Five Seasons Women’s Wellness: Health and Wellness Blog

A few months ago I was forced to have an intervention with myself. With my busy schedule, I found myself dining out far too often and my diet and pocketbook were suffering.

In the interest of personal health and wealth, I sat myself down and vowed to make home cooked meals at least 6 nights a week and pack my lunches for work every day. I made a weekly chart and put myself to the task of coming up with a weekly meal plan.

The first few weeks, I planned different dinner fare for each night, but found it impossible to cook nightly meals with my tight schedule. So instead, I decided to cook larger dishes at the beginning of the week so I would have leftovers to eat each night. Success!

I tend to be a simple eater, and finding healthy recipes that will last for several days has proven to be a bit of a challenge, but I have managed to find a few.

Here is one relatively healthy recipe that fits the bill. It is a variation of Ellie Krieger’s Mom’s Turkey Meatloaf recipe. I usually serve it with a large mixed green salad or some other veggie.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup oats
• 1/2 cup milk (I use soy milk)
• 2 pounds free-range ground turkey breast
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Chop the red bell pepper, onion and garlic. Sauté in olive oil until soft.

In a large bowl, stir together the oats and milk and let sit for a few minutes. Add the turkey, egg, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, sautéed veggies, salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Mix just until well combined.

Transfer the mixture to a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and shape into a loaf about 5 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches high. Pour the tomato sauce over the meatloaf. Bake for about 1 hour or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees F.

Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 to15 minutes before slicing.

Yield: 8 (1-inch thick) slices.

Bon appetite!