Week 52 - Happy New Year!

PDF Version of Meal Plan

Happy New Year!!  Wow, week 52???  Did I really just write that?  So I did it... I meal planned faithfully for 52 weeks!!  The benefits for me personally have been well worth it - time saved, money saved, new recipes found, healthier diet, etc, etc.  And I really don't think I would have stuck with it without the blog to keep me accountable.  But more on that in my next post which will be a year in review wrap up and what's up for the blog 2014.

For this week I wanted to finish off with one last meal plan.  This week was a bit "off" for us given that we only had two work days and had more social gatherings than a typical week.  But I've filled in the blanks to leave you with a full week of healthy meals since most of you are now trying to kick off the New Year on the right foot.  I can tell because my stats this week spiked on January 1st and were mostly from Google searches for 'healthy meal plans' :-)

Recipe Quick Links

Easy Overnight Oatmeal,  Marin Mama Cooks
Salmon Cakes, Source Unknown
Kale Salad, Original - Week 50
Feta & Spinach Casserole, Kalyn's Kitchen
Fish Sticks, Attach of the Hungry Monster
Chia Jam, Eat Good 4 Life
Thai Chicken Pizza, The Hopeless Housewife



Since we didn't follow this meal plan exactly I can't really do a week in review.  So I'm going to highlight my favorite recipe from the week - Thai Chicken Pizza.  I've been loving pizza this year.  Last year for Christmas Santa brought me a KitchenAid Stand Mixer.  Dave and I were both a little apprehensive about having one in the house thinking it would only increase our cake and cookie intake.  And it has... but what I'm loving it for the most is dough.  I've made biscuits, tortillas, naan, pretzels, and pizza dough... lots and lots of pizza dough.  Prior to owning the KitchenAid I had never made my own pizza dough.  On pizza night we would either order out (greasy), buy frozen (cardboard) or buy the pre-made crusts (meh).  But now I make our own which is quick, easy and so much better!  If you don't own a stand mixer I would highly recommend buying one.  They are a bit pricey but I seriously don't know how I got by without one.  I use it almost daily.

I typically make the Whole Wheat Crust from 100 Days of Real Food.  I like to divide it so that we can make individual pizzas - pizza party supper is fun! 

Personalized Pizza Supper

I've also made pizza and tuna calzones for lunches - delicious!

Pizza dough can be divided into single servings and frozen either before or after baking.  I prefer to shape the dough into personal sized pizza rounds and bake them prior to freezing.  This makes for super quick lunches for nights that I'm feeling lazy.  And lately I've been thinking about using pizza dough to make cheesy bread sticks to dip in pizza sauce.  Wouldn't that be a fun lunch?!  I'll let you know how they turn out.

This week we had Thai Chicken Pizza which was a nice change from the classic pepperoni.  If you like peanut sauces you will love this pizza.  I made this no-rise pizza crust, using a 50/50 mix of white and whole wheat flour, to speed things up a bit and it turned out great.  This may become my new go-to crust.  I topped it with chicken, red onion and carrot and garnished with chopped peanuts, fresh cilantro, green onion and a spritz of fresh lime.  It wasn't a quick weeknight meal but much of the prep could have been done the night before.  Plus we had leftovers for the next days lunch so it was well worth the effort!

Thai Chicken Pizza

Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2014!

Sandra

Week 44 - Cook Once, Eat Twice (or three or four times!)

Printable Version of Meal Plan

After a hectic week last week I was looking to relax.  So on Saturday night I put my feet up and without digging out the computer or magazines I made a meal plan with some food that's been on my mind lately.  The result was a laid back week with lots of "double duty" meals/sides that I was quite impressed with and anxious to dig into.  But once again for a variety of reasons we did quite a bit of juggling things around.  I'm posting the menu as I had planned it because I think the flow was better the way it was planned as opposed to how it was executed.  A few meals have been pushed off to the weekend but we have a long weekend coming up so this in fact worked out well for us.

Recipe Quick Links

Overnight Oats, Marin Mama Cooks
Spaghetti Squash Tacos, Marin Mama Cooks
Corn Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Broccoli Lemon Pasta, Marin Mama Cooks
Chicken Meatballs, Chatelaine
Kale Chips, 100 Days of Real Food
Whole Wheat Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Whole Wheat Pizza Dough, 100 Days of Real Food

Week in Review

Because we didn't follow the meal plan exactly I'll just highlight a few things...

Ham Dinner - We cooked up a HUGE ham this weekend and had some family over for supper.  For some reason I always forget how many servings we get from these ham!  I sent our guests away with leftovers and we still had plenty for the days ahead.  I'm all hammed out to say the least.  We've had it for breakfast, lunch and supper... with mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, salad, on sandwiches, and just to snack on.... This is a true cook once eat for a week meal!  My fave was a grilled ham and havarti sandwich.  Yum.

Pizza - This is on the menu for Friday but Dave and Marin had a special Daddy/Daughter day on Tuesday so I made up the dough Monday night to give them a fun meal to prepare together.  And supper was on the table when I got home - sweet!  And the leftovers were packed up for the lunches the next day so I had the night off - double sweet!  We're loving pizza these days and it's a great one to get the kids involved!

Personalized Pizzas

Overnight Oats - Nope, not my usual no-cook overnight oats.  It's getting chilly here so I gave "cooked" overnight oats a try.  I'm a fan of hot cereal so I might just have to shelf my cold oats for warm oats for the next few months.  I made enough for two mornings.  The first morning I reheated them in the pot, second morning in the microwave.  Microwave worked fine.  First morning was blueberry, banana and maple syrup.  Perfectly good, but predictable.  Second morning was a spoonful of peanut butter and a drizzle of maple syrup.  This was "you've got to try it" good!  The peanut butter melt and blends in and it becomes a creamy, peanuty bowl of deliciousness.  I've found my latest obsession.  Oats tend to just be a "me" thing in our house but I think my PB loving family will enjoy this version.

Overnight Oats with Blueberry, Banana and Maple Syrup

Brocolli Lemon Pasta - This is another one that got juggled around.  I ended up making enough for only one day since the mid-week salmon didn't happen.  But I think the plan of doubling this recipe and switching it up with a little leftover salmon is a good one!

Chicken Meatballs - I've been wanting to try this recipe for the last few weeks.  I had planned on this being a "prep ahead" meal but ended up making them during the suppertime rush.  They actually came together pretty quick.  A couple of short cut tips:

1. I read the recipe through earlier in the day so I was mentally prepared - that might sound silly but I do find that helps alot! 
2. I used my KitchenAid Stand Mixer for hands free mixing
3. I used a melon baller to scoop the chicken instead of rolling with my hands - they weren't perfect but that was ok by me.
4. I had two frying pans going so I could cook them all at once instead of in batches.

Dave liked these, I thought they were just ok.  Marin turned her nose up at them but after forcing her to take a bite she admitted they were good.  But then she went on to take about 1/2 hour to eat one meatball!  So you might have to try this one for yourself.

Chicken Meatballs

Spaghetti Squash - I substituted spaghetti squash for the pasta to have with the meatballs so to make sure the extra squash didn't go to waste I decided to put Spaghetti Squash Tacos on the menu.  This is one of the meals that got pushed off to the weekend so I can't review it but I'm excited to give it a try and really excited to make some corn tortillas.  They've been a bit overshadowed lately by the flour tortillas but they have not been forgotten!

We were also snacking on Pumpkin Buns which I highly recommend.  I substituted half of the white flour for whole wheat and couldn't tell the difference.  They're really moist and mild tasting and easy to make!  And this morning I pulled a couple of Spelt Pumpkin Muffins out of the freezer and they were just as good defrosted as they were fresh.  A well stocked freezer is a beautiful thing!


Happy Friday!

Sandra

Week 37 - Back to School Series, Part 4: Double Duty Meals

Printable Version of Meal Plan

So if you've been hanging around here you know I often have leftovers for lunch. All of my lunches this week are based on leftovers from the night before... with a little twist to make them not just the same meal two days in a row. The thing I like most about this is that it really forces me to make lunches right after supper.  I mean when supper is done there's really no point in packaging up the leftovers just to take them out again later to repackage them into lunch is there?  Then I finish cleaning the kitchen and I'm done for the night!  Sweet!  I find this especially great in the fall when I want to get in my cozy clothes, curl up, watch new TV and knit.   

Recipe Quick Links

Apple Pie Overnight Oats, Oh She Glows
Fish Tacos, Canadian Living
Corn Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Sticky Chicken, Canadian Family
Kale Salad, Marin Mama Cooks
Potato Chips, Canadian Family
Cold Chicken Noodle Salad, Canadian Living
Re-fried Beans, 100 Days of Real Food
Whole Wheat Tortillas, 100 Days of Real Food
Pumpkin Buns, Today's Parent

 

Week in Review

 

Make Ahead Snack

Pumpkin Buns - These "buns" I would actually consider more of a muffin.  They were quick and easy to make and turned out real moist and mild tasting.  I find a lot of pumpkin recipes call for cinnamon or pumpkin spice but these were just pumpkin and small amount of sugar, nothing too overpowering.  A nice little fall lunchbox treat!

Pumpkin Bun

Monday

Apple Pie Overnight Oats - So you may have noticed I'm a bit of a fan of the overnight oats.  I'm also a big fan of Oh She Glows so when I saw this post for Apple Chia Jam Overnight Oats I had to try... it sure made my Monday morning!!  This was overnight oats meets the fall.  It was a bit like having apple pie for breakfast, hence I'm referring to this as "Apple Pie Overnight Oats".  I used homemade almond milk (another favorite Oh She Glow's recipe) but I used Steel Cut Oats instead of rolled oats.  I did finally try the rolled oats and as suspected I was not a fan of the texture.

Squash Soup - I'm sure this was inspired by a recipe I saw at one point but I wouldn't remember where.  I made a batch of this soup on the weekend instead of the curry I had been intending to make.  I wanted to use up leftover squash and also stock my freezer with some soup for easy lunch options in the weeks ahead.  I roasted the squash first and I have to say it looked and tasted so delicious coming out of the oven it almost didn't make it in the soup.  I'll estimate it was 2lbs of diced squash.  While the squash was roasting I heated some oil in a large pot and sauteed a chopped onion and 2 chopped apples with curry powder (~1T), garam masala(~1t) and cumin (~1t).  When the onion was translucent I added chicken broth (~2 cups) and the squash and simmered until all the veggies were super soft.  Then I pureed the soup using a hand blender and stirred in a can of coconut milk.  Yummy!

Fish Tacos - I actually tried a slightly different version than the one I'm linking here but this one is still my fave.  The recipe I followed used green apple in the salsa instead of mango, which given the time of year you might prefer.  I also made corn tortillas which pretty much have to be made fresh, but they are super easy to make and if you have the time are definitely worth the effort!!

Corn Tortillas

Tuesday

Fish Lettuce Roll-ups - The extra fish and apple salsa were rolled up in lettuce leaves for lunch.  My original plan was to use rice wrappers but I went with the lettuce leaves thinking they'd be easier to work with.   In the end they didn't stay together that well so I'd recommend the rice wrappers for a more portable lunch.  I mixed sour cream with a little regular jarred salsa for dipping.  Messy but good.

Sticky Chicken w/ Kale Salad and Potato Chips - Loved, loved and loved.  This chicken was super easy to make and really tasty.  A winner!  I used boneless skinless chicken breasts and marinated them the night before.  I put 2 extra pieces on without the marinade to use in tomorrow's lunch.  And this kale salad is old news around here but I happened to find a different variety of kale I wanted to try.  Around here you usually find "curly" kale but I finally found the variety that has a flatter darker leaf.  It was a bit better, although I wouldn't turn down a bowl made with the curly kale either.  I also made potato chips which were a big hit with Marin!  I skipped the rosemary but that does sound delicious.  I don't have a mandolin slicer (hmmm.... perhaps Santa is listening again??) but was able to slice the potatoes thin enough with a sharp knife.

Wednesday

Cold Chicken Noodle Salad - Meh.  Didn't love this.  My last few attempts at salad with vermicelli noodles have not been overly successful.  The noodles are always too chewy.  Perhaps the package was open too long?  Anyone know the secret to cooking vermicelli?

Steak, Grilled Veggie and Goat Cheese Salad -  Stretching grilling season out as long as I can!!  It was a beautiful day so we did the steak and a mix of peppers on the grill.  That was layered on top of lettuce with cherry tomatoes, goat cheese and balsamic vinaigrette.

Thursday

Goat Cheese and Grilled Veggie Omelettes - Goat cheese and grilled veggies automatically make me think of omelettes.  The veggies were leftover from supper so this was a really quick lunch to prepare.   Not sure why I've never thought to pack omelettes for lunch before??  I had it with a Pumpkin Bun and Coffee. 

Re-fried Beans on Whole Wheat Tortillas with Cheese, Sour Cream and Guacamole - I made the tortillas the night before and I have to say I'm still blown away that I can make tortillas.  Watching them puff up in the pan is one of the most exciting things ever.  Fresh, warm, chewy tortillas topped with homemade re-fried beans and the fixin's...  I really can't think of anything better.  Except for maybe fresh, warm, chewy tortillas topped with.... well pretty much anything.  And it was on the table within 10 minutes of walking in the door.  AND instead of having to threaten time-outs and no dessert to get Marin to eat, she literally inhaled this and asked for more.  This meal scores a 10 out of 10 in my books!

This is around the time I start to get excited!

The finished product.  Don't they look delicious!?

All loaded up!

I wasn't the only one super excited about this meal.

Friday

Layered Nacho Dip - It's the first thing to go at a pot-luck so why not make a meal out of it??  Use re-fried beans as a base layer and it's a filling (and fun!) lunch.  I served it with a baggie of Blue Corn Tortillas chips.

Grilled Apple & Cheese Sandwiches with Ginger Lime Thyme Jelly - Easy and delicious.

Hello weekend!

Sandra

Week 33 - Freezer Makeover - Before

Printable Version of the Meal Plan

We were out of town last weekend for an overnight getaway with friends.  We had a blast at Upper Clements Park on Saturday and then took our time working our way back into the city on Sunday.  We didn't get home until suppertime and I was Tired (yes, with a capital T) so my plan was to get groceries Monday night.  However, at around 7pm I realized that I was donating blood Monday night... so I literally threw together a meal plan with the help of the awesome September issue of Canadian Living and reluctantly headed out the door to get some grub.

There was no real theme this week, my only goal was to fill our bellies with as little effort as possible.  But by mid-week I started to think about some of the back to school articles I've been reading.  I still have one year before Marin starts school but I've been working at a University pretty much since I left University so to me September is the real New Year... I always get excited for a fresh start!

In particular I was feeling inspired by a post from 100 Days of Real Food re freezable lunches.  I have a confession... I'm 33 weeks into my meal planning resolution but my cupboards, and especially my freezers, are a mess!  I'm not really one to freeze meals in advance or stash leftovers.  Instead I tend to cook my meals fresh and make enough for just the servings I require for that week.  But this whole idea of having a stockpile of things like soups, pizza dough and muffins in my freezer to make at least one easy lunch a week is really appealing!  I mean come on... freezing individual servings of soup in mason jars - brilliant!!  So in the spirit of back to school I'm cleaning out the freezers!  Think of it as my New 'School Year' Resolution. 

 

Freezer Makeover - Before

I can't believe I'm posting this because it's super embarrassing but here are the before pics...

Fridge Freezer - Before

Fridge Freezer Door - Before

Deep Freezer - Before

This project is apparently long overdue!!  I'll post after pictures next week... and now that I've put it out there I really have to follow through!  Eek!

Let's talk about the food...

Lasagna - This is note-worthy because it actually came from the freezer!  Before leaving town last weekend I realized I had 2 pieces of the 'Easiest Lasagna Ever!' frozen.  It was the best feeling in the world to know that I wouldn't have to make lunch on Sunday night.

Orange Chicken Salad - This was one of the life-saving recipes I found in Canadian Living last Sunday night.  Just what we needed after not eating the best for a couple of days.  I used the PC Organic Field Greens with Herbs Mix and added a little feta.  Marin was loving the feta and said excitedly "Mom, I have a great idea!  We can make the cheese crackers and add feta and mix it all together!!!  That's what I'm talking about!".  I think I have a little foodie on my hands.

Orange Chicken Salad

Tomato and Chickpea Salad - Another Canadian Living recipe.  I enjoyed and it was a very easy and packable lunch.

Grilled Steak and Salad - We marinated the steaks (see the Favorites/Salad Dressing & Spice Mix section) and grilled them.  To go with them I did up a foil pack with mushrooms, onions, zucchini and butter and made a super simple salad using the rest of the salad green & herb mix, tossing it with olive oil, lemon juice and honey.   A quick, easy meal that we could eat anytime!

Homemade Tortillas -  I'm (almost) speechless... I made whole wheat tortillas!!  I figured if corn tortillas were easy and worth the extra effort than flour tortillas were probably worth a try too.  I took the time to read the recipe and they actually sounded like a breeze to make.  I'll admit they take a bit of effort but they were far from difficult (thanks in big part to my KitchenAid Stand Mixer) and I think it's a recipe that will get quite easy once I make it a few more times.  And the results... totally worth the effort!!  For me the best part of eating at a good Mexican restaurant is the fresh, chewy tortillas... and now I can make them myself!!  We made a cheese quesadilla as a snack to test them when they were hot out of the pan and they were divine!  Then we had them as part of our lunch for the next 2 days (Quesadillas on Day 1 and Chef Salad Wraps on Day 2) and even on the second day they were perfect.  Plus... you can freeze them! Another item for my freezer! Hurrah!  This was the highlight of my week.

Fish Casserole - I had an idea in mind of what I wanted here.... I was thinking white fish, rice, creamy sauce and Frenches Fried Onions crumbled on top.  I couldn't find a recipe anywhere so I made one up.  I basically used a Scallop Potato recipe but with fish (I used cod) instead of potatoes.  Once the fish cooked I used a fork to break it up and added the rice and shredded mozzarella.  Once that was all bubbly I topped with the Frenches onions and put it back in the oven for a few minute.  The results - delicious!!  It was kind of like Cheesy Scallop Potatoes meets Green Bean Casserole.  Just what I was looking for.  Dave loved it too, Marin not so much.  You win some you lose some...

Fish Casserole

Slow Cooker Chicken Gyros (Recipe from Six Sisters' Stuff ) - Slow cooking in the summer is awesome - there is just nothing better than coming home on a hot day to a cooked meal.  I'm pretty excited to get home tonight to try this one out!


Now I'm off to clean my freezers!

Sandra

Week 22 - 6 Ingredient or Less Meals

Printable Version of Meal Plan and Grocery List

I gave myself a challenge this week – 5 Ingredient or less meals.  And I was thinking complete meals.  The problem was we were super busy last weekend so I had to rush putting the plan together and didn’t have as much time to hunt down recipes as I would have liked.  As a result I was feeling a bit disorganized.  I managed to pull something together but I’m going to admit defeat and hence this week is themed “6 Ingredient or Less Meals”.

Recipe Quick Links

Mexican Stuffed Shells,  Blogchef.net
Mexican Spice Blend, Chatelaine
Asparagus and Gruyere Pizza, Marin Mama Cooks
Whole Wheat Pizza Crust, 100 Days of Real Food
Overnight Oatmeal, The Yummy Life

Week in Review

Carry over from last week... I picked up some Steel Cut Oats so I could try overnight oatmeal as a breakfast on the go.  I'm in love.  I went with a Banana/Blueberry combo topped with almonds and maple syrup.  I can't wait to try different flavor combos! 

Overnight No-Cook Steel Cut Oats

Monday

Lunch – Egg Salad Sandwich.  I actually really enjoy egg salad and this was a perfect Monday lunch after a busy Sunday because it takes little effort.  I mixed mayo and diced celery in with my boiled eggs and added slices of cheddar and avocado for a pretty filling sandwich.

Supper – Lemon Dill Salmon with Broccoli.  (Ingredients - Salmon, Lemon, Dried Dill, Broccoli & Parmesan Cheese).  This was a complete meal in 5 ingredients.   I poured the juice from ½ a lemon on the fish, sprinkled with dill and baked at 375F until done.  At the same time I steamed some broccoli and topped that with lemon zest and Parmesan cheese before serving.   I did make Marin a potato as well – so I guess that was 6 ingredients.

Tuesday

Lunch – Veggie Burgers.  I got this recipe from a friend many years ago and it’s one of those "anything goes" kind of recipes. My sister would argue that it’s not a recipe at all!  Mine always come out different because it varies based on what I have on hand.  It goes something like this:

• Drain a can of beans (6 Bean Blend, Chickpeas, Black beans, etc…) reserving liquid.  Mix using a stand mixer until beans are mostly mashed.  Before I had the KitchenAid I would use a pastry cutter to do this by hand – doable but much easier with the KitchenAid.
• Add in veggies of choice, finely chopped.  I like mushrooms, peppers, zucchini, broccoli, onion…
• Add in a scoop (heaping tablespoon) of tahini, Peanut Butter or hummus.  This will make it a bit sticky
• Add in any seasonings you’d like and amounts are to taste
• Mix in a dry ingredient (bread crumbs or oatmeal) until mixture is dry enough to form patties… but not too dry.  If it gets too dry add a little of the reserved liquid from the beans.

This is all a bit of an experiment and I tend to just throw everything into the stand mixer and just keep adding wet and dry ingredients until I get the consistency and flavor I want.  Don’t over think it!  I always pan fry the patties, I don’t think they would hold together well enough for the BBQ.  I assembled the burgers on multigrain buns with mayo, cheese, lettuce and avocado.  I heated mine just a little at work so that I wasn’t eating it cold out of the fridge.

Supper – Pork Chops with Broccoli & Carrots (Ingredients – Pork Chops, Mustard, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Basil, Vegetables).   This recipe came from a cookbook “Life’s on Fire” which is a great meal planning cookbook.  It’s 12 weeks of complete dinners (mains and sides), organized by week, and includes grocery lists.  The full meal is written out step by step, so that you know exactly what to do to ensure everything is ready at the same time.  The perfect cookbook for a young person living on their own and cooking for themselves for the first time!  This is the one and only cookbook I own that I have made every single meal.  I still love the idea of it although I find most of the recipes not as appealing as they once were.  Lots of canned soup, ketchup and sugar based sauces, etc…  And this recipe did disappoint me a bit – not as yummy as I had remembered.  If I could have a do-over I would have simply barbecued the chops.

Wednesday

Lunch – Pork Fried Rice.  The chops were huge so I set some aside to throw in a fried rice.  I find this is a great way to use up leftover meat when supper portions are too much for one meal but not enough for two meals.  I just saute onion and whatever other veggies I happen to have and then add in the leftovers (diced into small bite sizes).  I add the rice to the frying pan with a little soya sauce and cook that a bit.  Then I move the rice to one side, crack an egg directly in the pan and scramble it up a bit, stir it in with the rice and then dish it up.  Easy peasy.

Supper – Marinated Chicken and Greek Salsa.  (Ingredients – Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, Greek Salad Dressing, Tomato, Cucumber, Red Onion & Feta).  I marinated the chicken overnight with Greek dressing (I made my own but store bought would work) and cooked them on the BBQ.  The salad was diced tomato, cucumber, red onion and feta with Greek dressing.  This was a super easy meal and oh so tasty! 

Thursday

Lunch – Greek Tofu Pita.  I marinated some diced tofu in the Greek dressing and fried it until the tofu was crisped up a bit.  I mixed the tofu with leftover Greek Salsa from Wednesday's supper and had it on a pita.  Note: I packed my pita separately and assembled on site. 

Ground beef with Mexican Spice Blend and Cream Cheese

Supper --  Mexican Stuffed Shells.  (Ingredients – Ground Beef, Pasta Shells, Mexican Spice Mix, Cream Cheese, Cheddar Cheese, Salsa).  I make a simplified version of this recipe.  I brown the ground beef and use my own Mexican Spice Mix instead of taco seasoning, then melt in the cream cheese.  My beef isn't as soupy as you can see...

Then I stuff the shells and cover with salsa.  I got this far Wednesday night.  Thursday I popped them in the oven @400F for about 20 minutes to heat up, covered them with cheese and put them back in the over until the cheese melted.  I broiled for a minute at the end because I like crispy cheese.  So no taco sauce or chips in my version either.  It was a really easy meal, similar to lasagna or Ricotta Stuffed shells but with a Mexican twist.

Mexican Stuffed Shells - ready for the oven (prep the night before)

 

Mexican Stuffed Shells - hot out of the oven!



Friday

Lunch – Leftover Stuffed Shells.  Yum.

Supper – Asparagus Pizza.  (Ingredients – Pizza dough, Olive Oil, Garlic, Asparagus, Cheese).  I was insprired my a Marin Mama Cooks post to have white pizza for our Convenience Food Friday.  I made my own crust on Thursday night (only because I couldn't find pizza dough at the store and didn't want a pre-baked crust).  I also skipped the Gruyere because we had an abundance of different cheese in the fridge and I didn't want to add yet another.  I chopped up a few other toppings and we had a bit of a family pizza party with everyone personalizing thier own.  We all loved our pizzas!!  I did white pizza with aspargus, portobello mushrooms and goat cheese - I hate to toot my own horn (well actually, no I don't) but it was delicious!  And I was really glad I made my own crust.  And the best part... we ate on the back deck for the first time this year.  So nice to be enjoying warm weather!

 Happy weekend everyone!

Meal Plan for Week 1 is Posted!

Printable Version of Meal Plan with Recipes and Grocery List

The first meal plan has been posted!!!  Are you as excited as I am?!  It took some time to figure out how best to present this information and you may see some changes over the next several weeks.  Please feel free to comment or give suggestions!  For now I’ve created a page called “Meal Plans” and there are four documents posted there under “Week 1” - the Meal Plan in table format, the Recipes (2 pages) and the Grocery List.  This way you can print just the sections that you need.   If you’re using the Grocery List you’ll probably find that many of the items are staples that you already have on hand.  I’ve highlighted in red text the items that are needed for suppers since I assume some people may not be following for breakfast/lunch.  I also decided to NOT include snacks other than fruit and veggies, so make sure to add your favorites to the list.

Week in Review -

This wasn’t really a typical week in my house – first, it’s not very often that we have not one but two parties in one week and both falling on week days.  So that was 2 days I didn’t need suppers.  Also, we only worked the second half of the week and since I didn’t know exactly what we’d be doing on our stay home days my mind set was to have a few simple recipes that could be stretched over a few days.

Sunday – this was a stormy day with hubby in the kitchen cooking his famous spaghetti and meatballs!  Does it get any better than that?