meal

6/27/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis week have some fun afternoon plans: Swimming, hanging out with friends, a trip to get fro yo, and our weekly library trip. We’re working our way across the county libraries.

The kids have been digging the free school lunches- It’s a great way to encourage them to try new foods. That’s great because the price of groceries has gone up exponentially over the past few weeks, so I’m leaning more on stores that have good deals like Grocery Outlet, and using my cashback apps like Fetch Rewards. I’ve been cashing out Fetch rewards for Target Gift Cards. I’ve been combining the Target Gift Cards with grocery sales and deals in the Target app, and picking up via curbside pick up. It’s a great option if you’ve got kids and you’ve got a busy summer.

And I’ve been getting a lot of really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

The CSA Box comes tomorrow AM, but they send out a preview email over the weekend. It is very helpful for menu planning.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I’m doing some meal prep today: A batch of cookies, roasting zucchini, defrosting and marinating chicken, and defrosting ground beef so tomorrow I can make a big batch of red sauce.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: We pick up free school lunches during the summer for the kids, I also have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Pulled BBQ chicken, rice, salad.
  • Monday: Spaghetti with red sauce (I am making some without meat for my vegetarian kiddo).
  • Tuesday:  Breakfast for Dinner (pancakes, bacon, and fruit-probably melon)
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night: Nuggets, crackers, cheese, fruit
  • Thursday: Italian Herb and Lemon chicken, rice, salad, roasted corn
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit, salad

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

6/21/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis week marks the first week of summer school for the big kid and a reading summer program for the little one. I’m excited for them to get out of the house and be with other kids.

We hit up the county library last week and picked up our summer reading stuff and checked out a huge stack of books.

Last weeks’ trip to the grocery store combined with the free summer lunches meals that I didn’t have to go to the grocery store over the weekend for this week. That’s great because the price of groceries has gone up exponentially over the past few weeks, so I’m leaning more on stores that have good deals like Grocery Outlet, and using my cashback apps like Fetch Rewards.

We usually get a CSA box on Mondays, but I opted to skip this week because we have so much leftover from last week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I did a little meal prep over the weekend, mostly cutting up melons, making salads, and cooking a batch of beans and rice for lunch this week.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: We pick up free school lunches during the summer for the kids, I also have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Burgers and fries
  • Monday: Spinach Salad, Chicken Tikka Masala, rice
  • Tuesday:   Pulled BBQ chicken, roasted veg, noodles
  • Wednesday:  Meal o’ snacks: Fruits, crackers, cheese, granola bars
  • Thursday: Breakfast for Dinner (pancakes, bacon, and fruit)
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit, salad

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

6/14/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis week is our first full week of summer vacation! This week both kids are free, meaning no summer school or structured learning. We’ll be playing and swimming all week long. I’ve got a bunch of errands and phone calls to get done.

Yesterday was my big trip to the grocery store. The price of groceries has gone up exponentially over the past few weeks, so I’m leaning more on stores that have good deals like Grocery Outlet, and using my cashback apps like Fetch Rewards.

The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I didn’t do any meal prep yesterday, so I’ll be doing it after the CSA box arrives this morning. Next week we’ll be taking a hiatus from the CSA box. We eat less when it’s hot out, and I don’t want any food to go to waste. It’s going to be hellaciously hot this week, so the meal plan reflects that with lots of cool/cold food.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: We pick up free school lunches during the summer for the kids, I also have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Soup, Salad, and  Toast
  • Monday: Salad, Protein shakes, and Texas Toast
  • Tuesday:   Breakfast for Dinner (pancakes, bacon, and fruit)
  • Wednesday:  Meal o’ snacks: Fruits, crackers, cheese, granola bars
  • Thursday:  Roasted Veg, chicken, potatoes
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit, salad

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

6/7/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis week marks the end of our school year. Woo Hoo? Big kid is doing ESY (extended school year aka summer school) so it’s no big thing for him. Also this week our Bitty Bird turns six! We’ll be having a socially responsible party this coming weekend with friends and family in our bubble.

I went to the grocery store Friday while the kids were at school. 99 Cents Only and Grocery Outlet had tons of great deals, and I was able to stock up for the week (and beyond) and stay on budget.

The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

Over the weekend, I did some meal prep: I prepared the last of our CSA veggies to roast, and a big salad with all the fixings.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Beans, Rice, roasted veggies, fruit salad
  • Monday: Chicken with Floretine sauce, roasted veggies, potatoes
  • Tuesday:   Frozen Entrees, Salad, Texas Toast
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night (nuggets, fruit, crackers, milk)
  • Thursday:  Skillet Casserole, Salad
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Soup, Roasted Veg, Texas Toast

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

5/31/2021 Weekly Meal Plan!

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpg

Today is Memorial Day in the US, and a lot of people are spending the day hanging out with friends and family, visiting the graves of their family who served in the military.

We are spending the day at home, hanging out with the kids, swimming in the pool.

I went to the grocery store Friday while the kids were at school, knowing that the kids would be home all weekend and on Monday. 99 Cents Only and Grocery Outlet had tons of great deals, and I was able to stock up for the week (and beyond) and stay on budget.

The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

Over the weekend, I did some meal prep: I prepared the last of our CSA veggies (broccoli) to roast and serve with the orange ginger chicken I cooked Sunday night. I also made some sauces to use throughout the week (orange ginger sauce, stir fry sauce, tzatziki sauce), and I made a batch of hummus. And of course, I made cookies for the week (we’ll see how long they last).

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Turkey burgers with feta, roasted broccoli, oven baked fries
  • Monday:  Orange Ginger Chicken, roasted veg
  • Tuesday:   Beans, Rice, roasted veggies, quesadillas
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night (nuggets, fruit, crackers, milk)
  • Thursday:  Breakfast for Dinner ( pancakes, eggs, fruit)
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Meal o’ Snacks and /or leftovers

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

First Peek at New RubiosxBlais Tacos at Rubio’s Coastal Grill and Giveaway!

Abby H.8 Comments

Yesterday I had an amazing experience. I was invited to the media launch of the RubiosxBlais adventure-inspired street tacos.

I posted about this last week, and these tacos BLEW ME AWAY. This collaboration was 2 years in the making, and when you bite into these, you know this was a labor of love.

The three tacos are:

  • Hula Hula Carnitas: Inspired by Chef Blais’ time in Hawaii, the Hula Hula Carnitas taco features pork marinated in a rich blend of gochujang, achiote, and garlic, wrapped in a banana leaf and slow-cooked, creating tender, juicy meat with an authentic Hawaiian Kalua flavor. It is served on a stone ground corn tortilla with mango salsa and garnished with black sesame seeds, cotija cheese and a slice of lime. The taste is a subtly sweet mash-up of authentic Hawaiian and Mexican flavors.
  • Blaised & Glazed Crispy Chicken: Delivering a tangy, zesty taco twist on Buffalo chicken, the Blaised & Glazed taco starts with Rubio’s crispy chicken tossed in Frank’s RedHot sauce, the secret ingredient used in the original Buffalo wings created in Buffalo, NY in 1964. It is served on a warm flour tortilla with crisp shredded cabbage, homemade ranch sauce, and house-pickled celery and jalapeño, garnished with cotija cheese and celery seed.
  • Ancho Po-Boy Shrimp: Named after New Orleans’ most famous sandwich, the Ancho Po-Boy Shrimp taco is a modern take on classic New Orleans street food. The taco features flash-fried ancho-lime shrimp with Cajun aioli, and is served on a warm flour tortilla with crisp shredded cabbage, salsa fresca and a slice of lime.

My favorite was the chicken taco, and here’s why. Details. It’s a taco, but at the same time, it’s all of the ingredients, the details that make it so tasty. The homemade ranch sauce (which has the texture of crema- it’s amazing), and the pickled celery. PICKLED CELERY you guys! Imagine the hot carrots and peppers from your local taco shop, with crunchy celery added. It gives the taco a bright, spicy crunch. And the celery seed on the top-it’s the icing on the cake!

Are you excited to try these tasty new tacos? You’ve got until October, but you aren’t going to wait.

I’m giving two of my readers a chance to experience the RubiosxBlais tasty taco collab (or anything on the Rubio’s Coastal Grill Menu, but you’ll want these tacos). Entering is quick and easy. To enter, click here. I will choose two winners on 5/26/2021. This giveaway is not sponsored or fulfilled by Rubio’s, Facebook, or Instagram.

Recipe: Easy Spanish Tortilla

Abby H.

I know y’all want the recipe first and more info and tips afterward, so here ya go:

Spanish Tortilla (serves 4)

Ingredients:

  • 1 large potato, peeled and sliced very thinly
  • 1 sweet onion, diced
  • 1 bell pepper, color of your choice (I used green)
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 T butter
  • 6 eggs
  • 1/4 c half and half
  • 1/2 c shredded cheese, your choice
  • 1/2 c Cooked bacon crumbles
  • Salt, pepper
  • Chopped green onion for garnish

Directions:

  1. Using half of the butter, sauté onion and pepper until softened and onions are clear, about five minutes on medium.
  2. Add remaining butter, allow to melt, coat pan, and add potatoes so they are separated and evenly dispersed throughout the pan.
  3. Cook on low until potatoes are translucent, about five to 10 minutes on medium.
  4. While potatoes are cooking, in a mixing bowl crack eggs, add half-and-half. Add salt and pepper, beat vigorously until well blended.
  5. Remove pan from heat, pour egg mixture over top of vegetables make sure egg mixture is evenly distributed throughout the pan, covering veggies.
  6. Top with bacon crumbles and shredded cheese.
  7. Bake at 350 for between 12 and 18 minutes, until eggs are set and cooked through.
  8. Allow to cool to room temp, slice, and top with chopped green onion for garnish.
  9. Serve with avocado and corn salsa, recipe be found here. This makes a great dinner or breakfast or whenever. It’s relatively inexpensive, it’s very tasty, and it is a good use of veggies.

Other good veggies to include are zucchini (saute in butter with onions), or tomatoes (place thin slices on the very top after all of the ingredients are in the pan). Regarding the potatoes, I used a knife and thinly sliced the potatoes into circles, but you can use a mandoline if you have one.

You need to use a pan that is oven-safe. If you don’t have one, you can cook your tortilla on the stove. Instead of turning off the stove in step 5, turn down the heat to low, add egg mixture. Once the eggs have set around the edges, using a spatula, loosen the edges, and wiggle your spatula under the tortilla, and gently flip it over. Cook until both sides of the tortilla are set and cooked throughout.

Spanish Tortillas are not bread-based, in fact, there is zero bread involved. Spanish Tortillas are more like frittatas or a crustless quiche- the only constant ingredients are eggs and potatoes. The rest of the ingredients are up to you. It’s a great way to use veggies and cheese hanging around your fridge.

They are great for any meal. Add a side of fruit for breakfast, or a bright salad with a tangy vinaigrette for lunch or dinner.

If you are a vegetarian, omit the bacon.

A lovely patio in Spain. Makes you want tapas, right?

5/17/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgYOU GUYS! Our Fridge DIED again last night. Less than 10 hours after I went to the grocery store and bought food for the week, including the ice cream, popsicles, ice cream sammiches. UGH.

As a result, we lost most of the food in the fridge, AGAIN. The fridge is ROOM TEMP inside (blergh). So the meal plan for the week is up in the air at this point.

Thankfully the extended warranty comes with a clause where we can file a claim to be reimbursed for the groceries.. So fingers crossed? I filed a claim for the last time this happened. And after the repair person comes today, I’ll file a claim for all the food we lost this time.

I’m not sure if any of you have noticed, but the price of food has gone up lately. It’s due to several factors:

Gas shortages and the price of gas has increased. That means the price of food has gone up to cover the increase. WHY? Food is shipped on trucks across the country.

Some countries have seen an uptick in Covid-19 cases, and as a result food from those countries is in short supply. The law of supply and demand is real!

The one thing that makes my day today is that the CSA box comes this afternoon. I’m looking forward to strawberries and CORN! The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

Because I have no freaking clue WTF is going on with the fridge and the food sitch, the menu for this week is mostly up in the air. Thankfully we have a pantry full of canned goods and shelf stable food that I can use to feed the fam while we wait.

  • Sunday:  Southwestern Chicken Stew (recipe coming this week)
  • Monday:   
  • Tuesday:   
  • Wednesday:
  • Thursday:
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday:  

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

Recipe: Roasted Onion and Caramelized Onion Bisque

Abby H.

I saw a video online someplace (I want to say Facebook, but it could have been on Reddit too), and it showed how to make tomato bisque using freshly roasted tomatoes.

I was excited to try it since we’ve been getting tons of big tomatoes in our CSA box over the past two weeks and I had them sitting on the counter.

This recipe is simple, but it does involve a few steps and does take some time.

It’s worth it in my opinion.

Roasted Onion and Caramelized Onion Bisque

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

  • 8-10 Tomatoes, tops cut off. If the tomatoes are not a uniform size, cut them in half /into large uniform hunks
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, diced
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 can (approx 16 oz) chicken or veggie stock
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 Teaspoon each: Basil, Rosemary
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cup half and half
  • dash red pepper flakes (optional)
caramelized onions…. mmmmm

Directions:

  1. Preheat Oven to 425 degrees. Place tomatoes/tomato hunks on an oiled-up baking sheet. Brush tomatoes with oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
  2. Roast tomatoes for 35-45 minutes.
  3. While tomatoes are roasting, melt butter in a stockpot, and over medium/low heat saute onions. in the last 10 minutes of cooking the onions, add the garlic and stir frequently to keep from burning. You will need to stir frequently.
  4. Place tomatoes in with onions, and add stock, and all herbs/seasonings, EXCEPT the bay leaf and red pepper.
  5. Using an emersion blender, blend soup until it’s smooth.
  6. Now that soup is smooth, add bay leaf and simmer for 30-45 minutes on low.
  7. Add half and half, stir well, add red pepper if desired.
  8. Serve topped with croutons.
This is what roasted tomatoes look like in a lonely stockpot.

Note: If you don’t have an emersion blender, pour tomatoes and onions into a blender and pulse until smooth.

This recipe does not make a ton of soup, as most of my soup recipes do. This recipe takes time, but it’s so good. It’s worth the time and effort for sure.

I recommend my 4-way grilled cheese to go with this soup too!

5/3/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpg

The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

Over the weekend, I did some meal prep: I made a batch of Copycat Zuppa Toscana, caramelized onions and peppers, Roasted veggies, made a crumble-top coffee cake, and refilled the snack/school lunch box to make morning lunch prep even easier.

The grocery trip for the week was fairly small- Milk, coffee creamer, a few snacks for the kids lunches, meat-free nuggets, and a few other misc. items. We’re still working through our Dream Dinners order, and I’ve been making bigger batches of soups and entrees and stashing them in the freezer for busy nights.

For those of you that 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 pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.

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

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Dream Dinner (Honey Mustard Chicken), Spinach Salad, Roasted Veg
  • Monday:  Fritatta, Salad/Fruit
  • Tuesday:   Soup & Biscuits
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night (nuggets, fruit, crackers, milk)
  • Thursday: Dream Dinners and Roasted Veg
  • Friday:  Pizza/Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Meal o’ Snacks and /or leftovers

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?