Weight Watchers Weekly Dinner Meal Ideas (Dec 2 – Dec 8)

Fridays, I send out an email outlining my dinner plans for the upcoming week that are designed to work with Weight Watchers. I also publish them on my blog. This practice helps me stay on track with my meal choices and motivates me to make healthier food decisions.

My Approach to Meal Planning

Every time I get out of the meal planning habit I end up eating too much take-out, restaurant food, unhealthy snacks. It is amazing how crappy I feel and how quickly the pounds begin to creep back.

When I have a rough idea of what I’m planning to cook for dinner in the coming week I’m much less likely to succumb to the temptation of fast food or takeout.

That being said, my approach is a casual one. Meal planning can overwhelm me if I try to do too much. So I make it SUPER EASY. I keep a post-it note on the counter with a list of a few dinners I’m planning to make. That’s it.

We are a middle-aged couple so I am mostly cooking for just the two of us. We have a fairly active social life, which means our plans are always subject to change. (Read more about my thoughts on realistic meal planning for busy, unpredictable lives.)

Most recipes make more than we can eat, so we tend to have a ready supply of leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day. I enjoy finding creative ways to use and re-purpose leftovers.

I’m always asking myself, “How can I make this as easy as possible? For me meal planning works only when I keep it as simple as possible. When I have a ready supply of easy to prepare, good for me food in the fridge and pantry I’m set up for success.

What Do I Eat for Breakfast on Weight Watchers?

Most days my breakfast is something quick like an english muffin with almond butter, avocado toast, cottage cheese with fruit, eggs, yogurt with fruit, oatmeal or a smoothie, depending on my mood and the season.

What Do I Eat for Lunch on Weight Watchers?

Lunch is usually leftovers or some combination of soup / sandwich / salad. This formula is a proven winner for me. I never fall into the temptation of takeout when I have a jar of soup, bowl of hard boiled eggs, container or leftovers and/or salad fixings staring back at me when I open the fridge!

This Week’s WW Dinner Suggestions with Points

This week’s meal plan focuses on simple, minimal-ingredient recipes to help use up pantry, fridge, and freezer items as we get ready for our winter move to Mexico. I’ll also be making a soup using leftover Thanksgiving turkey, which should be perfect for the season. Many of these recipes will yield plenty of leftovers, making quick, no-fuss meals throughout the week. Honestly, there’s nothing better than cooking once and enjoying it twice (or more)!

5-Ingredient Chicken Parmesan Lasagna (leftover from freezer) – A simply scrumptious chicken lasagna recipe the is super easy to make because it uses no-boil noodles, jarred marinara sauce and rotisserie chicken. Just 350 calories and 7 SmartPoints! I’ll serve it with a simple green salad.

Instant Pot Vegetarian Egg Roll Bowl – This easy Vegetarian Instant Pot (affiliate link) Egg Roll Bowl is built on a base of cremini mushrooms, carrots, celery and of course cabbage, and makes a delicious family-friendly meal that’s perfect for Meatless Monday! It tastes just like the deep fried egg roll filling from your favorite Chinese restaurant, but without all the fat and calories, making it perfect for Weight Watchers.

Chicken Sausage & Apple Salad – I love this hearty flavorful salad. Made with chicken sausage and your favorite apples, it’s perfect for fall. I took it one step further by using chicken apple-sausage, but any pre-cooked chicken sausage will work in this super satisfying tasty salad.

Easy CrockPot Corn Chowder – This easy crock pot corn chowder is the kind of WW friendly recipe that makes me very, very happy. For several reasons…It’s easy to make with the most basic of pantry ingredients. It manages to be rich, creamy and delicious and good for you while being very low in fat. And it reminds me of the corn chowder my mom made when I was growing up. Actually, it is Mom’s recipe adapted for the slow cooker and tweaked just a little.

It’s the time of year where I love to bake so I’m going to make a couple of sweet treats to enjoy in moderation and share with family and friends.

2-ingredient Apple Spice Cake Mix Cupcakes – Sometimes, the best desserts are the simplest. These 2-ingredient spice cupcakes are proof that you don’t need a long list of ingredients to whip up something delicious. Made with just a box of spice cake mix and a can of apple pie filling, they’re incredibly moist, perfectly spiced, and bursting with warm apple goodness. To keep them more WW friendly you can use sugar free cake mix, apple pie filling and spices instead.

3-Ingredient Baked Pumpkin Spice Latte Donuts – These baked spice donuts hit all the right notes. Made with a box of spice cake mix, a hint of instant coffee powder, and the wholesome richness of pumpkin puree, they’re packed with flavor but light on effort. The best part? These donuts are baked, not fried, keeping them a lighter option to satisfy your sweet tooth. You can lower the calories and WW Points by using sugar free yellow cake mix and pumpkin pie spice in place of the regular spice cake mix.

Need More Vegetarian Choices? Click Here!

I hope this helps you with your own meal planning this week

A note about WW Points
If you’re following Weight Watchers, all the recipes here on Simple Nourished Living have been updated for the new WW program, with points displayed in the recipe card. The Check the WW Points link in the recipe card takes you to the Weight Watchers App where you can edit it using the WW recipe builder or add it to your day.
(Must be logged into WW account on a mobile device, such as smartphone or tablet).

Tired of trying to decide what to cook?

If you are struggling with meal planning here are a couple meal planning resources to help:

My Month of Meal Month of Meal Plans eBook

My WW friend Alisha’s 12-Week eCookbook and Meal Planner and Table for Two Meal Planner and eCookbook

Customer Testimonials

I can’t tell you how thrilled we were with your menu posted this week! We are on vacation and in a condo for five weeks. Keeping meals simple. I made both the chicken broccoli pie and the broccoli cheese soup for the first time this week. Both were a big hit. Then last night we had your Caribbean Jerk Chicken which is a definite favorite. Made your lasagna soup last week!!! Yum!

I am so thankful I found your website and continue to try new things. I started WW March 2020 (online only) and have lost almost 30 pounds and am at my goal! Slow and steady wins the race!!! (Just like the tortoise and the hare).

Thank you for all your encouraging emails and wonderful recipes. We’ve been married almost 47 years. When I first found ‘my friend Martha’ as all my friends know you by, my husband said ‘you’ve always been a good cook but we never tried so many different things!’ He loves your recipes also!!!

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!!!!! ~ Joyce

I bought the Table for Two eCookbook and I love it! It saved me from giving up on my weight loss journey. The meals are delicious and so easy to cook. Having a weekly grocery list, recipes and instructions with pictures readily accessible has taken so much stress off of me in meal planning. I was tired of cooking recipes that had multiple servings and eating the left overs several times during the week. My husband loves the Table for Two recipes and he doesn’t even need to lose weight! I have recommended your site to several friends on the same journey and they love your recipes too. Thank you for all your hard work in making meal planning so easy! ~ Barbara

Hi Martha – I cannot begin to thank you enough for my month of meals. We (my husband and I) have only had the first week, but WOW, what great meals! I can’t wait for the second week. You have a customer for life! ~ Sharon S.

I bought the 12 Week eCookbook and Meal Planner by Alisha Hughes from Meal Planning Mommies. It is great 12 weeks with a shopping list which is wonderful. I just make a copy of the list and go shopping for the week. ~ Roberta R.