4 Practical Meal Ideas For Your Day of Rest

All the household things do not come to a halt just because I have decided to rest. I still have to feed my family (or someone does anyway). And unfortunately, the house does not get magically cleaned by forest creatures.

It seems counterintuitive to have to prepare for rest.

But, Sabbath prep is NOT about running around and getting stressed out.

Part of preparation can be making space for yourself and your family to enjoy your day of rest.

Slowing down has become something that we all need desperately. In the midst of Sabbath, we all allow ourselves (and each other) some space. We allow time to do what delights and replenishes each of us. 

“For me to enjoy Sabbath rest on Saturday, however, requires I have another day of the week to do the tasks of life that consume my energy or fill me with worry. For example, planning my week, paying bills, balancing our checkbook, cleaning the house, fighting traffic and crowds to shop, doing loads of laundry are all work I need to do a different day of the week.”

[I love this definition from Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero p.156-157] 

So how do we take time away from “…things that consume my energy or fill me with worry”?

We must plan for it.

And let go of the urge to keep going at full speed every single day.

To relinquish the need to see it all and do it all without stopping. We all need time for reflection. Downtime to process the events of the week.   

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Where to Start =

What is Unique to this Week?

Let each week be different.

Sometimes all that I want is to be left alone in the quiet kitchen with some fresh ingredients and some time.

Some Sundays, I would much rather order a pizza or have my teens cook something. It depends on what my week has been like and how much time I have spent in the kitchen.

“‘A man who works with his mind should sabbath with his hands. A man who works with his hands should sabbath with his mind.’ What your work looks like is going to affect what your sabbath looks like.  … Sabbath changes as life changes.”

Quoting Abraham Heschel a rabbi who lived during the civil rights movement.
From The Common Rule by Earley p. 149-150

What is unique to your week?

• What have your last 7 days been like?
• How much time have you spent in your kitchen cooking and cleaning up?
• Have you made anything from scratch this week?
• How have you been eating this week?
• Have you spent a lot of time at home with your people, or have you been other places?

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Idea #1

Choose a Theme for Sabbath Meal Planning:

Is there a theme you could pick for your Sabbath?

• My friend Erin has “Breakfast for Dinner” on Saturday evenings. It is easy, the ingredients are on hand, and the kids like it.
• My friend Michelle serves one meal on Sundays. They have a hearty late lunch as a family and then just graze on snacks in the evening. One round of cooking, one round of dishes, less clean up, and more free time in the evenings.
• We have a fast-food lunch on Sundays. On the way home from church we pick a drive-thru and then eat it at home together around the table. It is less cooking and less dishes. We go somewhere different each week and stick to a specific budget for the amount we spend.
• My sister-in-law has a tradition where they have at-home date night. They make easy kid food and put all their littles to bed early. Then my brother-in-law makes a nice dinner for just the two of them. They don’t have to pay a babysitter and keep the normal routines. They enjoy a relaxed dinner together in their own home, at a much cheaper price, and without kid interruptions.
• My friend Jalynne makes a double recipe a few days before so that she has it ready to go. That way there is only one day of cooking but you get two meals. And because there is a day or two between it doesn’t feel so repetitive. (2 lasagnas, 2 shepherd pies, 2 casseroles, etc.)

Some themes you could be based around the type of food or the way it is cooked.

Slow Cooker Sunday – stews, soups, roasts, one-pot meals, to put on a sandwich (pulled pork, sloppy joes), chili, green beans & ham, hearty sides (mashed potatoes, stuffing), ribs…

Type of Cuisine or Ingredients – Italian, BBQ, casseroles, Thai, Street Food, Salads, American Classics, Seafood, Mexican (our fav), Southern Comfort Food…

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Idea #2

Meal ideas that are slow and deliberate

The mindset – Choosing ingredients to cook with, having a recipe you look forward to trying, time in the kitchen alone or cooking with kids (whichever one you enjoy more).  Think slow, old-fashioned, family dinner at Grandma’s.

Tips for what to think about –

• What meals are your favorite to prepare?
• What season is it? What kinds of meals do you enjoy making right now?
  • Fall – Soups, crockpot roasts with veggies, casseroles that simmer…
  • Summer – Pasta salads, bowls of fresh fruit, grilled hot dogs, watermelon slices…
• What fresh ingredients do you have?
• What is a meal that you enjoyed as a kid that felt like home?

I often choose this option for my Sabbath meal when the week has been busy and I have not had much time in my kitchen. Or if the kids are outside enjoying the backyard and the house is quiet. I also love the flexibility of chopping all the veggies, prepping the meat, and adding spices to the crock-pot at 2pm. I can do all the prep work, toss it in, clean up the kitchen, and then dinner will be ready in the evening.

If you are looking for slow, nutritious, beautiful food watch these YouTube channels:

• What We Eat in a Week – Farmhouse on Boone
• Homestead Cooking Videos – The Elliott Homestead

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Idea #3

Meal ideas that are easy or can be made ahead

The mindset – What can you prepare ahead of time so that you have food planned and ready to go? To be kind to your future self. Maybe this last week has required a lot of cooking and time in the kitchen on your feet, then let your sabbath meals be easy. Avoid dishes, ask for help, order out, or make the day before. You decide what matters to you on your Sabbath.

Tips for what to think about –

• Who can help make food on Sabbath?
• What activities are you planning on doing today? 
• Will you be out for a family walk this afternoon?
• When do you want to eat lunch/dinner? Where?
• Would it make sense to pack a picnic instead of making a sit down dinner?
• How can the meal serve you and your family? Don’t let it be stressful or complicated.
• Can you use Jalynne’s tip and make double a few days before?

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Idea #4

Getting Help –

Mom should get time off too. We are not the only ones in our homes who can cook or provide meals for the family. It may take some teaching or patience to change patterns that have been formed.

Get help from others. Have the teens and older kids learn to cook. This is adding life skills and giving you a break. My husband is an excellent cook. He makes meals several times a week.

We also enjoy cooking from recipes of pre-portioned meals that we buy from Dream Dinners. There are many others all over the country. (Hello Fresh, Here is a comparison article)

If you can not get help from others in your home, then help yourself ahead of time. You have agency. You can decide how you want things to go with a bit of planning.

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Practical Questions

• What meals can you plan and who can help you out?
• Does your relaxing day of Sabbath smell a specific way?
  • cinnamon rolls in the oven, clean throw blankets & snuggling on the couch, candles, soup in the crockpot, open windows, freshly washed sheets, bacon for breakfast, sunscreen, and splashing in the pool… slow down and think about it.
• What does it sound like?
  • Quiet, laughter and telling silly jokes, piano music from your oldest practicing, birds and trees swaying, conversation, worship music at church, dogs barking at the dog park, the windows down on a relaxed drive… How loud do you want it to be? What sounds do you want to hear?
• What can you change this next week to make space for abiding without agenda?
• How can you be strategic about making space for rest?

[from The Overachiever’s Practical Guide to Sabbath: Why, When, & How]

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You can do this!

We all get out of our routines, miss what we are aiming for, or have unexpected events that keep us from rest. That is okay.

Focus on the times when things have worked well and it has been a good experience. Then do your best to approach your Sabbath with preparation and hope for connection with God.

If you are in a season where rest is exceptionally difficult then do what you can and give yourself grace. We all have times when life does not go as we expected. I am confident that God will meet you in that gap and love you where you are.

Wishing you the best! – April

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P.S. – more encouragement for you

• If you would like magical forest creatures to come clean you home each week: See this article for ideas.🙂
• Or maybe you struggle with slowing down and letting go of the urge to keep going at full speed every single day. To relinquish the need to see it all and do it all without stopping: See this article for encouragement.🙂
• Do you want to hear my personal story on finding God? See these articles🙂
• and I must add this link because it is the basics that I have come up with to make my Sabbath work for me: The Overachiever’s Practical Guide to Sabbath: Why, When, & How 🙂

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Photos by: Igor Miske,  Nathan Dumlao, Soroush Karimi, Jess Bailey,  Edgar Castrejon, Razieh Bakhtom, Brooke Lark

and others on Unsplash

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