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Foundation Proteins & How They Make Back to School Meals a Breeze

written by

Dave Stoltzfus

posted on

August 23, 2018

Sign this paper, pick me up at this time, purchase these books. Does this back to school shuffle sound oh-so-familiar? If so, then you may want to consider working foundation proteins into your weekly meals.

Foundation proteins are built on the meal planning concept except, instead of making and consuming the same meal many times throughout one week, foundation proteins allow for meal diversity, creativity, and nutrition, which is greatly appreciated by anyone who hates to sacrifice quality for convenience. Yes, you can have both!

If you can prepare a protein in bulk using an elementary recipe, then you can give this method a try. Think simple - olive oil or butter, salt, and pepper, then cook. Once the foundation protein is created in bulk, you can easily dress it up throughout the week. Simply choose a few of your tried and true recipes and add/swap in one of the prepared proteins or find inspiration in the suggestions below.

Why Dutch Meadows Foundation Proteins?

The ability to prepare your weekly protein in bulk is a benefit you'll receive no matter how you source your bulk product. We get that. However, there are undoubtedly additional benefits you’ll receive when sourcing your ingredients from Dutch Meadows:

  • Quality and nutrition - all products are GMO Free, Soy Free, Artificial Hormone Free, Antibiotic Free, Grass-fed, Organically Pastured, and Humanely Raised.
  • Investment - keep your money in your local economy by sharing it with a family of farms.
  • Affordable - by cutting out several “middle men” of the food supply chain, we can offer a competitive price on a high quality product. When you purchase in bulk from Dutch Meadows, the value is even better!
  • Convenience - order as much protein as you like from one trustworthy source, without having to make an extra trip to the corporate grocer or visiting several farms and specialty stores.

Time to get started! 

  1. Review the foundation protein recipes HERE and some of our suggested meal ideas below.
  2. Purchase your proteins and any other ingredients that are applicable and available in the Dutch Meadows Shop (psssst, we have Produce now).
  3. Find one day a week (Sunday late afternoon and evening are a common choice among “meal planners”) to prep your meat and any other timely element to the week’s recipes i.e. chopping vegetables, mixing homemade sauces.
  4. Enjoy!


Fun Ways to Use Your Foundation Proteins

Click through the links below for examples and some direction, or let your culinary creativity steer the way! Sub in a foundation protein of your choice into whatever recipe you end up following.

Protein-Grain Bowl

Stir Fry

Salad

Quesadilla

Chili

Tacos

Cod Cakes

Pasta

Sandwiches

Kabobs

BONUS: freeze the prepared protein in an airtight container if you have any leftover at the end of the week.

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Order Deadlines

Hello, due to a recent increase in requests, we feel it is necessary to point out that we cannot accommodate any late orders or order edits after the deadline at 10 AM ET on your specified day. (Please see chart below). Please refrain from submitting requests beyond this time, as we are unable to process them. To ensure a smooth experience, we strongly encourage placing your order the day before the deadline, or even a couple of days in advance. We experience a high volume of calls just before the order deadline, and we cannot guarantee that all calls or phone orders will be handled in the final hours leading up to the cutoff. Submitting your order before the deadline day helps avoid any last-minute delays that could prevent your order from being processed in time.  Remember, we are not a warehouse full of oversupply product that has been sitting around and ready to ship at a moment's notice. As small farmers, we require sufficient time to prepare your orders. This includes bottling milk, sorting eggs, retrieving meats from inventory, harvesting fresh vegetables, and coordinating with various vendors and farmers to ensure that fresh products are available. You are our valued customer and our goal is to bring you fresh, quality, REAL foods while streamlining the whole process from soil and farm > to process > to pack > to your table! Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any further questions or need clarification on our ordering process. Thank you for your understanding. Dutch Meadows Farm Customer Service. ● UPS: Friday 10:00 am ET ● All Wednesday Deliveries: Monday 10:00 am ET ● All Thursday Deliveries: Monday 10:00 am ET ● All Friday deliveries: Wednesday 10:00 am ET