ATL_Jen Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Hey, all! I'm on Day 2 (woohoo . . . definitely the "where is my Coke Zero?!" stage) and looking ahead to food planning for the weekend. Generally, my boyfriend and I get together on Fridays and Saturdays and cook together or eat out. I'm eliminating the eating out, obivously, so I'm on the hunt for about 7-8 meal ideas I can use over the course of the month to be delicious and interesting enough that my non-W30, carb-loving boyfriend will enjoy them. Specifically, I'd love meals that: - We can cook together, if possible. - Allow for different/adjustable portion sizes (I'm petite and he's not). - Allow for inclusion of non-compliant ingredients for him if he wants (accompanying grains, occasional dairy). - I'd love if some of these meals were compliant, filling, and so over-the-top delicious that he decided he could eat this way most of the time. These meals don't necessarily need to be romantic or anything, just good food. I've bought Well Fed and know there are some good ideas there. But I'd love to hear from others who have been doing W30 with a non-W30 partner and found some good meals that you both love and enjoy. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATL_Jen Posted January 6, 2015 Author Share Posted January 6, 2015 Just realized this probably fits better in the "Cooking" subforum, sorry! I don't think I can move it myself, but if a mod wants to move it please feel free. Oops! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healthyAbby Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 I did a night with w30 compliant chicken fingers (breaded with almond meal) and roasted broccoli with my boyfriend. I had sweet potato with mine and he had a white potato. I think if there's specific proteins you both like and the same with veggies you'll be set. My boyfriend tends to like the homemade versions better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlaccini Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 What flavours and tastes do you both like? My partner and I cook together as well. He does not eat according to the meal template, but I need to stick as close to the template as possible (I have payback if I don't and he knows this) so we do a lot of central main and different sides. Most times he just eats what i eat but I never asked him to change his diet. If he wants bread - he eats bread. If he wants rice he eats rice. Some of our favourites are: Spaghetti and Meatballs - I have zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash and he has regular pasta - meatballs and sauce are compliant Butter Chicken - He has it with rice and I have it with cubed squash or potato. Nom Nom Paleo's slow cooker Korean short ribs - We have it with whatever side we want. So me with extra veg. He has veg with maybe some rice Burgers - I eat it without a bun, and he eats with a bun. Salad and sweet potato cubes/fries usually are a good side. Have fun with it. Your options are not limited. Really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andria Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 Well, if your boyfriend's palate is anything like my boyfriend's, a child's in an adult male body (he would cheeseburgers and pizza on a daily basis), the meals that seemed to have impressed him and most importantly satisfied him have been: Burger(he would have a bun) and pan fried yellow-green plantain, some green veg on side Pulled pork over baked sweet potato with homemade bbq sauce Taco meat in lettuce cups, sautéed onions and bell peppers and pan fried yellow-green plantain Well Fed's Shepherd's Pie (currently with potato topping, since white potato is allowed on W30) I would say what does not go over well for my partner is zucchini or spaghetti squash sub for pasta; cauliflower as a sub for rice or potato. Some points to remember: Don't stress yourself out with meal planning just to impress him. This Whole 30 is for you and you should do what you can to keep this as easy and stress free and possible. Also, don't get offended if he doesn't like what you cook. If you liked the meal, be happy. Early on, I had an issue with this. If my boyfriend did not like what I cooked and I really did like the meal, I would get mad and offended. Now, I refuse to get upset - unless I screwed the meal up - and figure it is his problem, he could have stepped up to the plate and cooked something himself! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jekchi Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 This soup is ridiculously good, especially if you like Thai food. Just omit the sugar. (The cookbook version, which is what I've used, doesn't even list the sugar, so I've been making it that way each time and it's insanely good.) http://againstallgrain.com/2012/05/11/tom-kha-gai-thai-coconut-soup/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators ladyshanny Posted January 6, 2015 Administrators Share Posted January 6, 2015 Food Renegade has a compliant Tom Kha Gai soup also which is SO delicious and super fast. I usually shred up some spinach and throw that in for extra veggies. http://foodrenegade.com/tom-kha-gai-thai-coconut-soup/ My hubby is in the same "not Whole30 but eats what I cook and adds what he wants" group. One of his favourites is the Well Fed SBJ burgers (basically burgers on lettuce leaves topped with almond butter and strawberry "jam". He was also the MOST sceptical about that one so I feel like that's one of my biggest successes. Now he tells everyone he meets about his jam-burger-making-wife. LOL. Anything burger shaped (and as time has gone on he's ditched his own bun also), ball shaped or loaf shaped is a hit. Anything that is served with a side of starchy carbs is an instant winner. Pulled pork is a house favourite too. He also does pretty well with the noodle substitutes as long as he doesn't try to pretend that they are pasta. When we have spaghetti and sauce, he always makes pasta because that's what he is used to. But for stir fries or new dishes that he's never had with noodles, shredded cabbage or zoodles is acceptable. I was like Andria, at the beginning I was all worried about whether every meal was going to be a crushing favourite. And then I realized that he will basically eat what I cook because he is getting his meals made for him. Now I make the things that we both like and a couple times a month I try to do a "meat and potatoes" style dinner for him which is what he grew up on. But other than that, it's enough to just feed us some days. He is always free to make his own or help or order in....but he never does, so he must like what we're eating well enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilredhead Posted January 6, 2015 Share Posted January 6, 2015 I made my boyfriend chocolate chili with sweet potatoes over the weekend, and tonight I'm making a modified version of this carrot soup (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Moroccan-Carrot-Soup-357911)%C2'> serving with chorizo. He loved the chili and when I've made the carrot soup in the past he loved that as well. He eats way more than I do (he's an EMT, I have a desk job) so I just give him much larger portions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATL_Jen Posted January 7, 2015 Author Share Posted January 7, 2015 Thanks for the responses, suggestions, and thoughts! I guess when I say I want to have an impressive meal, it's mostly because I want to try to persuade my BF to try to eat more Paleo (probably not full W30) himself. I think if he finds that food can be delicious and filling without the addition of sugar and other highly processed ingredients, he'll be more willing to transition over this WOE on a more regular basis. Fingers crossed, at least! We both eat all kinds of foods and are fairly adventurous. I like the idea of Thai and can look at some things, maybe including that soup! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlocs1021 Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Trust yourself, anything you guys make will be delish because it is fresh and made with whole ingredients. My husband was begrudgingly going to eat the golden cauliflower soup from the clothes make the girl tonight because he wants to be supportive. I could just see the sideways glances and non excitement in his face. I got around this by saying don't worry ill make tuna salad or chicken salad to go with, you don't have to just have veggie soup for dinner. Long story short we had the cauliflower soup, he had a tuna wrap with tomatoes, onions, and avocado. I had mine with a tuna salad on a romaine leaf serving as a wrap with avocado. I couldn't go back for seconds if I wanted to, he finished the soup…..no lunch leftovers for me tomorrow Search paleo or whole 30 meals on pinterest, I always get tons of ideas from there and the paleo recipes are usually very easy to make whole 30 complaint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATL_Jen Posted January 14, 2015 Author Share Posted January 14, 2015 Just a brief update in case anyone finds this thread in the future! We had a few meals together over the course of the weekend, and some things were hits and some were misses (although, to be truthful, by boyfriend is great and will happily eat almost anything I put in front of him). The big hits were roasted butternut squash (which we've had before, but not in a while); Thai beef curry (his with rice, mine without); and spaghetti squash with mariana and ground beef. He REALLY liked that one! I added extra veggies to that, to bulk it up a little, and it was great. My only problem when we eat together is that I have a lot less for leftovers! Man, guys can eat! Thanks, all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlocs1021 Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Yes guys can eat!!! I stock up on cans of tuna or chicken for the same reason!! Cant complain tho, this would be much harder with a hubby that was super picky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.