3 Tasty Make-Ahead Meals To Nail In No Time – And Hello Stress-Free Week

HerFamily

Weekends are hectic, we get it, but if you can manage to carve out some cooking time on a Saturday and Sunday to make-ahead these beauts, they will become instant crowd-pleasers, and part of your weekend routine, leaving you less stressed during the week. We promise.

These three amazing recipes are tried and tested by the HerFamily team.

1. Sweet potato shepherds pie

This will be your go-to recipe each week – and the sweet potato is a healthier and lighter alternative to potato, and the kids will love the sweetness.

What’s in it?

400g Lean lamb mince

400g of onions, peeled & diced

2 carrots, peeled & diced

2 celery sticks, diced

3 rosemary sprig chopped finely

Plain flour

Beef stock 400ml

750g of sweet potatoes peeled and cut into chunks

25g of butter

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tablespoon of olive oil to fry the beef

How to make it

Heat a non-stick pan and fry the beef in the olive oil until browned. Add the onions, carrots, celery and half the rosemary and stir. Reduce the heat and cook with a lid on for 5 mins.

Sprinkle in the flour and stir well. Add the stock, season, then bring to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, boil or steam the sweet potatoes until tender.

Heat the oven to 200c/fan 180c. Melt the butter in a small pan, add the chilli, garlic and the rest of the rosemary and sizzle for a couple of minutes. Drain the potatoes, then mash with the flavoured butter.

Divide the beef mixture between 4 ovenproof dishes. Top with the mash. Cook for 20-30 minutes until the pies are bubbling.

2. Cheesy baked cauliflower tots

The kids go absolutely wild for these, and they kinda feel like they are eating nuggets, especially when you serve them with ketchup!

Here’s what you will need:

2 medium heads of cauliflower, cut into florets, a quarter cup of small diced onions, a quarter cup of grated parmesan cheese, a quarter cup of finely ground breadcrumbs and one large egg.

How to make them

Preheat the oven to 200c/fan 180c. Grease a nonstick baking sheet liberally with cooking spray.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the cauliflower florets to the water and cook them just until tender, around 5 to 10 minutes. Thoroughly drain the florets and transfer them to a food processor. Pulse the cauliflower for a few seconds just until it breaks down into small pieces (about the size of grains of rice). (Do not overmix the cauliflower or the mixture will be too wet to form.)

Measure out 3 packed cups of the cauliflower and add it to a large bowl. Stir in the diced onion, parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, egg, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, mixing until thoroughly combined. (The mixture should be roughly the consistency of mashed potatoes). Using your hands, scoop up 2 tablespoons of the mixture and mold it into a croquette shape. Place it on the prepared baking sheet and repeat the shaping process with the remainder of the mixture, spacing the tots about 1 inch apart.

Bake the tots for about 20 minutes then flip them and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until crispy. Remove and serve with ketchup, pesto, hummus or your preferred dipping sauce.

Thank you Just a Taste for this awesome recipe, we love it.

3. Baked egg muffins

This couldn’t be an easier breakfast and snack option to make. Kids as young as two can even get in on the action, too. All you need is a muffin or cupcake tin, eggs, milk and whatever vegetables or cheese you have in your fridge. Then, pop them in the fridge and re-heat for the next day or two without having to make from scratch.

Nice combos are:

Ham and cheese, feta and spinach, tomato and bacon or spinach and mushroom.

For healthy greasing, try a teeny bit of coconut oil, it can also add extra flavour.

Preheat oven to 200c/fan 180c. Whisk 7 eggs, 2 tablespoons milk (use rice or almond if you’re going dairy-free), salt and pepper if you want. Try a sprinkle of Himalayan rock salt, if you’re trying to cut down salt.

Divide your combos evenly into the tin, get the children to make up their own recipes to make it more fun. Pour enough egg mixture in each well to come to the top and garnish with a pinch of grated cheese.

For extra protein, you can spoon some cooked quinoa into the mixtures too, for a crunchier texture.

Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Easy!

Pop a few in a lunchbox and take them on-the-go.

What do you think ladies? Pumped up? Why not check out www.lidl.ie/healthy for more great healthy hacks, tips, tricks, and recipes. Find us on social media with #LidlHealthHacks. You can also incorporate all the family in a healthy plan with a shared reward chart for family activities here.