Meal Prep Ideas for Hot Summer Days

Sometimes, turning on the oven in the summertime is just too hot! Today I’m sharing three meal prep ideas from my summer kitchen (and some example variations) that can fill your fridge and keep you cool. We’re covering breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as suggestions for specific products that I recommend – with links!

Let’s dive in!

Breakfast Idea: High-Protein Overnight Oats

For me, this is a mash-up of high-protein overnight oats and make-ahead chia seed pudding. The end result is incredibly filling, being a powerful combination of protein and fiber. Here’s how I make four servings:

Ingredients (for four servings): 

• 4 servings of protein powder of choice (I use Nutricost whey protein powder, and my favorite flavor is Chocolate PB – use code RACHT10 for a discount)
• 1 cup Trader Joe’s “Organic Rolled Oats with Ancient Grains and Seeds” (but you can also use regular rolled oats)
• 1/2 cup chia seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Stevia sweetener to taste
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• Dash of vanilla
• Enough water to make a smooth, liquid consistency
• 1 cup (or more) frozen strawberries or raspberries

I combine all the dry ingredients first, and then add in the wet ingredients, finishing with the frozen berries. In my experience, it will seem too wet when you initially mix it up and pour it into four cups or containers, but it will set up overnight in the refrigerator.

The result is truly delicious in the morning! And it’s so fast to grab right out of the refrigerator when I get home from the gym in the morning.

If you want to swap out Greek yogurt for protein powder, use 4 cups of Greek yogurt and far less water.

Variation: you can essentially make this as a smoothie, too, by combining 1 serving of protein powder (or 1 cup of Greek yogurt), 1/2 cup frozen greens, 1 cup frozen berries, 2 tbsp. chia seeds, 1/4 cup rolled oats, and cocoa powder / stevia sweetener to taste. 

Lunch Idea: Mediterranean Salmon Avocado Toast

I often share about how I’m “vegetarian until dinner,” but my cheat code is that it’s really pescatarian, not truly vegetarian. This meal is a great example of how I use fish for my lunches. The fun thing about this recipe is that you can buy literally every ingredient in one trip to Trader Joe’s!

Ingredients (for four servings):

• 1 can Wild Alaskan pink salmon, drained
• About 20 olives from a jar of pitted kalamata olives (or whatever olives you want), sliced
• About 1/4 (or less) of a red onion, diced
• 4 Persian cucumbers, cut into small pieces (I cut them into rounds and then quarter the rounds)
• Juice of 1-2 lemons
• 1 can cannellini (or Great Northern) beans, drained
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 avocados
• 4 whole-wheat English muffins
• Salt and pepper to taste

Make the salad by combining the salmon, sliced olives, diced red onion, cucumbers, and lemon juice. Season to taste. Store in 4 separate containers. In a blender or food processor, puree the beans and the garlic with salt to taste. Store this bean spread in a separate container. Each time you want to make lunch, toast the English muffin, spread it with 1/4 of the bean spread, slice up 1/2 of an avocado onto it, and then top with 1/4 of the salad mixture.

Variation: you can swap out shredded rotisserie chicken or canned tuna or 3 hardboiled eggs if the canned salmon gives you the yuck! 

Dinner Idea: Slow-Cooker Chicken Tacos

My clients know that I am obsessed with tacos as a meal prep idea – to me, they’re such an easy way to make healthy food delicious and artful. And they just feel so right for summertime!

Ingredients (for four servings): 

• 1 lb. boneless/skinless chicken thighs
• 1 tbsp. neutral cooking oil
• 1 package high-fiber tortillas (either “Mission: Carb Balance” or “Trader Joe’s: Carb-Savvy”)
• 1 can black beans, drained
• 4 oz. reduced fat cheese (like “Trader Joe’s Finely Shredded Lite Mexican Style Cheese Blend)
• 1 avocado
• 1 bag shredded cabbage
• 1 jar salsa (I love “Trader Joe’s Pineapple Salsa”) or pico de Gallo
• Salt/garlic powder/paprika/cumin to taste

On the stovetop, heat a frying pan to medium-high heat, then quickly sear the chicken thighs in the oil for a few minutes on each side, seasoning with salt, garlic powder, paprika, and cumin as desired. Then, transfer the chicken thighs to a slow cooker, putting a bit of water in with them so that they’re not fully submerged but mostly in the water. Cook on high for 1 hour.

When the chicken thighs are done, remove them from the slow cooker and shred them with a fork. Then, serve with tortillas, black beans, cheese, avocado, cabbage, and salsa (as well as any other toppings you love).

Variation: You can turn this basic idea into quesadillas by sautéing the cooked/shredded chicken, beans, and cabbage, and then sandwiching into tortillas (using cheese to “stick” the combination to the insides of the tortilla), and then toasting the tortillas on each side. You can also turn it into taco salad or nachos by using chips. You can also turn your avocados into guacamole by combining the avocado with salsa and a little Greek yogurt in a blender. All variations are fun and delicious in different ways! 

Remember that all three of these meal prep ideas are for four servings – this might mean that you eat a meal four times, or it might mean that you might split it with someone else twice. Or it might mean that you double the recipe and share it with your whole family one time! It’s up to you!

These meals also hit at least 30 grams of protein, 10 grams of fiber, and 400 calories – this combination is a major factor in fullness, so these meals should also stave off cravings and make it easier to stick to healthy eating intentions.

Need more meal prep ideas like these? Check out my free download, my 28-Day Meal Prep Guide!