Monthly Archives: September 2013

Dinner Menu for the week of September 29th

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Highlights from last week’s menu:

Quinoa stuffed peppers we really yummy and SO easy to make.  I had some extra filling, so I delivered this meal on Tuesday to a new mama in our mother’s club.  She also raved about its deliciousness.  (Picture does not do it justice.)

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Thursday morning, Trevor helped make yummy banana pancakes for a birthday treat.  He is always so very eager to help.

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I thought the penne pasta we had for dinner Thursday night was amazing,  I kept refilling my bowl.  but Dave was not as much of a fan.  He still ate it though.  🙂

Sat evening, we had family over to celebrate our sweet three year old.  He was the center of attention, and loved every minute.  We decided to make a self serve burrito bar, and made this super easy crock pot salsa chicken.  We have a ton of left overs, so I will be putting some of the meat in the freezer for dinners in the future.

This week is another wonky one because I have trainings or commitments that will mean I am gone for dinner.  Boooo.  I plan to cook a bunch of things ahead to prepare.

Sunday:  Due to the excess chicken, we are going to rock some chicken burritos tonight.  Or some chicken nachos.  Will depend on the mood.

Monday:  Might be ambitious, but I am giving it a go.  Minestrone in the crock pot

Tuesday:  Spinach quinoa bake.  I am doing another new mama meal delivery this evening, and it looks like this recipe will make plenty for both families.  Hope it is yummy!

Wednesday:  I am heading out for the evening to a training dinner, so Dave will be heating up some soup from the freezer.  Either potato or chicken enchilada.

Thursday:  Spinach Strawberry and Avocado salad

Friday: Grilled steak, mashed potatoes and asparagus

Saturday:  Left over steak and potatoes

Have a great week everyone!

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Dinner Menu for the week of September 22nd

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Forgive the delay in posting this week’s menu.  A short day trip to see my sister, and some personal defeats have put me a few days behind.  Mercies are new every morning…

Last week’s menu favorites:

Sunday we ate my most favorite fish tacos.  Complete with homemade corn tortillas.  The meal was SUCH a delight.  Witness the beauty!  Make these.

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The second winner of the week was the chicken broccoli pockets.  We swapped the whole chicken night, and moved the pockets to Friday.  They were full of amazing.  Made way more filling than intended, and had enough to eat for dinner tonight.  I made a crust sourced from this post.  Fully intend on making these “pop-tarts” at some point too!

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Did not get a chance to make the stuffed red peppers, so they are moved to this Monday.

The menu normalcy is in flux this week due to some planned activities.  We will give this menu a go…

Sunday:  Left over chicken bakes

Monday:  Quinoa stuffed red peppers

Tuesday:  Chili from the freezer and cornbread

Wednesday:  Pizza night!  We will get creative with the toppings.

Thursday:  Penne pasta with sundried tomato cream sauce

Friday:  Sauted scallops and quinoa with orange and avocado salsa

Saturday:  We are having a family gathering to celebrate my sweet boy’s 3rd birthday!  We are making burgers on the grill.  Yummo!

I will leave you with a bit of encouragement for your week.  Mainly because I am the one that needs to be encouraged. I heard this quote last weekend while at a conference.  It has been running through my mind ever since because I am prone to worry and fear.  I have to remember to persist and stay the course.  In all things.

Maybe you think you think you cannot spend the time needed to eat real food.  Maybe you think your spouse/kids will never go for it.  Maybe you think you will not see results.  Maybe….just maybe you should just give it a try.  🙂

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Dinner Menu for the week of September 15th

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Last week’s menu recap.

I thought Sunday’s quinoa and salmon salad was good.  In fact, I ate mine sitting on the couch while the boys both acted like little birdies with open mouths.  They ended up eating a second dinner off my plate.  Dave on the other hand did NOT like this meal.  He is not a huge balsamic vinegar fan, and he claims his salmon was over cooked.  Bummer!

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The chicken marsala meal was the week’s winner.  So tasty, and fairly simple to make.  It will go into my recipe circulation for sure.

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Cheeseburgers with yummy because we added bacon and avocados.  Yay.

Did not snap a pic of any other meals this week, but we did not have any other whammies.

Coming up this week…

Sunday: Spicy fish tacos!!!  SO excited to make these again!

Monday:  Strawberry Avocado Spinach salad

Tuesday:  Creamy Chicken Broccoli Pie Pockets using chicken from my very favorite whole chicken in a crock pot.

Wednesday:  Left over chicken used in open face melted sandwiches

Thursday:  A lemon shrimp salad inspired by this recipe, but changed to sub honey for sugar.

Friday:  I am going to try my hand at these Quinoa stuffed peppers.  Wish me luck.

Saturday:  Scrambled eggs and Breakfast Potatoes

I will leave you with a photo that is unrelated to food.  We had a HUGE victory this week as Trevor graduated to a main stream pre-school.  YAY for our sweet speech-delayed boy, and his progress!

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Dinner Menu for the week of September 8th

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Last week’s menu recap:

The apple and bacon stuffed pork chops were really tasty.  If it were not for all of the “meat handling” in this recipe, it would be a keeper.  If you do not mind the meat handling aspect, or if you do not have minions that need attention during meal prep, than it should be something you try for sure.

The tostadas ended up being chicken sandwiches, and the irish nachos became baked potato slices and shredded chicken left overs.  Both nights, I ended up having business meetings, and I was unable to complete either meal.  I am SO grateful for the chicken in the crock pot though because it fed us for two nights, and made yummy stock!

The rest of the menu items were good, but do not need extra praise.  They are staples.  🙂

Before getting to the items for this week, I have a quick garden update.

My monster zucchini plant met the compost bin yesterday.  It was trying to take over the ENTIRE box, and the leaves were getting this funky white fungus-y looking fuzz on them.  It was just better to call it a total loss.  The lettuce was also pulled after fulfilling its duty to provide us with many salads.

The remaining watermelon, basil, kale, cucumber and peppers are still doing well.  In fact, the jalapeno plant is producing WAY more jalapenos than this mama needs.  I mean taco bell mild sauce is too spicy for my liking.  Ya dig?  Trevor thinks it is fun to “help” in the garden by picking the peppers.  Here are some that were picked before their prime.  Oh well.

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I am eagerly anticipating the bell pepper harvest.  I have several LARGE peppers that are looking amazing.  This particular pepper grows big and green, but turns red as soon as it is ripe.  I cannot imagine that they will get much bigger, but they are all still green.  CANNOT wait!

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Here is our plan for the week:

Sunday:  Quinoa and Salmon salad

Monday:  Chicken enchilada soup from the freezer

Tuesday:  Chicken Marsala pasta with asparagus

Wednesday: Cheeseburgers with roasted sweet potato squares

Thursday:  Cheesy broccoli orzo and a garden salad

Friday:  Chicken couscous salad

Saturday:  Potato breakfast casserole thing inspired by this recipe.  I will change it up and use local sausage, freshly diced potatoes and just might add some bell peppers.

Happy eating everyone!