cooking

7/28/2024: Weekly Meal Plan!

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgI am trying hard to keep my grocery budget at $100 weekly for the foreseeable future. It’s super rough, but I’ll be cooking from scratch, and reaching into the freezer and pantry to use up what we’ve got and keep our out-of-pocket for groceries down.

I picked up a a few drinks and some smoothie ingredients courtesy of Aisle, and it’s been fun trying new beverages with my lunches.

Thanks to the great freebies from Social Nature, we’ve been trying new foods lately. It’s fun to try new foods.

If you are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101-style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same.

Breakfast: I’ve been really into protein coffee lately. It helps me hit my protein goals and keeps me full until lunch. I use premade protein shakes like these and these. The kids request bagels and fruit most mornings. The big kid is on a smoothie kick, and is favorites can be found here. 

Lunch: I have a plastic tote full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. We eat lunch at home most of the time over the summer. Sometimes we take advantage of the kid’s free summer lunches (info here).

Dinner: It’s so hot here in Southern California, that I’m trying hard not to turn on the oven. We’re enjoying a lot of ready-to-eat sides (chips and fruit), so that time in the kitchen is minimized.

  • Sunday:  Quesadillas, rice, fruit
  • Monday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches (cheese of your choice), fruit, chips

  • Tuesday: Dream Dinner, fruit salad

  • Wednesday: Tamales,  beans & rice

  • Thursday: Turkey Sandwiches, chips, fruit

  • Friday: Takeout night!
  • Saturday: Leftover Palooza

It’s Dinner Time: Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

This week;s dinner are going to slap. I think that’s what the kids say.

I picked up a bunch of free drinks courtesy of Aisle, and it’s been fun trying new beverages with my lunches.

Thanks to the great freebies from Social Nature, we’ve been trying new foods lately. It’s fun to try new foods.

If you are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101-style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same.

Breakfast: I’ve been really into protein coffee lately. It helps me hit my protein goals and keeps me full until lunch. I use premade protein shakes like these and these. The kids request bagels and fruit most mornings. Lately, the big kid has been digging protein shakes in the morning. This is his favorite kind. 

Lunch: I have a plastic tote full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. We eat lunch at home most of the time over the summer. Sometimes we take advantage of the kid’s free summer lunches (info here).

Dinner: I’m back in the kitchen again and the CSA boxes are coming weekly. I’ve got all kinds of plans for batch-cooking soups and stews over the coming weeks.

  • Sunday:  Sloppy Joes, chips, fruit
  • Monday: Breakfast for dinner: eggs, hashbrowns, bacon, apples slices

  • Tuesday: Dream Dinner

  • Wednesday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches (cheese of your choice), fruit, chips

  • Thursday: Ravioli with red sauce and salad or fruit

  • Friday: Takeout night!
  • Saturday: Leftover Palooza

Piquant Post- Deals on Spices!

Abby H.

This is a new website to me, but I looked it over, placed an order, and decided to share. Have y’all heard of Piquant Post? It’s a spice website that sells individual spices, herbs, and blends, but it also offers subscriptions. Go month by month, 6 months at a time, or annually. Each month you’ll receive a package.

Piquant Posts has in-house chefs who curate the selection of spice blends and develop recipes around a new theme each month. In addition, 4 printed recipe cards to use the spice blends each month (1 for each blend).

And don’t worry about repeats: They currently have enough spices in their catalog to never repeat spice blends for 21 consecutive months.

I have a lot of cooks in my life and this subscription is going to make a great gift for a few of them!

But if you are looking for a single spice or herb to refresh your spice rack, or want to try something new, check out all of their offerings here. 

This Week’s Meal Plan!

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgI forgot to hit Publish on this post on Sunday night and just discovered it in my drafts. Oops.

We are back in the kitchen, and I will be posting pics of it on Instagram this week. I absolutely love my new kitchen. It has tons of counter space, and cabinets, and my new dishwasher is 1000 times better than the old one.

I picked up a bunch of stuff that was stashed in my mom’s chest freezer that I was unable to make without a kitchen, so the only grocery shopping I did this week was for some milk and plain bagels for the girl child.

Thanks to the great freebies from Social Nature, we’ve been trying new foods lately. It’s fun to try new foods.

If you are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101-style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same.

Breakfast: I’ve been really into protein coffee lately. It helps me hit my protein goals and keeps me full until lunch. I use premade protein shakes like these and these. The kids request bagels and fruit most mornings. Lately, the big kid has been digging protein shakes in the morning. This is his favorite kind. 

Lunch: I have a plastic tote full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. We eat lunch at home most of the time over the summer. Sometimes we take advantage of the kid’s free summer lunches (info here).

Dinner: I’m back in the kitchen again and the CSA boxes are coming weekly. I’ve got all kinds of plans for batch-cooking soups and stews over the coming weeks.

  • Sunday:  Dream Dinners (Chicken Tarragon with roasted potatoes)
  • Monday: Smoothies or Protein shakes and snack trays

  • Tuesday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches (cheese of your choice), fruit, chips

  • Wednesday: Sloppy Joes, chips, fruit, and veggies with hummus

  • Thursday: Chicken nuggets or a veggie burger, fruit, and chips

  • Friday: Takeout night!
  • Saturday: Leftover Palooza

Family Recipe: Chow Mein Hotdish

Abby H.
My mom made some recently and sent some home with me!

OK, so growing up we used to have this like once every few weeks. It’s quick, it’s easy, and I swore that it was a family recipe.

When researching this recipe, I then found out that apparently, this is a hot dish that’s made all over the Midwest. And according to my mom, it’s in tons of church cookbooks.

This recipe is pretty simple, and it’s delicious, and it is kind of weird. And definitely not at all Asian.

Chow mein hot dish 

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon of dehydrated toasted onions, or 1/4 diced white onion
  • one can of cream of mushroom soup
  • half a can of cream of mushroom soup filled with water
  • One cup of uncooked rice
  • Two ribs of celery, diced
  • 1/2 cup of water
  • 1 small can of water chestnuts slices, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can of chow mein noodles

Directions

  1. In an electric skillet over medium heat, cook and crumble ground beef and onion.
  2. Add all remaining ingredients except chow mein noodles.
  3. Cook on medium stirring often until rice is tender.
  4. Remove from heat, top with chow mein noodles, and serve immediately.

Serves 6.

If you want to add extra veggies, add 1 cup sliced mushrooms when cooking the meat and onion.

You can cook this on the stove, but I’ve always cooked the majority of my hot dishes in an electric skillet. I’m not sure why. Probably because my entire family does.

Some people like this served with a little bit of soy sauce, but I find that the condensed cream of mushroom soup is salty enough as it is.

Family Recipe: Calico Beans

Abby H.
Beans, Beans…

This recipe is one of my favorite Fourth of July favs.

Calico Beans. Easy to make, so good, gets better as leftovers (if there are any).

This will be one of the few recipes I will not change, so vegetarian/vegan/GF friends, scroll on.

Calico Beans -Makes a crockpot full

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. ground beef, crumbled, cooked, and drained
  • 1 package (12 ounces) bacon, chopped, cooked, and drained
  • 1/2 onion, diced (Or use 1/4 cup dehydrated onions)
  • 2 large cans of Campbell’s Pork & Beans
  • 3 cans of beans, your choice (Great Northern, Black Eye, Cannelli, Kidney, Butter Beans are all solid choices) DRAINED AND RINSED
  • 1/4 c brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup ketchup
  • 1 Tablespoon yellow mustard
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Directions:

  1. Put all of the ingredients into a crockpot.
  2. Stir to combine.
  3. Cover with a lid and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

These beans are amazing. They are so filling, and taste like summer (at least to me). A friend of my grandfather always brought these beans to potlucks and swore it was a special secret family recipe.

It’s not. This recipe, or a variation is in almost every midwestern church cookbook. Gatekeeping family recipes is a no-no in my book. If you don’t share recipes, the food is lost to your family and friends when you pass. Share the recipe and your memory and the happy memories of eating your food will live on!

 

 

Family Recipe: Chili Mac in an Electric Skillet

Abby H.

When I was a kid, my mom cooked a lot in an electric skillet in the summer. It was a great way to make dinner without heating up the entire house. And it’s all cooked in one pan.

Since we’ve been living without a stove/kitchen for almost 7 months (the end is in sight), I decided to revisit one of my favorite childhood meals.

Chili Mac (serves 6-8)

  • 1 lb of your favorite ground meat (beef, turkey, chicken, pork, or ground meat-free crumbles to make it vegetarian)
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves diced garlic
  • 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 envelope of Chili seasoning
  • 14 ounces water
  • 2 cups protein pasta (I like Brami)
  • 1-3 cups of sharp cheddar cheese

Directions

  1. In an Electric Skillet, cook and crumble the ground meat over medium heat.
  2. Add chopped onion and cook until translucent, add garlic and cook until fragrant.
  3. Add remaining ingredients, turn the electric skillet down to low, and cover.
  4. Allow mixture to cook on low for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add extra water 1/4 cup at a time as needed. Pasta will absorb some of the liquid as it cooks.
  5. Once pasta is Al Dente, top with cheese to your liking and serve.

Perfect with cornbread and a green salad.

Chili Mac is better the next day- perfect for meal prep!

6/30/2024 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThe countertops were installed today- the appliances will be reinstalled tomorrow (fingers crossed).

That means I’ll be able to cook in the oven and on the stove top.

Thanks to the great freebies from Social Nature, we’ve been trying new foods lately. It’s fun to try new foods.

If you are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101-style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same.

Breakfast: I’ve been really into protein coffee lately. It helps me hit my protein goals and keeps me full until lunch. I use premade protein shakes like these and these. The kids request bagels and fruit most mornings. Lately, the big kid has been digging protein shakes in the morning. This is his favorite kind. 

Lunch: I have a plastic tote full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. We eat lunch at home most of the time over the summer. Sometimes we take advantage of the kid’s free summer lunches (info here).

Dinner: With the kitchen renovation ending, I can cook from scratch again. I am looking forward to making pizza, cookies, roasted veggies, casseroles, and baked pasta dishes.

  • Sunday:  Fridge clean-out night aka leftovers

  • Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner (pancakes, fruit, sausage)

  • Wednesday: Dream Dinner, salad

  • Thursday: Snack trays (turkey, cheese and crackers, fruit, popcorn, cookies)

  • Friday: Takeout night!
  • Saturday: Baked pasta casserole (recipe will be forthcoming this week)

Summer Grill Bundles from Dream Dinners!

Abby H.

As you are all aware,  Dream Dinners is one of my favorite ways to save time and get tasty, healthy meals on the table in 45 minutes or less!

Just in time for summer, Dream Dinners is offering Grill Bundles. The perfect easy meal plan for camping, your next vacation, or a staycation. There are two Bundles, One available in June, and the second in July.

And it gets better- If you are new to Dream Dinners, order 3 or more dinners, and get a free medium Creamy Chicken Risotto as their gift to you. Use code SHARE at checkout.

If you don’t live near a Dream Dinners location, don’t fret! New Guests can receive free shipping on their first box of 4 medium dinners as a special offer just for you. Use the code FREESHIP at checkout.

On Medi-Cal? Free Produce boxes from Project Food Box!

Abby H.

I found this on Reddit of all places, but after doing some research, it’s totes legit.

While not something that my San Diego friends can take advantage of, for those who are eligible, this is an amazing opportunity.

Project Food Box ships boxes of produce and healthy food straight to your door- At no charge.  This program is not for everyone, and their range is limited, but, this is such an incredible program. I had to share it.

Eligibility- You are a Medi-Cal Member residing in one of the following counties:

• Fresno
•Kings
•Madera
•San Bernadino
•Riverside
• Imperial
• Los Angeles
• Orange

Qualifying health conditions include but are not limited to diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, congestive heart failure, stroke, chronic lung disorders, HIV, cancer, gestational diabetes, or other high-risk perinatal conditions, and chronic or disabling mental/behavioral health disorders. Individuals being discharged from the hospital or a skilled nursing facility or at high risk of hospitalization or nursing facility placement. Individuals with extensive care coordination needs.

You will need the Medi-cal CIN for the person signing up, as well as Checking yes to the  “have a chronic condition” to be eligible for the program.

They even have recipes on their website to help you use the foods in your box!

To sign up or learn more, visit their website.