Hey, Sweet Friends!

Let's play a little game.

Imagine you're standing in the grocery store.

You need dinner.

Actually, you need several dinners.

You're tired.

It's hot outside.

And the last thing you want to do is start from scratch every night this week.

What do you buy?

For me, the answer is almost always the same:

One rotisserie chicken.

Not because it's exciting.

Not because it's trendy.

But it might be one of the hardest-working ingredients in the grocery store.

One chicken can become dinner tonight, lunch tomorrow, and two or three more meals before the week is over.

And that's one of my favorite ways to think about meal planning.

Instead of asking:

"What's for dinner?"

Ask:

"How many dinners can I make from this one thing?"

Now we're getting curious.

And, if you're reading this KNOWING I do not eat leftovers, you are still correct! I cannot stand leftovers. Which is why the question is 'how many dinners/meals can I make?' Not 'How often can I eat this?' 😂

This Week's Shopping List

Start with:

✓ Rotisserie Chicken

✓ Lettuce

✓ Tomatoes

✓ Corn

✓ Bread

✓ Cheese

Add a few pantry staples, and you'll have the foundation for several easy meals.

Turn It Into...

Chicken Caesar Wraps

Crisp lettuce, shredded chicken, Caesar dressing, and a wrap.

Simple.

Reliable.

Always delicious.

My other favorite store-bought dressing is the Green Goddess Dressing from Gotham Greens. I recently found it in Target, but Whole Foods always has it. It's bright, acidic, and packed with flavor!

BBQ Chicken Salad

Toss shredded chicken with your favorite barbecue sauce and pile it onto a big salad.

Bonus points for crispy onions.

Chicken Dense Bean Salad

Perfect for lunches, pool days, and "I don't feel like cooking" nights. Toss white beans (or any kind of bean you like best!) with pulled chicken, taco seasoning, a little Greek yogurt, and any veggies you want. Mix together and spoon into your gullet!

Chicken Sandwich Night

Pile warm chicken onto toasted bread with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and whatever sauces make you happy. I love making this into Monterey Chicken Sandwiches!

Loaded Air Fryer Waffle Fries

One of the most underrated dinners ever.

Air-fried crispy waffle fries topped with shredded chicken, cheese, green onions, and anything else hanging out in the fridge. It's like the baked potato winter-time loves so much, but without the house turning into Hades' Home.

These Alice Springs Chicken Sweet Potato Fries are a go-to meal for me, too. Great way to use up leftover rotisserie chicken or grilled chicken!

As I'm writing all of this, I'm realizing just how many recipes I do not publish!! Sorry, y'all!

This is one of the reasons I love ingredient prep so much.

When you prep ingredients instead of entire meals, you create flexibility.

You can follow your cravings.

You can use what you have.

You can pivot when life changes.

And let's be honest—that happens a lot.

I also freeze little portions of pulled chicken for adding to bone broth. It sounds lame, and really, it is! But, your girl drinks 32 ounces of bone broth every single day, and those last 10 ounces sometimes get leftover chicken added to it for a 'soup lunch.'

After losing 100+ pounds, I'm very consistent about adding protein whenever and wherever I can!

A Few Tools That Make Meal Prep Easier

These are the pieces I use constantly:

✓ Meal Prep Containers. I've been using the restaurant take-away-style plastic containers for a long while, as well as glass. But, I am loving these stainless steel containers! I don't own a microwave, so having this go right into the steamer basket or oven is lovely!

✓ Sheet Pans. I use my quarter sheet pans almost daily. And, these lids for the sheet pans are sensational!

✓ Air Fryer. In the summer, this and the slow cooker/multi cooker are my go-to appliances!

Nothing fancy.

Just practical tools that help ingredients stay fresh and organized throughout the week.

This month's theme is Curious Hearts, and I think curiosity belongs in the kitchen, too.

Not every meal has to start with a recipe.

Sometimes it starts with a question.

"What could this become?"

A rotisserie chicken can become wraps.

🥗 Salads.

🥪 Sandwiches.

🥔 Loaded potatoes.

And probably a few more meals you haven't thought of yet.

That's the fun part.

The next time you're meal planning, try shifting the question.

Instead of asking:

"What's for dinner?"

Ask:

"How many dinners can I make from this one thing?"

You might save money.

You'll definitely save time.

And dinner will feel a whole lot easier.

With love,
Ashley

Sweetpea Lifestyle

P.S. If you've got a favorite rotisserie chicken meal, hit reply and tell me. I'm always looking for new ideas to add to my rotation.