6 Simple And Nourishing Pregnancy Dinner Ideas
December 4, 2023
Making healthy pregnancy dinners can be challenging! This is especially true if you’re experiencing nausea or any other pregnancy complications—or have other kiddos in the household! However, it’s helpful to prepare your meals around a pregnancy food guide in order to ensure you’re getting the vitamins and minerals your changing body and growing baby need. Putting pregnancy meal prep ideas together can go a long way in helping you follow a healthy pregnancy diet!
Trying to figure out which foods are safe to eat during pregnancy? From fruits and vegetables to dairy and grains, this one-sheet guide lists out the most nutrient-rich foods to eat while pregnant. We suggest printing it for your fridge and saving it to your digital camera roll for easy reference. Dig in!
A peek inside:
- Fruits
- Veggies
- Nuts
- Legumes
- Dairy
- Meat
- Herbs
- Grains
- Seafood
- Seeds
What Should Be Included In Your Pregnancy Menu Plan?
While you’re not technically eating for two, in your second trimester you need to consume an extra 340 calories per day and a bit more in the third trimester, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
But, where should these extra calories come from?
The NHS highlights the importance of fruits and vegetables for their vitamin, mineral, and fiber content; carbohydrates due to the energy they provide; protein from veggies and animals to support your baby’s growth; as well as dairy for the calcium content.
Basing your pregnancy dinners on these four pillars can go a long way in maintaining the health of you and your baby.
Here are six pregnancy meal ideas to add to your dinner plan:
Spicy Smoky Black Bean Butternut Soup
Looking for healthy pregnancy soup recipes? This is a fan favorite!
Thanks to the celery, tomatoes, and butternut, this soup is packed with vitamin C, a nutrient that assists in tissue repair and immune function.
Vitamin C will also help your body absorb the iron in the black beans. Besides being a fantastic vegetarian source of protein, black beans are also high in iron which will help your body produce the extra blood that you need.Get the full recipe here.
Easy Enchiladas with Turkey, Refried Beans, and Monterey Jack
This enchilada dish is super simple to whip up—no rolling required!
You’ll get protein from the turkey in this dish. Protein is essential during pregnancy as it works as a building block for your baby’s development. Turkey is also a fantastic source of vitamin B6, which can potentially relieve morning sickness, making this a great first trimester meal.
From how many meals to eat to which foods to skip, this guide’s got proven tips, helpful recommendations, and mama-approved suggestions to help ease your nausea when “morning sickness” strikes.
A peek inside:
- The best way to start your day off to avoid nausea
- Recommendations for ways to split up your meals
- Tricks for staying hydrated
- Foods to skip and ingredients to indulge in to fight off nausea
- Mama-approved suggestions that help with morning sickness and make life easier
Don’t skip on adding avocado to the enchiladas when they’re done cooking. Avocado is a source of healthy fats as well as folate which, “…supports healthy cell division and promotes proper fetal growth and development to reduce the risk of birth defects,” says Healthline.
Other sources of folate to add to your pregnancy diet include legumes, eggs, leafy greens, and nuts.
Get the full recipe here.
Chicky Chicky Parm Parm
This chicken dinner is simple to make and nourishing.
The lean protein can assist with increasing your energy, while Parmigiano-Reggiano is a pregnancy safe cheese that will give you a boost of calcium.
Your baby’s skeleton relies on calcium to grow, and if you don’t consume enough of this nutrient in your diet, your body will take the resources it needs from your own bones leaving you at a greater risk of osteoporosis later in life.
Tip: Pair this recipe with Spicy Crunchy Broccoli Salad for an extra dose of fiber and folate.
Get the full recipe here.
Crispy Garlicky Yogurty Dreamy Potatoes
There are many reasons to include potatoes as part of a healthy pregnancy meal plan. Not only are they rich in fiber, but they’re also a good source of magnesium. This mineral is known for lowering blood pressure and reducing the risk of preeclampsia.
If you’re a mama who is experiencing high blood pressure during your pregnancy, we’ve created a guide just for you. Inside it, you’ll learn what gestational hypertension is, ways to control it, and which ingredients help reduce high blood pressure.
A peek inside:
- The difference between gestational hypertension and chronic hypertension
- Who’s most at risk
- Contributing factors that help control high blood pressure
- Lists of foods that are high in calcium, fiber, magnesium, protein, and potassium
The potatoes are paired with feta cheese and Greek yogurt. Besides being full of calcium, yogurt is also a way to incorporate vitamin B12 into your diet. According to the American Pregnancy Association, vitamin B12 can help improve your energy, mood, and stress levels, and it is, “Essential for baby’s neural tube formation, brain and spine development.”
Get the full recipe here.
Sail Away Mediterranean Salmon Bowl
This recipe includes a pregnancy superfood: Salmon!
Salmon is considered a superfood because of its content of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 DHA supports the brain and visual development of your baby. It’s also associated with a lower incidence of preterm birth and low birth weight.The chickpeas in this bowl are high in folate, magnesium, and iron.
Get the full recipe here.
It’s So Easy Being Green Salad
The star of this healthy pregnancy salad is broccoli! This simple vegetable is packed with fiber, folate, magnesium, and potassium. What To Expect explains that potassium works with sodium to maintain proper fluid balance in cells which is important as your fluid levels need to increase during pregnancy. Potassium also helps your body maintain its muscles, reducing cramping.
Get the full recipe here.
Pregnancy safe recipes that are both healthy and satisfying don’t have to be difficult to put together. Use the above recipes with their simple ingredients to have mineral-rich and vitamin-packed dinners that will help both you and your growing baby thrive!
