Plan ahead for the week with these healthy, gluten-free, dairy-free, and low carb meal prep lunch bowls packed with spicy chicken, roasted lemon broccoli, and caramelized sweet potatoes. Paleo & Whole30 compliant!
Another week, another meal prep Sunday in the books. It gives me immense pleasure to look ahead on a crazy week and know that I won’t have to go to the grocery store exhausted after work, or ever have the endless, “what do YOU want to eat” conversation. I can pull into my driveway at 5, and be in sweatpants with wine in hand at 5:03. My work breakfasts and lunches will be healthy and delicious and will not leave me in a low, dark, 2 P.M. food coma after the weird, fried cafeteria lunch. It’s the little things that bring me peace.
This week we have meal prep lunch bowls packed with spicy southwestern baked chicken, lemon pepper roasted broccoli, and caramelized sweet potatoes. A few little apple slices on the side for a sweet, crunchy treat. HELLO HEALTHY. All made at the SAME TIME on sheet pans. #blessed. 45 minutes. A week’s worth of yummy, healthy lunches. Great success.
Life is overwhelming in the best way possible right now, (um, we might be buying a house! Stay tuned J) so the LAST thing I need to worry about is what I’m going to eat three times a day, (who am I kidding, six times with snacks). Maybe it’s just me, but after spending all day making decisions, going 100 miles an hour, getting humped and bitten by the puppy, doing dishes by hand constantly because the dishwasher is broken, writing 20-page papers on marketing strategy in Japan because grad school sucks, and just generally being stressed, the thought of grocery shopping on the fly after work and thinking MORE can just throw me into a full-blown meltdown.
But the humping, crazy, biting puppy is FREAKING adorable, so I manage.
That’s why meal prep Sunday is so important people. Research, get inspired on Pinterest, plan ahead, make lists, wake up Sunday morning refreshed and full of coffee, and knock it out. While the food is in the oven, lay on the couch and watch HGTV reruns for the 10th time and fall in and out of naps. I promise, it’ll be fun 😉 You can also try my Healthy Greek Chicken Meal Prep Bowls for more great meal prep lunch bowls.
- For the sweet potatoes:
- 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced in ½" cubes
- 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp paprika
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- .
- For the chicken:
- 1.5 lbs bonesless, skinless chicken breast cut into four- 6 oz. portions
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- ¾ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp dried thyme
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
- .
- For the broccoli:
- 1 head of broccoli, chopped into bite-size florets
- 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp lemon pepper
- .
- Fresh fruit, like apple slices or grapes for "dessert"
- Preheat an oven to 425 degrees, and line two rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil.
- Put the diced sweet potatoes on one sheet, and drizzle with 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, ½ tsp paprika, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, and ¼ tsp garlic powder.
- Toss to coat all the sweet potatoes evenly, and spread out in a single, even layer.
- Put the sweet potatoes in the oven, and set a timer for 35 minutes, (you're going to put the chicken and broccoli in with 25 minutes left to go).
- Next, prep the broccoli. Place the broccoli florets on the second sheet pan, and drizzle with 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp lemon pepper.
- Toss to coat evenly, and spread the broccoli in a single, even layer on the baking sheet, leaving a space in the middle for the chicken breasts.
- Spray the empty space on the baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
- To prepare the chicken, mix up the spice mixture in a small bowl, (1½ tsp paprika, 1 tsp salt, ¾ tsp cumin, ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp dried thyme, ¼ tsp garlic powder, and ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper) and spread the spice rub evenly on the four chicken breasts.
- Place the seasoned chicken breasts in the middle of the sheet pan, and top with a coat of more nonstick cooking spray.
- Place in the oven with the sweet potatoes when the timer has 25 minutes left.
- When the time is up, remove both sheet pans from the oven, and divide into four even portions in tupperware containers.
- Let everything cool completely before placing it in the fridge. The meal prep bowls should stay good refrigerated for about 5 days.
- To reheat, microwave for 1 minute, 30 seconds. Enjoy!
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How is this a ‘week’s worth of lunches for two people??
Hey Nanci,
It’s not supposed to be a week’s worth of lunch for two, it’s 4 lunch servings, (so maybe one person can bring them monday-thursday). If you were directed from the meal plan, the breakfasts and lunches are only supposed to be for one, and the dinners are built for two. Hope that helps!
This was so easy and really good. I usually get bored with what I cook but enjoyed it all week.
That makes me so happy! It’s definitely hard to find something you can eat every single day, so I’m glad this worked for you 🙂
I just put it all in the oven and it was really easy to throw together. It smells amazing. I can’t wait to try it!
Yay! Great news 🙂 we like easy around here
How many calories is this per day?
Hi Trey,
One serving of this is around 350 calories.
The best meal prep guidance on the internet right now! Very well thought out! Thank you!!
Wow, thank you Brooke 🙂
This looks delicious and I love sheet pan meals. My question is mainly; do you get tired of eating the same thing every day for lunch? Even if it’s something I love, but the third day I’d be ready for a change. Sorry if this is a dumb question. I’ve seen a lot of these meal-prep ideas lately, and that has always stumped me.
Hey Sunnie, it definitely can be a problem! I typically only make 4 meals worth of a meal prep so I can switch it up one day because of that. You just have to value saving money, time, and eating healthier a little more than taste and variety I guess. It works for some, not for others!
That makes sense. I think if it’s something I really loved, I could ‘suffer’ eating it 4 days a week, haha. Thank you for your reply!
Another option is to season half one way, and the other half, another. Change up flavors.
Thank you so much for this! I literally just finished making this for my first meal prep ever and it turned out perfect. 🙂 now I have my work lunches this week all set. <3
Woohoo! Congrats on your first meal prep sesh 💪🏼 I hope you love them all week 🙂
Hello, tried this yesterday and everyone loved. However broccoli seems to go bad (smell) within few days, any suggestions on a different veggie. Also chicken was a little dry. Thank you. Amy
Hi Amy! I won’t deny broccoli has a funny smell, especially when reheated! Perhaps ty asparagus or green beans? If your chicken was dry, it may be over cooked. Try cutting down the cooking time by a couple minutes next time, or adding one of your favorite dressings/condiments for dipping!
I made this for dinner tonight and my family loved it! I’ve never been a fan of sweet potatoes either but this was great!
That’s great to hear! Thanks for trying and reaching out 🙂
Do you have the calorie count for this meal
I love your food containers! They are perfect for my littles! Where did you get them?
Amazon!! I think it was one of the first results, but if not I think they are called bento boxes!
This is awesome! But do you know the brand / make / type of lunch containers please!?
Yes! They are Orgalif BA-FREE 3-Compartment Reusable Pastic Bento Lunch Box Set. Got it on Amazon!
Can I sub. The broccoli for green beans?
Definitely! Green beans probably need less cook time though; maybe 10-15 minutes
Hi!!! I just loved your recipe! Do you know how many calories per serving?
Thank you!! Yes, it’s about 350 calories
I’m really terrible at cooking (like my mom banned me from her kitchen, bad). This recipe was so easy to follow and SOOO yummy!! I seriously loved having it yesterday and today, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow! I’m trying to eat better and cook more often and this will definitely become a part of my regular cooking!
Very straightforward, super great! Can’t wait to explore your site for more meals! Thank you!
This makes me so happy, thank you!!! There was a point in my life where I couldn’t boil water- you’ll get there! So happy this was easy for you and and yummy.
Is this half on apple or fourth per tray? Just curious
Fourth per tray! But that’s just because that’s all that fit in mine- feel free to add more!
Thank you
Do you know how long you could freeze this for and how long microwave would be if frozen? I’d like to freeze 1 or two of the meals for later! Sounds delicious though!
I’m sure it would be good in the freezer about a month or so, and then I would heat it in the microwave for 4 minutes, check and stir, and then heat in 1 minute increments going forward.
Does the caramelized sweet potatoes have a sweet taste to them just asking because of the ingredients
They do only because of the sweet potato itself.
I just tried these out last night and burned the potatoes on one side, maybe I should of taken them out before. i have to time the right cooking time for the potatoes. I’m thinking of removing the s.potatoes 7-10mins before the timer runs out. Thoughts?
Hi Demian, up to you! You could flip them halfway through the time if you’d like to get them evenly browned on both side. Personally, I love the burnt bits! With sweet potato, the sugar carmelizes and makes a delicious crust. Don’t be afraid of a little char!
The same thing happened to me! I’m thinking I just need to flip them over after a few minutes. It’ll take a while to perfect this haha
Do you happen to have the nutrition information for this recipe?
I just added it below the recipe 🙂
I don’t like spicy food. Do you think the chicken would be good without the cayenne ? Thanks
Yes, definitely! You could substitute a less spicy spice like cumin too too get more flavor
Hi Ally I love the meal prep I’ve lost 5 pounds in my first week. Very tasty and very effective:) how much weight have you lost?