Cheap and easy high protein, meal prep ideas for a family with a senior #caregiver #softfood

My partner is 84 year-old. Mom needs soft and lower sodium food. So we make almost every single meal at home.
Because of this, I started to prep ingredients at the beginning of the week. Not your typical meal prep, or you eat the same thing all week long. But prepping batches of things like veggies, starches, and proteins.
Chickpeas are amazing for you! And they are super cheap. And if you make them in the pressure cooker, they are super simple. And with the right combination of seasoning and aromatic, you can make them taste amazing.
This week I went with a Moroccan inspired patch of chickpeas.
Here’s how I make them.
MOROCCAN CHICKPEAS
1 shallot
1 carrot
1 celery stick
1 inch ginger
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp tomato paste
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked over night
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp clove
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 cups broth
DIRECTIONS
Place shallot, carrot, celery, and ginger in a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped
Turn your pressure cooker to the saute setting. Add olive oil and mixture from the food processor.
Sautee for 3 minutes, stirring often
Add tomato paste, garlic, and the dried spices. Sautee for 2 more minute.
Add broth. Scrape bottom of pot to make sure nothing is stuck. Add soaked dried chickpeas. Turn off saute mode
Seal lid and pressure cook on high for 14 minutes. Allow to naturally release for 10 minutes
if you are caring for an aging parent, grandparent, senior, you might want to add chickpeas or beans to your meal prep agenda
#caregiver #softfooddiet #instantpot

My partner’s 84year-old mom needs soft and lower sodium food, and I also need to make sure it’s very nutrient-dense. So, chickpeas are the perfect high protein candidate to check all of those boxes. Chickpeas might sound a bit underwhelming, but you can easily make them super flavorful, and they are so cheap. So, start building that flavor with your aromatics, which is just a fancy word for my celery, onion, and ginger. Put your Instant Pot on sauté mode and cook in a bit of olive oil for about 5 to 7 minutes or until it starts to brown. Add some tomato paste. But if you’re cooking for somebody low sodium like Lola, you need to check your labels. And tomato paste helps build flavor, too. Next up, garlic. If you’re cooking for a senior, you want to double check that garlic is okay for them. I cooked that for 1 minute, and then it’s spice time. I went with a Moroccan inspired vibe this week, but you can do whatever you want. And then we are going to delaze the pan with a low sodium broth. Time for those dried chickpeas I’ve soaked overnight. Pressure cook for 14 minutes on high. Allow to naturally release for 10. And then you have these beautiful chickpeas loaded with flavor. They’re lower in sodium and soft enough for a senior. But the best part is they can easily be added to meals all week long.