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Friday

24

January 2014

How To Cook: Broccoli

Written by Rachel, Posted in Dinner, Gluten Free, Roasting, Storage/Prep, Thoughts, Vegetables

Let’s talk about three ways to cook broccoli: steaming, boiling, and roasting.

I definitely have a favorite. Do you?

I tasted all three after I’d cooked them and wasn’t surprised that roasted was my preference. Also wasn’t bewildered that steamed was second. And, it was no shock to me that boiling was my least. That’s not to say that I won’t eat broccoli all three ways. I have and will probably do so again. But, I think that the taste and ease of preparation, hands down, goes to roasting.

Let’s begin.

Wash broccoli, then cut off a bit of the stem, up about an inch (save discarded stem to make vegetable stock).

Make a second cut where the florets start to branch out. Cut away the tough outside edges of that piece of stem (saving for veggie stock) – you can eat the inside just like you’ll eat the rest of the broccoli.

If you’re roasting, now’s the time to toss the broccoli with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and any other seasonings (like the thyme I used this week). Pour them out onto a baking sheet. I usually do about a head of broccoli per person, because we reeeally like roasted broccoli.

Roast the broccoli at 350F for 15-25 minutes. If you want just a hint of color, go for closer to 15. If you like ’em crunchier, stick to 20-25 minutes. (Times may vary slightly depending on your oven, so be sure to check at around 15 minutes.)

Scoop them off the tray and serve just like they are.

If you’re boiling, plunk the broccoli in a pot that’s got some water in it.

My method for boiling is to put broccoli into cold water and bring it up to a boil. It will cook for just a few minutes (around 3-5). I like to salt the water for veggies like this, because, as with pasta, then you are able to flavor the food itself. You are not obligated to do this though.

If you’re steaming, place the broccoli in a steamer basket above a pot with about an inch or inch and a half of water in it (and if you’re doing like I did, steaming and boiling, use the boiling water that’s cooking the broccoli to steam the second floor broccoli).

I like to place veggies in the steamer and bring the water up to a boil. It makes for less steps and fewer minutes spent watching the pot to see if it’s boiled. Once the water has boiled it will take about 4-5 minutes until they’re tender. Less time if you want a bit of a crunch, more time if you want them really soft.

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When you’re done steaming or boiling, throw any stems, leaves, peels, and any other veggie scraps, or older veggies that need to be used up into the pot, add a little more water, and an hour later you will have homemade veggie stock. (If you’ve salted your boiling water and use it for vegetable stock, just make a note on the label so you know when using it later on.)

From left to right we have steamed, roasted, and boiled broccoli. I love the difference in color that results from each cooking method.

Each technique is fairly simple to prepare. Roasting takes a bit longer, because you have to wait for the oven to pre-heat. But, like I said earlier, I enjoy the results best, so it’s worth the wait. However, even I could get tired of roasted broccoli, so I love to change it up.

Broccoli, be it roasted, boiled, or steamed, will go well with pasta (I really enjoy this pasta that gets topped with a fried egg), on sandwiches, topping a roasted potato, alongside polenta, risotto, or roasted chicken. It’s great topped with chopped almonds, red pepper flakes, and lemon juice. It is delicious in a stir-fry, alongside some fried rice. Or, never underestimate a big plate of broccoli, just on it’s own, with a drizzle of good olive oil, some shaved parmesan cheese, a sprinkle of salt, and some freshly ground pepper.

Can you guess what I’m having for dinner tonight?!

Happy Eating!

Wednesday

22

January 2014

2

COMMENTS

#TimAndRachGoToParis2013 – What We Saw

Written by Rachel, Posted in Thoughts, Travel

I’m listening to Edith Piaf as I type this post. It makes me both extremely happy and incredibly sad.

I miss Paris.

To make me feel a little better I’m going to think about some of the fun touristy things we did while we were there.

Since we had three weeks, we had plenty of time to do (almost) everything we wanted to do, some things more than once. We saw the Tour Eiffel quite a few times. We would just “happen” to be in the area and figure we might as well see it again. Or, we’d be at the top of some amazing structure, like the Arc de Triomphe, and be so fortunate to see the tower sparkle for 5 minutes at the top of the hour.

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Yeah, let’s talk about the Eiffel Tower some more. It was my favorite thing to see in Paris. I don’t know why. I just had an emotional sort of attachment to it. I think because it’s something that I feel like I’ve always known about. A representation of a place I’ve always wanted to go. I don’t know. I might just be weird. Whatever the reason, I took a bazillion pictures of it. Daytime, night time, cloudy, sunshine… I could not get enough.

I shouldn’t have been surprised by the beauty of places like Notre Dame, Sainte-Chapelle, and Sacré Coeur. But, I was. I just don’t see that kind of detail and care put into many of the buildings around here. At Sainte-Chapelle, which is smaller than Notre Dame, but much more intricate, they were restoring the stained glass. As in, taking each panel out, removing every piece of glass, re-painting some‚ cleaning them… each piece of glass. What?! It was made for Louis IX. Can you imagine, a church made for a king?!

While we were looking around the inside of these cathedrals, there were church services going on. That felt a little weird, like we were intruding. It made me wonder, does anyone go there go there? Or were they all tourists?

We climbed the 400 steps to the belfry of Notre Dame. The view was phenomenal, but it was cold cold cold!!! Take a freezing day, some under dressed Californians, and then climb up 400 steps to the frigid, windy belfry. Cool. Literally. We stood up there for a long time because we were waiting for the bells to ring on the hour. They didn’t. Our hands and feet went numb, so we left.

We found a Rick Steves walking tour of Notre Dame and Sainte-Chapelle in the Paris guidebook that our friend, Christy, had given us before we left. In addition to tours and info about the places we were visiting, we consulted it constantly for tips on where to eat, where the bathrooms were, hours of operation etc. It was invaluable to us.

Sacré Coeur was part of the view out the window of our flat. So it was extra special to us. We had friends from Germany come to spend a few days with us and they stayed in that area, so we saw it often. But, let me tell you, this was one of the worst places for the bracelet scams and young girls trying to get us to sign petitions. I don’t know what the deal is with the petitions. I watched a few people sign something and never saw a second person pick their pockets. When coming out of the metro in that area once I was met at the top of the stairs by three young women, all shoving clipboards in my face, trying not to let me pass. I had to put on my mean face and push through them. The bracelet scam was a little scarier. There were clusters of guys waiting for tourists. They’d come up to you and start tying string onto your wrist and if you didn’t stop them, they’d make a friendship bracelet for you while you stood and waited. The catch is that they expect you to pay them. One started to grab Tim’s wrist and got upset when Tim told the guy not to touch him.

I loved the Louvre. What I loved the most was the building itself. It was beautiful. We wandered around Napoleon’s apartment. We might have set off an alarm by leaning too far into his dining room. We were like, “Oooh, some tourist is setting off the alarm!” “Oh, it’s us.” Also, um, hello living room. Just a tad fancier than ours (which is also in an apartment, but is just a little bit smaller, and without a single chandelier).

I liked the Louvre better than Versailles. I know, I might be crazy.

While Versailles was insanely, seriously, obnoxiously beautiful, I was a bit underwhelmed by it. Not by the grandeur. Gosh, we walked about 5 miles that day, just on the property. It was stunning, breathtaking, gorgeous. I guess I just preferred the Louvre. It felt like so much at Versailles was something that “could have been similar to what Marie Antoinette” used/slept on/ate off of/wore.

At the Louvre we got to see some of the crowns they wore. I’m so fascinated by things like this because I can’t fathom that this type of thing is/was actually real. People wore crowns, really?!

Of all the museums, our very favorite was the one we spent the least amount of time at. The Musée de l’Orangerie is where Monet’s Water Lilies are. We admired his beautiful murals until we were forced to leave because the museum was closing. We read about an 80 year old man, in the later years of life, painting “Darkness Descends on the Pond”. I thought it was a dark, sad picture, until I noticed the three bright lilies in the center of the canvas, brightening the twilight.

Many of the touristy things that we did were covered by the four day museum pass that we purchased. We definitely got our money’s worth out of it, visiting 8 museums in 4 days. And another plus, at most places we got to go to the front of the line (weeeeeeee-hoooooo!). A bonus when it’s just day 3 and your feet are done. Like seriously done. In case you care, we went to these museums/monuments with our museum pass: Louvre, Rodin, l’Orangerie, Notre Dame belfry, Sainte-Chapelle, l’Arc du Triomphe, Versailles, and Orsay.

Aside from museums and the Eiffel Tower, we had plenty of other touristy business to attend to.

Tim loves to find the place where a favorite movie was filmed. Paris has plenty. Of the many, we saw just three. Inception bridge (twice), Inception café, Charade pillars, and maybe the best of the movie places: we did an Amélie walking tour. Amélie (one of our favorite movies) was filmed in Montmartre, where we stayed. Our main metro stop is the stop in the movie. We were just a 20 minute walk from Café des 2 Moulins (the restaurant she works at), and Mr. Collignon’s market. We also found a few other places that we recognized from the film.

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Another favorite of Tim’s was Shakespeare and Company. An English bookstore across the way from Notre Dame. It was opened by George Whitman in ’51. (Not the original Shakespeare and Company, which was Sylvia Beach’s store and the one frequented by the likes of Hemmingway and Joyce.) It has always been a place hospitable to writers and readers alike. We spent hours there and had to check a third bag because we just had to have so many books stamped with the Shakespeare and Company logo.

We ventured just outside of Paris to a marché aux puces (flea market). Within minutes I’d found a large copper skillet with a lid for €30. I was happy. Although not thrilled that I had to carry it around for the rest of the outing. Ok, I didn’t really care. I was so pleased with the purchase.

It was probably the main reason we needed to check a third bag (because in France they weigh the carry ons… a copper pot is heh-veee). Whatev.

We wandered, bought treasures, got yelled at for touching a €300 1800’s tea cup and saucer (um, if you don’t lock your display case, I’m pretty sure that means I can take things out…). It was a really fun day.

Our weeks were full full full of amazing sights. This is just a glimpse.

Part three of our Paris adventure will continue next week.

Aurevoir.

Wednesday

15

January 2014

7

COMMENTS

#TimAndRachGoToParis2013 – What We Ate

Written by Rachel, Posted in Reviews, Thoughts, Travel

When we talked about the trip before we left, all I could think about was the food. And it didn’t disappoint (with the exception of one calzone and the pâté that I just couldn’t force myself to like). We were blessed by so much more than the food though. But, food is where we will begin.

We spent three weeks in Paris and in that time, I cooked dinner just once. I’ll admit, as much as I love to cook, it was really nice to have a break.

So we ate out a lot.

I won’t bore you with every detail of every single meal (you’re welcome). But, here are a few highlights.

We ate baguettes every day. They might be what I miss the most about Paris. Not joking. I have refused to eat “French bread” since we’ve been home. It is not the same. I was given a kitchen scale for Christmas so I can finally try to make my own baguettes. Wish me luck! They’re harder to make than I’d expected (more about that in the Cooking Classes post).

We ate a lot of butter. (We also walked about 3-5 miles a day…) Amazing, salted, European butter. The best butter is obligatory when eating a French baguette. Our first meal in Paris was at La Chope. We ordered ham sandwiches and got a baguette with butter and ham. Not what I’d expected. It was better. The sandwiches were simple and delicious. I had mine with my first glass of lunchtime wine, a rosé. We ate (trying to convince ourselves that we weren’t exhausted), watching people through the window. There was a man selling oysters in front of the café. People would walk up and get a sample. Most bought some too. It felt like everyone had a baguette in their bag. I knew we’d come to the right place (because of the baguettes, not the oysters… not my favorite).

We ate a so many little cafés that I’ve lost track. Most were great, a few were just good, some were more touristy. Our preference was to dine at the ones where we felt a little out of place, but got along just fine. (Note: We didn’t experience any of the “French rudeness” that people talk about. I speak French, but Tim doesn’t. However, he tried. The server would come over to take our order and Tim would ask me how to say something, I’d translate it, and he’d repeat it to the server. All the while the server knew what we were both saying, but waited patiently for Tim to finish. My French was corrected and also complimented. We thought the French were incredibly kind people.) Our two favorite restaurants were like this and we ate surrounded by the locals, enjoying real French food.

Our favorite favorite favorite experience was at a little bistrot called Au Bon Coin, located at 49 rue des Cloys, Mairie du 18e, Paris, France. We had been in Paris just two days. We were finally getting over our jet lag and feeling a little more normal. We walked a few minutes from our little rented flat and decided to try it for lunch. It was crowded. We found a table at the back and sat down. We waited, sipping water, for menus that never came. I tried to translate the menu that was scrawled on the wall. But, even after taking 12 years of French (a long time ago), there was a lot missing from my vocabulary. The server came over and we ordered what the guy next to us was eating, with glasses of vin rouge (red wine). It looked like some sort of beef with potatoes and green beans. Seemed safe enough. It was the best meal (we went back 3 more times and ate the same thing). My goal for 2014 is to attempt to duplicate it. They may have other things on their menu, but I don’t care. I only want this. (Tim tried the Boeuf Bourguignon once. It was good too.) The beef was pink, pretty rare, but so tender and delicious. The potatoes were exactly as amazing as they’d looked. Crispy and so piping hot that I burned my mouth in my need to eat them all as quickly as possible. I need to have them in my life on a regular basis. (They might be the thing, food-wise, that I miss the second most about Paris.) The green beans weren’t the star, but they were good enough. I guess you need something to bring the meal back down to earth.

But, the food wasn’t the only reason we loved that meal. The man sitting next to us started talking to us. Eventually ending up at our table (we were at a table for 4 – note, don’t do this if you are only 2, and want to continue your meal just the two of you, they will seat someone beside you). The server said (in French), “Don’t worry. He’s nice.” and plopped his plate down next to Tim. So we continued our conversation, noticing that the older woman, who’d come in with her dog, was paying attention to us. She joined in on the conversation. I think we sat there for an hour with them, with me trying desperately to understand them and remember anything that sounded like French to say in response (while silently cursing my lack of motivation during the hours and hours of French classes that I’d taken in school!). Anytime anyone asks us about our favorite experience in Paris, this is what we tell them. Au Bon Coin is what we consider “our place” in Paris.

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Our second favorite restaurant was another little bistrot‚ just around the corner from home, called Le Brio, located at 216 rue Marcadet, 75018 Paris, France. We made friends here too, this time with the server. A sweet college student who took the time to explain the entire menu to us in English. We ate here a number of times and spent hours at their tables with our books, chatting, watching people, and eating a lot.

Our last, including our last evening in Paris we ate here. I tried the croque monsieur and we finished off the evening with some delicious chocolate cake and champagne. This place that we would see every night as we walked home from the metro felt like home.

There was another meal that was simply incredible. It was at a café by the marché aux puces (flea market) that we went to. We didn’t have the opportunity to go a second time, but it was one of the best meals that we had in Paris. The café is called Café Le Paul Bert and is located at 20, Rue Paul Bert 93400 Saint Ouen, France. Our entire meal can be seen in that little cast iron pot. It’s chicken with the creamiest, most delicious rice, and the softest carrots imaginable. I need to discover their secret. I may have eaten (almost) the entire serving. You know when something is so good that you really shouldn’t stop even though you know you should? Yeah, that happened here. But, since we would almost always walk again after a meal, I don’t remember feeling overly full. Winner.

There were a number of other noteworthy meals and experiences that took place around food.

I discovered is that I do not like pâté.

I do, however, never tire of soupe a l’oignon (French onion soup). I can’t remember how many different places we tried it. Some places make it with dehydrated onions, some put the bread and cheese on the side, some make it with so much cheese there’s a huge plomp of it at the bottom of the bowl. Most were good, one or two were great. I think my favorite was at a café next to the Shakespeare and Company bookstore (although I’ll admit I felt a little sick after, maybe because it was so incredibly rich… but it was worth it).

We tried many crème brûlées. They were all surprisingly different from one another. Some thick, some more of a crème anglaise, some with a super crunchy layer of brûléed sugar. You almost can’t go wrong here.

We were told that we had to, at some point, try the nutella crèpes. We were wandering around one evening and found a street vender with this simple treat and ate it for dinner as we strolled down Rue Cler.

We made coffee at home some mornings and drank it while eating croissants, baguettes with beurre, or pain au chocolate. But, it wasn’t nearly as good as the café‚ crèmes that we drank at the cafés. We never once ordered a regular cup of coffee. I’m not even sure if you can. If you order a café, you get a tiny cup of espresso. Who knows. C’est un mystére.

I had two burgers in Paris. I’ll admit, I needed a burger and frites. Buuut, they were not from McDonalds. 😉 And, they were very good. In fact, I ate frites quite a few times. The Parisians sure know how to fry a potato.

I sometimes have a hard time buying something at a restaurant that I can make at home. Since I have successfully made Julia Child’s Boeuf Bourguignon twice, I have no need to pay someone else to do it. But, that didn’t stop me. I mean, I was in Paris. What’s more Parisian than that (besides baguettes and many other things)?!

The one place that we didn’t eat that I was really disappointed to miss out on was Les Deux Magots. I’d read about Julia Child eating there in My Life in France and really wanted to eat there too. It was closed for renovations. Sigh. Oh well, guess we will just have to go back.

Now that I’m absolutely starving for all the foods I can’t have, I’m going to go make some popcorn for dinner.

Baguettes are on my to do list this week. It’s a must. I need some bread and butter.

Part two of our Paris adventure will continue next week.

Aurevoir.

Monday

13

January 2014

0

COMMENTS

Menu Planning Series – Part Three – Staples and Tools

Written by Rachel, Posted in Menu Planning, Thoughts

The third installment in our menu planning series has to do with having a properly equipped kitchen.

(Did you read parts one and two? If not, have a look, then come back to this one.)

You’re gonna need some tools. Let’s talk about them, from the pantry and to what you might want to keep in the freezer, to the instruments that will cut, shape, hold your food.

Here we go.

Staples to Have on Hand

I like to have a few things on hand for last minute meals: pasta and tuna for a Tuna Casserole, Tomato Soup, cheese, and bread for Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup (boxed soup is fine, but if you want to make a large batch of homemade and store it in small portions, it’s a great idea!); homemade waffle/pancake mix, and eggs and bread for French Toast.

I also like to have regular pantry staples such as: good olive oil, coconut oil, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, white vinegar, canned beans (great if you don’t have time to soak and cook dried ones – it takes some planning ahead), dried beans, cans of tomato sauce (plain, add your own seasonings – cheaper than buying a jar of pre-made sauce at the store), dried herbs (oregano, parsley, basil, thyme, rosemary, savory), salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, all spice, nutmeg, onions, garlic, pasta, brown rice, corn meal (for polenta and cornbread), quinoa, oats, potatoes, all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, coconut palm sugar, honey, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and vanilla extract.

In the refrigerator: unsalted butter, milk, eggs, apples, lemons, cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese, peanut butter, maple syrup, dijon mustard, mayonnaise, sandwich bread, homemade jam, carrots, lettuce, greens (kale or spinach), and fresh herbs.

In the freezer: a package or two of ground beef/turkey/chicken, a whole chicken, frozen leftover chicken, salmon, and bacon (f you don’t eat meat at every meal staples like: tempeh and tofu work well), peas, corn, dry yeast (yes, an extra jar), and frozen veggies (ones that might not get eaten the week they arrived in the AHO box, cut into bite smaller pieces).

Kitchen Tools

If your kitchen isn’t fully equipped, here are a few things that you will need to get started: a good chef’s knife (that is kept sharp), paring knife, bread knife, set of bowls (that can be washed in the dishwasher, if you have one), large serving spoon, medium serving spoons, wooden spoons, whisks, tongs, grater, small sauce pot, medium sauce pot, heavy bottomed soup pot, baking sheets, cooling racks, cast iron skillet (one of my favorite kitchen tools), cutting boards, veggie peeler, hot pads, meat thermometer (I use mine all the time), baster, spatulas, kitchen scissors, measuring cups (the scooping kind and the glass pouring kind) and spoons, funnel, aluminum foil, and parchment paper.

Once you’ve got the basics, here are a few other tools that I’ve gotten a lot of use out of: hand blender, microplane grater, KitchenAid stand mixer, steamer basket, small glass prep-bowls, individual sized ramekins (perfect for individual Chicken Pot Pies), oven thermometer, and a rolling pin (if you don’t have one you can use a large glass bottle).

I think you’re ready. I hope that in no time at all this becomes second nature to you. I have confidence that you are well on your way to a lifetime of delicious foods. And remember to ask if you need help.

Happy Eating Friends!

Friday

10

January 2014

0

COMMENTS

Menu Planning Series – Part Two – The Menu

Written by Rachel, Posted in Menu Planning, Thoughts

Welcome to step two of our Menu Planning Series!

In this post we’re going to tackle the menu. It may be daunting, but you can do it!

Give yourself an hour or two.

Let’s plan.

(Week one talked about the reason and the research behind the menu plan. It also had the first step to menu planning.)

On to step two…

2. Make a week long calendar. Use pencil (or the computer – feel free to print off my menu template above). Write down the ideas and notes on a separate page and take them with you to the computer to peruse your favorite food blogs I’d suggest some of my favorites: De Ma Cuisine, Simple Bites, Abundant Harvest Kitchen, Gluten Free Girl, Eating from the Ground Up, Joy the Baker), or search through your preferred cookbooks or magazines. Bookmark online recipes, note page numbers from cookbooks, and tear out recipes from magazines. To begin it may be best to use just a few blogs, one cookbook, and one magazine, so it’s not too overwhelming.

3. Think about the types of foods that you like to eat and the ways they can be used. For example, I like to roast a whole chicken. If I plan to roast it on Monday, I know that there will be leftovers (since there are two of us eating). I can freeze the leftovers and use them to make Chicken and Rice Soup on Sunday. I can use the bones from the chicken to make stock for the soup. I could plan a Stir-Fry for Tuesday, doubling the amount of brown rice so I can freeze the leftovers for Sunday’s soup.

4. I like to write down ideas for the sides and main dishes, so I don’t forget something and end up with pasta three times and no rice or beans, and beef four nights in a row. I might start with some basics for sides: pasta, beans, rice, polenta, quinoa, potatoes.

Then I could expand each one to:

Pasta = spaghetti

Beans = chili

Rice = stir-fry

Polenta = cheesy polenta

Quinoa = quinoa risotto

Potatoes = crispy potatoes

Then I could move to adding proteins to the dishes:

Pasta = spaghetti and meatballs

Beans = chili with ground beef and beans

Rice = stir-fry with almonds or peanuts

Polenta = roasted chicken with cheesy polenta

Quinoa = quinoa risotto with ham

Potatoes = Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese

Rice = Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup

Next add your veggies and fruits:

Pasta = spaghetti and meatballs (with zucchini, bell pepper, onions, garlic, spinach, and tomatoes) with homemade caesar salad

Beans = chili with ground beef and beans (with tomatoes, bell pepper, onions, squash… the possibilities are endless!)

Rice = stir-fry with almonds or peanuts (with carrots, snap peas, onions, garlic, citrus, broccoli)

Polenta = roasted chicken with cheesy polenta with roasted broccoli and cauliflower

Quinoa = quinoa risotto with ham (with peas in the quinoa risotto) with roasted green beans

Potatoes = Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese with a green salad with homemade vinaigrette

Rice = Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup (with peas, carrots, onions, garlic, squash)

Add any notes or extras:

Pasta = spaghetti and meatballs (with zucchini, bell pepper, onions, garlic, spinach, and tomatoes) with homemade caesar salad – serve with garlic bread, freeze leftover garlic bread to go along with Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Beans = chili with ground beef and beans (with tomatoes, bell pepper, onions, squash… the possibilities are endless!) – serve with cornbread, re-heat leftover cornbread for breakfast tomorrow with a fried egg, freeze leftover garlic bread to go along with Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup, freeze leftover chili for Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese.

Rice = stir-fry with almonds or peanuts (with carrots, snap peas, sprouts, onions, garlic, citrus, broccoli) – make a double batch of rice and freeze half for Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Polenta = roasted chicken with cheesy polenta with roasted broccoli and cauliflower – leftover broccoli and cauliflower could be used in the Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Quinoa = quinoa risotto with ham (with peas in the quinoa risotto) with roasted green beans – slice leftover ham for sandwiches for lunches, freeze cubed leftover ham for a Ham and Potato Chowder (meal idea for next week?), freeze small slices of ham to make Hawaiian pizza.

Potatoes = Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese with a green salad with homemade vinaigrette – make extra vinaigrette and store it in the fridge for salads for lunches and for next week.

Rice = Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup (with peas, carrots, onions, garlic, squash) – serve with leftover cornbread or garlic bread.

Now that I’ve got my meals, I’d look at the calendar and figure out which days they will work best for. (Keeping in mind that I might not prefer to have the same food three days in a row, so spacing out the beef, for example. Also remembering not to put the leftover meals at the beginning of the week. ;))

Monday

Spaghetti and Meatballs

(with zucchini, bell pepper, onions, garlic, spinach, and tomatoes)

with homemade Caesar Salad

Serve with garlic twists. Freeze leftover garlic twists to go along with Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Recipe from De Ma Cuisine.

Take chicken out to defrost for Wednesday.

Tuesday

Ginger-Citrus Stir-Fry with Almonds and Brown Rice

(with carrots, snap peas, sprouts, onions, garlic, citrus, broccoli)

Make a double batch of rice and freeze half for Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Recipe from De Ma Cuisine.

Wednesday

Roasted Chicken with Cheesy Polenta with Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower

Leftover broccoli and cauliflower could be used in the Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup.

Recipe from De Ma Cuisine.

In polenta, substitute for savory with thyme, omit tomato and baking step. Take beef out to defrost for Thursday. If ham is large, take out to defrost for Friday, if not change note to tomorrow.

Thursday

Three Bean Chili

(with tomatoes, bell pepper, onions, squash… the possibilities are endless!)

Serve with cornbread. Re-heat leftover cornbread for breakfast tomorrow with a fried egg. Freeze leftover cornbread to go along with Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup. Freeze leftover chili for Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese.

Recipe from De Ma Cuisine.

Friday

Quinoa Risotto with Roasted Ham with Roasted Green Beans

(with peas in the quinoa risotto)

Slice leftover ham for sandwiches for lunches. Freeze cubed leftover ham for a Ham and Potato Chowder (meal idea for next week?). Freeze small slices of ham to make Hawaiian pizza.

Take leftover chili out to defrost for Saturday.

Saturday

Crispy Potatoes with Chili and Cheese with a Green Salad with Homemade Maple Vinaigrette

Make extra vinaigrette and store it in the fridge for salads for lunches and for next week.

Take leftover chicken, rice, and bread out to defrost for Sunday.

Recipe from De Ma Cuisine.

Sunday

Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup

(with peas, carrots, onions, garlic, squash)

Serve with leftover cornbread or garlic bread.

Now that the hard part is done, pat yourself on the back, step away from the menu, and take a breath.

I’m proud of you.

Now make a note to come back on January 13th to learn more about equipping your kitchen to cook all these amazing meals that you’ve just planned.

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The third installment in our menu planning series has to do with having a properly equipped kitchen.

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Menu Planning Series – Part Two – The Menu

Welcome to step two of our Menu Planning Series!

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