Chicken Meatballs Two Ways Meal Prep Lunches

First, make the meatball mixture. Add all the meatball ingredients (ground chicken, egg, olive oil, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper) to a large bowl. Use clean hands to mix everything together until just mixed. Place the meatball mixture in the fridge while you prepare the veggies and sheet pans.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Line two large sheet pans with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.

Cut the top end of the garlic head off (about 1/2 inch) to reveal the cloves. Place all your prepped veggies onto one sheet pan with head of garlic cut side up in the center (I like to keep the veggies separate for easier portioning later). Drizzle veggies with avocado or olive oil (about 2 tablespoons), then sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon or your hands to mix each section of veggies so they are covered with oil. Set this sheet pan aside.

Remove the meatball mixture from the fridge. Use clean hands and/or a small cookie scoop to form 24 meatballs, spacing them evenly apart on the second prepared sheet pan.

Place both sheet pans into the preheated oven, veggies on top. Cook for 25-30 minutes, or until the veggies appear roasted and tomatoes have burst. Check the temperature of the meatballs, they should be over 165F. If not, they may need another 5 minutes on the top rack after the veggies come out of the oven.

While the meatballs and veggies are in the oven, cook pasta according to package directions for just barely al dente (minimum cook time). Drain, set aside, and toss with a small amount of olive oil so the pasta doesn’t stick together.

Once everything has come out of the oven and is cooling, it’s time to make the lemon garlic butter. Take the roasted garlic and squeeze the cloves out through the top. Take 2-4 cloves of the roasted garlic (more if you are a garlic lover) and use a fork to mash them up with the room temperature butter. Once thoroughly mixed, add lemon juice and mix once more. Save any extra roasted garlic for another meal.

Finally, assemble your meal prep bowls. Divide pasta evenly between all four bowls. Add mushrooms and peppers to two bowls, and add zucchini and tomatoes to the other two bowls. Add 1/4 cup pizza sauce on top of the pasta to each pizza meal, and add lemon garlic butter to the garlic veggie meals. Cut the pepperoni into quarters and add to pizza meals. Top each meal with six meatballs each. Sprinkle with extra shredded parmesan cheese.

These meals will store for up to 4 days in the fridge in airtight containers. To reheat, cover and microwave on high for 90 seconds – 2 minutes.