Alright y’all. I am in no way a food blogger or an expert in this area, but in the process of trying to simplify my life and to make a routine out of this season in my life, I am wanted to share with you my favorite life hack. MEAL PLANNING / PREP

I started meal planning when I was deep into the craziness of wedding season and also learning to be a wife. It helped bring balance and structure and also saved me a ton of time!

With a husband who works from 4am-6 pm, he needs two meals packed AND snacks in between. So, here are a few of my favorite recipes that you can make at the beginning of the week and they will last you awhile! 

My all time favorite recipe as of late is a Turkey Sweet Potato breakfast casserole that I found on good ol’ Pinterest. It is super easy to make and it last’s me about a week and a half of breakfast’s for my husband. You can view the recipe HERE. 

This time around I skipped the spinach, simply because I didn’t have it on hand. I added tomatoes and onions on top, as well as a little gouda cheese!

Another favorite go to recipe of mine is crockpot Turkey Sweet Potato Chili. (Yes, we love our turkey and sweet potatoes around here) It is SO easy to make and the best part? I can freeze it and pull it out for lunches or dinners! I also found this recipe on Pinterest and you can find it for yourself HERE.

A favorite snack of ours, are these high fiber balls (or you can make them into bars). I grew up eating these and got the recipe from my momma. These are the perfect healthy afternoon snack (everything in moderation, of course) and once again, they are easy to make! 

High Fiber Balls

Ingredients: 3 c. oatmeal, 1 c. honey, 1 c. peanut butter, 1/2 c. chocolate chips (I like to use dark chocolate), 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/2 c. coconut, 1/4 c. flax seed

Mix all the ingredients together. Roll into balls and freeze!

So simple and so delicious! 

Homemade Yogurt

Okay, y’all. MY ALL TIME FAV. THIS RECIPE IS SO, SO GOOD. And, its incredibly cheap to make. Like we’re talking MAYBE $3 a batch and it makes 4 pints of yogurt at one time. I find myself making it every other week because Jake eats it daily for breakfast. 

I love to change up the toppings every day as well. My favorites fruits to put on top include, bananas, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries. I always put a nut on top as well, usually either shredded almonds or walnuts! (Both are cheap at Aldi) And then a spoonful of Chia seeds are always an added bonus!

Here is the recipe:

**Tip: Make sure you plan out when you are going to make this. It takes 8 hours of time to set, so you don’t want to have to get up in the middle of the night to move it from the oven to the fridge. I typically like to make it around 8 pm so that Jake can move it when he wakes up!**

Ingredients: Milk (COWS MILK ONLY-any percent, I use 2%), Sugar, Gelatin (I buy this in bulk in Lancaster, PA from a local Amish store. It’s SO cheap) Vanilla, Commercial yogurt (I use plain, whole fat, Greek yogurt).

You’ll need a thermometer for this as well.

In a large cooking pot, measure out 8 cups of milk. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of sugar over the milk and stir. (We like our things with as little sugar as possible, so I use less than 1/4 cup actually.) Cook over medium heat until it reaches 190 degrees. While you are waiting for it to reach 190 degrees, mix together 1.5 tablespoons of gelatin in 1/3 cup COLD water. It should turn into a gel like solid. When the milk reaches 190 degrees, take it off the burner and allow to cool. Immediatley, add 1 tablespoon of vanilla to the milk and then stir in gelatin mixture. Allow it to cool down until it reaches 130 degrees. Then mix in 2 tablespoons of commercial yogurt and stir. Distribute evenly into jars, I use pint sizes. Put on lids and set inside the oven with ONLY the oven light on. Allow it to sit for at least 8 hours. A little over doesn’t hurt it! 

That’s it! It’s so simple to make, even though it takes quite a bit of time! The texture is a little different than normal yogurt, but we love it more than store bought yogurt! It also has LESS sugar than even the PLAIN Greek yogurt does and like I already mentioned, it’s so much cheaper!! WIN, WIN WIN.

Enjoy!!