ThePrep: Simple One-Pot Dinners for Spring

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When I finally stop running around and sit down to eat dinner each evening, I quickly find myself sinking into relaxation mode. All the things I said I would do after dinner—fold laundry, catch up on a few work emails and the dishes—start to feel like too much work. The laundry can usually wait, as can the work emails, but a sink full of dirty dishes is not as easy to ignore. Which is why I'm all about this week's simple spring dinners that strategically cook everything in a single pot or pan.

Your Meal Plan

Sunday's One-Pot Garlicky Shrimp & Spinach is the first recipe I think of when I need a one-pot dinner. It has lots of flavor from garlic, lemon, crushed red pepper and parsley, plus it uses a whole pound of spinach, so you get plenty of veggies. The shrimp cook quickly and when I use a microwavable packet of pre-cooked brown rice as a side, I get a balanced meal that only dirties one pot. Tuesday's Skillet Lemon Chicken with Spinach is also paired with brown rice. You can use a pre-cooked packet again, or make a batch or two of Easy Brown Rice to have for the week.

The One-Pot Tomato-Basil Pasta is another one-pot winner. For one, it's delicious. And I love that I don't need to bother with boiling water in a separate pot to cook the pasta. This recipe uses a precise amount of water to cook the pasta in the pot with all the other ingredients. Three sheet-pan dinners also made it into the line up: the veggie-packed Greek Roasted Fish with Vegetables, the colorful Sheet-Pan Sausage & Peppers, and the Sheet-Pan Caprese Pizza, which combines two of my favorite things—pizza and caprese salad!

Sunday: One-Pot Garlicky Shrimp & Spinach with cooked brown rice

Monday: Greek Roasted Fish with Vegetables

Tuesday: Skillet Lemon Chicken with Spinach with cooked brown rice

Wednesday: One-Pot Tomato-Basil Pasta

Thursday: Sheet-Pan Sausage & Peppers

Friday: Sheet-Pan Caprese Pizza

Get the shopping list here.

Meal-Prep Breakfast

Baked feta pasta became famous on TikTok and Instagram for good reason—the combination is delicious! We riffed on this tasty trend and created a super-simple 3-ingredient breakfast you can enjoy all week long. All you need to do is fill muffin cups with halved cherry tomatoes and cubed feta, then top with beaten eggs and optional fresh basil before baking until set. These tasty egg cups will help me start my mornings right.

Get the Recipe: 3-Ingredient Baked Feta & Cherry Tomato Egg Muffins

Side note: If you haven't yet tried baked feta pasta, you must! Here are two delicious recipes for Baked Tomato & Feta Pasta and Baked Spinach & Feta Pasta.

Treat Yourself

I'm very particular when it comes to my cocktails. My biggest thing is that I don't want them to be too sweet, and I really prefer when they use fresh ingredients versus bottled mixes. So, naturally, this Pineapple Margarita with No Added Sugar is a clear winner. This cocktail gets the perfect amount of sweetness from orange and pineapple juices and a tart kick from fresh lime juice—no need for sugary Triple Sec. it's just the best thing to sip on a warm spring night.

Get the Recipe: Pineapple Margaritas with No Added Sugar

Watch me make this margarita here!

I hope you all have a safe and happy week, and if you have any questions or requests for future newsletters, please let me know by emailing ThePrep@eatingwell.com!