointments, Vegas was at home eating the same thing. I know this because I received the following text from her:
Dinner
Dinner was another to-go meal. In addition to hooking me up with a free trial, Teresa connected us with a friend who had extra Padres baseball tickets! Rather than eating ballpark food, I took her Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Spicy Peanut Sauce.
Have you ever ordered a cauliflower steak in a restaurant? They somehow get off charging $16 for a slice of cauliflower. It irks me. This “steak” was fabulous, and included yet another crack-like sauce. I didn’t even need to heat it up!
She even managed to get 15g of protein this plant-based dish. Did you know that cauliflower is actually pretty high in protein? The peanut-crack sauce helped amp up the protein power too.
Did I mention there’s a wine shop at the park? I rocked my favorite jersey. 😉
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYaHJ7QnxvC/
Giveaway
I promised a Clean & Colorful Kitchen giveaway! This is only open to San Diego residents. Also for SD locals, I have a $15 discount code for you – just enter the code “laura” at checkout. Definitely worth an order for these busy fall days.
Sorry to the non-locals…. I’ll have something fun for you soon though!
[Tweet “Eating clean and colorfully isn’t hard with a little help!”]
I hope you enjoyed my day of self-sufficient post-surgery eats. Be sure to link up to Jenn’s WIAW baby below.
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Check out Teresa’s personal blog too; I love her approach to eating. It’s how we originally met!
Do you make an effort to eat clean and colorfully?
What is your go-to meal prep dish?
omg I love any form of roasted cauliflower, that sound delicious with peanut sauce!
Me too! It never gets old.
A wine shop in a ballpark makes me feel better about the future of the human race. That cauliflower looks delicious!
Right?! You can actually get some really nice bottle in there. They even have champagne!!!
That cauliflower looks so good! It all looks good. Recovery sounds so annoying but at least it’s not getting worse.
And that tuna looks delicious (nothing like cat food)
Ha! That’s the truth. It can always get worse.
I could cry that this service is not available near me!! This would be my absolute perfect solution…and my husband would be JUST like Vegas :-))))
LOVE that shirt!!!
I actually said to her the other day – after she turned her nose up at my making a spaghetti dish with squash – “why won’t you eat healthy food I cook, but you’ll eat this?!” She said “because we already have this in the fridge.” WTF?!
I love your jersey!
I got Vegas one too. 😉
These meals sound delicious! I’ve never made cauliflower steaks and those look amazing!
My go to meal prep dish lately has been chicken, roasted veggies, and potatoes.
I’ve never made them at home either, but I’m going to now! And that sauce – so yum.
I’ve never had a cauliflower steak. That meal service looks great!
It was really good. I love doing these when I’m feeling uninspired in the kitchen.
Hi, Laura. It looks like the linkup is set to open tomorrow. Could you kindly double-check that?
And, no, there’s no shame in having help cooking. At least half the meals I eat are pre-made…or are sandwiches. 🙂 Plus you get to try new stuff it might not occur to make on your own.
Fixed! Sorry about that!
Tell them to deliver to Chicago. I need this post baby
I’m not sure they’ll have expanded my then… but the girl that won this giveaway just had a baby. Does that count? 😉
OMG all that food looks great! Teresa is doing an awesome thing. Us East Coasters need someone like her 😉
I mean… business idea? 😉
Cauliflower florets with peanut sauce at a baseball game?! Sounds like heaven!
I never said I was normal!
You’ve got me craving cauliflower! I bet that sauce was awesome, too! It looks great!
oh that’s a great meal plan service for post surgery eats! Love that plan. Well done bro! You so smart. ;- ) and Vegas at it too?
p.s I need that wine glass
She did!!! I was shocked, actually.
Yummm… cauliflower steaks are one of my favorite meals. That plus some red wine and baseball – looks like the perfect evening 🙂
You really can’t go wrong with that combo!
I have a lot of favorite meal prep items but I think sous vide egg bites are my favorite. But those cauliflower steaks look bomb!!
I’m dying to get a sous vide!!!
What a fabulous local option!
My favorite meal prep is chicken with a salad on the side
That’s often my go-to!
I would love to do marinated meats which make for easy dinners later!
I can’t wait to check out Clean & Colorful! My kitchen just flooded which means a few weeks of take out. I need a healthier option for sure.
You really need to check this out! Unfortunately, there was another winner… but it’s totally worth trying, especially with the discount code.
Yay! So happy your mobile, slowly but steady wins the race 🙂 Cooking is crazy therapeutic for me, it destresses me. I’ve heard a lot about these pre-made meal plans, I’m not too sure how I feel about it, but if you like it I will probably like it too. I can’t wait to hear what the surgeon says tomorrow. Can’t believe it’s been a month since your surgery. I want coffee in bed, I love me some Vegas 🙂
Slow in steady drive me bat shit crazy! LOL!
I think the key to pre-made is to find something local and fresh. I tried another that wasn’t local… it was so bad I didn’t even write a review.
Those cauliflower steaks and peanut sauce look awesome. Now I’m hungry!
They truly were amazing – I didn’t know cauliflower could be so delicious and satisfying!
i know the whole $15 for cauli steak…why? why ? why?
i need that shirt!!! hope your recovery will continue to go smoothly.
It truly is baffling…
I saw the ad for the shirt of Facebook. I bought us both one for like $25!
Wow, what a cool giveaway! I have never heard of Teresa’s blog until now, but she and I have the same major–pretty cool! I feel you on the mark-up for cauliflower in restaurants. Seriously, you buy a whole head for $2 at the store! Lol
She has some incredible recipes and info! You’d really love her as a person too. I’d so glad to call her my friend!
We normally do a lot of quinoa and “chickn” for food prep. Full of protein and a quick meal.
That’s such a great quick and easy weeknight meal!
My favorite meal prep item are sweet potatoes. I cut them into half moon shapes and roast them for 40 mins at 400. Yummmm!
Yesssss! Even when I was eating then all the time in competition prep, I never got sick of sweet potatoes.
This would come in real handy for me in postpartum! Veggies are super important to me when meal prepping.
I am so, so glad you won!!!
I do try to eat the rainbow when ever possible. Makes is much more interesting!
For sure! My mom alway told me to eat the rainbow growing up – it’s always stuck with me!
i like to meal prep spaghetti squash and ground meat, it is easy to make healthy meals with those two items!
Spaghetti squash is a great one! I always look forward to cooler months so I can easily find it.
that is the best freaking jersey I have ever seen in my entire life !!!
LOL! Word.
My favorite meal prep item is this quick roasted red pepper sauce I make for pasta or a grain bowl full of veggies. It’s a go-to that’s always a hit!
That sounds amazing! I love red peppers.
The best food prep item is greek yogurt. Pair it with fruit for a sweet snack; pair it with cut up or steamed veggies and some lemon pepper for a savory meal, or just incorporate it into oatmeal, an omelet, rice, quinoa, or even pasta as part of a creamy sauce. You get both protein and flavor. I swear, I’m vegetarian and Greek yogurt is my key to eating flavorfully, nutritionally, economically, and without putting a huge amount of time or thought into meal planning and preparation.
Totally agree! I used to eat some form of a Greek yogurt bowl every night for dessert.
That summer bowl sounds awesome! I love to meal prep brown rice. I’ll make a big batch of it and throw in veggies like zucchini and pepper, and then during the week I can pair it with stuff like black bean burgers with avocado or chickpeas and shredded cheese.
Vegas would be in heaven in your house – she lover her some rice! Except she won’t eat a bean burger… 😉