Meal Planning with ChatGPT

I ventured into the ChatGPT world a few weeks ago on a whim. Curious what all the fuss was about I started typing in questions to see what kind of results I got, and I came across the best hack yet for busy working moms…the ChatGPT can meal plan!

You can ask it anything…and I mean anything. The first thing I asked was basic, “Please create a dinner meal plan for a family of five for one week.” I got very basic meals listed out for me in seconds. I followed that up with, “Create a grocery list for this meal plan,” and my little internet friend provided the full list of ingredients for the plan!

This week, I returned to this hack but I had more specific questions. I started with, “Make me a dinner meal plan. Include meals that take 30 minutes to make or less. Please make sure they have one protein, one carb, one fat, and one fruit or vegetable. I need 7 dinner recipes.” One of the recipes was not to my liking so I asked it to replace that one, and it did! I also asked for a meal prep lunch recipe with some specific parameters–at least 20 grams of protein, a carb, a fat and a vegetable. Plus, it needed to be around 500 calories total. I asked for three options and it delivered! Finally, I asked for the same parameters in a healthy breakfast that I could make in five minutes or less. Done and done!

I have my whole week planned out with healthy meals! What’s more, the recipes are simple with whole ingredients–no processed foods! My grocery bill for our family of five was $240. What’s more? I did all this in less then 30 minutes and the groceries will be waiting for me when I get home from work later. WalMart delivery for the win!

There is no shame in using every tool available to you to meal plan. In addition to my newfound use of ChatGPT, I tend to use Pinterest a lot to find recipes, and I’m a diehard grocery delivery fanatic now that I realize how easy and convenient it is. Whatever works for you, do it! Wondering what my meals look like? Here is a sample day:

Breakfast

Greek Yogurt Parfait

Ingredients:

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup berries of your choice
• 1/4 cup granola
• 1 tbsp almond butter

Instructions:

1. In a bowl or jar, layer the Greek yogurt, berries, and granola.
2. Drizzle almond butter over the top.
3. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information (approximate): Calories: 385 Protein: 23g Carbohydrates: 42g Fat: 15g Fruit: Berries

Lunch

Tuna Salad with Sweet Potato

Ingredients:

• 2 cans of tuna in water (drained)
• 1 large sweet potato, baked and diced
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• 2 cups mixed greens
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the drained tuna, diced sweet potato, chopped hard-boiled eggs, mixed greens, and diced red onion.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.
3. Drizzle the dressing over the tuna salad and toss to combine.
4. Divide the tuna salad into four meal prep containers.

Nutrition Information (per serving): Calories: 501 Protein: 35g Carbohydrates: 42g Fat: 21g

Dinner

Pesto Shrimp Pasta

Cook whole wheat pasta, and toss with sautéed shrimp, pesto sauce, and cherry tomatoes