Have you ever wanted to get more organized with your meal planning? Have you taken the time to sit down, decide what you’re going to eat, then written your detailed list? Then gone shopping with the list and got everything you need?

How did that work out for you?

I’m guessing if you’re anything like most people, you’ve experienced the pitfalls of traditional meal planning…

The time it takes. The frustration when you can’t find everything on your list. The temptation to buy things which aren’t on the list because they look delicious or are on special. Having to eat the meal you ‘planned’ even though you don’t really feel like it. The guilt at throwing away all those veg that are ‘passed it’. The stress of adapting your meal plan to the inevitable changes in your schedule and life.

Let’s face it, the traditional meal planning can be tedious. And pretty ineffective.

What if there was another approach to meal planning?

Here’s the thing… There is!

You just need to learn how to ‘reverse’ the process.

It may sound scary, but it’s a liberating approach to meal planning. That’s also quicker and easier.

Since last year, I’ve been teaching people like you how to ‘reverse’ their meal planning with my 2-Minute Meal Plan System.

When I asked my students if they have achieved the results they were hoping for with this new meal plan system, the overwhelming majority answered ‘Yes!’.

How does the 2-Minute Meal Plan work?

I’m glad you asked. Basically there are 2 main parts…

2 Keys to the 2-Minute Meal Plan System:

1. A simple ‘formula’ to help you figure out how much food to buy.
The formula is quick and easy to work out. If you can count, you’ll be able to do this in your head.

It tells you how many types of protein (or main events) and vegetables to buy. This gives you the freedom to shop for what looks best, rather than having a rigid list.

The formula helps get the quantity right so you don’t end up with more than you need, while allowing as much flexibility as you need. If you’d prefer to have a few specific recipes in mind before you shop, the formula will help with that as well.

2. The collection of ‘template’ recipes.
These help you learn to cook based on the ingredients you have on hand, freeing you from the constraints of traditional recipes.

It includes general templates for how to make different classic dishes. For example a great stir fry, a quick soup or a fragrant curry. Each template comes with suggestions for variations so you’ll be able to adapt them to the ingredients on hand. It’s a way to learn to cook more creatively, while still having a basic recipe to follow.

Ready to reverse YOUR meal planning process?

It’s been 12 months since I first launched the ’2-Minute Meal Plan’ eCookbook.

So to celebrate I’m having a special anniversary sale!

To make sure you don’t miss out on this limited time discount, go to:
www.thestonesoupshop.com/2mmp/

–

Rice & Greens

This is one of those super comforting dishes. The perfect antidote to a weekend of over-indulging.

I also love it because it uses items you could have stocked in your pantry so it’s a great ‘last minute’ or change of plans meal.

If you can get spinach frozen into little ‘bricks’ rather than one big block, it’s much better because it defrosts much more quickly. If you’re stuck with a big frozen chunk of spinach, it may need a little spin in the microwave to speed up the defrosting process.

Enough for 2
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 can coconut milk (400mL / 1.5 cups)
1 packet frozen spinach (250g /9oz), defrosted
1 packet par-cooked brown rice (250g /9oz)

1. Heat a little oil in a medium saucepan. Cook garlic on a medium heat for about 30 seconds or until starting to brown.

2. Add coconut milk, spinach and rice. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 2 minutes or until everything is hot.

3. Taste. Season.

VARIATIONS
paleo / grain-free – replace the rice with grated raw cauliflower (I use the food processor for ease). Simmer until cauliflower is tender and the liquid has reduced.

no coconut milk? – replace with almond or soy milk – they’ll be a little more watery so be prepared to simmer longer to thicken up.

can’t find par-cooked brown rice? – most supermarkets now have ‘pouches’ of cooked rice but feel free to cook your own brown rice, just boil in water until just tender. Drain and use as per the recipe.

rice alternatives – risoni (rice shaped pasta), cooked short pasta, canned beans, canned chickpeas + see below.

lower GI / slow carb – replace rice with cooked lentils, canned chickpeas, cooked split peas or quinoa.

higher protein – add in a drained can of black beans. Or serve with a poached egg on top.

carnivore - stir fry some sliced chicken breast or thigh fillets in the pan before adding the other ingredients and proceeding from step 1.

fresh greens – replace frozen spinach with fresh spinach, baby spinach, sliced kale, cavolo nero, collard greens, chard (silverbeet) or a mixture. Add with the garlic and cook until wilted before adding the other ingredients.

Video version of the recipe

With love,
Jules x

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A little while back I got a question from an anonymous Stonesoup reader…

“How can I attain the ultimate goal…creating a meal without a recipe, anywhere anytime.”

These days I hardly ever use recipes. I have too many ideas of my own that I’m keen to try out each time I step into the kitchen. But it may surprise you to hear that I haven’t always been this confident and creative in the kitchen.

For pretty much all of my 20s I was a recipe follower. Not to the letter, mind you, I’d always make a few little ‘tweaks’. But unless I was making a sandwich, I pretty much consulted a recipe before I cooked anything.

Now don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with following recipes. I firmly believe that it was following recipes (mostly from my still favourite food mag Australian Gourmet Traveller) that taught me to cook way more than anything I learned while studying for my food science degree.

I even remember creating my own website in late 1999 so I could access my favourite recipes while I was working in a winery in California without having to cart around my hefty folder of favourite recipes.

But over time it was a combination of things that led me to start cooking on my own. Cooking from the heart.

Why cook without recipes?

The biggest driver for me was time. Working as a young winemaker I didn’t have the luxury of an hour to spend each week picking out recipes, writing my shopping list.

There were lifestyle influences as well. When I was living in the Barossa Valley my Saturday morning ritual was to head to the farmers markets. I’d grab a coffee and sometimes a bacon and egg roll and stroll around the markets picking up whatever looked good.

This market-led type of food shopping was heaps of fun. But it didn’t lend itself to list making and recipe cooking.

So I found myself starting to create ‘template recipes’ based on successes I’d had in the past. I then used these to branch out and cook on my own.

Cooking without recipes was much more fun and (mostly) just as delicious, if not more so. It also meant I had far less waste because I used what I had.

3 Steps to learning to cook without recipes.

I firmly believe YOU CAN learn to cook without recipes. You just need to take it slowly and follow these simple steps.

STEP 1. Start ‘tweaking’.
The recipes here on Stonesoup are a perfect starting place for that. I challenge you to step up and start trying some of the ‘variations’ I list at the bottom of each recipe. I especially want you to try the more ‘out there’ variations. The ones that make you feel a little bit uncomfortable.

Then when you’ve pushed yourself on the tweaking, it’s time for Step 2…

STEP 2. Branch out to ‘template recipes’.
I did this unconsciously myself, but I wish I’d had someone to show me the way. I would have saved myself loads of time and mistakes.

It’s all about thinking about your recipes in more general terms rather than specific ingredients. So instead of lemon juice you’d be thinking in terms of ‘acid’ which could be any type of citrus juice or vinegar or even tomatoes. Or from the recipe examples below, instead of chicken thigh fillets you’d be thinking about ‘tender cuts of protein’.

Armed with a good collection of ‘templates’ you’ll find that you are able to open the fridge and see delicious possibilities.

If this sounds a bit too much, the good news is you don’t have to figure it out all on your own. If you join me for ‘Master Your Meal Plan’ I’ll be sharing 60 of my best template recipes and showing you exactly how to put them to use. Before you know it you’ll be one of those people who can just effortlessly ‘whip something up’

Sound good?

I’m super excited to announce that the 2-Minute Meal Plan System is now ready.

To pick up a copy today, go to:
www.thestonesoupshop.com/2mmp/

Pan Fried Protein with Instant Sauce and Raw Veg Salad Template Recipe

Please don’t let the name of this template recipe put you off. I know it doesn’t sound the most appealing. As soon as you narrow it down, like in the ‘pesto chicken with zucchini’ variation below it will start sounding like something you’ll actually want to eat. Trust me.

Enough for 1:
approx 150-250g (5-9oz) protein
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 handfuls finely sliced raw veg
3-4 tablespoons sauce, to serve

1. Heat a frying pan on medium high heat. Add a little oil to the pan or rub the protein with oil. Pan fry the protein until browned on both sides and cooked to your liking. Anywhere from 2-5 minutes each side.

2. Combine lemon juice with 1-2 tablespoons olive oil. Season. Toss in finely sliced veg.

3. Serve protein on a bed of the salad with sauce drizzled over.

variations

veggie ‘protein’ - Halloumi, tofu or seitan would also work well here. Or think about pan frying some precooked / canned beans or lentils until they are just cooked and serve with the raw veg salad. Field or portabello mushrooms are great here too. Or think about slicing an eggplant into thick ‘steaks’.

carnivore protein – for pan frying, tender cuts are best. And preferably not too thick as it can be difficult to get the middle cooked without completely burning the outsides. Steak, lamb cutlets or lamb chops, pork cutlets or pork chops, chicken breasts, chicken thigh fillets. Also consider forming minced (ground) meat into burger patties.

pescetarian protein – any fish fillets will be great.

raw veg – Broccolini, broccoli, asparagus, cabbage, fennel, snow peas, carrots, capsicum (bell peppers) or zucchini are all great. Pretty much any veg that will work in a shaved salad is good here. You could use salad leaves as well. Think baby spinach, rocket (arugula), flat leaf parsley, mint leaves, basil leaves, finely sliced kale or any salad leaves.

veg combo – feel free to use a combination of veg. I toyed with the idea of tossing in a few handfuls of baby spinach leaves but decided against it today. On another day the salad may go in.

sauce – Don’t be afraid to call on convenient ready-made options if you don’t have time to make your own. Things like pesto, hummus, babaganoush, chilli oil, basil oil, lemon oil, tabasco, chilli sauce, lemon wedges, lime wedges, oyster sauce or soy sauce (for an Asian vibe), even good old ketchup can all work.

warm veg – if you’d prefer a warmer meal. Steam or pan fry the veg before dressing in the lemon juice mixture.

OR

Pesto Chicken with Zucchini

Here’s an example of how you could turn the ‘template’ recipe above into a meal.

Enough for 2
450g (llb) chicken thigh fillets
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 medium zucchini
6-8 tablespoons pesto, to serve

1. Heat a pan on a medium high heat. Remove excess fat from the chicken. Using the palm of your hand or a meat cleaver, bash the chicken so you have an even thickness all the way though.

2. Rub chicken with a little oil and season. Sear in the pan for 3-4 minutes on each side or until chicken is well browned and cooked through.

3. While the chicken is cooking, mix lemon with 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a bowl. Season.

4. Finely slice the zucchini crosswise into ‘coins’ and toss in the dressing.

5. When the chicken is cooked, serve with zucchini salad on the side and pesto on top.

VARIATIONS
paleo / dairy-free – use a dairy-free pesto like this sicilian nut pesto.

vegetarian – replace chicken with sliced halloumi (no need to bash the halloumi!).

vegan – replace chicken with sliced firm tofu or seitan. Or try field mushrooms instead. OR Replace chicken with drained canned butter beans – just pan fry in a little oil until golden. And use a dairy-free pesto like this sicilian nut pesto.

nut-free – make your own nut-free pesto replacing the pine nuts with extra parmesan.

different veg – see the template recipe above for ideas.

different sauce – see the template recipe above for ideas.

Video version of the recipe.

With love,
Jules x

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