Monday Meal Planning 1.2.12

Today is the last day of my 11 straight days off of work, and I am growing increasingly sad about this. I think that calls for a warm, homey meal tonight and quick, easy meals for the rest of the week, don't you?

Here's what we're eating this week!

Monday: Clean out the fridge soup, a salad, and pretzel rolls

We have so many little bits of leftovers from the past week or so, and they are just begging to be added to a big pot of soup. This one will probably contain: chicken and apple sausages, diced tomatoes in juice, chicken stock, red and green peppers, diced onion, carrots, celery, garlic, beans, and rice or pasta to be added at the end.

Tuesday: Spicy Thai Noodles, steamed broccoli

I pinned these a while ago and have been wanting to eat them ever since. This is my week!

Wednesday: Cheeseburger Salad

From The Pioneer Woman. I think that about says it all.

Thursday: Brinner

I think we'll be having breakfast burritos for brinner this week: eggs, sausage, peppers, onions, salsa, hash browns, and cheddar all wrapped up in a flour tortilla (or separated out for the kiddos).

Friday: Homemade pepperoni pizza, raw vegetables and fruit

We have some sandwich-sized pepperoni, which I think will be fun on this pizza. On mine I'll add either black olives or tomatoes and banana peppers.

Saturday: Balsamic Roasted Chicken, basic parmesan risotto, steamed broccoli

Sunday: Leftovers

We've been doing a big breakfast on Sundays as our main meal, and then snacking or eating leftovers the rest of the day. This is how my mom did things when I was growing up, and it seems to be a nice way to round out the weekend. I understand why she did this now. :)

And now that I'm all done typing this, I'm starving. Good thing it's just about lunch time!

Monday Meal Planning 11.21.11

I both love (3-day work week!) and hate (I can't believe November is almost over!) that Thanksgiving is this week. We'll be making the trek down to Ann Arbor yet again (we've gone at least once a week since early this month) to spend the day with family. I can't wait to dig in to all that great food! In the meantime, though, here's what we're planning to eat this week:

Monday: Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos, Not-So-Quick Spicy Rice

These are a big hit with everyone in the family. Even Sophie gets one, except hers just has sweet potatoes with a side of unseasoned, smushed beans. As unappealing as that sounds, she LOVES it. She has finally decided to eat real people food and is happy to try anything and everything that's placed in front of her. Ask me how she feels about pumpkin pie! (Hint: It disappeared in no time flat.) The rice is not-so-quick because I've been using brown rice lately. The family is not so hot on the brown rice version, but I'll win them over eventually!

Tuesday: Hot Browns, Broccoli

I make a variation on the above similar to what my mom has always made with leftover turkey (and, I hear, the same as my grandma used to make). We had an early Thanksgiving dinner with Aaron's mom's mom on Saturday, so I have leftover turkey to use even before the actual holiday this week. I'll hopefully post the recipe later this week, but it's basically an open-faced turkey, bacon, tomato sandwich with a beer-cheese sauce over top. It's good enough that I look forward to this once-yearly meal all year, and am very, very sad if there's no leftover turkey to use.

Wednesday: Taco Chicken

I wanted an easy meal for the evening before Thanksgiving, as I'll be making pies and an appetizer, and didn't want to have too much extra mess around.

Thursday: The Big Day!

I always make pie for Thanksgiving with Aaron's family, because if I don't they're stuck with store-bought pie, and I'm of the belief that everyone should be able to deal with making pie at least once per year, and this is the perfect day for it. (Also, I make pie on the regular, because it's really not that hard.) This year I'm bringing the standard pumpkin, as well as apple-cranberry-raisin, and a banoffee pie!

In addition to the pies, dinner is always about 2 hours later to the table than estimated, so I am thinking ahead this year and bringing some artichoke dip and crackers to snack on so I don't starve waiting for dinner (while smelling all those delicious foods cooking - it nearly kills me every time)!

Friday: Pierogis, Chicken Sausages, and Green Beans

Another easy, comfort food-type dinner. My favorite kind!

Saturday: Homemade Pizza

Sunday: ???

This is the start of my birthday week, and I'm hoping for a few dinners out (and that this will be one of them)!

Monday Meal Planning 10.24.11

I needed to flex my writing muscles this morning before I launch into proposal and report writing for the rest of the day, so I thought what better place to start than with food so that I'm completely distracted thinking about all of the yummy things coming up on our meal plan for this week.

(I'm such a dork!)

Anyway, the meal plan for this week is abbreviated due to some exciting-to-us happenings occurring later this week. A short meal plan doesn't mean that there's nothing good, though, and I can't wait to dig in to a few of these meals.

On to the food!

Monday: Chicken and Dumplings, roast beets

Last week sometime, Aaron and I were chatting about memorable meals. He brought up a bowl of chicken and dumplings he had once at a restaurant near where he grew up that he can still practically taste because he loved it so much. They were on special that night, and he looked for them every time he went back, but they never had them again while he was there. Talk about disappointment!

Anyway, last night I stewed some chicken to make stock and chicken allegedly for soup, but little does he know that I'm trying the Pioneer Woman's recipe for chicken and dumplings instead. I hope he's very pleasantly surprised!

Tuesday: 3 Packet Pot Roast, Celeriac Mash

A few weeks back, when I watched The Pioneer Woman's show where she made pot roast, I noticed she served her roast with mashed potatoes instead of with potatoes cooked with the roast. Since I still have plenty of potatoes and celeriac left over from the CSA (which has, sadly, ended for the season), I thought I'd serve my roast with this celeriac mash recipe (and of course, with carrots cooked with the roast, because those are about my favorite thing, ever). However, my celery roots are nowhere near the size mentioned in the recipe - I don't think the three I have reach the weight of the one listed - so I'll be halving this and using Yukon gold potatoes instead of the russet listed. So yeah. We'll see how that goes!

Wednesday: Quiche, fruit

I have a lot of eggs I need to use up, plus some leeks, orange and yellow peppers, and feta, so I'm thinking a roasted pepper, leek, and feta quiche sounds pretty darn good. I had something similar from a local food truck not too long ago, and it was fan-freaking-tastic. The main difference was they used goat cheese, but I think the feta I have on hand will substitute nicely. I will let you know for sure how it turns out.

Thursday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches, raw vegetables, fruit smoothies

This is kind of a clean-out-the-fridge meal, and the kind that usually goes over better with Gabbie. After she cleans her plate and asks for more after a meal like this one, I often wonder why I kill myself to make more elaborate meals on a regular basis, but then I realize, it's because I love to cook. And eat. It all works out.

Monday Meal Planning 7.25.11

We are back! We survived camping and had three fun meals made over the camp fire (and then got rained out and had to leave a night early, but still! Fun!). We didn't get extremely creative this time (hot dogs, s'mores, bacon and eggs, biscuits and grilled cheese in the pie iron), but we will definitely be heading out again sometime soon and I'll try some more adventurous campfire meals next time.

Since we didn't get home until about 9:00 last night, we still have most of our unpacking to do, so the week starts out slow, food-wise. However, my parents shared some of their garden bounty with us, so I can't wait to cook those amazingly fresh vegetables.

Here goes:

Monday: Grilled BBQ chicken, dilly potatoes, and carrots

Usually I peel and slice the potatoes for our foil packet dinners, but since I have a bunch of new red potatoes, I'm just going to wash and quarter them before adding butter, fresh dill, and salt. I'm going to try baby carrots in a foil packet tonight too, topped with butter, honey, and salt. I can't wait to see how these turn out!

Tuesday: Stuffed zucchini and rice pilaf

My parents had some huge zucchinis already, so I took one and we're filling it with all kinds of good stuff (except I'm using turkey sausage instead of regular - shh...don't tell Aaron!)

Wednesday: Spicy Garlic and Lime Black Bean Enchiladas, corn bread

I usually make some sort of rice to go on the side of Mexican dishes, but since there's rice in these enchiladas, I'm going to try corn bread or something similar on the side.

Thursday: Cowboy Quesadillas, chips and guacamole

This will use up any leftover BBQ chicken from Monday, and any leftver black beans from Wednesday. That's what a call a win-win kind of dinner!

Friday: Pizza Rolls, fresh vegetables, fruit salad

I've been making pizza of some sort every Friday that we're home lately, and this week I'm using some dough I have frozen for pizza rolls. I'm filling mine with pepperoni and black olives, Gabbie's will have straight up pepperoni, and I'm guessing Aaron will want his favorite - ham and pineapple. I love that these can make all three of us happy in one baking dish!

Saturday: Out

I have actually been really good with making and sticking to meal plans lately. In fact, we've only been out to eat twice in the past two weeks, which is pretty good for us (this includes lunches!). So, of course, I want to reward myself for being so good by heading out and ruining my streak. I'm totally craving Asian food of some sort, so I'll have to convince the rest of the family that they are craving it too.

Sunday: Dinner with the extended family

Once a month Aaron's family gets together at his grandparents' house for dinner. We've promised to make it to this one (we actually got more than a couple of days notice for this one, so we can plan accordingly), so I don't have to plan dinner for Sunday. However, I do have to make a pie, because that's one of the main reasons his family likes me (besides my winning personality and ability to create adorable babies, of course), and his grandpa gets disappointed if I show up without one of my "famous" pies (famous only to them). This week will probably be cherry crumb, since they're so delicious right now.

Monday Meal Planning 5.2.11

Now that it’s May, I feel like the weight of a winter coat has been lifted off of me. I’m all kinds of crazy motivated, which resulted in our house being much more of a mess today than it was on Friday. I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but what happened is that I wanted to organize everything (much more than I had time to organize, what with two little girls who decided they wanted to be on Mommy all day yesterday) so I took everything out and have yet to put everything away, all re-organized like.

This included my pantry, so has turned into a minimal-grocery shopping week, meaning all we had to purchase was milk, fruit, and a few veggies. I like minimal-grocery shopping weeks.

Also, we bought a grill this weekend, so it’s a meat and veggies for meals type week.

Monday: Chicken Kabobs, Evolution Carrot Salad, Asparagus

For the world’s easiest chicken kabobs, I marinate chunks of chicken breast or tenders in Italian dressing for 30 minutes to an hour before threading on skewers to put on the grill. We also skewered up some grape tomatoes and chunks of onion.

P.S. The evolution carrot salad is amazing, and you can add as many or as few of the extras as you want. We went with mint, clementines, salt, pepper, lemon juice, olive oil, and some almonds. Delicious!

Tuesday: Clean out the pantry soup, salad, hot pimento cheese and crackers

This week the soup will contain: chicken broth, lentils, tomatoes (from the batch I froze in the fall), spinach, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and whatever else catches my eye and needs to be used up.

Also the hot pimento cheese? Awesomeness in a bowl. Make it.

Wednesday: Spicy pulled pork tacos with homemade tortillas and all the fixin’s, rice pilaf

I cannot wait to try these tortillas. Cannot. Wait.

Thursday: Barbeque chicken, cucumber salad, evolution potato salad

We have some bone-in chicken breast halves in the freezer that are just begging to be grilled and topped with some homemade Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce, also in the freezer.

Friday: Grilled pizza

Another thing I have been wanting to try for FOR. EV. ER. I have no idea what I’ll top it with, but I’m sure I’ll find something. (Actually I want mine brushed with garlic oil and topped with black olives and feta, but I’m pretty sure I’m the only person in the house who will eat it that way. We also like this version, and I think that with halved grape tomatoes instead of the romas and adding the olives in my salad, we’ll be all set.)

Saturday: Leftovers

We’re planning on some major house cleaning this weekend in preparation for my husband’s big birthday blow-out the next weekend, so I’m sure I won’t want to cook. Plus it’s my mother’s day gift to myself to not have to cook this weekend.

Sunday: Cheeseburgers, fries, fruit salad with yogurt dip, and some sort of pie

This is what I’ve planned for my family to make me for Mother’s Day (along with some sort of breakfast in bed, of course). However, I’ll probably have to make the pie, but that’s fine with me. I’m thinking maybe some sort of strawberry/cream cheese pie. YUM!

Toddler Lunch Ideas
Monday: Waffles, yogurt, mixed berries
Tuesday: Leftover grilled chicken, rice, peas, mango
Wednesday: Cheese, crackers, green smoothie, carrots
Thursday: Pulled pork, tortilla, cheese, cucumbers
Friday: Bean and cheese quesadilla, carrots, banana

(Also posted on I'm an Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday post)

Monday Meal Planning 3.28.11

This week’s meal plan is abbreviated because we’re headed up north for a (hopefully) relaxing weekend. Plans involve a trip to the butterfly house and a memorial service, so it really could go either way.

As an aside, I am laughing at our meal plan right now, because we just had a discussion the other day about reducing the amount of meat we eat, and then we set out and planned this very carnivorous week (and I had a meat-filled lunch today). I think it’s totally comfort eating though due to various stressors happening lately. Oh, well. We’ll try better next week!

Monday: Southwestern Turkey Mac and Cheese, fruit

This one is super easy – I whip up some macaroni and cheese (either quickly from scratch or from a box if I want a really quick dinner). While that’s cooking, I also brown some ground turkey and season it up with taco seasoning. During the last couple of minutes of the macaroni cooking, I add in a cup or so of frozen peas. Then I mix the noodles and peas with the cheeses sauce and mix in the turkey. I can also see this being delicious with corn and black beans in place of the peas. Pretty much this was created on a night when we were trying to make something quick and fairly nutritious from what we had on hand, and it totally worked!

Tuesday: Chicken Chow Mein, Egg Rolls

A new recipe we’re trying out from a children’s cookbook I have on hand. The egg rolls will be the frozen variety; while I am fairly ambitious in the kitchen, I’m not quite homemade-eggrolls-on-a-random-Tuesday ambitious.

Wednesday: Taco Rice

Seriously, you should try this. It’s one of the top-requested meals in our house these days.

Thursday: Calzones

These are on the menu to use up some ingredients we have on hand that need used. Fillings will probably include salami, provolone, and mushrooms. Mmmm…calzones.

Toddler Lunch Ideas:
Monday: Mashed butternut squash w/butter and brown sugar, peas, rice, raspberries
Tuesday: Cheese quesadilla, grapes, carrots
Wednesday: Macaroni and cheese, peas, banana
Thursday: Tomato cheese dip, pita wedges, blueberries, cucumber slices
Friday: Cheese, sliced turkey, crackers, grapes, yogurt

Monday Meal Planning - 3.7.11 (Okay, so really 3.9.11)

I should probably change the title of these posts to “Weekly Meal Planning,” since Mondays aren’t happening. But, I want to post meal plans all the same. We’ll just pretend today is Monday for this one, right?

It’s my first week back to work, but I’m only working half days, so it’s kind of a mixed bag of quick and complex meals this week.

Monday: Chicken Strips, French Fries, Salad (cut up veggies for the kiddo who won’t eat lettuce)

These chicken strips are FANTASTIC, and super easy. My husband and daughter are huge fans. HUGE. I made the mistake of making them once and now they’re on frequent rotation in our house.

Tuesday: Hot sub sandwiches, chips, fruit salad

For the subs, I took a loaf of Italian bread from the supermarket, cut it in half and hollowed it out, leaving about a ¼ to ½ inch shell (and then the toddler and I ate the entire inside of the loaf of bread – delicious! Also dinner-ruining, but worth it). Then I layered on the deli meat and sliced cheeses of choice; this week that included deli ham, turkey, and salami, as well as muenster and Colby jack slices. I wrapped the whole thing in foil, and baked it at 400 degrees F for about 10 minutes (it could have used another five if I wanted the cheese to be really melty, but 10 minutes was fine). After it came out of the oven, I sliced it into three parts, and topped each sandwich with chopped lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and Italian dressing. Delicious!

Wednesday: Spaghetti with meat sauce, Salad

I had about a ¼ pound each of ground beef and pork, so I sautéed that up with some mushrooms, garlic, salt and pepper, and added in a jar of marinara. Served over buccatini, this was a delicious meal.

Thursday: Slow Cooker Spiced Chicken Stew with Carrots, Orzo

Aside from using chicken breasts instead of thighs (Aaron has a weird thing about thigh meat. I don’t know.) we’re staying pretty true to this one. Looks easy enough and absolutely delicious! Also, it doesn’t use onions, which I still can’t eat because it makes the baby spit up a lot, so that makes it a winner in our book!

Friday: Clean out the freezer vegetable bean soup, bread

I made this once before, and Aaron loved it. Basically, I use a box of stock, a quart sized bag of the tomatoes I processed and froze last summer, a bag of beans (also processed and frozen last summer), and whatever vegetables I have in the fridge or freezer. I also added slices of chicken sausage last time, which I think clinched it with Aaron. I think I’m out this time, though, so he may have to suffer without it.

My sourdough starter should be ready to use to make bread by Friday (another post forthcoming), so we’ll probably have a fresh loaf of bread on the side. Mmmm….

Saturday: Some sort of curry using up a butternut squash, Naan
 I typically make this dish, but Aaron wanted to try something else, so I’m not sure yet what dish I’m making. (This from the man who recently complained that I try too many new recipes, and he can never remember what he’s eaten. Poor guy.)
 Sunday: Leftovers (or possibly the meal from Saturday night if I don’t feel like cooking on Saturday)

Monday Meal Planning 1.24.10

Since Sophie is a whole month old now (!!!), I figured it's time for me to get back in the swing of things. One big part of starting to feel normal again is planning out our meals, so here we go!

Monday: Cuban Sandwiches, sweet potato fries

We're making the sandwiches on Hawaiian rolls, with this slow-cooked pork, ham, swiss cheese, dill pickle slices, and mustard. I cannot wait to dig in!

Tuesday: Macaroni and Cheese Soup, Salad

I've seen a couple recipes for this lately, so I took at as a sign to add it to our menu. 

Wednesday: Pulled Cuban Pork, Yellow Rice with Peas

I know we'll have leftovers, so I'm going to take advantage of that and have a night that's light on cooking.

Thursday: Mashed Potato Quesadillas, Chips and Guacamole

Something I've been wanting to try for forever now. It is so happening this week.

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: Korean Beef Short-Ribs, Rice, Edamame

(Gabbie calls Edamame, "Mommy Beans", and it's so cute I can't bear to tell her any different.)

I've been wanting short ribs for a while now, and this recipe sounds DELICIOUS. 

Sunday: Dinner/Late Lunch Out

I have been dying for a good cheeseburger for a while now. I think Sunday looks like a good day to fulfill that craving.

Monday Meal Planning 11.15.10

When I sat down to plan our meals for the week yesterday morning, I could not think of a single thing to put on the list. That rarely happens to me, as there are usually a few recipes I'm dying to try. So I surfed around the 'net for a while, then I surfed around my archives for a while, and I managed to put together several recipes that should suffice. This whole thing is made doubly hard since I can barely fit any food in my stomach lately, as it's being squished by the baby. Being able to only take a bite or five of food kind of kills my will to cook. However, there's the whole having a family to feed thing that takes precedence, so I will soldier on.

Monday: Taco Rice

Quick and easy tonight since we have tumbling class. I saw this recipe a few weeks ago and then again yesterday when I was surfing for ideas, and it sounds like some amazing comfort food. Now I just have to try to avoid mixing the rice with melted butter, sour cream, and cheddar cheese before adding the toppings, even though I think that sounds totally better.

Tuesday: Pot Stickers and Sesame Noodles, Edamame

We still have pot stickers in the freezer (I apparently made a HUGE batch), so we'll be eating those with a side of sesame noodles. I'm halving the recipe for the noodles because it takes us forever to make it through a whole pound of them.

Wednesday: Coconut Curry Butternut Squash, Rice, Naan

We have approximately a dozen butternut squashes (plus assorted other squash) from our CSA so it's time to start using them up. This recipe has become a total comfort food in our house because it's so good and filling.

Thursday: Egg Salad Melts, Fruit

I didn't get to these last week, but the craving is strong so they WILL be happening this week.

Friday: Leftovers/Take-out

Saturday: Pizza

I still haven't gotten around to making this pizza recipe, but it needs to happen soon, and I'm thinking Saturday will be the perfect day for it. I'm planning to top it with pepperoni and black olives (my current favorite topping combination).

Sunday: Something in the crock pot.

I haven't decided what to make for Sunday yet, but there are a few possibilities, including Italian Pot Roast, Split Pea Soup, and Jamaican Red Bean Stew

And now, for Toddler Lunch Ideas:

(As an aside, do you know what kills me? It's when my child will scarf something down at dinner time, eating second and even third servings, and then when I send the same thing to lunch for her two days later, she won't even touch it. I just don't get it.)

Monday: Bagel and cream cheese, mandarin oranges, peas
Tuesday: Soy dog, cheese slice, carrot sticks, grapes
Wednesday: Grilled cheese, green pepper slices, strawberries
Thursday: Edamame, naan slices, yogurt, sliced peaches
Friday: English muffin pizza, yogurt, fruit strip

Monday Meal Planning 11.8.10

Well, even though I totally failed at NaBloPoMo once again (darn those weekend and having too much fun to remember to post!), I'm going to try to post at least most weekdays through this month, if not every weekday. I have a huge backlog of recipes to post about and I'm ready to get them up. Call it nesting: blog version, if you will.

Here are the meals planned for this week:

Monday: Hearty Black Bean Soup, Crescent Rolls

I need something fast and filling on Monday nights for the next six weeks because Gabbie has tumbling class across town at 6:45. This recipe looks like it will fit the bill, and is full of beans which are among her favorite foods.

Tuesday: Aaron's Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Bread

It has been a while since we've eaten Aaron's specialty: spaghetti. We use a jarred sauce, and add browned sausage, and sauteed mushrooms and zuchini. It's heavenly. Add in that every time we ask Gabbie what she wants for dinner she says "noodles and sauce", and this one should be a hit. Except for with the baby, who kicks like the dickens after I eat tomato sauce and causes me to have horrible heartburn. Oh, well. It's good enough that it makes it worth what will ensue after the meal.

Wednesday: Sweet Potato Hash with Fried Eggs

I have been looking forward to this meal since I saw the recipe last week, and it immediately went on the meal plan. (Although we'll probably substitute a regular green pepper for the poblano so Gabbie can eat it too.) I love a good brinner!

Thursday: Asian Beef Skewers, Edamame

Another of Aaron's favorites and helps satisfy a red meat craving I've been dealing with lately. I have to admit, one thing I'm looking forward to most about not being pregnant any more (besides getting to have a little itty bitty baby, of course) is a meal consisting of a medium-rare steak with bleu cheese butter and a glass of red wine. Aaron has already been forewarned that this will be happening.

Friday: Leftovers

Because there's no way we can eat all this food, even with leftovers for lunch every day of the week.

Saturday: Out

Aaron is headed to beer camp (excuse me, deer camp) this weekend, so my sister is coming to stay with us and we'll probably take Gabbie out for Girls' Night Out. It should be a blast!

Sunday: Grandma's Open-Faced Egg Salad Sandwiches, veggies and dip

This one doesn't sound that appealing at first glance, but stick with me here, because I promise it's great comfort food. Plus, we just found a place that is on my way home that will supply us with farm fresh eggs all winter, and I can't wait to try them. Our first pick up is at the end of the week, otherwise I'd be eating this before Sunday. I'll post the recipe with a picture next week.

Now for Toddler Lunch Ideas

Monday: Grapes, Carrots, Yogurt, Crackers (as requested by her tiny highness)
Tuesday: Cheese Quesadilla, Mandarin Oranges
Wednesday: Mini Bagel with Strawberry Cream Cheese, Grapes, Pretzels
Thursday: Noodles and Sauce, Mandarin Oranges, Yogurt
Friday: Black bean soup, Tortilla Chips & Cheese Sauce

Frito Pie

Last month on Twitter, I saw The Bloggess mention something about Frito Pie. Curious, I Googled the term and quickly added Fritos to my grocery list. Frito pie is a simple, delicious dish, provided you already have chili and fixin's on hand. Since we were planning to eat chili that weekend, it was perfect timing. I fixed my self a bowl, and it was bliss at first bite. I will definitely be making sure I have Fritos on hand from now on when I make chili. I also think this would be a great recipe for a party, as people could customize their dishes as they like.

Frito Pie

In a bowl, layer following ingredients as desired. Feel free to add in other chili toppings that you might prefer.

Fritos
Chili
Cheese
Minced Onions
Pickled Jalapeno Slices
Avocado
Sour Cream (not pictured above, but a delicious addition)

Let sit for a minute to allow cheese to melt, then dive in!

Pigs in a (Cheesy, Oniony) Blanket

For Halloween I always try to do a themed meal, and this year we ate Mummy Dogs and Sweet Potato Fries (because they're orange). They were fun and delicious!

However, what they really did was make me crave Pigs in a Blanket like I've made before, but haven't made in a while.

To make our house favorite Pigs in a Blanket, proceed as follows:

Sauté some onions in butter until soft and golden. Then slice hot dogs down their length (but not slicing completely through) and sauté them for a few minutes, just to heat through. Put some onions in the slice, top with some shredded cheddar, and wrap it all in a crescent roll. Brush the roll with butter that was melted with a little minced garlic, then bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the crescent rolls are cooked through. I prefer them as-is, but Aaron likes to top his with mustard. Both ways are delicious!

Monday Meal Planning 11.1.10

I cannot believe that today is the first day of November already! The weather decided to be seasonally appropriate today (sadly) and it is pretty frigid out there. The only thing good about seasonally appropriate weather is that it makes it the perfect time to eat seasonally appropriate food. There. I think I've said "seasonally appropriate" enough.

We'll see how we do with actually eating what we plan this week. We haven't been good at it for a few weeks now, and I think making a plan and actually sticking to it will take care of some of the overwhelmed feeling I have lately. We'll see how it goes. On to the plan!

Monday: Turkey Pineapple Chili & Cornbread

I needed something super fast for tonight because we have to leave the house by 6:15 tonight for Gabbie's tumbling class. While chili is usually a long, slow dish to make, this one is ready in 10 minutes flat, and it's a house favorite.

Tuesday: Chicken Spaghetti, Steamed Broccoli

I've been wanting to try this recipe for ages, but haven't gotten around to it. I have all the ingredients at my house right now, so I don't have an excuse. Everyone raves about it, and I can't wait to dig in!

Wednesday: Crock Pot Pulled Pork and Coleslaw Sandwiches, Sweet Potatoes

I have a 3 lb pork roast in my freezer that is taking up too much space, as well as a head of cabbage, carrots, and a bunch of small white sweet potatoes (I can't wait to try them!) from our CSA, so this meal is perfect. It uses up everything I have that needs used up! Plus it has great reviews and sounds delicious to me. You can't get much better than that!

An interesting side note - my child who won't eat anything LOVES cole slaw (usually - this will be the one time she refuses to eat it, I'm sure). Bizarre, but I'll take it.

Thursday: The Best Quiche Ever!, tomato salad

After such a meat heavy few days, it seemed perfect to have a lighter meal. We get our last egg share from our CSA this week (and are VERY, VERY SAD about this, as the eggs were the best we've ever eaten), and so The Best Quiche Ever! will be fabulous, I'm sure.

Friday: Ranch Macaroni and Cheese, roasted brussels sprouts

Friday is supposed to be one of the colder days this week, so a nice comforting bowl of macaroni and cheese sounds perfect. Mmmm....

Saturday: Baked Chipotle Beef Taquitos, red rice, chips and salsa

I've made the chicken taquitos from Our Best Bites several times, but never the beef ones. I'm pretty pumped to try them though. I'll have to hold back on the chipotles and sauce so Gabbie can eat them, and substitute monterey jack for the queso fresco so I can eat them, but I think they'll still be fantastic.

Sunday: Leftovers

This looks to be a heavy cooking week, so I'm sure we'll have plenty left over for lunches AND Sunday dinner. We tend to do our bigger meal for breakfast on Sunday anyway (ricotta lemon pancakes or pumpkin maple cinnamon rolls are on tap for this week).


 
And then this week on "Will the Toddler Eat It/Anything" (aka Toddler Lunch Ideas):

Monday: Cheese, Crackers, Grapes, Yogurt
Tuesday:  Mini Bagel, Peanut Butter, Apple Slices, Carrot Sticks
Wednesday: Soy Dog, Green Pepper Slices, Yogurt, Banana
Thursday: "Noodles and Sauce", Broccoli, Yogurt
Friday: Pork, Cole Slaw, Kiwi, Cheese

Monday Meal Planning 10.18.10

I cannot believe that we are half-way through October already. Time is definitely slipping through my fingers lately, and I want it to slow down, just a little, while simultaneously speeding up to when this baby is due to arrive. Can someone arrange that for me? Thanks.

It feels like another surge of nesting has hit me, but unfortunately the surge of energy that is needed to accomplish everything I have to do has not accompanied it. My house is a bit messy after a very busy weekend, and I want to make it sparkly clean and get dinner to the table in a reasonable amount of time. In order to make this happen, I focused on quick meals when planning this week. The only non-quick meal I have on the plan is for Sunday, and that's because I'm big on one big family meal per week (not like we don't eat dinner together every night, we have to have one fancy meal happen every week). Anyway, on to the plan!

Monday: Ham, Cheesy Potatoes, Peas, Salad

This may not seem quick, but it is. Mostly because I made it yesterday to take to Aaron's grandma's house and we have leftovers. We all ate a ton, but still have a ton left, so it's making its appearance again tonight. The recipe listed is exactly the same as the one I use; the only modification I make is to use cheddar cheese soup because I like them as cheesy as possible.

The refrigerator is high on my "Make Sparkly Clean" list, so I'm emptying as much out of it tonight as I can. There's also a pumpkin pie in there with my name on it. This dinner is going to be FANTASTIC.

Tuesday: Eggplant burgers (with some made into smaller patties for Gabbie), French fries, Carrot sticks

We have one more eggplant from the CSA to use, and we've eaten enough baba ganoush lately to supply a small village. This sounded like an interesting way to use up the eggplant, so we're going to try it.

Wednesday: Quesadillas, rice

All other leftover veggies are going into quesadillas this night. I like them with zuchini, mushrooms, and onions. Gabbie prefers straight up cheese and refried beans. Aaron will eat anything, and that's why he's awesome.

Thursday: Pork chops with Saurkraut, mashed potatoes, broccoli

This one is a crock pot meal. I put down one can of 'kraut, top with pork chops, top with another layer of 'kraut, a heavy sprinkle of brown sugar, and a peeled, cored, quartered apple or two, then serve it over mashed potatoes. Yum!

Friday: Pot stickers, rice noodles, edamame

I still have quite the stock of frozen pot stickers, and since we love them we're diving in once again. I'll probably make some sort of sauce for the rice noodles and edamame, and most likely it will include soy sauce, chicken broth, and scallions.

Saturday: Out

Aaron's mom is going to be in the state, so we're heading out to visit her on Saturday. My job will be to make the food run, so I hope they don't mind eating according the whims of a pregnant, prone-to-sudden-strange-cravings, woman.

Sunday: Chicken Cacciatore, Noodles, Peas

I saw this recipe this morning and added it to our plan. It looks fantastic, and I can't wait to try it!

Finally, on to what the toddler is eating for lunch this week:

Monday: Waffle w/pear butter for dipping, yogurt, strawberries (this is called a "we need you to actually eat something today" kind of lunch)
Tuesday: Bean and Cheese quesadilla, green pepper slices, mandarin oranges
Wednesday: Eggplant patties (assuming she likes them), peas, yogurt, grapes
Thursday: English muffin pizza, applesauce
Friday: Apple Pumpkin muffin, grapes, cucumber slices, cheese cubes

Monday Meal Planning 9.20.10

Another Monday is here and even though I'm completely sick of spending my evenings making meals that my toddler REFUSES TO EAT, I still have a meal plan ready to go. We tried to do a mix of "Things that Gabbie Will Eat" (which changes from moment to moment) and "Things that Mom and Dad Like" which does not include things like plain rice separated from plain peas. I mean, those things are okay and all, but I prefer a little more flavor in my meals.

(Can you tell it was a difficult weekend eating-wise?)

Anyway, on to the plan!

Monday: Swiss Chard Stew, Rice, Naan, Fruit Salad

We have a beautiful bunch of swiss chard from our CSA share last week, and this recipe is perfect for using up a lot of swiss chard. Both Aaron and I have been craving Indian food for a while and instead of dealing with another infuriating toddler/restuarant trip, we thought we'd make a few meals at home (hence why there's two Indian-style meals this week).

Tuesday: Pasta with Smoky Bacon and Pea Sauce, salad

We didn't get to this last week because we never made the trip to the specialty butcher to get the pancetta. Aaron picked some up on Saturday morning for two reasons - one, the meatballs I made on Saturday contain pancetta, and those were a much higher priority, and two, the specialty butcher is also the best place to buy a six pack of micro-brews. Priorities! He has them!

Wenesday: Three Packet Pot Roast, Fruit Salad

Last winter I made this pot roast a few times and Gabbie couldn't get enough of it. Unfortunately Aaron is not fond of pot roast, to say the least, so I don't get to make it as often as I'd like. This one is so easy and delicious, and I can't wait to dive in on Wednesday night!

Thursday: Indian Style Curry with Potatoes, Caulflower, and Chickpeas, Rice Pilaf

I asked Aaron for a meal idea to make up for the pot roast, and his answer was "Something Indian-ish with Cauliflower." I had just downloaded the Cooks Illustrated app for my phone, and when I searched for cauliflower, this came up. We'll try it and see how it goes. It certainly sounds delicious!

Friday: Beef Enchiladas, Spanish Rice, Salad

The purpose of these is to use up the pot roast leftovers, since my usual leftover eater is certain not to touch them with a ten foot pole. He loves these enchiladas, however, so it's a win-win!

Saturday: Chicago Style Pizza, Antipasta, Fruit Platter

Lately I have been dreaming of the pizza I ate at Pizza Due in Chicago last year, once during each of my two Chicago trips, and I decided it's high time to try to make something similar at home. Now, I just need to find a good recipe.

Toddler Lunch Ideas
Due to aforementioned crappy eating this weekend, Gabbie is restricted to healthy choices (aka no treats or ice cream), with her only sweet choices being yogurt and fruit. Not that this makes a big difference to what she eats for lunch, since we don't usually serve up treats at lunch time. We've decided that the best we can do is offer her a variety of healthy choices and hopefully she'll learn that if she's hungry she has to eat what's available to her, and also that there aren't rewards for eating your dinner except that you are full.

Monday: Soy Dog, Broccoli, Cheese, Banana
Tuesday: Bean and Cheese Quesadilla, Carrot Sticks, Mandarin Oranges
Wednesday: Cheese, Crackers, Raisins, Kiwi
Thursday: English Muffin Pizza, Broccoli, Yogurt
Friday: Pot Roast Leftovers, Roll, Kiwi

Monday Meal Planning 9.13.10

Fall has arrived suddenly here in Michigan, which has been making me crave things like baked goods, soups, and pastas much more than even usual. This has also coincided with my work load getting ever so slightly lighter, success in potty training, and everyone just generally being in a much better mood (probably because we're not so hot and sweaty like we were all summer).

I also think there's a touch of nesting thrown into all of this too, because all I want to do is provide my family with a nice organized home and hearty meals. I didn't really have a nesting phase with Gabbie, so this is new territory for me. I like it, and I'm going to run with it while the desire is there. I have a huge list of recipes to share, and I'm hoping to have more time to share them starting this week, but let's start smaller - I actually made a meal plan this week! And here it is:

Monday: Corn Tortilla Crusted Chicken Tenders, Roasted Broccoli

Gabbie has developed the normal-kid taste for chicken nuggets, so I'm hoping this will help fulfill her want for them in a slightly healthier way. I saw this recipe in Everyday Food, thought of the huge bag of corn tortillas in my pantry, and figured this would be a good way to solve a few problems. Gabbie is also still in love with broccoli, and since it's also a favorite of Aaron's and mine, and we have a couple bunches from the CSA, it solved yet another dinner conundrum. I'm hoping this meal goes over as well as I envision.

Tuesday: Sweet and Sour Eggplant, Rice Noodles, Lima Beans

I know that the eggplant dish and the lima beans don't sound like they necessarily go together; however, I'm throwing the beans in there because Gabbie usually looks at me like I'm trying to kill her when I put any eggplant down in front of her, I figure she needs something other than rice noodles to fill up her belly. We also usually eat some cut up fruit with dinner to make sure she's getting enough nutrients outside of the white carbs she so strongly prefers.

Wednesday: Mini Shell Pasta with a Creamy Smoked Bacon and Pea Sauce

With pasta, bacon, and peas being three things Gabbie will usually eat, this should be a satisfying one dish meal. I'll probably add in more peas than it calls for just to get more green things in our diet.

Thursday: Grilled Cheese with Tomatoes and Avocado, Corn on the Cob, Grapes

Yet another use up the CSA goodies type meal. I mash up an avocado, and spread that on one slice of the bread, top it with a tomato slice or two, some cheddar or provelone and, in Aaron's case, a few slices of ham. Top it with another slice of bread and grill in a well-buttered pan, adding in more butter as you flip the sandwich. This is the type of meal we would have called a Garden Meal growing up, and they're my favorite kind of meal in the summer and fall months!

Friday: Mediteranean Mostaciolli, Bread

This is a hearty, meaty sauce, with sour, sweet, and salty notes, making it incredibly satisfying. Plus, there's lots of veggies in there too, which means it makes the mom in me feel better about serving pasta yet again this week.

Saturday: Meatball Subs, Veggies and Dip

On Saturdays during the fall, we eat our dinner early while watching the 3:30 football game of the day. Both my husband and I root for our own teams (MSU for me, U of M for him), which means football takes up the majority of our Saturdays. Since he's a much bigger fan than I am, I don't mind spending some of that time cooking up a delicious meal. We always have veggies and dip on hand for game time snacking, as well as usually some sort of snack mix and something sweet to celebrate our victories (or nurse our hurting hearts in the case of defeats).

The meatballs listed above are seriously the best I've ever made. I'll make sure to take pictures and post the recipe (I should have done that when I wrote about them last year), because I promise you'll want to try these!

Toddler Lunches:

So, last time I posted a few new things to try with Gabbie. The egg salad did not go over well, to say the least. Aaron liked it though, so at least it got eaten. We never got to the Mexican roll-ups, and ate the tortillas during a burrito dinner instead, so I'll have to try those (and post the recipe) sometime in the future.

Monday: Ham and Cheese on Garlic Naan (all cut into a heart shape with a cookie cutter), fruit leather, carrots, and pretzels

Tuesday: Leftover Chicken Tenders (provided they go over well), Rice, Peas, and Grapes

Wednesday: PB&J Roll-Up (using a flour tortilla), Lima Beans (again, depends on how well she likes them), Apple Sauce

Thursday: Whole Grain Waffle, Yogurt, Fruit Salad with strawberries, blueberries, and mandarin oranges

Friday: "Noodles and Sauce" (pasta with spaghetti sauce), Green Beans, Garlic Naan fingers

Monday Meal Planning 8.23.10

I know it has been a while. I am more than aware. I am also more than busy, what with working the equivalent of two positions at work, toddler potty training (and fighting with 2-year-oldness), baby stuff, husband stuff, house stuff. It's very nearly more than I can handle. I daily give praise for my husband who is such a great help with everything, because otherwise we would be living in squalor, eating ramen or take out for every meal. Instead he helps me get a nutritious meal on the table several times a week and is a clean freak.

Anyway, here's what we're planning to eat this week. We're keeping it simple because I have a lot of long hours that I will be working in addition to some home improvement projects. Like I said, more than busy. Recipes that are starred will be appearing soon.

Monday - Grilled cheese, tomato and avocado, chips, broccoli slaw*
Tuesday - Tortellini with fresh tomato sauce*, salad
Wednesday - BLTs, veggies and dip, fruit
Thursday - Slow Cooker Cheesesteaks, cucumber salad, fruit
Friday - Appetizers for dinner - Artichoke dip, bruschetta, veggies and dip
Saturday - Leftovers
Sunday - Chicken Enchiladas Suisas, Creamy Black Beans

In addition, in order to make our mornings go a little more smoothly, we have started planning out Gabbie's lunches for the week. I'm always on the lookout for new toddler lunch ideas, so I thought it might be helpful to others if I put our ideas here. We're testing out a couple of new things this week, so I don't know about the success of all of these recipes, but I can definitely update next week with what did work! Another important note is that she has to have a cold, finger food lunch two days a week (Wednesday and Friday) because they have picnic lunches those days.

Monday - Soy dog, yogurt, cantelope, carrot sticks with dip
Tuesday - Egg salad*, crackers, cheese sticks, grapes
Wednesday - Cold tortellini with sauce for dipping, cucumbers, banana
Thursday - Mexican Roll-ups*, yogurt, cantelope
Friday - Salami, cheese, crackers, carrot sticks, mandarin oranges

Monday Meal Planning 6.28.10

This week is going to be more than a little crazy, so recipes we've planned are quick, easy, and pretty much dictated by my recent cravings. Being pregnant has it's perks; all I have to do is say I'm craving something and no one complains about the plan for that day.

Monday: BBQ Pork, Cole Slaw, fresh veggies

I made so much pork last week that we're still eating it this week. That's fine, though, because it's delicious! The bonus this week will be some pickles that I just bought for an extra side.

Tuesday: Prosciutto Pasta, Roasted Green Beans

So, the one craving that's been a constant my entire pregnancy so far? Green beans. I want them all the time. Luckily I love my family enough to not make them eat green beans at every meal. They can deal with once a week, and it gives me something to look forward to.

Wednesday: New York Dogs, Sweet Potato Fries

Based on this month's Food Network Magazine feature, New York dogs are steamed hot dogs (we'll probably boil then pan fry ours), topped with saurkraut and spicy brown mustard. Yes please! Pickles on the side again with these.

Thursday: Pan Braised Chicken with Chimichurri, Rice Pilaf, fresh peas from my parents' garden

(I would totally make the skirt steak linked to with the chimichurri sauce, but I can't deal with well-done steak, so I'll happily wait until after September for medium-rare goodness.)

Friday: Pizza and fresh veggies

Again, using the Pioneer Woman's pizza dough recipe, and I'm going to give this sauce recipe a try. Toppings will be whatever leftover veggies or meats we have in the fridge (although, right now, sausage and mushroom pizza sounds pretty darn good). We might also make something with our CSA share for the week (so excited its finally starting!).

Monday Meal Planning - 6.14.10

Ah, meal planning. I have had such good intentions lately, but have not been quite so good with the follow-through. Last week I had a full plan and grocery list together, and I don't think a single dish on the list happened. It's so frusterating when that happens! We had also planned to go to a local "Taste of Greece" night in town, an event put on by a nearby Greek Orthodox Church, but they ran out of food by the time we got there. Talk about dissapointment!

Of course, I forgot all about our craving for Greek food when putting together this week's plan. Instead I focused more on using ingredients in more than one dish so we can hopefully waste less food, and also on dishes that are more hot-weather friendly since it's supposed to be in the 80s most of this week. Even though it's hot, I sure do love summer!

On to the plan:

Monday: Sloppy Joes, Sweet Potato Fries, Broccoli Bacon salad

Tuesday: Twice Baked Potatoes, Salad

Wednesday: BLATs, leftover Broccoli Bacon Salad, Chips

Thursday: No-Bake Lasagna, Salad

Friday: Chicken Salad on Croissants, sliced veggies (carrots, cucumbers, peppers, etc.)

I also really, really want to bake this week. Something quick and summery, possibly fruity, but I can't decide what. Any suggestions?

Monday Meal Planning 5.31.10

Oh, my goodness, has it been a long time since I've made (and subsequently stuck to) a meal plan, but this week I am determined! It's a week full of extra-curricular activities, but I'm not going to let that stop me. We have been doing a horrible job of cooking at home and eating real dinners, and it's time for that to change.

On to the plan...

Monday: Refried bean dip, tortilla chips, watermelon

This is a quick and easy dinner since we just got back from being away on an impromptu trip to my parents' house. My favorite recipe is a cold dip in which you layer ingredients as such: refried beans, creamy taco sauce (equal amounts (or slightly more sour cream) sour cream and mayonnaise and taco seasoning to taste), shredded cheddar cheese, chopped iceberg lettuce, and diced tomato. So easy and it lasts forever too, so we'll have lunch for tomorrow as well.

Tuesday: Baked potato bar and roasted zucchini spears

Another quick and easy dinner; I'll just throw the potatoes in the oven when I get home and dinner will be mostly ready when Aaron gets home. Toppings I usually include on the bar are: butter, sour cream, seasoning salt, cheddar, green onions, chopped bacon, and salsa.

Wednesday: Pizza Rolls and Salad

We'll make the pizza rolls using this whole wheat pizza dough that I mixed up, and whatever toppings everyone prefers (Gabbie prefers just cheese, I like pepperoni and mushrooms, and Aaron likes ham and pineapple).

Thursday: Pierogis, sausages,  and steamed green beans

We're on the hunt this week for a nitrate-free sausage to eat with our meal, but it seems to be hard to find around here. A special trip to one of my favorite specialty stores may be in order, and I never mind that.

Friday: Stuffed portobello mushrooms and roasted asparagus

I haven't decided on a recipe yet, I just know that I have a major mushroom craving lately and I'm making sure it's satisfied at least once this week.