Meal Plan Monday

Happy Monday everyone!  Hope you all had a great weekend!  Our weekend was jam packed with birthday parties, supper club and shopping.  You still have time to enter the $25 Target gift card giveaway from my Saturday Spotlight feature at My So-Called Chaos.

Sorry for the not so great food photos below.  It’s getting darker earlier and I’m losing my natural light to take pictures.  I’ve been resorting to using my camera phone with not great results, as seen in the last few pictures below!   Here is a look at this past week’s menu:

Saturday:  We had homemade pizza.

Sunday:  The Weekend Chef made spaghetti and meatballs at the request of our daughter.

Monday: I made these Maple Bacon Beer Burgers from Iowa Girl Eats and served them with fries.  I didn’t actually put the beer in the burgers – only because the recipe called for just 1/4 of a cup.  I’m not a big beer drinker and the beer would most likely be flat by the time the Weekend Chef got home.  I also substituted ground turkey for the ground beef.  The maple syrup added a nice sweetness to the burger and who doesn’t love bacon?!!

Tuesday:  We had Skillet Pork Chops with Mushroom Sauce from Simply Gloria.  I served these with mashed potatoes.   I don’t make pork chops very often and making this dish reconfirmed that I’m just not a big fan of pork chops.  The sauce was flavorful though with the mushrooms, spinach and onions.  (Sorry for the blurry picture above.  It didn’t appear blurry when I was reviewing on the camera!)

Wednesday: I made Broccoli Cheese Soup from Gimme Some Oven and Zucchini Cheddar Corn Muffins from Two Peas & Their Pod.  With the arrival of fall and the recent cooler weather, I’ve been on soup and muffin cooking kick recently.  This meal was our meatless meal of the week.  The soup was tasty and easy to put together.  I had made the muffins earlier in the afternoon but they weren’t too difficult to prepare.  I think that they accompanied the soup nicely.

Thursday:  I made Breakfast Pull-Apart Bread from Very Culinary.  I was able to use up the rest of the package of bacon in this recipe(say what?!  Bacon twice this week?  Oh yes!).   We ended up eating late because I first cooked the bacon in the oven and then the bread needs to bake for 25 minutes.  My son first started eating and commented that “this is interesting!”  The kids love breakfast for dinner.  Plus, they get to eat with their hands?  Double win!  I served this with yogurt and fruit.

Friday:  The Weekend Chef got home from work early and made Garlicky Pasta with Tuscan Chicken from Pink Parsley dinner.  The Weekend Chef noted that this was easy to make.  This was extra tasty, probably because I didn’t have to make it! The arugula and lemon gave the pasta nice flavor and the chicken was moist and flavorful.

What was one of your favorite meals this past week?

School has started and we are in “go” mode!  Expect to be seeing lots of slow cooker meals and quick and easy dinners! Here’s a peek at last week’s menu.

Saturday:  The Weekend Chef made London broil, mashed potatoes and swiss chard.

Sunday: We went out to Savannah’s Southern Restaurant for my birthday dinner.  The Weekend Chef and I shared the above Shrimp with Parmesan Grits and Chicken Cutlet with Collard Greens and Dijon Cream Sauce with Red Beans and Rice.

Monday: I made Hoisin Burgers with Peanut Slaw. My daughter helped me prepare these.  They were easy and tasty.  The peanut slaw was really good and added a nice crunch to the burgers.  I served these with some fries.

Tuesday: I made Crock Pot Lemon Pepper Chicken Thighs and served them with some roasted broccoli and roasted potatoes.  I was surprised at how flavorful these were.  The lemon flavor really came through.  The broiling at the end gave the skin a nice crunch.  While I don’t really enjoy eating chicken off the bone, since it was cooked in the slow cooker, the meat literally fell off the bone.  I can see this being a repeat dinner.

Wednesday: I made Cheese Ravioli with Lemon Basil Butter Sauce and served it with a Caesar salad.  This was a super quick and easy dish to make!  Plus, I got to use some of my home-grown basil.  This is another dish worth repeating.  Especially on super busy weeknights.

Thursday:  I made these Copycat California A.M. Crunchwraps.  My kids have never seen or eaten the Taco Bell crunchwrap.  However, they LOVED these AM Crunchwraps!  (Although breakfast for dinner is always a winner with them.)  As soon as the Weekend Chef saw dinner, he recognized the famous crunchwrap and was in awe that I was able to make the folds.  (It was super easy by the way!)

Friday: I made Potato Kielbasa Skillet.  I adapted the original recipe, which required more cooking time.  I didn’t mind though, since it was a rare Friday evening where I had the time to cook and didn’t have to rush the kids off someplace.   This was a hearty and tasty meal that we all enjoyed!

Happy Labor Day everyone!  Hope you are enjoying the day off that most of us have from school and work.  School is back in session and the weather will hopefully be getting a little cooler soon.  I am looking forward to quick and easy meals and using the crockpot more.  Here is what was on the menu last week at our house:

Saturday: The Weekend Chef and our daughter made Hawaiian Quesadillas, Cilantro-Lime Rice and refried beans for our first back from Disney dinner.  The Weekend Chef made some homemade guacamole to have with.  It was nice eating some home-cooked food for a change!

Sunday: The Weekend Chef cooked some Country-Style Ribs in the slow cookers and served with roasted potatoes and roasted broccoli.  Although he made a spice rub and sauce, the ribs ended up losing a lot of their flavor.

Monday: I made this Mexican Tortellini Salad.  The Weekend Chef and I enjoyed this but the kids weren’t the biggest fans.  The leftovers were also great for lunch the next day.

Tuesday:  I made this Sweet Chili Chicken with Coconut Rice. I served it with a salad.  I wasn’t sure if the chili sauce would be too spicy for the kids.  However, they loved this!  It was so quick and easy to make that I know this will be making an appearance on our menu again soon!

Wednesday: We made this Banana Chocolate Chip Fluffernutter French Toast Casserole.  Yes, the name is a mouthful.  I’ve mentioned that my kids love breakfast, so breakfast for dinner is always a hit in our house.  This casserole was so good!  While it probably counts more as dessert than dinner, it was winner for sure!  Note that this dish can mostly be prepared the night before but does have to cook for an hour.

Thursday: I  made this Cajun Shrimp with Garlic Parmesan Cream Sauce.  I was worried that the Cajun seasoning might be spicy for the kids but they ate this.  The flavor of the pasta was actually somewhat bland and the seasoning helped spice it up.  Overall, this meal was just okay for us.

Friday: We were going to the kids back-to-school picnic so I made homemade pizza.  I fed the kids before going since I know there would be no eating once they saw all their friends.

Here’s a look at what was cooking in our kitchen last week.  Hopefully, it will help inspire some ideas for your own meal planning!

Saturday – We had Supper Club.  This month’s theme was “Food On a Stick.”   I made Teriyaki Portobello Mushroom Kabobs and the Weekend Chef made Dulce de Limon Ice Pops.  Everything was delicious!

Sunday – We went out to The Melting Pot for a belated birthday celebration for our son.  It was a fondue extravaganza!

Monday – I made Gnocchi with Zucchini, Sweet Corn and Basil.   This is a great summer recipe, where I was able to use the basil that I’ve been growing.  We all enjoyed this.  I served with tomato and mozzarella slices.

Tuesday – I was planning on making a chicken dish that called for more basil and a cram sauce.  I just wasn’t feeling it though so I ended up just making breaded chicken cutlets, rice and tomato slices (that we grew from the garden box!).

Wednesday – The kids were away and I made Crispy Buffalo Wing Shrimp with Blue Cheese Grits.  This was ah-mazing!  I could just eat the blue cheese grits by themselves they were THAT good…..but adding the buffalo wing shrimp….yum! I’ve made grits before and the kids don’t like them, so this isn’t a dish that I’d make again for them.  When it’s just the Weekend Chef and I, umm, yeah, this will be happening again!

Thursday – The Weekend Chef made Pineapple Dak Bulgogi (Pineapple Korean BBQ Chicken).  He pre-made the marinade the night before.  I got home and sliced the chicken so it could marinate for an hour or so.  The pineapple was sitting in the marinade since the night before though and absorbed the spiciness of the gochujang.  I could only eat a couple of pieces of the pineapple it was so spicy.  The chicken though was delicious.  Again, this was a dish that would be too spicy for the kids but perfect for just the Weekend Chef and I.  He served this with rice and the leftover vegetables from my Supper Club kabobs.

Friday – I made an adapted version of this Guacamole Pizza.  I wish I had the Portobello mushrooms, but when I went to use the ones I had bought they had started molding…yuck!  And I wasn’t running out to the grocery store in the middle of dinner prep to get some.  The kids dislike avocados and guacamole, so this was another meal that I was saving for just the Weekend Chef and I.  This pizza was good….if you like guacamole.  If you do decide to make it, be sure to eat the whole thing the day of.  Leftovers did not taste nearly as good….or look as good.

Last week’s menu was filled with tasty dinners and LOTS of fresh produce!  As a volunteer at the food pantry, we are asked to take the leftover fresh produce, or else it ends up going bad.  Last week I came home with swiss chard, mustard greens, corn on the cob, carrots and squash!  I am happy to say that we cooked and ate it all, minus a bunch of carrots that are still sitting on our counter.

Saturday – We went to our neighbor’s potluck BBQ.  The Weekend Chef made coleslaw and potato salad.

Sunday – The Weekend Chef made Peppers & Greens Skillet Hash from the Moosewood Restaurant New Classic Cookbook.   Topped with a fried egg, this was a tasty vegetarian dish in which we were able to use the swiss chard.

Monday – We had One Pot Cheesy Taco Skillet over rice.  I adapted this recipe a bit and will be posting my version on the blog soon.  It was a hit with the kids, easy to prepare and we will be having this again soon!

Tuesday – I made BBQ Bacon Peach Chicken Calzones from blog Melanie Makes.  Her original recipe called for turnovers using frozen puff pastry.  At over $5 a package, with the recipe using two packages I opted for a cheaper alternative and used pizza dough to make calzones.  I had featured this recipe as my favorite bookmarked recipe of the week in a recent Friday Favorites post.  These calzones had many of the kids’ favorite ingredients and they ate these right up.  I found them to be a bit sweet, which might have been due to the barbecue sauce I used (Kraft).  As much as the kids enjoyed these, I told them that I would NOT be making these again, only due to the sheer number of steps and dishes it required!  I had to roast the peaches and cook the bacon.  I had to cook the chicken.  Then I had to bake the calzones.  It was just too time-consuming for me!  I served these with corn on the cob.

Wednesday –  I made Squash Pie adapting it from this Zucchini Pie recipe from Life According to Steph.  This time I used a variety of squash, but I’ve made it previously using just zucchini.  The kids like this a lot and it’s another recipe keeper.  I served this with a salad.

Thursday – I made what I’m calling Caprese Pasta  inspired by this Summer Pasta recipe from Green Fashionista.  This was another recipe that I recently featured as my favorite bookmarked recipe of the week in a Friday Favorite’s post.   I changed the recipe quite a bit but was inspired by Kate’s recipe.  It too will be making an appearance soon on the blog!  I served this with a salad and garlic bread.

Friday – We had pizza with my parents at their place.  A night off from cooking is a plus!

This past week was a hot one!  I tried not to use the oven too much.  Here’s what was cooking in our kitchen this past week.  You can read about our meal planning process here.

Saturday – Out. We went to a local music festival and ate alfresco listening to the band play.

Sunday – Out.  We went out to eat with a couple from our Supper Club.

Monday – Onion Smothered Italian Burgers from Cooking Light and Sauteed Baby Squash with Basil and Feta which was also a Cooking Light recipe.  The burgers were a recipe repeat, with the last time I made these being about five years ago!  The balsamic onions definitely make the burger!

Tuesday – We cooked a whole chicken in the slow cooker which I served with some rice and Steamed Green Beans with Tomato-Garlic Vinaigrette.  These green beans were a bit garlicky but good.  We make a whole chicken in the slow cooker about once a month or so.  It’s so easy and we end up with leftover chicken to use in another recipe later in the week.  This time, the Weekend Chef ate some leftovers and we froze the rest.

Wednesday – I went out to dinner with a friend but I made Zucchini Pancakes for the kids and the Weekend Chef which they ate with breakfast sausage and fruit.  Breakfast for dinner is always a hit in our house.  When my son found out I was making zucchini pancakes he complained and asked if he could have plain ones.  Well, guess who was eating these right up?!!!  You can’t taste the zucchini and he loved them!

Thursday – I made Sausage And Vodka Pasta Sauce.  This was a twist on the traditional penne vodka.  It was good, but not my fave.

Friday – Out – We went to a local baseball game and ate at the stadium.

Here is a look at what was cooking last week in our kitchen.  If you’d like to learn more about our meal planning process check out this post.  At least one night a week we try to have a meatless meal.  The weather wasn’t too hot this past week, so I didn’t mind turning the oven on to roast some potatoes and tomatoes and cook bacon.  Most of the meals were cooked on the stove and I even used the slow cooker once this week.

Saturday:  We were up in Rhode Island and had sausage, onion and pepper wedges with corn on the cob and pasta salad.

Sunday:  My dad made some ginger-teriyaki glazed salmon that we had with zucchini ratatouille and leftover pasta salad.

Monday:  I adapted this Chinese Spaghetti with Spicy Meat Sauce recipe from blog Mika’s Pantry.  I’m working on my adaptations and this may be making an appearance on the blog soon.  It was an Asian twist on the traditional Italian Spaghetti with meat sauce that the kids really enjoyed.  I didn’t add the “spicy” to theirs.

Tuesday:  I made Farro with Honey-Garlic Roasted Tomatoes from the December 2014 issue of Cooking Light.  This was one of those times that I didn’t read the recipe in its entirety before making it.  Only after it was done and I saw that there was not enough in the pot for a meal did I realize that this was meant to be a side dish.  The kids were not up for running to the grocery store with me to pick up something to have with it so I ended up scrambling some eggs to fill out the meal.  I liked this a lot and have recently come to enjoy farro and roasted tomatoes.  The kids didn’t like it so much but did eat it mixed with their scrambled eggs.  Whatever works!

Wednesday:  I made Brown Sugar and Balsamic Glazed Crockpot Chicken from blog More Than a Mom of Three.  I used bone-in chicken thighs because chicken breasts always turn out dry when I make them in the slow cooker.  I also used frozen chicken which ended up watering down the dish so we ended up with more of a sauce than a glaze.  The kids complained that the chicken didn’t have any flavor.  I may end up trying this again with defrosted boneless chicken thighs since it was so easy to prepare.  I served this with some sautéed zucchini and roasted potatoes.

Thursday:  We had Breakfast Fried Rice from blog How Sweet It Is.  Anything with bacon is a winner in our house!  And eggs again?!  The kids loved it!

Friday:  We had homemade pizza.  Just tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella on store-bought pizza dough.

What was the best dinner you had last week?

Last week there wasn’t much cooking going on in our kitchen.  We had a lot of leftovers which we wanted to make use of.  Plus, it was so hot in the beginning of the week it was nice not having to cook.

Sunday:  Pizza – Our son had his friend birthday party.  While we didn’t get a chance to eat at the party we ended up eating some pizza later on that night for dinner.

Monday:  Leftovers – The Weekend Chef’s parents came over for dinner Saturday to celebrate our son’s birthday.  Our son requested breaded chicken cutlets, homemade mac and cheese and roasted broccoli.  There were enough leftovers for us to eat this again.  Not cooking on a HOT summer day = happy mama!

Tuesday:  Ham steaks, mashed potatoes and corn-on-the-cob.  Our son requested this for his birthday dinner.

Wednesday:  Leftover pizza.  We might have overestimated how much pizza we’d need for our son’s birthday party. We had enough left over for us to get another meal out of it!

Thursday:  I made this One-Pan Orecciette with Chickpeas and Olives from blog Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen.  Our friend Ashley writes this blog.  She is a member of our supper club and takes really awesome pictures!  Please check out her blog!    I adapted this recipe a little bit by not adding the rosemary.  The kids and I agree that rosemary tastes like we’re eating a Christmas tree and we dislike it!  I enjoyed this meal and it was easy to prepare.  The kids weren’t big fans because of the arugula, chickpeas and olives (is that all?!!).  But, they did eat the pasta.

Friday:  Leftovers.  The kids had leftover ham and mashed potatoes while the Weekend Chef and I had some leftover pasta.

Here is a look at this past week’s meal plan!  I hope this helps inspire you to find a new recipe or plan your weekly menu.

Sunday:  The Weekend Chef celebrated Father’s Day by cooking dinner for both of our parents.  He made turkey burgers and we had a selection of toppings including lettuce, tomato, avocado, sautéed onions and mushrooms so everyone could create the burger of their choice.  We had leftover antipasto pasta salad that I had made Friday for a potluck dinner.  He made coleslaw, my mom brought a blue cheese and bacon potato salad and my mother-in-law made a garden salad.

Monday:  There was so much food leftover from Sunday’s Father’s Day dinner that we had leftovers tonight.

Tuesday:  I made Slow Cooker Apricot BBQ Chicken Sandwiches adapted from site Tasty Kitchen.  This was posted by Amber from Sprinkled with Flour.  Her recipe called for Peach preserves.  I ended up using Apricot preserves and served these sandwiches with some of the leftover coleslaw from Sunday.  The sauce itself was too sweet for my liking.  However, both kids had friends over for a playdate, so not having to worry about getting dinner ready was a win for me!  I served these sandwiches with fries.

Wednesday:  I made Italian Tuna Casserole from Rachael Ray.  I decided to dust off some of the cookbooks sitting on my bookshelf.  This recipe was adapted from Rachael Ray Express Lane Meals.  As far as tuna casseroles go, this was pretty good!  Recipe will be coming to the blog soon!

Thursday:  I made Cinnamon Apple Baked French Toast Casserole from blog The Pioneer Woman.  Check the blog Wednesday for my slightly adapted version.  This was amazing and we will be making this again!

Friday:  Homemade pizza.  Nothing fancy, just regular cheese for everyone this week.

Saturday:  The Weekend Chef made a Cilantro Curried Tilapia.  This was really flavorful and a different way to eat tilapia.  This recipe will also be on the blog soon!

Due to posting our summer bucket list, our weekly menu plan from last week is a few days late.  We recently received our June Universal Yums! snack box.  This month’s country is Mexico.  We eat Mexican food all the time.  So last week I took the Mexican theme of the box and cooked Mexican-inspired dishes.  Here’s what was cooking in our kitchen last week.

Sunday:  We celebrated my dad’s birthday with pizza – from the pizzeria!

Monday:  I made these Chicken Fajita Burgers from blog Buns In My Oven.  These were a take on the classic chicken fajitas in burger form.  While we make lots of turkey burgers we don’t often use ground chicken.  These were really moist burgers. Without the added toppings these burgers would be kind of plain.  But with the onions, peppers, cheese and guacamole these were really tasty.

Tuesday:  We had pierogies and kielbasa with my dad and brother.

Wednesday:  I made these Chorizo and Egg Breakfast Nachos from blog Closet Cooking.  My kids love all things breakfast and combine it with nachos, even better.

Thursday:  I loosely followed this recipe for Enchiladas from The Pioneer Woman.  While I’m not a big fan of enchiladas the Weekend Chef loves them.  It’s usually his menu item of choice when we go out to eat Mexican.  While I’ve made different variations of enchiladas before (Turkey cranberry and Chicken avocado come to mind) I’m not sure that I’ve ever made traditional enchiladas.  These were okay, but traditional enchiladas are not my fave.  I made Mexican Rice and Beans adapted from this recipe from blog For the Love of Cooking.

Friday:  We had my daughter’s end-of-year Girl Scout potluck picnic.  I made an Antipasti Pasta salad that I threw together.

Saturday:  The Weekend Chef made these (20 Minute) Skinny Baked Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos from blog The Housewife in Training Files.  I know copycat Bang Bang Shrimp recipes are all over the internet.  However, I have to admit that we have never eaten this famous appetizer from Bonefish Grill.  These tacos took him a bit more than 20 minutes to make, but were really tasty. He made Avocado Lime Rice adapted from this recipe from blog Closet Cooking.  We really liked this rice and I think it would be more flavorful with the cilantro, if we had it!