Week of Healthy Meal Prep: November 19-23

This easy skillet pasta bake is a surefire family hit. Pasta and meat sauce topped with mozzarella cheese will make everyone at the table happy, and the all-in-one-pot technique will have the cook smiling pretty. Get the kids involved in this family-friendly meal. Kids can help measure wet and dry ingredients as well as sprinkle cheese on the finished product. Use prep time with older kids to reinforce counting, conversions, and measuring by weight.

The vibrant glaze—which pulls bold flavors from soy sauce, honey, lime juice, fresh ginger, and garlic—would be equally delicious on chicken breasts or pork chops.

A bit of 1/3-less-fat cream cheese adds rich body to our Tomato-Basil Soup, a fast weeknight meal that boasts three times the protein compared to common store-bought varieties.

Happy Thanksgiving! If you're cooking this year, here are some healthy recipes to help you get inspired in the kitchen. 

There's a whole lot of Thanksgiving dinner flavor packed in these hand-held muffin cups. Stuffing, turkey, cranberry sauce, and gravy all get used up—and, they can be assembled in a snap. Want to make it a meal? Serve muffins alongside this Baby Kale, Quinoa, and Roasted Vegetable Salad.

Since there’s no chopping involved, this is a great recipe for recruiting your kids to help out—there are lots of opportunities for stirring, and even a chance to use their hands to crumble together the streusel topping. Thin out the glaze with a little extra milk and spoon it over for a casual presentation, or put it in a Ziploc, snip off the corner, and let the kids drizzle their own special designs.