Platform 2 Guide — This article applies to the new platform. Looking for classic platform docs? Browse the Platform 1 collection.
Why: Streamline meal planning by efficiently reusing food from one meal to another. This feature helps your members enjoy delicious leftovers while minimizing waste and maximizing their meal prep efforts.
Navigate: App Station > Content Library > Recipes > [Recipe] > Prep Ahead tab
Quick Start
Go to the Content Library in App Station.
Select a recipe and click on the Prep Ahead tab.
Enter the desired servings and, if needed, specify the Make Extra amount.
Add any leftover sessions to your meal plan as needed.
Save your changes.
Understanding Leftovers and Prep Sessions
Leftovers System
The leftovers system allows you to reuse food from one meal on another day. Any recipe in a meal session can automatically serve as a source for leftovers without needing any special settings.
Make Extra Feature
You can also use the optional Make Extra feature to specify the total quantity to prepare, which includes what is eaten at the source meal. This helps ensure accurate nutrition and shopping list calculations.
If you set Make Extra to a positive number, the shopping list will use this total quantity.
If not set, the shopping list will use the base servings.
How Leftovers Work
Leftovers can be created from both servings-based and yield-based recipes. When using yield mode (e.g., a recipe that makes 500g), the leftovers will reference the yield amounts instead of servings counts.
Prep Sessions
Prep sessions can be added to your meal plans to organize and track prep work for recipes. They allow you to define tasks that members can check off without creating a personal copy of the meal plan.
Two Prep Areas
Prep Row: This appears within the meal plan grid for same-day prep tasks.
Advance Prep: This appears above the grid for prep done before the meal plan week starts.
Both areas will not contribute to daily nutrition summaries since nothing is consumed during these sessions. However, the shopping lists will include ingredients from both areas.
Nutrition and Shopping Lists
Nutrition: Nutrition counts are calculated on the days leftovers are actually eaten, not during the prep sessions.
Shopping Lists: Ingredients from both the prep row and advance prep will be included in the shopping list to ensure members have everything they need.
For a detailed guide on editing meal plans with leftovers and prep sessions, refer to the Meal Plan Prep and Leftovers article.
Example Workflow
Create a Meal: Add a recipe to a meal session and specify the servings.
Make Extra: If desired, specify how many extra servings to prepare.
Add Leftover Sessions: Create leftover sessions in your meal plan for the days when members will consume the leftovers.
Track Prep Work: Use prep sessions to organize tasks that need to be completed before the meal plan week starts.
By effectively utilizing the leftovers and prep sessions, you can enhance your members' meal planning experience and help them enjoy their meals to the fullest!