Menu Plan Monday 8/13

School starts (for me not the students) next Tuesday, August 21, so this is my last week of summer. One of my sisters will be in town Monday and will be watching little Ky on Tuesday for my first day back at school, so I am excited I don't have to drop him off at daycare on that first day back.  It is going to be rough though- I have been letting him dictate his schedule in the summer, whereas when I was back at work after maternity leave, it was very much based on my work schedule... so he is no longer going to get to go back to bed after his morning feeding.  We are going to be introducing solids soon too, and I think he may be teething?? Lots of changes.  This summer was full of giggles (yes, giggles, that's one of the perks of having a baby around 24-7... if you figure them out, there can be just as many giggles as tears.), but I am slowly turning back into an emotional wreck as I think about being away from him for at least 10 hours each day. I am trying to choose joy as I go back to school.  It truly has been an amazing summer- although it has gone way too fast and there are too many friends I feel I barely got to see :-( 

Here's my last menu plan (most likely we will return to "easier" meals and since I am working, one night a week out if necessary): 

 Sunday: Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thighs, Israeli Couscous, Green beans... and Virgin Pina Coladas (use coconut milk instead of regular milk to make them more authentic- the reason I searched for a recipe like this one was because I had some coconut milk leftover from the curry I made last week) 

Monday: Orzo Stuffed Peppers, garlic bread & salad

Tuesday: Mexican Stuffed Shells, Chips & salsa ("stuffed" items are more work... and since school starts next week, now is the time to try out some new recipes!)

Wednesday: Turkey Burgers with baked Sweet Potato Fries

Thursday: Greek Salad with Oregano Marinated Chicken, Pita Bread

Friday: leftovers
 
Saturday: Date night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (aka, Grant's parents are going to watch the little guy either Fri or Sat for a few hours so we can go out!)

for more menu planning ideas go to orgjunkie.com

Menu Plan Monday 8/6/12

Sunday: buffalo chicken wraps, garlic buttered noodles, carrots

Monday: sausage, peppers, & potatoes skillet

This was inspired by my great friend Katie.  She made me her family recipe of this for lunch one day last week and it was delish.  We both used kielbasa instead of italian sausage and didn't take the time to bake it.  Thanks Katie for the yummy lunch and the inspiration!

Tuesday:chickpea and vegetable curry, naan 

Ok... we love naan... but often I buy it from Trader Joe's (which is delish), but since the summer is rapidly coming to an end I'm making as much as I can from scratch.  Except since the curry was in the crockpot at 1pm, I forgot I wanted to make naan, hence the recipe sans yeast.  And I'll also admit, the 10-15 min rest time for it was definitely 5 minutes, because well, I was hungry.  Still, it was a good bread! 

first attempt at homemade naan

Wednesday: French tomato tart, spinach salad, cantaloupe

Busted out my tart pan to use some tomatoes and basil from our garden and the rest of the chevre. I used my mini food processor to make the dough. Much easier than making it by hand.

homemade tart dough

the ingredients from our garden

plus the goat cheese

after baking... yum

even Ky wanted some!

Thursday:Dijon and Thyme Roasted chicken and leftovers

sidenote: I bought chicken thighs and legs... scandalous, I know?! I got 8 pieces of chicken for the price of like 2 chicken breasts.  This is an interesting read...to sum it up if you don't want to read it, it's super easy to overcook chicken breasts because they are so lean, so these "fattier" pieces are a little forgiving in that sense... and point #2: dark meat has 1/2 a gram of fat more than white. Yeah... I think I'll indulge every once and awhile.

Friday: frozen pizza

Saturday: going to Cincinnati to visit some friends from college and meet their new little ones!!! 

Got Basil? Make Pistou!

When I lived in Provence one summer, we had soupe au pistou one night for dinner.  It's a vegetable soup and you stir the pistou in before you eat.  For the longest time, I thought pistou was something super special and would be difficult to make... well, turns out it's actually super cheap and easy if you have your own basil. 

While I have no plans just yet to make soupe au pistou, I figured I had to do something with all the basil I had.  Pistou is simply pesto sans pine nuts. Which although delicious, are ridiculously expensive.  Here's the recipe I followed to make pistou.  I think I used less olive oil than they did... you can always add more in when you make something with it! Also, I froze it immediately in two 1/2 cup containers, with a piece of saran wrap smushed on top of the pistou to prevent freezer burn.  I am of the belief that if I ever get a new fridge, freezer burn will be a thing of the past.  Right?!?!

Basil from my garden! (and some from my parents!)

The other ingredients... my cheats: already minced garlic, lemon juice in a fake lemon and grated parmesan cheese

two 1/2 cup portions of pistou

Menu Plan Monday(s) late July- Early August

thanks for helping me make the pizzas!! I love you!!

What we've been eating lately:

Pizza on the grill, but using this dough. Sidenote: If you have a kitchenaid mixer, it's super easy to make dough with it.  We made our favorite pizza of goat cheese, figs & caramelized onions, along with a pizza margherita and a basic pepperoni this past time.  My parents were in town, so it was super fun to be in the kitchen with my Dad :-)

Vegetable Lasagna (lasagna noodles, followed by garlic alfredo sauce (I cheated and used one from a jar :-/ thinned with some milk), ricotta cheese mixed with spinach and parmesan, and then a mix of zucchini, yellow squash, cherry tomatoes, red onion, carrots, spinach, and a layer of mozzarella and parmesan cheese. 

Vegetable Enchiladas: I cheated again and used jarred sauce... and I used zucchini, yellow squash, black beans, corn & tomatoes as the veggies. 

Homemade Salsa (modifications: used canned diced tomatoes (canned tomatoes really do make good salsa when you are waiting for yours to ripen), added a splash of lime juice, didn't use the vinegar, didn't add cumin even though it's my favorite... just like anything else you cook, the key is to taste while you go... just use clean utensils each time/a new chip if you are making it for others!)

"Unbelievable Chicken"... let's just say there once was a time I thought I was helping out with our church's version of VBS and had Grant grill 6 chicken breasts to use for easy meals all week, only to find out it was the next week.  I'll blame it on "mom brain." Anyways, this chicken really was good... I didn't have any coarse mustard, so I just used Dijon and it was still delicious. We ate most of it plain, but I also made a few wraps for lunch.  

Calzones- again, use your stand mixer to make the dough! I used mozzarella with the ricotta instead of chedddar... but any combo of cheese would work... I like foods that involve "dipping," so this is fun with the tomato sauce on the side. I made four calzones out of this dough, and they were still pretty large, so you probably make eight or make 16 "mini" calzones.  I didn't bother to brush it with egg or olive oil and they were still great.  

Menu Plan Monday 7/9

Here's what we are eating this week, starting on Saturday, because well, we were on vacation, so my grocery store day was set by default.

Saturday: Crock Pot BBQ Pulled Chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans (the crock pot typically gets more use in the winter around here... but with these temperatures in the 100s, it was SUPER nice to have dinner without the whole house heating up or asking my husband to grill in the extreme heat)

Sunday: leftover chicken, salad with Zesty Avocado Cilantro Buttermilk dressing (a pinterest find... healthy & delish!)

Monday: Rice & bean burritos(modified to serve 2), guacamole & chips

Tuesday: Grilled Turkey Burgers, grilled veggie kabobs (zucchini, yellow squash, onions)

Wednesday: Rosemary Rubbed Pork Chops (a favorite from last summer), Antipasto Salad

Thursday: Southwestern salads with avocado cilantro buttermilk dressing

Friday: Pizza Margherita (our basil is growing like a weed!! If only my cilantro would do the same.)

Saturday: going to a wedding!! woo hoo!! 

for more menu planning ideas go to  http://orgjunkie.com/2012/07/menu-plan-monday-july-912-giveaway.html

Menu Plan Monday (aka what we've been eating)

Well, it's safe to say it's been almost 4 months since I've written one of these posts. Perhaps there is some correlation with the fact that Kyler is also almost 4 months old...

Anyways, I did not plan out meals while I was on maternity leave (March and the first two weeks of April), and then I attempted the next two weeks to do so but will admit that I have some AMAZING friends who brought me meals AGAIN once I returned to work, and my husband and I decided that if I am working, we might as well take advantage of my income and get takeout at least once a week. Which was nice, but I honestly did miss cooking. There is just something satisfying about knowing what is actually in what I'm eating.  And I think in general, I eat healthier when I cook versus when I select something off of a restaurant menu.

MENU PLAN FROM MAY 2012

In May, I started menu planning again, but as I was trying to just survive the school year, I never posted about it.  I used the "Once a Month Mom" Whole Foods May 2012 menu and selected a few dishes off of it and as her recipes suggested, made a double batch.  

So in the month of May, we had these dishes twice: 

1-Spicy Beef Lettuce Wraps (I actually made these again tonight with turkey instead of beef, and I cooked 1/2 cup of quinoa and added it to the mixture to stretch it a bit farther- you don't even notice it's in there- yum!... oh and I also left out the peanuts, used red pepper flakes instead of the sriracha and used many more green onions)

2- Sesame and Cilantro Vermicelli Salad (again, left out the peanuts)... and I made this again tonight as a side with the lettuce wraps

3- Grilled Pork Chops with Garlic Lime Sauce

4-Summer Vegetable Chicken Enchiladas

My thoughts: I really liked having meals in the freezer while I was working... I wasn't a fan of the way the vermicelli thawed- it tasted too watery, but the rest of the stuff froze beautifully.  I don't have a need to do once-a-month cooking right now, but I'm sure I will again once school starts.  I think selecting just even 4 dishes off of a menu like the ones on that amazing blog can be a huge help! 

Other things I've been cooking: 

Oatmeal Blueberry Applesauce Muffins- These were Grant's birthday treat!

Virgin Mojitos- I made a mint-infused simple syrup and then added fresh lime juice, more mint leaves, sparkling water & ice... yum!

This week's Menu Plan

Mon: Pizza with Grant's parents and cousin

Tues: Spicy Turkey Lettuce Wraps (see above), Sesame & Cilantro Vermicelli Salad (see above), strawberries

Weds: Goat Cheese, Pesto & Red Pepper Pizzas with Tomato, Watermelon, Tomato & Mint Salad

Thurs: Roasted Sweet Potato & Black Bean Burritos (I roast onions and sweet potatoes and then half the ingredients-they sound weird but totally work- from this recipe)

Fri: leftovers

Sat: leaving for vacation!

Sun: vacation!

Have a good week!!

Lessons Learned: Random Thoughts Part 2

14 weeks into parenthood, here are some of my thoughts/questions. I don't even know who/ if anyone reads this blog anymore since I stopped writing for a few months when I returned to work, but if anyone is out there (I know you are K.L., and thank you for being my faithful audience! You too hubs!!), feel free to answer my questions! (however some are simply rhetorical...)

1- Why do they put the sayings/ prints/ etc across the front at the top of a onesie? I know that's where it belongs, but due to the bib(s!!) my little guy is always wearing, you will never know that he is "the smallest OSU fan," a "party pooper," a "Miami baby," "mommy's little tiger," etc unless I take the bib off for a picture. Perhaps they should put such sayings in a different place.

2- Why is it that whenever we are trying to rush out the door, the magical angle of the car seat makes him poop? Never seems to happen when I'm not in a rush.

3- How do you convince a baby that is super hungry or super tired that if he stops screaming he can eat or sleep?

4- I wonder if the reason so many moms "let themselves go," aka stop caring about their appearance is partially due to the reality people will only glance at you but will stare at your baby forever until you start to walk away?

5- Why doesn't every retail business have a drive thru? It would be so much easier to get errands done if I didn't have to get him out of the car. Starbucks at Morse and Hamilton, please consider this. It's pretty easy to convince me I deserve a treat these days. However... My secret wish is that I lived somewhere where I could walk everywhere... Like a small city in the south of France, perhaps?

6- How is it that we think it's so cute when babies have chunky thighs, chubby cheeks and multiple chins, yet we spend so much time and money trying to avoid these things? (I am NOT pro-obesity or anything, I just find this humorous!)

7- Why are the cup holders on my stroller so shallow? Is it a scheme to get me to buy the extra one that attaches on that I have yet to figure out how to install? If I never had to maneuver thing over any bumps perhaps that shallow one could work.

8- Why don't adults smell as good after a shower as babies do after a bath? Is it the products or do babies just smell better?

Well, that's all for now. Enjoy the cute pics of my little man... One with a bib, one without;)