Here we are, back to Meal Plan Monday. This week will be a bit hectic so nailing down a meal plan is making me feel all warm and fuzzy! The crazier my life gets, the more I rely on meal planning to be the constant.
Monday: Coconut Chicken Salad.
We had a quick change of plans this weekend as my in-laws came up for the weekend. We ended up making some delicious Coconut Chicken on Sunday and had some left over. So Monday night will be leftover Coconut Chicken on romaine with mandarin oranges and poppy seed dressing. YUM!
Tuesday: Seasoned Chicken Breast with Frozen Veggies and Baked Potato
Nothing fancy about this meal. I will be cooking up some pre-marinated chicken breast from the meat case, microwaving whatever mixed vegetables I grab from the freezer and a baked potato. Keeping it simple.
Wednesday: Pork Roast (packet of French onion soup mix) with Herb-Roasted Squash and side salad.
Wednesdays are my day off and the PERFECT day for a crock-pot meal. The Herb-Roasted Squash recipe is AMAZING! If you are planning on a crowd, use all three varieties, if it will just be your family, use 1-2 squash and just downsize the rest of the ingredients. The pine nuts in the recipe add an amazing crunch to the creamy squash, so don’t forget them.
Thursday: Pork Fajitas.
Thursday will be a bit hectic as we are meeting with our lawyer to finalize our will. (Not a pleasant process to go through, but I can sleep easier knowing that my babies will be taken care of). After that it is my monthly “Cards” night with the neighborhood ladies. I use the term “cards” loosely as we have yet to actually play cards a single time. In the 1.5 years that we have been getting together, we have only played any sort of game at all 3 times. We just have better, more important things to do (read: wine and chatting).
So because of our lawyer appointment and my monthly trip back to sanity, it will be leftover night. My go-to for leftover meat is always a fajita or quesadilla. It is a great way to use up small bits of anything leftover from the past (beans, vegetables, cheese, meat, rice). Everyone in my family loves them and they can be made to order. So, we will be using up the rest of the pork roast and of course, no fajita is complete without some amazing guacamole (the recipe coming later this week).
Friday: Fish, rice and salad.
Nothing crazy here, folks. Each week when creating my menu, I always ask my two kiddos what they want. This helps them feel more connected to the meal and also guarantees that they will at least eat one meal each week without complaining! 🙂 “Fish” was Maxwell’s choice. So fish it is! I’m not sure how we will be preparing it, but my go-to fish recipe is potato chip encrusted fish. Friday is also the night I will be going out to celebrate my good friend’s birthday, so supper needs to be quick and easy. Note: I can’t remember the last time I have had this much “me” time. I guess it will be good to get my tanks topped off as I prepare for being a single parent on Saturday while my hubby is at class.
Saturday: Black Bean Soup with Sweet Potatoes and Kale.
The recipe title is a mouthful, but trust me, the recipe is worth it! My husband will be in the Twin Cities all day on Saturday. He is just starting his Specialist Program (in hopes of becoming an administrator for a school). So, on Saturdays I like to have a meal that I can throw together and not have to worry about as I am chasing the kiddos around. Nothing better than dumping the ingredients into a crock-pot and running errands and playing all day.
Sunday: Crock Pot Lasagna
This choice is from my youngest, Mia. Each and every week, her choice is always “Noodles”. That girl LOVES her starchy treats. Although her favorite way to eat them is with olive oil and “shaker cheese” aka Parmesan cheese, she is satisfied with eating noodles in any form. So Sundays lunch is our noodle fix for the week. I have to admit, I have never made crock pot lasagna, but thought that Sunday would be the perfect day. We are at church on Sundays until about 11:45, so having lunch already made and ready to go helps minimize any freak-outs due to hunger when we get home. The crock-pot is the easiest way for us to accomplish this. I don’t have an official recipe for this (yet), but plan on using my own recipe and modifying as necessary. I will post results afterwards. I would love to hear your recipe.
This RD Eats! 