Meal Planning, Week One

Featuring Tangerine-Miso Salmon, White Beans with Garlic, Lemon, and Broccoli Rabe, and Spicy Braised Tofu.

Hi Thursday friends,

On Sunday night, I did two things. One: I printed out my calendar for the next three months. Then I highlighted EIGHT WEEKS, starting with this week, marking each as WEEK ONE, WEEK TWO, etc. The goal is to go to the gym five days a week for the next eight weeks. The concept is that if I limit it to eight weeks, the habit will become so ingrained and the changes so real, that it will be hard to go back to my old ways. (Can you tell I’ve been reading The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg?).

The other thing that I did was something I’ve never conceived of doing before. I made a meal plan using the notes app on my phone.

Since I was writing this on Sunday night, the sushi was already on its way. The rest was based on what I already had (salmon in the freezer, broccoli in the crisper), and then perusing “healthy” recipes on Bon Appétit, The New York Times, and Smitten Kitchen. The ingredients listed are the ones that I needed to pick up at the grocery store on Monday on my way home.

I know meal planning is something that people do, but it always seemed so rigid to me, so fixed, so predictable. I live for the spontaneity of cooking whatever I feel like cooking whenever I feel like cooking! But the truth is, most nights when I’m home alone (Craig’s gone ‘til May), I get lazy and just order Kismet Rotisserie or Pine & Crane (our local Taiwanese takeout). That not only gets expensive, but it’s also bad for the waistline — the portions being larger, and the food being richer, than what I’d be cooking for myself.

The Meal Plan is changing all that! Not only am I saving money, I’m eating much smaller portions and much healthier things. Like Monday’s dinner…