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5 Stress-, Health- And Budget-Friendly Dinners Perfect For Your Busy Week

Stay on a budget while keeping your diet healthy and wholesome.

Katie Ruby

Dec 12, 2018

The Narrative

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When life is getting crazy, the last thing you want to do is worry about what you're going to eat. Whether you're in college and it's finals week, or you're simply looking to stay on a budget while keeping your diet healthy and wholesome, you're going to want to try these recipes out!

The grocery list:

Potato Gnocchi - $1.90

Your favorite tomato sauce - $1.50

Grated parmesan cheese - $2.20

Ground Turkey - $2.80

Taco seasoning packet (1) - $0.45

Avocado - $0.98

Tortillas - $1.50

Chicken Breasts - $6.65

Frozen Brussels sprouts - $1.30

Red steam-able potatoes - $2.00

Naan Bread (4 count) - $2.50

Pepperoni - $2.30

Total Cost: $26 (that's $5.20/day!)

1. Make Some Pasta Monday

Ingredients from your fridge: Potato Gnocchi / your favorite tomato sauce / grated parmesan shredded cheese.

Pasta night is always fun, but I'll be honest with you, it takes a heaping serving of pasta to fill me up, and afterward, I'm always left feeling carb-o-loaded and bloated. Potato gnocchi is a little-known fancy pasta base, and I first discovered it in a gourmet Italian restaurant years ago. It's similar to a small dumpling, and pairs perfectly with pasta sauce and a generous helping of cheese. Plus, not only does it help you skip the bloat, it will fill you up faster, allowing you to get more value from your dollar. Low and behold, Walmart carries this gnocchi, and at only $1.50 a batch! Bonus advantage: it cooks in a whopping three minutes! That's not even as long as you'll want your study break to be!

Time: 10 minutes or less

2. Turkey Taco Tuesday

Ingredients from your fridge: Ground Turkey / 1 taco seasoning packet / avocado / tortillas

Taco Tuesday is a classic tradition that I'll never be willing to give up. So, I've been to find ways to keep Taco Tuesday around, while not having my cheat day a week early. Jennie-O carries lean turkey up only 1% fat content (this means up to — fewer grams of fat per-serving than ground beef!) and frying this up is just as simple as traditional taco filling. The only way you'll be able to tell the difference is how refreshed you feel after devouring them!

Time: 15 minutes, sauté that turkey until it's well-browned!

3. Wholesome Wednesday

Ingredients from your fridge: Chicken Breast / frozen Brussels sprouts / steam-able red potatoes

By now, you've so far been a modern chef this week! You probably want to sit down for a traditional home-cooked meal, so get excited for some good old-fashioned meat, potatoes and greens! This is a truly delicious meal that I always look forward to. I even pan-sautee the Brussels sprouts with some salt and pepper. Eat as much of this as you want, it's got everything you need!

Time: 25 minutes (but you can work while your chicken is baking!)

4. "Toss It In" Thursday

Ingredients from your fridge: Gnocchi/ground turkey / Brussels sprouts / parmesan cheese

If you're like me, you HATE letting food go to waste! I have Toss it up Thursday weekly; it's my delicious way of cleaning out my fridge before the weekend, and before it's time for my next week's grocery venture. So, this week, boil up the rest of your potato gnocchi dumplings, toss in your leftover turkey and the rest of your Brussels sprouts (because I know you didn't eat all of them), and sprinkle a generous helping parmesan on top.

Time: Like, two minutes!? Just toss it all in!

5. Flatbread Friday

Ingredients from your fridge: Naan bread / that favorite tomato sauce/pepperoni/ parmesan cheese

I'm not sure why, but Friday night has always been pizza night to me. I started cooking pizza on Naan bread after my mom introduced it to me, letting me know that it's a carb-friendly alternative to any other pizza options. It's way healthier than food-chain or freezer pizza, and it's also way more fun!

Bonus tip: Naan bread usually comes in packages of two and four, so invite some friends over for a study-free evening and build a make-your-own pizza bar!

Time: (10 minutes to as much time as you want to spend!)

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.

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Recommended for you

5 Stress-, Health- And Budget-Friendly Dinners Perfect For Your Busy Week

Stay on a budget while keeping your diet healthy and wholesome.

1. Make Some Pasta Monday

2. Turkey Taco Tuesday

3. Wholesome Wednesday

4. "Toss It In" Thursday

5. Flatbread Friday

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The Best Lines from the Fab Four

And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make

The sun is up, the sky is blue, it's beautiful and so are you

Love is old, love is new, love is all, love is you

There's nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be

Life is very short, and there's no time for fussing and fighting, my friend

He say, "I know you, you know me", One thing I can tell you is you got to be free

Oh please, say to me, You'll let me be your man. And please say to me, You'll let me hold your hand

It was twenty years ago today, Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play. They've been going in and out of style, but they're guaranteed to raise a smile

Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see

Can you hear me? When it rains and shine, it's just a state of mind

Little darling, it's been long cold lonely winter. Little darling, it feels like years since it' s been here. Here comes the sun, Here comes the sun, and I say it's alright

We danced through the night and we held each other tight, and before too long I fell in love with her. Now, I'll never dance with another when I saw her standing there

I love you, I love you, I love you, that's all I want to say

You say you want a revolution. Well you know, we all want to change the world

All the lonely people, where do they all come from. All the lonely people, where do they all belong

Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends

Hey Jude, don't make it bad. Take a sad song and make it better

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away. Now it looks as though they're here to stay. Oh, I believe in yesterday

And when the brokenhearted people, living in the world agree, there will be an answer, let it be.

And anytime you feel the pain, Hey Jude, refrain. Don't carry the world upon your shoulders

I'll give you all I got to give if you say you'll love me too. I may not have a lot to give but what I got I'll give to you. I don't care too much for money. Money can't buy me love

All you need is love, love is all you need

Whisper words of wisdom, let it be

Blackbird singing in the dead of night, Take these broken wings and learn to fly. All your life, You were only waiting for this moment to arise

Though I know I'll never lose affection, for people and things that went before. I know I'll often stop and think about them. In my life, I love you more

Obviously the best superpower.

There have been many lessons learned.

1. The importance of traditions.

2. How to be thankful for family and friends.

3. How to give back.

4. What the word "community" really means.

5. That it isn't about the destination, but the journey.

6. The consequences of making bad choices.

7. To trust people, until you have a reason not to.

8. To be welcoming and accepting of everyone.

9. How to be my own, individual person.

10. How to work for what I want.

11. How to be great at giving directions.

12. How to be humble.

13. To be well-rounded.

14. How to be great at conflict resolution.

15. The beauty of getting outside and exploring.

16. To be prepared for anything.

17. That you don't always have to do it alone.

18. How to be creative.

19. To brush off gossip.

I have never been so thankful to know you.

Dealing with the inevitable realities of college life.

Don't freak out

Email the professor

Attend the first class

Keep attending class

Have a backup plan

Remember that everything works out at the end

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