4-Day Meal Plan — July 2026

YKGrub · 4 days · 8 meals · <650 cal · Plant-forward · Batch-cook

Batch Prep Anchors

Cook these once — they cover the whole week. Pull baby portions before salting.

Day 1
Lunch

Snow Pea & White Bean Teff Bowl with Arugula

A hearty bowl with warm teff porridge base, white beans sautéed in garlic and lemon, topped with fresh arugula, dressed snow pea–red cabbage slaw (sub-batch 1), lightly warmed cherry tomatoes, and a tahini drizzle. Light feta crumble for adults.

teffwhite beanssnow peasarugulacherry tomatoesred cabbagetahinilemongarlicfeta
530 cal · 22g protein · 62g carb · 18g fat

Batch: teff, white beans, dressed snow pea slaw sub-batch 1. Assembly only.

Baby: Plain teff with mashed white beans. Warm cherry tomatoes in pan until soft, then quarter — raw skins are slippery. Steam snow peas until soft and slice thinly, or omit. No salt, no feta, no tahini drizzle. Small drizzle of olive oil for fat adequacy.

LDL: Teff and white beans deliver beta-glucan-type soluble fiber. Tahini provides unsaturated fat. No saturated fat. Feta small and optional.

Dinner

Miso-Glazed Salmon with Roasted Asparagus & Sweet Potato

Salmon fillet (from frozen, thawed) glazed with white miso, rice vinegar, and ginger, pan-seared or broiled. Served over roasted asparagus and cubed sweet potato. Kimchi on the side for adults.

frozen salmonmiso pasteasparagussweet potatogingergarlickimchigreen onions
590 cal · 38g protein · 42g carb · 20g fat

Batch: roasted asparagus and sweet potato. Salmon cooked fresh (10 min). Kimchi from jar.

Baby: Flake a small salmon portion — check meticulously for bones, feeling through the entire piece with fingers. Plain baked only, no miso glaze. Serve with mashed sweet potato. Asparagus: offer tips only (top 1-2 inches), cooked fully tender and mashable — exclude all stalks entirely (too fibrous). No kimchi. Small drizzle of olive oil.

LDL: Salmon is the primary omega-3 anchor (EPA/DHA). Miso is fermented. Sweet potato adds beta-carotene and fiber. No heavy saturated fat.

Day 2
Lunch

Red Lentil Dal with Roasted Eggplant & Buckwheat

South Asian-inspired bowl: spiced red lentil dal (turmeric, cumin, ginger, garlic, tomato) ladled over soft buckwheat, with roasted eggplant stirred in. Topped with yogurt, fresh mint, and a squeeze of lemon.

red lentilsbuckwheateggplantcherry tomatoesgingergarlicturmericcuminyogurtfresh mintlemon
500 cal · 26g protein · 72g carb · 12g fat

Batch: red lentil dal, buckwheat, roasted eggplant. Reheat dal, stir in eggplant, serve over buckwheat. Yogurt and mint at table.

Baby: Plain dal (pulled before salt is added) over very soft buckwheat. Mash eggplant in. Small spoonful of plain yogurt is fine. No mint if baby doesn't tolerate strong herbs yet. Small drizzle of olive oil for fat adequacy.

LDL: Red lentils are top-tier soluble fiber for LDL reduction. Buckwheat adds rutin (flavonoid supporting vascular health). Yogurt adds probiotics. No cholesterol sources.

Dinner

Miso-Glazed Tofu with Eggplant, Okra & Brown Rice with Tahini-Miso Sauce

Miso-marinated baked tofu over brown rice with sautéed okra and remaining roasted eggplant, finished with sesame seeds and green onion. Drizzled with a tahini-miso-water emulsion sauce in place of coconut milk for a heart-healthy finish.

tofumiso pasteokraeggplantbrown ricetahinigreen onionssesame seedsgarlicgingerrice vinegar
575 cal · 28g protein · 58g carb · 21g fat

Batch: miso tofu slabs (reheated), brown rice (reheated with splash of water), roasted eggplant. Okra sautéed fresh in olive oil 8-10 min. Tahini-miso sauce: whisk 1 tbsp tahini + 1 tsp miso + 1 tbsp rice vinegar + 2-3 tbsp water until smooth.

Baby: Plain baked tofu cubes (separated before marinating). Soft okra rounds cooked fully tender. Baby grain: soft millet from batch instead of brown rice (reduces inorganic arsenic exposure). No tahini-miso sauce. Small drizzle of olive oil instead.

LDL: Tofu isoflavones linked to modest LDL reduction. Okra has mucilaginous soluble fiber (same category as oats). Coconut milk removed entirely — replaced with tahini-miso-water emulsion providing unsaturated fats with zero saturated fat from lauric or myristic acids.

Day 3
Lunch

Roasted Veggie Buckwheat Bowl with Miso-Tahini Dressing

Bowl of nutty buckwheat topped with leftover roasted sweet potato and carrots, arugula, freshly dressed snow pea slaw (sub-batch 2), diced cucumber, shaved red cabbage, and a generous miso-tahini drizzle. Topped with toasted peanuts.

buckwheatsweet potatocarrotsarugulasnow peasred cabbagecucumbermiso pastetahinipeanutslemon
505 cal · 18g protein · 60g carb · 24g fat

Batch: buckwheat, roasted sweet potato, roasted carrots. Snow pea slaw sub-batch 2 dressed fresh today (undressed half from Day 1 — snow peas stay crisp). Asparagus not used here — reserved for D1 only. Dressing from jar. Assembly only.

Baby: Soft buckwheat with mashed sweet potato and soft roasted carrot. Diced cucumber in small pieces or thick spears (not thin strips — choking hazard). No dressing. Stir small amount of smooth peanut butter thinned with water into baby's buckwheat for peanut allergen continuation — no dry crushed peanuts. Drizzle olive oil for fat adequacy.

LDL: Peanuts and tahini deliver monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Buckwheat provides soluble fiber. No saturated fat or dietary cholesterol. Fully plant-based meal.

Dinner

Sardine & Arugula Pasta with Lemon-Caper Pan Sauce

Pearl couscous tossed with tinned lemon sardines, wilted arugula, cherry tomatoes, capers, garlic, and a bright lemon-olive oil pan sauce. Finished with Parmesan for adults. Mediterranean weeknight classic.

pearl couscoustinned sardines (lemon)arugulacherry tomatoesgarliclemonolive oilcapersParmesangreen onions
620 cal · 32g protein · 64g carb · 22g fat

Batch: pearl couscous (reheat in pan with splash of olive oil) or cook fresh in 15 min. Sardines from tin. Lemon-olive oil pan sauce in 5 min. Note: this meal uses its own lemon-olive oil sauce — not the miso-tahini dressing from the jar.

Baby grain: soft millet from batch instead of pearl couscous — individual couscous pearls are a choking hazard for infants. Sardines: use boneless variety if available. For baby's portion, flake by hand feeling carefully through every piece for fine bones — tinned sardines can retain numerous fine bones. Offer a few well-checked small pieces with millet. No capers (too salty), no Parmesan, no lemon-caper sauce. A little olive oil is fine.

LDL: Sardines are the most concentrated omega-3 source in this plan (EPA+DHA per gram rivals salmon). Arugula adds nitrates for vascular function. Olive oil replaces butter throughout. Parmesan is a finishing sprinkle only — saturated fat under 1g at this quantity.

Day 4
Lunch

Miso Tofu & Kimchi Rice Bowl with Edamame

Japanese-Korean fusion bowl: leftover miso tofu over brown rice with steamed edamame, thinly sliced cucumber, and a spoonful of kimchi. Drizzled with miso-tahini dressing and topped with sesame seeds and green onions. RF add-on: half an avocado (~640 cal for RF, ~560 cal for Tiffany without avocado).

tofu (miso-glazed)brown riceedamamecucumberkimchimiso-tahini dressingsesame seedsgreen onionsavocado (RF only)
560 cal (Tiffany) · ~640 cal (RF with avocado) · 30g protein · 56g carb · 26g fat

Batch: tofu, brown rice (reheated), miso-tahini dressing from jar. Edamame from frozen (microwave 4 min). Assembly bowl — no active cooking. RF adds half avocado separately (~80 cal).

Baby: Plain baked tofu cubes, soft edamame shelled (whole pods are a choking hazard), plain soft brown rice (occasional use fine; substitute soft millet if brown rice has appeared multiple times this week). Diced cucumber — small pieces or thick spears, not thin strips. No kimchi (too spicy and salty), no dressing. A small piece of avocado is excellent for baby if RF is having it — good fat for neurological development.

LDL: Edamame + tofu continues the soy isoflavone theme toward 25g/day threshold for LDL reduction. Avocado for RF adds beta-sitosterol (plant sterol that competes with dietary cholesterol absorption). Miso-tahini dressing delivers unsaturated fats. Kimchi adds probiotics.

Dinner

Spiced Chickpea-Flour Pancake with White Beans, Roasted Carrots & Arugula Salad

Savory besan chilla (Indian chickpea-flour pancake) made with yogurt, grated carrot, green onion, and spices — bound with 1 whole egg plus a flax egg (1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water) to reduce dietary cholesterol while maintaining structure. Served with warm white beans in cumin-tomato sauce, a simple arugula salad with lemon-olive oil, and roasted carrot sticks on the side.

chickpea flourcarrotsyogurtwhite beansarugulacherry tomatoescumingarliclemoneggground flaxseedgreen onionsfresh mint
610 cal · 28g protein · 67g carb · 20g fat

Batch: roasted carrots, white beans (warm with cumin + garlic). Besan batter fresh (5 min): chickpea flour + yogurt + 1 whole egg + 1 tbsp flaxseed mixed with 3 tbsp water + grated carrot + green onion + spices. Cook like savory crepes — 2-3 min per side in olive oil. Flax-egg halves dietary cholesterol vs. a 2-egg version.

Baby: Small plain besan chilla — chickpea flour + a little full-fat yogurt or milk, no spices, no salt, no egg if preferred (aquafaba from white bean batch can bind it). Serve with mashed white beans and soft roasted carrot from batch. Arugula too peppery and fibrous for most babies — substitute a few soft warm cherry tomato pieces. Vitamin C in tomatoes aids iron absorption from chickpea flour.

LDL: Chickpea flour delivers soluble fiber and plant protein. White beans add another fiber anchor. Ground flaxseed adds ALA (plant omega-3) and lignans with modest LDL-lowering properties. Eggs reduced to one whole egg + flax egg per adult serving — dietary cholesterol halved vs. 2-egg version, and high fiber load further mitigates impact. No saturated fat anchors.

How to Prep

One batch-cook session at the start of the week covers nearly everything. Budget 90 minutes.

1
Get the oven going first. Preheat to 400F. Cube sweet potato and carrot sticks onto separate trays with olive oil — carrots go in at 22 min, sweet potato at 25 min. Set a third tray for asparagus (12 min) — this one goes in last and comes out first.
2
Start the stovetop grains. Teff in one pot (15 min). Buckwheat in another — toast dry first, then add water (12 min). Brown rice in a third pot or rice cooker (40-45 min). Soft millet for baby in a small saucepan (18-20 min).
3
Dal and tofu. Red lentil dal simmers on low (25 min) — pull baby portion before any salt. Meanwhile prep and press tofu: pull plain baby slabs first, then marinate remaining slabs. Bake tofu at 375F on separate labeled trays 25 min (adjust oven temp after asparagus/sweet potato are done).
4
Eggplant. Cube and roast at 425F for 20-25 min once another oven slot opens. Eggplant is flexible — it can go in during or after the root vegetable tray.
5
Slaw prep. Thinly slice the full red cabbage head and prep snow peas. Dress half immediately (rice vinegar + sesame oil + ginger + tahini) for L1 — this is sub-batch 1. Keep the other half completely dry in an airtight container to dress fresh on Day 3 for L3.
6
Miso-tahini dressing. Whisk 2 tbsp white miso + 2 tbsp tahini + 1 tbsp rice vinegar + 1 tsp grated ginger + water to thin. Pour into a jar — keeps up to 1 week. Used in L3 and L4 only (not D3, which has its own lemon-olive oil pan sauce).
7
White beans. Drain pantry beans, warm briefly with garlic and olive oil. Reserve the aquafaba — useful as an egg-free binder in D4 baby besan chilla. Keep unsalted until serving.
8
Pearl couscous (optional batch). Cook 1.5 cups in salted water 10-12 min, toss with olive oil, refrigerate. Alternatively cook fresh on Day 3 in 15 min — your call.
9
Label and store. Label every container with its intended meal(s). Keep baby portions in separate labeled containers — unsalted, unspiced. The batch is the week. Each dinner or lunch from here is assembly or a quick fresh element (salmon, okra, sardines, besan batter).