Okay guys, I thought I’d do something a little more all-American, comfort food style for this week’s meal prep. This Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaf Meal prep contains my veggie-packed Mini Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaves, my new favorite Skillet Mac and Cheese, and some simple green beans with butter, salt, and pepper. It’s a classic combo that you’ll look forward to eating each day. And let me tell you, I didn’t realize how amazingly delicious the ketchup glaze on the loaves would be when paired with the sharp cheddar mac. OMG. It is like heaven.
The other great thing about this combo is that because the two side dishes are really fast and easy to make, I was able to clean up my dishes AND prepare the two sides while the turkey loaves were in the oven. The Mini Garden Turkey Loaves do take some work with all the vegetable prep, but once they’re in the oven you can multi-task and have the whole meal done in by the time they’re finished baking. Oh, and if you have a food processor, you can have the vegetables shredded in about 30 seconds using the processors shredding attachment and save a LOT of work. 👍
If you’re not into mac and cheese another option for a side dish for these little mini Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaves is Spinach and Feta Mashed Potatoes. That’s what I paired the loaves with the first time I made them and it was great!
For more information about meal prepping, how it works, and why I do it, check out Meal Prep 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Prepping and Portioning Meals, or check out my entire Budget-Friendly Meal Prep Archive.
Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaf Meal Prep
These containers look small, but they’re quite deep. There is quite a bit of food packed in there.
This Meal Prep Includes:
8 Mini Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaves (2 per box): $6.29
1 Recipe Skillet Mac and Cheese: $2.59
1 lb. Green Beans + 1 Tbsp butter + Salt & Pepper: $2.33
Total Cost: $11.21
Cost Per Meal: $2.80
Notes:
- The recipe for the Mini Garden Vegetable Turkey Loaves makes 12 mini-loaves. These little guys are freezable, so you can freeze the extra four, or if you have a big appetite, give each meal box three little loaves.
- The recipe for the Skillet Mac and Cheese is listed as two servings, but those are HUGE servings. I easily had enough for four side dishes.
- I cooked the green beans by placing them in a pot with about one inch of water. Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat on to medium-high. Let the water boil and steam the beans just until they become slightly tender. Keep them slightly under cooked so they do not over cook when you reheat your boxes. Drain the water, add the butter, stir, and then top with salt and pepper.
- If you don’t like your food touching, consider using a divided container, like these.
Go ahead, make your coworkers jealous. ;)
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YO, so my fiance and I are absolutely in love with this meal prep!
Some changes I made:
– Had less carrots than I thought in the fridge so I used 1 1/2 small carrots instead, following everything else in the meatloaves. Still held together and tasted DELICIOUS.
– Roasted broccoli instead because we had green beans in the Apple Spice Pork Chop recipe and I wanted to switch it up.
– I ended up using the entire can of evaporated milk for the mac n cheese, added Paprika, and used the white kind of sharp cheddar. I also didn’t have dijon mustard so I just used normal yellow mustard. I’ve NEVER made mac n cheese because of how freakin’ complicated it seems, but this recipe is a god-send. The sweetness of the meatloaf goes so well with the sharpness/richness of the mac n cheese.
SO GOOD :)
Just tried this out for the first time this week and I love it!
I work out a lot and am always looking for well-rounded meal-prep ideas. This has been an perfect lunch for my training days so far! Protein, veggies, and mac&cheese is a perfect combo.
I decided to add a healthy squirt of sriracha to the meatloaf sauce and it worked great if you like a little spice :) I’m surprised it wasn’t in the recipe!
How long would you say these are good for in the refrigerator?
I like to stick to four days, but it will always vary on several factors, like the temperature of your refrigerator, the packaging, how full the refrigerator is, etc.
Another winner, Beth!! I made this combination last night, and it was OUTSTANDING. My entire family loved it, even my (somewhat picky) kids. The meatloaves were SO delicious, and the mac and cheese was so easy and tasty.
There’s a local restaurant here that has great mac and cheese, and I’ve been wondering what their secret is…I think I figured it out with this recipe – it’s the evaporated milk! Definitely making this again. So many of your recipes are part of my rotation – these will be added for sure!
Awesome meal prep! This combo looks so good, I’m looking forward to trying it!
This was so delicious! I’m always iffy about meatloaf but these blew me away! PERFECT pairing with the mac and cheese! I’m looking forward to having this for lunches this week!
Love this veggie loaded meatloaf recipe which I make minus the breadcrumbs for my son who wants a low-carb diet. I use ground pork instead of turkey, in part because a local supermarket grinds their own at 90% lean. We get slightly more fat, but, in our opinion, more flavor in an already flavor packed recipe. When my son isn’t eating with us, I use fresh breadcrumbs which give a lighter texture to the delicious little loaves. And then your terrific mac & cheese to gild the lily. This series is SERIOUSLY GOOD! Thanks, Beth!
Do you use plain breadcrumbs or flavored breadcrumbs for the meatloaf? :-)
I answered my own question. LOL!!!
This whole meal looks delicious
Omg Beth! I was hoping these delicious little meatloaves would be a Sunday meal prep! You never disappoint 😃
OMG. Your meal preps gives me inspiration. Talk about comfort food to the max!!!!! :-)