Easy Meals for days when you are exhausted

Good Morning! Sorry I went MIA on you yesterday. It has been a very long four days at our house. I have not slept well for the last four days and yesterday I was a zombie until I got a 2 hour nap in late in the day. Of course that meant I didn’t sleep well again last night. *shakes head* However I feel much better this morning than I did yesterday.

Given my lack of energy the last few days I have been making very simple meals as that is all I have been able to manage. Initially I wasn’t going to post these but then I realized this may be useful for other people that don’t have time or energy to cook but still want something healthy.

Monday night for dinner we had a simple meal of brown rice which I tossed with the quick pickled veggies that I julienned. I also added a couple of black olives and diced tomato. I served this with sliced heirloom tomatoes with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a few red lentil and millet bites from the freezer.

For breakfast the next morning I made myself a bowl of curried veggie and mushroom soup and two collard wraps with lentil and walnut pate and more marinated veggies. This is actually my favorite use for the marinated veggies. They are so good on sandwiches.

Yesterday I made a big batch (3 cups) of dried black beans which I cooked in my slow cooker, in case I fell asleep. Cooking dried beans in your slow cooker works well if you don’t have time to make them on the stove. I do like to soak them for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight, before I cook them. I think you have less issues with flatulence when the beans are cold soaked (but this may be all in my head). Place the soaked and drained beans in your slow cooker, cover with fresh water that is at least 2 inches about the level of the beans. Add a whole onion, a few bay leaves and garlic cloves and cook on low for 2 hours then check the beans for tenderness. The exact time they take to cook will depend on the age of the beans and how long they soaked. If you want the beans to cook for 8 hours then don’t soak them first and 8 hours on low is about right. Again it depends on the age of the beans.

Once the beans are cooked you can add them to salads, make a bean dip, combine them with rice or make a marinated bean and veggie salad. All of these are fast and hold well in the refrigerator to eat later. I tend to keep the beans in the refrigerator and use them in different ways. If you find you made too many beans they can be frozen (in their cooking liquid) until you need them.

I also made a batch of quinoa to add to meals. This is great to add to the soup, for more calories and protein, which I did for Dan. You can also turn it into a cold salad with diced veggies. If you are really tired just toss the quinoa with a little salsa and raw sunflower seeds.

The remainder of my day was spent eating “fast food”, like trail mix, peanut butter stuffed dates, or salad with salsa. Nothing too exciting, just anything I could make with very little effort as that was all I could manage.

Yesterday I was so exhausted there was no exercise, nothing. That is highly unusual around here. Other than a few crunches I didn’t exercise yesterday. I honestly don’t really feel up to it today either but two days without exercise isn’t going to happen. As tired as I am I know I will feel better after I finish exercising. At least that is what I am telling myself now. I will let you know if that works or not. I need to go exercise and then figure out what I am doing today. I hope everyone is having a good Wednesday. Talk to you again soon.