We’ve had record heat this year in the greater Pacific Northwest. I don’t have a central AC and my little portable AC unit doesn’t cool the whole house. When it comes to meal planning, I have been keeping in mind the temps. My initial plan included some baked dishes… like garlic lemon chicken thighs in cream sauce. Well, I could make it stove top, but even that seems like it would heat up the kitchen.
So I came up with a much simpler meal plan. One that doesn’t include baking anything in the oven. Using the Air Fryer heats the area a little, but nothing at all like turning on the oven for an hour. I’m leaning toward a low carb lifestyle, but it’s watermelon season! I mean. Watermelon! I’ve got fresh veggies that are in season. It seems to make sense to me right now.
I stocked up on fresh vegetables. Having prepped vegetables and fruit in the fridge is very helpful when the kitchen is hot. So plan to prep on a cooler day, or at least in the cooler hours of the morning or evening. I purchased a rotisserie chicken from Costco. There’s a good deal for ya! The Costco chicken is huge, and it’s only $4.99.
My meal plan is simple
My shopping is super easy. I make an occasional run to Costco. However, for the most part, I shop online and have Safeway delivery. I love Safeway delivery! My delivery is from the store, in a store vehicle. Everything is sorted into separate compartments of the rig, so frozen stuff is frozen, and cold stuff is cold. I get an occasional delivery from Walmart, but that is delivered by anyone, and my groceries are in their trunk or the back of the RV with their dog. UGH. Nasty.
When I’m at Costco I pick up a rotisserie chicken. We have chicken that night… hot chicken. My hubby likes the chicken thigh and leg. I eat part of the chicken breast. I debone the rest of the chicken, and divide it into separate containers. Some goes into the freezer for later. Meal prep at its finest!
My 7 day meal plan
- Air fryer chicken thighs, salad, green beans
- Sub style sandwiches and fresh fruit
- Taco salad
- Rotisserie chicken and broccoli salad
- Chicken chef salad
- Smash burgers, watermelon
- Charcuterie board with keto crackers
About the Meal Plan
Air Fryer chicken is so easy! I’ll share the actual recipe later. Basically you pat dry bone in chicken thighs, season them very well with salt N pepper, garlic, paprika, onion powder. Sprayed with oil, put into the preheated air fryer at 390° for 12 minutes. Turn over, spray with oil, cook another 12 minutes until the internal temp reaches 165° in the thickest part of the meat.
Sub style cold cut sandwiches – buy the hoagie rolls. Some bakeries have the good sub sandwich rolls. Look for those! Pile high with all of your favorite sub sandwich toppings for your own copycat version. We love the Spicy Italian sandwich from Subway, so that’s what we made.
Taco salad is super easy. Basically a layer of shredded lettuce with all your favorite taco fillings on the salad. We use ranch dressing instead of sour cream, and we top it off with salsa.
Rotisserie chicken from Costco and broccoli salad. The broccoli salad is pretty basic. Ingredients included in ours: Broccoli, cooked bacon pieces, celery, onion, sunflower seeds, and a good coleslaw dressing. I make my own with mayonnaise, milk, vinegar & sweetener of choice.
Chicken chef salad – everything you like in a salad bowl, and for extra ease, cut up some of the chicken breast from the rotisserie chicken! You can always cook your own chicken if you do not have a Costco or any other place that sells rotisserie chicken. Or even head over to the freezer section, and pick up a package of pre-cooked Tyson chicken tenders. So good on a salad!
Smash burgers and watermelon! I made original chaffles on my mini waffle maker. Egg and mozzarella cheese, leave them on the waffle maker until they are cooked, then leave them on another minute so they get over cooked. Chaffles are the perfect bread for my burger! A smash burger is seasoned ground beef, add in whatever fillings you like…. I like to add in some onion and garlic. Smash and cook. Sometimes I fry mine, but I prefer them on the grill. That smokey hamburger flavor is my favorite!
A charcuterie board can be very simple or very elaborate. Our charcuterie board included a couple of cheeses cut into cubes, smoked salmon, some rolled up roast beef I picked up in the deli and thin slices of genoa. Walnuts, almonds – just a few nuts, blueberries, and some keto crackers.
I hope this helps give inspiration for simple meal plans
When we over think things, they seem so complicated. But look… this is a simple seven day meal plan that keeps us from using the oven during the hot weather. I think picking up a rotisserie chicken is the best go-to for a budget friendly plan. $4.99 and we used it two meals in this plan, plus I have cooked chicken in the freezer for at least one more meal! After deboning the chicken, I also take all the bones, and add them to a container in the freezer. When the container is full, I make bone broth. The bone broth can wait until the weather cools down a tad bit.
Thank you for visiting my blog today! If you have any tips on staying cool, or menu planning, please leave your comment below!