Heather says
I promise this site isn’t going to change into what are those weirdos eating this week. I’m trying to get back into the habit of writing more consistently and unfortunately or fortunately for you, Monday morning is a really good time for me. (I’ll try to knock out a few reader questions this week, too.)
I’m pretty jet-lagged and punchy from a work trip to Las Vegas (and there was no wifi on any of my flights, what are we? Savages?) Dinner tonight will be simple or takeout. We still have to firm up how many people will be fed this evening. 2? Takeout. 5? Mustgo soup.
I forgot to mention, last week, that I did not care for the Thai inspired spaghetti squash side. I love peanut sauce, I love spaghetti squash. It just didn’t work for me. (I think it was probably the gluten-free soy sauce which is definitely not my favorite)
The coconut milk-marinated chicken on the other hand was excellent. It was just a can of coconut milk, ground pepper, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, and chopped green onions in a gallon freezer bag for a few hours. I then baked the chicken thighs just like these. If you really dig coconut you can make coconut rice (sub half the liquid with coconut milk and the other half with chicken broth) or plain white rice works, too. Add a crisp-tender veg and you have a solid weeknight meal. I’ll make it again and write it up, maybe even with photos.
Here we go:
- Monday – To be determined
- Tuesday – Autumn Skillet
- Wednesday – Sausage, Kale, and Sweet Potato soup with Parmesan
- Thursday – Tamale Pie, Salads
- Friday – Fish (going to visit the fish store near my house and choose) there will likely be a buttery, garlic sauce, rice, and broccoli
- Saturday – Stewed Chicken Thighs – I think I’ll go with a tomato and red pepper base, mashed potatoes
- Sunday – Sloppy joes, sweet potato fries, sauteed cabbage
What will you be making this week? Anything new? Are there any new technique or ingredients you’re looking forward to trying? Or is it going to be one of those, just let’s make it through the week kind of weeks?
I just found your site today. I’m sure I will be coming back regularly to gather ideas to feed the family for the week (that IS always one of my biggest challenges!!).
Planning dinner ahead of time is such a huge time-saver. Even though I don’t fully understand why planning dinner a day at a time is all that stressful, it really does cause me stress so I need to make myself plan ahead. Thank you for the reminder. 🙂
This week I will plan for pasta on Tuesday, Taco Bar on Wednesday, leftovers on Thursday, and I’d like to try your bbq chicken sandwiches on Friday. Today (Monday) we had a big lunch so I think we will make it “have whatever” night.
Have a great week!
Angie
Our whatever night turned into Wednesday’s option. What I post here are plans, which are subject to change.
But yes, having an idea of what can be made from what is in the house is a huge stress-reliever for me. Looking at the week’s schedule helps make success in sticking to the plan more likely, as I won’t put super labor intensive meals on busier days.
Pretty similar to last week
Sun – beef stew
Mon – sausage wraps
Tues – quiche
Wed – leftover spaghetti and meatballs
Thurs – pork tenderloin in mushroom gravy
Fri – CORN?
Sat – spaghetti and meatballs
What’s with all the spaghetti and meatballs? We are copying these folks and inviting people over (nearly) every Saturday : http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/08/simpler-entertaining-friday-night-dinners-end-loneliness-how-to-build-community-after-having-kids.html
That is a very nice idea. Having kids was an incredibly lonely period for me.
What’s in the sausage wraps? Are they like a breakfast burrito?
Grilled red peppers, onion, and zucchini.
And in fairness, I wouldn’t say that we are exactly lonely but we have neglected some friendships. The main problem it solves for us is the trap of doing nothing because we didn’t have the mental energy to plan something at the last minute. Just too easy to let everybody spend a whole Saturday evening with a screen. The guest routine helps end-run nothing/screens.
That sounds good.
For me, having kids was a double whammy, I went from work and school to home alone except for people on the interwebz. /wry grin
I had a couple of friends, but we were so busy with our own rapidly growing families and they had tight-knit relationships with their spouses. It is a very busy time and I certainly defaulted to screens far more often than I should have.
Enjoy the gathering and know you are doing something worthwhile.
Heather, I use Bragg’s Liquid Aminos for soy/tamari. This is what the bottle looks like: http://www.amazon.com/Liquid-Aminos-16-oz-Ounces/dp/B0006Z7NNG
And according to their FAQ, it’s gluten free AND prepared with dedicated equipment
http://bragg.com/products/bragg-liquid-aminos-soy-alternative-FAQ.html#faq11
And I’m also struggling (again) with regular postings myself.
Thank you for the recommendation, I’ll give it a shot. Ray mentioned he preferred the Kikkoman version (I don’t think he’s had Bragg’s) so I’m giving that a shot first. This will go in my Amazon shopping cart and I’ll give it a try.
I work for FeedBlitz, which powers email marketing, so poor old Home-Ec101 suffers a bit of the cobbler’s kid syndrome. I know the best practices and what I should do, but dang if squeezing it in isn’t difficult.