I have recently started trying to change up our weekly dinners because I was making the same meals over and over and over again. I don’t get bored very easily with food, but I was getting kind of bored which means it was time to switch things up. Also, in the last few weeks we have introduced solid foods to Avri. We are skipping baby purees and going straight to real whole foods following the baby led weaning method. To hear a little more about this journey so far, check out this instagram post. I have been sharing a lot of Avri’s eats on instagram and have a highlight dedicated to it. Here is a link to Avri’s Eats highlight if you are interested in checking it out for your own little one.
Anyways, back to my point. I have been needing to change up some of our staple meals to ward off boredom. When you get bored with your meals it is easy to fall into the trap of not making the best nutrition choices because you are seeking different flavors and pleasures. I have definitely been treating myself a bit more than normal and I know that is because my meals just aren’t as satisfying. Instead of making a drastic change that I know I wouldn’t be able to stick with I have been making small little changes here and there. And it’s working! I get excited again to create a new(ish) meal and feel completely satisfied after tasting the different flavors. When Avri eats with us her food needs to be prepared a little differently so I have been having some fun coming up with some baby friendly meals for the entire family, too.
So what have I been doing differently? Not much really. I have been playing with different seasoning mixes, sauces and preparing meat differently. I added cumin to cauliflower and baby red potatoes before roasting them and it was so good. I will be using cumin on more roasted veggies for sure. I love to have salmon weekly, but my husband and I both were getting pretty sick of the exact same taste week after week. So instead of just not eating salmon anymore, I am getting creative in preparing it and pairing it with a sauce for a new boost of flavor. These meatballs were inspired by feeding Avri and wanting something just a little bit different than our typical serving of protein. I already used these meatballs three different ways. I quartered one and gave it to Avri as is (she loved it!), I mixed mine with sauteed kale and wished I would have topped it with an egg. For my husband, I cooked some brown rice pasta, combined the meatballs and pasta and poured an organic turkey gravy over the top that I had sitting in our pantry.
As you can see, I haven’t made an big changes to our typical meals. I still need the convenience of our staples and quick meals so those won’t be going away. How and what I prepared them with is where I can get creative and become excited about these meals again! What do you do to change up your same old meals? Tell me!
These meatballs are fun and easy to make. You can have them for breakfast, lunch, dinner or even just to snack on. Baby loved them and are perfect for the whole family!
- 2lbs ground turkey
- 1½ cup sweet potato, peeled and grated
- 1 cup kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped
- ½ cup mushrooms, finely chopped
- ½ cup cranberries, halved
- 1½ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp thyme
- ¾ tsp rosemary
- ¾ tsp sage
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, add all the ingredients and blend together using your hands.
- Form mixture into golf ball sized balls and place on baking sheet. Place in oven and cook for 20 minutes.
- Enjoy!