Monday Meal Planning

Quick and easy this week because I'm trying to soak up as much family time as possible before a business trip to Boston next week. And because I'm coming down with a cold and don't feel like spending too much time on my feet if I can help it. So here goes:

Monday: Taco Joes & Corn, Avocado, and Tomato Salad

I forgot to mention in my post about these that we halved this recipe when we made it, but I suggest you make the full recipe for reasons you'll see further down in the week's plans. I'm a big fan of cook once eat multiple times, and not of leftovers as they are, so anything I can repurpose into an entirely different dish is awesome. I also recommend serving these on big, sesame seed buns, topped with american cheese and sliced avocado. The corn salad on the side is delicious, fresh, and fairly nutritious for a Paula Deen recipe.

Tuesday: Chicken Marsala , Wild Rice Pilaf, and steamed Green Beans

Okay, so this one is not exactly the quickest, but it is easy and relatively fast to put together, especially if you get everything ready to go before you start. We do make one edit to the recipe - we halve the amount of marsala wine, because the full two cups is just too much.

For the rice, just use a boxed wild rice pilaf mix, and toss steamed green beans with a little butter and salt.

Wednesday: Wild-Rice Stuffed Squash and Spinach Salad

This one is really easy and delicious. Aaron claims he doesn't like acorn squash, but he won't ever turn this dish down. It's one of the few vegetarian meals I can get him to eat without too much complaint. For the salad, we toss cranberries and pecans with torn spinach and a balsamic vinaigrette.

Thursday: Chili Lime Chicken Salad and Italian Bread

We love this simple, flavorful recipe from Better Homes and Gardens' Easy Family Food special edition. This is one of our go-to recipe books for fast and easy dinners. For the salad:

Toss 1 lb. chicken tenders or chicken breast pieces with 2 tsp. chili powder and salt and pepper to taste. Cook in a large skillet with 1 Tbsp. olive oil until the chicken is no longer pink. For the dressing, mix together: 3 Tbsp. lime juice, 2 Tbsp. snipped fresh cilantro, 1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.  Toss cooked chicken and dressing with romaine lettuce, halved grape tomatoes, and one diced avocado.

Friday: Nachos

So, remember what I said earlier about making the whole batch of Taco Joes meat and saving some for another meal? This is what I was talking about. I used our leftovers to make nachos. Just put a bunch of chips on a cookie sheet, top with heated taco joes and cheese, and place in a hot oven until the cheese is melted. Then top with your favorite nacho toppings. We topped ours with avocado, pico de gallo, and sour cream.

Sunday: Spaghetti and Meatballs , bread, salad

Make the recipe as directed, adding an extra can of the tomatoes. Be sure to reduce the heat as the recipe indicates, or you'll end up with a large pan of meatballs in tomato paste. Don't ask how I know; I just do. If you have leftovers of the meatballs and sauce, and you probably will, they do well with freezing and reheating at a later date. We served ours both over spaghetti and then on another day in sub buns with melted provolone. So, so good!

Happy eating this week!