Happy end of September! I hope you have enjoyed this first month of fall. This week’s meal plan features our favorite fish, a slow cooker freezer meal and homemade chicken soup. Have a great week!
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Anyone else feeling like September is passing by way too fast? I love fall and just want to savor every crisp warm day, knowing they are limited. This weekend we celebrated the wedding of a dear friend and got to spend time at “camp.” Lots of hikes, baby-wearing, amazing food and no TV made for a delicious weekend.
So now back to reality. Family in town, business travel, evening events and the regular kids schedule. Meal planning really helps me get through the week so even though I would rather be going to sleep, writing this all down helps get the week off on the right foot.
Sunday~ Omelets with tomatoes and herbs from the garden
Monday~ Tacos and rice. {If you want a meatless Monday meal, try these Black Bean Tacos}
Tuesday~ Garlic lover’s chicken over salad
Wednesday~ Spaghetti and meatballs in the slow cooker. I’ll adapt this recipe to the slow cooker and use some of our frozen pureed tomatoes for the sauce.
Thursday~ Spinach Sausage Soup. I strain it a bit for the kids and they love it!
Friday~ Pizza night with homemade dough.
P.S. If you are losing a little motivation already when it comes to packing a healthy lunch, join us for a chat this Thursday night on Google +. Danielle Shea Tan, a nutritionist and health coach, gives advice and strategies for busy moms to make packing a lunch a little less stressful. Click over to RSVP to the event, or just head over to watch on Thursday night at 8:30 pm EST.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
This week marks the first full week of our new fall schedule. That means both kids in school for part of the day, part of the week. Swim, gymnastics and soccer have all started. Mom’s night out is on deck for Thursday. And we pack up for a weekend away to watch our friends get married. A busy week so we will keep dinners simple and healthy to keep us on track.
Sunday~ Neighborhood Block Party (The healthy has to start after this event!) I made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies and meatballs in the slow cooker. Yum!
Monday~ Homemade chicken nuggets, sweet potato fries and Annie’s pasta shells.
Tuesday~ Chimichurri steak tips, salad, roasted potatoes. (Fresh 20 inspired steak recipe)
Wednesday~ Soy ginger scallops, green rice (using leftover chimichurri sauce) and sauteed snow peas.
Thursday~ C.O.R.N. {Clean Out Refrigerator Night…Mom’s going out!}
Friday~ Pack up for the weekend away. Bring treats for family taking care of the big kids!
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
This week’s meal plan is a little different. I’ve partnered with The Fresh 20 on their fall campaign to #getfresh, empowering children to take charge of their health. Making the right food choices for your family, and especially children, is so beneficial to long-term health.
Here’s a little more info on the #getfresh campaign:
The Fresh 20 supports healthy eating habits as kids head back to school this year. They’re on a mission to find The Freshest Kids in America by asking kids the question, “How do you #getfresh?” Utilizing any social platform, parents can submit either a video or a photo of how their children #getfresh on health. The campaign offers children and their parents a unique opportunity to get creative with their fresh and healthy habits and to get kids involved in their own health decisions. Check out their site for #getfresh back to school ideas.
This week’s meal plan features some of the menu options from The Fresh 20’s meal planning service. I was given a complimentary membership so I could get a sense of the variety in their dinner plans each week. There is a classic menu, gluten-free and vegetarian options. Newly added menus are For One, Kosher and Dairy Free. (I remember nursing baby #2 and having to go Dairy Free…this menu would have been a lifesaver!) My favorite part of the menu plan is that there is usually one bigger meal made that is then re-made into a new dinner later that week. We usually just eat leftovers but I’m inspired to reuse my leftover and be a little more creative with them go forward.
Sunday~ Hubby’s BBQ Birthday bash (Hence the late post today!) We had amazing grass-fed rib eye steaks, local corn, potato salad, salad with roasted golden beets, apple pie with apples from Smolak Farms, and peanut butter brownies. I haven’t been so full in a long time!
Monday~ BBQ Chicken Thighs. New recipe I’m testing out from The Healthy Lunchbox ebook. I want to see if the kids like it for dinner before I send it along for lunch. Always a good idea to test out new foods at home before sending them along to school. There will be broccoli and some pasta on the side. I’ll be sharing more about the ebook in the coming weeks as it’s a great resource for any parent in charge of making lunches every day.
Tuesday~ Cumin Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Peach Chutney. (Fresh 20 menu item). These will be used again for a later meal. We will have salad on the side with our garden tomatoes that are ripening fast and furiously.
Wednesday~ Whole Chicken in slow cooker. I love one pot meals like this where I can throw in the potatoes and carrots too. The kids love egg noodles so I’ll serve the dinner over some yummy noodles.
Thursday~ Chopped Asian Slaw. (Fresh 20 menu) Uses the leftover pork tenderloin and a little of the peach chutney to create an entirely new meal. I’m already excited about having nearly all of dinner ready ahead of time. There are also tips in each week’s meal plan on what you can prep ahead of time. (cutting veggies, spice mixes, etc.)
Friday~ Pizza night with our homemade dough. I have found the dough a little stickier when making it on warmer days. I think I need to increase the amount of flour in it by a little.
If you want to learn more about The Fresh 20, you can learn more at their newly redesigned website. With a membership, you get 5 dinners planned out for you using only 20 ingredients. I think it’s a great option if you really want to start meal planning, but need a little structure to get going. There’s also a really cool Pin 2 Win event happening with the Fresh 20’s Pinterest board. Check out the details here.
Other big news on the cooking front this week here…we just signed up with 4 families for 1/2 a cow!! Can’t wait to see what we get.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Happy September everyone! Although summer is ending, I can’t help but get excited for some fall dinners. Slow cooking, Sunday dinners and chili will be back into our usual rotation soon. While it’s still warm out, we are still using the grill to make dinners (and clean-up!) quick and easy.
Sunday~ Clean Out Refrigerator Night at the beach house.
Monday~ Grilled Chicken and salad (use leftover chicken for lunches)
Tuesday~ Italian Chicken, Mushroom and Zucchini skillet one-dish dinner (with my own spices).
Wednesday~ Steak Tips, Sweet Potato Fries and Tomatoes
Thursday~ Hamburgers, Corn and salad
Friday~ Pizza night with homemade pizza dough
We will be back home again after an awesome week of vacation. The garden needs to be harvested so we will be making a lot of our Basil Pesto this week. I also am making another batch of Roasted Plum Tomato sauce.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Looks like summer is back this week so the meal plan is light and easy to accomplish. Best wishes to anyone starting the back to school schedule this week. With preschoolers in the house, we still have another month before school starts. I need to remember to enjoy this down time before the busier schedules start up.
Sunday~ Easy salad with today’s picks from the Needham Farmers Market
Monday~ Picnic dinner at the pool with friends so Caprese sandwiches sound nice. Madison will probably just eat the cheese…
Tuesday~ Baked Haddock with tomatoes from the garden and a little onion.
Wednesday~ Chicken stir fry with zucchini and rice
Thursday~ Hamburgers on the grill with corn on the cob. Need to remember to serve corn with lime instead of butter.
Friday~ Pizza night
Saturday~ Off to the family’s annual Lobster Party. I think I’ll make these S’mores Brownies that are so decadent.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
How is it nearly the middle of August? I’m not quite ready for back to school fever and just want to enjoy my summer meal planning with easy dinners and ice cream for dessert. The week started off right with an impromptu BBQ with our neighbors. In addition to an heirloom tomato salad, I made an awesome dessert from Shutterbean, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake. Topped off with cream cheese frosting it really did hit the spot if you love cookies and cake!
Sunday~ BBQ with Heirloom Tomato Salad
Monday~ Steak Tips with Teriyaki dressing. (Making my own tips from “Flap Steak” I got at the farmer’s market.)
Tuesday~ In-laws visiting and I have two meetings at night to head out to so heading to the freezer for our favorite Honey Balsamic Drumsticks from my Wildtree stash.
Wednesday~ Meatless Wednesday anyone? Omelets with herbs, tomatoes and peppers from our garden. My quest for more meatless meals is going to be a bit more challenging as I won’t be able to eat any more bean dishes while I’m nursing. (poor little guy!) I asked my readers what they suggested and you can join in the conversation on Facebook here. Read about our success (and fail) in my Black Bean Taco post.
Thursday~ Clean Out Refrigerator Night
Friday~ Pizza Night. In addition to our usual pepperoni, I may try a new zucchini pizza
In case you missed it, Pinterest highlighted my Lunch Love board this weekend. I’m excited to share some healthy living tips with new readers and encourage them to get cooking in the kitchen with their kids. What are some of your kid’s favorite lunch box meals?
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
This week’s meal plan came together after a visit to the Needham Farmers Market. I haven’t been since June and I have missed seeing what’s new from our farmers. I took Madison to the market and she helped pick out fresh peaches, corn and just had to get some little cucumbers to make pickles.
Sunday’s dinner of grilled swordfish came from Globe Fish at the market, one of my favorite vendors. Grilled with just a little olive oil, salt and pepper and dinner is done. Local corn and some heirloom tomatoes from MacArthur Farm rounded out the meal.
Monday~ Trying to get a Meatless Monday trend going in our house again. Hoping a fun taco night will disguise the fact that there is no meat involved. Plus I can make homemade salsa with our first tomatoes and use some of these gorgeous red onions from the market.
Tuesday~ Grilled Pesto Chicken and Tomato Kebabs. I made two monster batches of my homemade basil pesto recipe and will use some for this dinner.
Wednesday~ Hamburgers on the grill…I have missed our new grill. Our vacation place only had a charcoal grill so many of my easy summer dinner menu ideas were not so easily cooked last month.
Thursday~ Clean Out Refrigerator Night (mama needs at least one night off!)
Friday~ Pizza with our Homemade Pizza Dough
Saturday~ Off to a party…which sweet treat shall I bring. Must check my Pinterest Board.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Welcome meal plan readers! I have missed you and I’m excited to return to the weekly meal planning process after a great break. There’s lots of new recipes to try from my Pinterest boards and the magazines I devoured at the beach this month. This week is a transition from vacation life to real life so it’s pretty simple. Which is probably what everyone else needs as we move from July into August in the week ahead.
Monday~ Meatless Monday! Using up some pantry staples along with some delicious local corn. {Marshall’s in Gloucester corn isn’t to be missed.}
Tuesday~ C.O.R.N {Clean Out Refrigerator Night ~ complete clean out in this case!}
Wednesday~ moving home and hoping to have an omelet for dinner with herbs from our garden, which I have missed.
Thursday~ Campanelle Tuna Salad. A great pantry ready meal.
Friday~ Pizza night with our homemade pizza dough.
Saturday~ Regroup with an easy take out night.
Quick deal to mention—From Your Freezer To Your Family, Slow Cooker Freezer Recipes is now half off! Buy your copy here for just $4.99. I am a new fan of freezer meals and plan to make more of them before back to school business starts. It will be half off till August 14th, in honor of Mama and Baby Love’s newest cookbook that comes out on August 8th. {This is an affiliate link which gives me a little kickback if you make a purchase. I own the book and think many of you would enjoy it as the slow cooker can make dinner time prep so much easier.}
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Happy Memorial Day! I hope everyone is enjoying a long weekend. We are excited to finally get a day of sun and be able to play outside with the kids all day. The menu this week could be tricky…baby still hasn’t arrived so there may be some swings in the next week or two (or month or two!). I have freezer meals tucked away but I’ll wait until the baby arrives and I’m home to break those out.
Today we (almost) could have put the heat on as it was a little chilly when we woke up. By Thursday, it’s supposed to be 90 degrees. If it gets too hot, we may just have to make smoothies for dinner!
Sunday~ BBQ day with sausages and hot dogs, corn on the cob and coleslaw.
Monday~ Salmon burgers, pesto pasta and salad
Tuesday~ Meatballs (Madison’s request), pasta and green beans
Wednesday~ C.O.R.N. {Clean Out Refrigerator Night}
Thursday~ Eggs
Friday~ Pizza
Saturday~ Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Did you notice how clear the chalkboard menu plan is this week? No, I did not master some new photo editing tool. I was sent the new Lullaby chalkboard paint to test out and it works beautifully! Lullaby Paints has 16 fun colors of chalkboard paints and they’re totally non-toxic, zero-VOC, and safe for my kitchen. I love how smooth the paint went on and the colors on the kid’s section of the menu board seem much more vibrant now too.
For more inspiration, see my past menus here, or the Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of meal plans.
Disclosure: I did receive the Lullaby Paints to test out. All opinions shared here are my own. Just wait till we show you what we did with the chalkboard paint in our basement!
