It can be difficult, or at least seem difficult, to cook for a others while following Bright Line Eating. A lot of people feel like they need to cook two separate dinners each night… one Bright Line Eating meal for themselves, and another “regular” meal for their family. But what if I told you that you could cook just one meal for the whole family?
How much time could you save by cooking just one meal each night instead of two? By planning just one dinner for each night of the week instead of two? How much less stress would be in your life? It’s not a dream, it’s totally possible and I do it all the time.
Bright Line Eating is nothing more than good, healthy, wholesome, food. Food we normally feed our families. We’re just overthinking it.
The problem arises when we try to create complicated casseroles, bakes, and other mixed dishes that require a lot of complicated math to get our Bright Line Eating portions right when serving ourselves. If we keep things simple, then feeding the whole family with just one meal is simple too!
Bright Line Eating meals are made up of servings from the following categories: protein, vegetables, fat, and grain (depending on if you’re on the weight loss or maintenance plan). These are all components of a healthy well-rounded meal for the whole family. If you stick to the basic components and concentrate on creating a meal with the individual components, you can put together a family friendly meal.
| Protein | Vegetable | Fat | Grain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bean Pasta | Marinara and Steamed Broccoli | Cashew Parmesean | Wedge Potatoes |
| Tofu | Stir Fry Veggies | Peanut Sauce | Rice |
| Black or Pinto Beans | Sauteed Onions and Peppers, and Diced Tomatoes | Avocado | Rice |
| 3 Bean Chili | Roasted Cabbage, Mushrooms, and Cauliflower | Avocado or Vegan Cheeze | Baked Potato |
| Soy Curls (With Homemade BBQ Sauce) | Corn on the Cob | Vegan Butter | Wedge Potatoes |
Do you have a favorite Bright Line Eating meal that is also family friendly? Head on over to the Facebook group and tell me what it is!
Below is a one pot meal I made based on last week’s blog post about how to modify recipes to fit your needs. If you haven’t read it yet, you should check it out once your done here! In the video I show you not just the one pot recipe from last week but how I make it into a complete meal for my family, and also how I measure everything out for myself for Bright Line Eating, so be sure to watch until the end!
One Pot BLE Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 3 pouches Palmini Linguini Noodles
- 0.5 cup soy milk
- boiling water enough to cover noodles
- 1 small/medium onion diced
- 1 Tbsp garlic minced
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 2 tsp capers plus some of the brine
- 1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
- water as needed
- 1 package Gardein plant-based meatballs
Instructions
- Drain and rinse Palmini noodles then soak in boiling water and soy milk and set aside
- Water sauté onion and garlic over medium high heat until soft
- Add capers and a bit of caper brine and cook for a minute or two longer until fragrant
- Add spices and cook until fragrant then add the crushed tomatoes
- Drain and rinse Palmini noodles and add them to the pot along with enough water to get the sauce to a consistency you like as well as cover the noodles so they can cook
- Add the Gardein plant-based meatballs
- Cover the pot, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until the meatballs are heated through according to package directions.
