So you’ve decided to take the plunge and try (or buy) Medifast.  Congratulations!  It’s been a huge help to me as I have lost close to 40 pounds so far and well on my way to the 50 pounds total that I want to lose.  Now that you have a box full of pre-packaged meals, what are you supposed to do with them?!  Here are how I prepare the meals “as-is” with only minor modifications.  Some of this information is borrowed from the Medifast Meals Mixing Instructions, but I’ve modified them to work best for me and my microwave.  Please note that heating times can vary between microwave ovens and I have an old one that isn’t overly powerful!

Pancakes

1. Preheat your non-stick skillet on stove-top to medium heat.  I use my old trusty Circulon skillet and spray a little olive oil on it.
2. Empty 1 pancake packet (any flavor) into the shaker jar.
3. Add 1/4 tsp baking powder.
4. Add 1⁄4 cup (2 oz) cold water and close lid (do not stir).
5. Shake jar 5-7 times, but do not overmix.
6. Pour out batter evenly onto pre-heated skillet.
7. Flip carefully after 1-2 minutes or when bubbles appear near the center.
8. Cook 1-2 more minutes until done.
9. Transfer to plate and serve with your favorite sugar-free syrup.

Right now my pancake of choice is the Spiced Pancake with Walden Farms Blueberry Syrup.  YUM!!

Oatmeal

1. Empty contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe bowl or mug.*
2. Add a little less than 3⁄4 cup of COLD water and stir.
3. Microwave on high for 1 minute and stir.
4. Return to microwave for 1 more minute on high or until it starts to boil and stir. Let stand for desired thickness.
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.

My favorite oatmeal is the Maple & Brown Sugar version.

Scrambled Eggs

1. Empty contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe bowl or mug.*
2. Add 1⁄2 cup of COLD water and mix thoroughly.
3. Microwave on high for 1 minute; remove and stir.
4. Cover and microwave again for 30–45 seconds or until desired consistency.
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.

I’ve honestly stopped buying the eggs because I just can’t get into them, but they can be useful in other recipes!

Shakes

At Home:

1. Put some ice into a blender and add cold water to make 1 cup.
2. Add contents of 1 packet.
3. Blend on low for 20-30 seconds or until well blended and serve.

At Work:

1. Put some crushed ice (our refrigerator at work has crushed ice in the door) into your shaker jar and add cold water to make 1 cup (or a little more).
2. Add contents of 1 packet.
3. Shake for 30 seconds (good exercise!) or until well blended and serve.

French Vanilla, Orange Cream, Strawberry and Dutch Chocolate shakes are all pretty decent for shakes.

New Smoothies!

1. Add 1/2 cup of ice cubes into a blender with 1/4 cup of cold water and blend to crush the ice.
2. Add another 1/2 cup of cold ice to the blender along with the contents of 1 packet.
3. Pulse on low to get it started (and so you don’t end with smoothie all up on the sides).
4. Blend 30 to 40 seconds until SMOOTH and serve.

I’ve only tried the Triple Berry Smoothie so far and it’s pretty good!

Cold Drinks

1. Add a little more than 1 cup of cold water into your shaker jar.
2. Add the contents of 1 packet.
3. Shake for 30 seconds until well blended and serve (can serve over ice if desired).

Hot Drinks

1. Add the contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe cup or mug.*
2. Add 1 cup of cold water and stir well.  This actually takes a little time for me.  At work, our microwaves are all downstairs, so I complete the first two steps and then take the elevator downstairs and then give it a good stir before I place it in the microwave.  I think the extra time helps to mix it up better.
3. Microwave on high for 1 minute and then remove and stir.
4. Microwave on 80% for 1 minute and make sure to keep on eye on it.  Sometimes these overflow!
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.

I like both the Calorie Burn Cappuccino and the Chai Latte.  I have not tried the Hot Chocolate though!

Flavor Infusers^TM

1. Add 1 packet to bottled water (16.9 oz) or a tall glass (2 cups) of cold water.
2. Shake (if bottled) or stir (if glass) for 20-30 seconds or until well blended.

I like to have a Calorie Burn Strawberry Lemonade or Calorie Burn Mixed Berry for 16 oz. of the 64 oz. total water that you need to drink every day.

Pudding

1. Add a little more than 1 cup of cold water into your shaker jar.
2. Slowly add the contents of 1 packet to the shaker jar.
3. Shake until well blended.

I’m not big on the consistency of the pudding.  It tends to get lumpy and tastes a little “powdery” to me.  I have made it in my electric blender as well and then placed it in the refrigerator for a little.  That seems to help somewhat, but I’m still not a big fan!

Soft Serve

1. Finely crush 1⁄2 cup ice* using a personal-size blender (I actually use my Nutri Bullet) until no ice chunks are heard rotating in blender.
2. Add 1⁄4 cup cold water to crushed ice, followed by contents of 1 packet.
3. Blend 30 seconds (stop and scrape as needed). Enjoy immediately! Does not require freezing for soft-serve consistency.
   *Use pre-crushed ice for even faster prep time.

Brownie

1. Empty 1 packet into tray provided.
2. Add 3 tablespoons cold water and stir well.
3. Microwave 1 minute and 45 seconds or until it looks fully cooked.
4. Let stand 3–5 minutes to cool and set before enjoying brownie.

Soups/Stews

I’m actually not going to include instructions for these because I haven’t found one that I’ve really liked yet!  So far I’ve tried the Chicken &Wild Rice Soup, Cream of Broccoli Soup and the Tomato Basil Bisque.  I did have a friend at work mention the Cream of Chicken Soup and just using already hot water to make.  I’ve got a box of Cream of Chicken Soup on it’s way, so we’ll see if that works!

Vegetarian Sloppy Joe

1. Add the contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe cup or mug.*
2. Add 1/2 cup of cold water and stir well.
3. Microwave on high for 1 minute and then remove and stir.
4. Microwave on high for 1 minute and then remove and stir.
5. Microwave on 80% for 1 minute and then remove and stir.
6. If it’s still a little watery, microwave on 80% for 1 minute and then remove.
7. Stir and let sit for a while to cool down and thicken.
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.

Chili

1. Add the contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe cup or mug.*
2. Add 1/2 cup of cold water and stir well.
3. Microwave on high for 2 minutes.
4. Let stand for 1 minute and stir again.
5. Microwave on 80% for 1 minute.
6. Let stand for 1 minute and stir again.
7. Microwave on 80% for 1 minute and remove.
8. Stir and let sit for a while to cool down and thicken.
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.

 Macaroni & Cheese

1. Add the contents of 1 packet into a microwave-safe bowl.*
2. Add 1/2 cup of cold water and stir well.  For an easy fix, I add some fresh ground pepper and Garlic Garlic for added flavor.
3. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes.
4. Stir well and let stand for 1 minute.
5. Microwave on high for 1 minute.
6. Stir well and let stand for 1 minute.
7. Microwave on high for 1 minute and remove.
8. Stir and let sit for a while to cool down and thicken.
   *Do NOT prepare in a shaker jar.