An Easy Plant-Based Weekly Meal Plan

I find meal planning to be the most successful way to eat, which is why I'm sharing my Hungry Planet easy plant-based weekly meal plan with you to beat pandemic fatigue! After a year of cooking at home, I'm tired. Inspiration for meal planning lacks, too.

Most importantly, I'm not just tired of cooking. I'm just plain tired. I found that no matter how frequently I worked out, I still had a hard time sleeping through the night and lacked energy most of the day.

I'd be exhausted by 8pm, but couldn't fall asleep or stay asleep. I'd sleep 8+ hours but still wake up tired. Finally, I decided it's time to change the fuel I put into my body.

I'm also keenly aware of the food Emmie eats as well. Teaching her nutrition at a young age is important to me. I've started eating more veggies in general like this superfood salad I made recently. I've tried plant-based meals before, but they felt like a trade-off until I found Hungry Planet.  I had so much fun creating these plant-based recipes, and I can't wait for you to try them!

This post is sponsored by Hungry Planet, but all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Why Plant-Based

Plant-based diets are gaining traction in recent years. First of all, what is plant-based? It's similar to how it sounds. Plant-based is eating foods that are primarily derived from plants in their most natural state (ie: minimally processed foods).

Eating foods that are minimally processed reduces inflammation and can maintain blood sugar. Moira Lawler was quoted as saying it's often viewed as the healthiest approach to eating with weight loss benefits just being one of the many perks to this style of eating. Eating plant-based meals can:

• Lower cholesterol and blood pressure

• Improved heart health

• Aiding the prevention, management, and reversal of type 2 diabetes

• Supporting weight loss, even without exercise or calorie counting

• Reduced risk of some types of cancer

• Improved mental health

Plus, eating plant-based is good for the planet. Did you know it takes 2500 gallons of water to produce just ONE pound of beef?! And if the world ate a meat-forward diet, we would need five piles of earth to feed everyone?? Plant-based proteins are a much better option.

About Hungry Planet

Hungry Planet is a chef-crafted plant-based meat company. You can find more information about the company here, but when I tell you their food is delicious, I mean it is DE-LIC-IOUS! I was shocked by how good it tasted.

Often times healthier options taste like... well, healthier options. Hungry Planet tastes like the plant-based meat suggested. I made Matt a fried chicken sandwich with Hungry Planet Fried Chicken, and he said it was so good, he'd eat it every day. He had no idea it was plant-based.  They also have so many recipes to make it easy or give you inspiration.  Check out Hungry Planet's Instagram here!

In comparing Hungry Planet to other brands, it's also the healthiest plant-based meat company in the market. In reading the ingredients and nutrition, it's one of if not the cleanest plant-based foods brand out there.

Hungry Planet is available on Amazon and Costco and you can find other grocery stores where it's available here.

Download Your Plant-Based Weekly Meal Plan HERE with a Grocery Shopping List. 

Shop the Hungry Planet Variety Pack HERE.

Sticky Thai Meatballs

Thai food is one of my favorite meals, but I rarely make it on my own. It's often my go-to meal to order out until now. These sticky thai meatballs are so good! It includes Hungry Planet's Thai Meatballs and the recipe is inspired by The Chunky Chef.

Sticky Thai Meatballs Recipe

• 1/4 cup water

• 1/4 cup beef broth (or substitute with water)

• 1 tbsp cornstarch

• 2 1/2 tbsp soy sauce

• 3 tbsp sweet thai chili sauce

• 2 tbsp honey

• 1 tbsp rice vinegar

• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1. Heat the Hungry Planet Thai Meatballs with 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet on the stove for 5-10 minutes.  As they start to brown, they're ready!  

2. Whisk together the water and beef broth.  Heat over medium heat and slowly add the cornstarch while whisky.  It's important it doesn't heat up too quickly as it'll thicken quickly.  That happened to me the first time, and I had to make a second batch. 

3. Once you've combined the water, beef broth and cornstarch, add the soy sauce, honey, sweet chili sauce, and rice vinegar.  Simmer for about 5 minutes until the sauce thickens and reduces.  

4. Plate the meatballs and pour the sauce over as desired.  Serve it alone or on a bed of rice.  

Pork Gyoza with Dipping Sauce

I could not fathom how good the pork gyoza tasted. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could make pork gyoza at home - it seems like such a delicacy to me. While you can pair this with a simple soy sauce, creating your own dipping sauce is easy, too. I found a recipe inspired by Good Life Explorers. You can find Hungry Planet Pork Gyoza here.

Pork Gyoza with Dipping Sauce Recipe

• 1 package Hungry Planet pork gyoza

• 1 tbsp water

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 1/2 tbsp rice vinegar

• 3 drops chili oil (optional)

1. Turn heat on medium on your stove. Place the oil in the frying pan.

2. Place the gyozas flat side down for two minutes to heat. Add 1 tablespoon of water, cover and heat for two more minutes to steam.

3. Add soy sauce, vinegar and chili oil to a dipping container. Whisk together.

Honey Mustard Chicken Quinoa Bowl

Meal prep is the based way to follow clean eating. Quinoa bowls are a surefire way to nail meal planning for the week. Hungry Planet's Chicken Strips can flex to so many different recipes.

I opted to make my own honey mustard chicken quinoa bowl using a simple sauce recipe inspired by Salt & Lavender. I paired it with my favorite microwave-ready quinoa mix for a meal. If you're not a huge quinoa fan, try brown rice instead.

Honey Mustard Chicken & Quinoa Bowl Recipe

• 8 oz Hungry Planet Sliced Chicken

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 tbsp butter

• 1/3 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth)

• 1 tbsp honey

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pan. Add 8oz of Hungry Planet sliced chicken. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until cooked through.

2. In a saucepan, add the butter. Once it melts, add chicken broth, dijon mustard, and the honey.

3. Return the pan to the stove over medium heat. Stir until the mustard is dissolved.

4. Add the cream. Once the sauce is bubbling again, add the cooked chicken for 2 minutes. Reduce to a simmer until the sauce is reduced to your liking.

5. Using a premade quinoa mix, heat your quinoa up in the microwave or make your favorite quinoa.

6. Plate quinoa in a bowl. Top with honey mustard chicken and drizzle sauce to your liking.

Summer Strawberry Spinach Salad

I find salads one of the most challenging meals to make. I think it's the combination of finding the right ingredients to create ideal tastes and textures plus the salad dressing.Well, this summer strawberry spinach salad is my new go-to. It was ridiculously easy to make. Adding Hungry Planet's Diced Chicken gives the perfect amount of texture and protein.

Strawberry & Feta Diced Chicken Spinach Salad Recipe

For the salad

• 4 oz Hungry Planet diced chicken

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 package organic spinach

• 8 oz strawberries, halved

• 1 large avocado, sliced

• 1/2 small red onion thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup feta crumbles

• 1/3 cup almond slivers

For the balsamic strawberry vinaigrette

• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 garlic clove finely minced

• 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

• 1/2 tbsp strawberry jam

• freshly ground salt and pepper

1. In a frying pan, add the olive oil. Once warm, add the diced chicken and cook for two minutes or until completely cooked through.

2. In a small bowl, add all salad dressing ingredients. Whisk until fully combined. Add salt and pepper as necessary.

3. Add spinach to a large bowl. Layer the strawberries, avocado slices, red onion, feta and almond slivers. Drizzle with dressing.

Crispy Chicken Cesar

A crispy chicken sandwich is a tasty go-to for lunch or dinner. I created a version with a vegan caesar dressing, but you can easily buy your favorite caesar dressing and drizzle it on top. The dressing was inspired by rabbits and wolves. The Hungry Planet Crispy Fried Chicken was Matt's favorite. He's Mr. Picky, so I'm certain you'll love this!

Crispy Chicken Cesar Recipe

• 2 Hungry Planet Fried Chicken Patties

• 1 Roma tomato, sliced

• 2 pieces romaine lettuce

• 1/4 cup vegan mayo

• 1 tsp dijon mustard

• 1 tbsp capers

• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast

• 1 lemon juiced

• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

• 1 pinch salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Slice roma tomato

3. Bake Hungry Planet Fried Chicken patties for 15 minutes.

4. To make the dressing, add all ingredients to a blender and pulse for a minute. Scrape sides as needed and plus until creamy and smooth.

5. Spread dressing on one side of the bun. Add a slice of romaine and roma tomato slices, top with 1 fried chicken patty and serve with chips or a side of your choice.

Sausage Rigatoni Napoletano

I originally discovered a chicken sausage rigatoni Napoletano from Hello Fresh. It's been a favorite meal that we've tried from them. However, once I learned about Hungry Planet's Italian Crumble, I modified my recipe forever!  I found this recipe at the height of my pandemic fatigue, and it was a game-changer!

The flavor and texture of Hungry Planet's Italian Crumble Sausage are out of this world! I honestly could not get over how good it tasted. 

Italian Sausage Rigatoni Napoletano with Peas & Creamy Garlic Sauce

• 9 oz Hungry Planet Italian sausage crumble

• 1 tsp chili flakes

• 1 clove garlic

• 4 oz peas (I used frozen)

• 1 lemon

• 1 roma tomato

• 4 oz heavy whipping cream

• 8 oz pasta

• 1 tsp olive oil

• 1 tbsp butter

• 1/4 cup parmesean cheese

• salt & pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Wash and dry all produce.

2. Cut tomato into ½-inch-thick wedges. Peel and finely chop garlic. Zest and quarter lemon.

3. Once water is boiling, add rigatoni to pot. Cook until al dente, 9-11 minutes. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, reserve ¾ cup pasta cooking water, then add peas to same pot and cook until tender. Drain.

4. Meanwhile, heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add Hungry Planet Italian Sausage Crumble and cook, breaking up meat into pieces, until browned, 3-5 minutes (it’ll cook through later). Season with salt and a pinch of chili flakes.

5. Add tomato and garlic to pan with sausage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tomato is slightly softened, 1-2 minutes. Pour cream contents into pan. Using a spoon or spatula, scrape any remaining sauce from carton into pan.

6. Pour in ¼ cup water (1⁄3 cup for 4 servings). Bring to a simmer and cook until sauce is slightly thickened and sausage is cooked through, 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in half the Parmesan (save the rest for serving) and 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4) until melted. Add lemon juice and lemon zest to taste. Season with salt and pepper.

7. Add drained rigatoni and peas to pan with sauce; toss to coat. If needed, stir in reserved pasta cooking water a splash at a time until everything is coated in a creamy sauce. (For 4 servings, you may need to transfer everything into large pot.) Divide pasta between bowls and top with remaining Parmesan and a pinch of chili flakes if desired. Serve with any remaining lemon wedges on the side.

Butternut Squash Spaghetti & Meatballs

There's nothing like a good, easy meatball dinner to save weeknight meal planning. This recipe uses butternut squash noodles although you can easily swap in sweet potato noodles as well. The Hungry Planet Italian Meatballs had a great texture and full taste.

Butternut Squash Spaghetti & Meatballs Recipe

• 8 Hungry Planet Italian Meatballs

• 1 package butternut squash noodles

• 1/2 tbsp butter

• 2 tbsps olive oil

• 1 bunch Italian flat leaf parsley

1. Chop 1/4 cup of Italian flat leaf parsley for garnish.

2. In a pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add Hungry Planet Italian Meatballs and cook for 3 minutes. Set aside.

3. Add the butter to the same pan and melt. Add the butternut squash noodles and drizzle the remaining olive oil on top. Using tongs, continuously flip noodles to cook through.

4. Plate the butternut squash noodles. Top with 4 meatballs per plate and add garnish.

How you can get started with an easy plant-based meal plan

I created this easy weekly plant-based meal plan download to simplify the start. It's your grocery list all in one. If you're not ready to jump in feet first, start with one meal a week.

You could consider meatless Mondays to beat pandemic fatigue, too. Make an easy swap. I know, for me, I started with my favorite Chicken Sausage Rigatoni Napoletano recipe and swapped it in Hungry Planet's Italian Crumble. It tasted so good, I tried more foods.

I also have a clean eating board on Pinterest where you can find inspiration, and Hungry Planet's recipes are really good as well - they're all created by chefs!  Lastly, The Everygirl is always one of my go-tos for inspiration. 

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