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Summer Meal Planning Ideas

I am taking a little time off from regular meal planning and I came across the summer meal planning list I pulled together last year. Having a list of go-to meals can be helpful as you look at the week ahead. Many of these dinners are barbecue friendly, and also great for hot summer nights when you don’t want to heat up the kitchen.

While I’m taking a break from regular meal planning posts, you can find all the past menu plan posts here. I am also spending a fair amount of time on Pinterest updating my favorite boards with new recipe inspiration. I’ve reorganized my boards so it’s easier to find some recipe inspiration. I’m loving my new Salad board and  Beverage board where I’m storing all my new favorite smoothie recipes.

Easy summer dinner ideas

Here are some of my go-to dinner ideas for when the days are lazy and long and it’s too hot to stay in the kitchen.

And get the free printable with bonus ideas so you can hang it on your fridge this summer as a reminder!

  • Hamburgers with native corn 
  • Grilled Chicken with a salad and homemade salad dressing.
  • Waldorf Chicken Salad Sandwiches (grill extra chicken the first night, use leftovers for the second.)
  • Grilled/ Pan seared Fish.  All fish usually needs is a little olive oil and salt and pepper for the grill.
  • Fish Sandwiches
  • Steak Tips with grilled zucchini or summer squash
  • Grilled Pork Tenderloin
  • Mac and Cheese with ham and corn for lazy nights.
  • Hot Dogs.  (We buy Applegate or something with no nitrates/nitrites)
  • Pulled Pork Sandwiches (slow cooker)
  • Salsa Chicken (slow cooker)
  • Frittata with fresh veggies and herbs
  • Boiled Lobster Dinner (a splurge for some, or free for us when I get them from my Dad. My kids LOVE lobster!)
  • Grilled Pizza with pre-made dough from the freezer. 
  • Pesto Pasta with stir fried chicken. (Recipe for Homemade Basil Pesto)
What are your easy summer dinners to add to the list?

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here, my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of weekly meal plans. (affiliate links included here which help support this site.)

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Weekly Meal Plan

Happy summer friends! I hope this week’s meal plan finds many of you on vacation. In our house, summer vacation still means we are cooking for family and friends so I’m still making a loose plan of the dinners ahead. As time slows down here at the beach house, it’s a fun opportunity to try some new recipes. All the magazine reading at the beach pays off in the kitchen!

cousins-beach

You will see a little less content around here this month as we spend time as a family at the beach. It’s hard to find time to sit at a computer when the sand is just a few steps away. Follow along our summer adventure over on Instagram.

On the menu…

Buffalo Chicken Cobb Salad

Make the salad in the morning and it will be ready after a fun day in the sun. (image)

Sunday~ Lobsters and Steak. A perfect summer dinner. Plus lots of fresh greens and veggies from my Dad and stepmom’s garden. We never leave hungry from their house.

Monday~ Buffalo Chicken Cobb Salad. I found this recipe in my Instagram feed this week and can’t wait to make it. Large platter salads are generally a win with the kids since they get to control what they pick out. We “gently” encourage them to put everything on their plate, even if they don’t eat it. It’s a great chance to give everyone exposure to the rainbow.

Tuesday~ Hamburgers, oven fries and corn on the cob. Super simple…but a little extra special with lime juice for the corn instead of butter.

Wednesday~ Dinner out in Gloucester. So many choices…

Thursday~ Oven to Grill Baby Back Ribs and coleslaw. The inspiration for this recipe is here, but I may tweak it and cook it in the foil packets in the crock pot instead. No need to introduce more heat in the house!

Friday~Hot dog dinner post beach and then off to see the fireworks!

Saturday~ Family BBQ. I’m making the Sugar Snap Pea, Tomato and Orzo salad from Brown Eggs and Jam Jars.  (you could also try this Beet Orzo salad)

Brown Eggs and Jam Jars cookbook

Happy 4th of July!!

 

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Weekly Meal Plan

Sometimes meal planning needs to take a break, or you need some motivation. One of the first places I turned is surprisingly not Pinterest, it’s our local library. Have you ever taken a walk through the cookbook section in your library? It’s filled with treasures, plus we have the luxury of requesting some of the newest titles from our neighboring libraries. There is something so renewing about looking at new food photography, different ways of explaining recipes and a safe opportunity to explore new cuisines before adding them to your kitchen routine.

I picked up Sunday Suppers, a book by Karen Mordechai. It was widely publicized last year when it came out in a number of foodie magazines. Sunday Suppers is a communal cooking center and website based in Brooklyn. I appreciate their focus on quality ingredients from local markets, simple recipes, and unfussy entertaining. The book is encouraging to plan easy meals as we look ahead to summer and hitting the beach for the next two months. Cream biscuits with jam butters….concentrated coffee with milk…perfectly scrambled eggs. That sounds like a perfect meal for any time of day.

The photos in Sunday Suppers are gorgeous. Taking better pictures is on my lists of goals as I plan to continue the blog after the move to Toronto. Sharing new recipes is one of my favorite things here on the blog and I would love to spend a little more time styling the shots and creating a story. I may pick up one of the Photography ebook Bundles on sale this week, yet I’m struggling to decide between the beginner and intermediate packages. (When do you get to the point when you can say you have mastered the basics?) I think the Unexpected Everyday and the Eat Pretty Things are my first two books to read this summer.

Pineapple Coconut Cashew Rice Recipe

The menu for the week as we clear out those shelves…

Monday: Omelets

Tuesday: Vinegar Glazed Chicken with Creamed Corn (recipe)

Wednesday: Pineapple Coconut Rice (recipe) …way to use up some random items in the cabinet!

Thursday: Pasta, veggies and feta mix-up

Friday: Pizza Night

 Vinegar Glazed Chicken and Creamed Corn

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of weekly meal plans. (affiliate links included here which help support this site.)

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Weekly Meal Plan

We have just two more weeks to cook in our family kitchen. A part of me is excited to head off to the beach and take a step back from planning. The other part of me looks around and sees all the food we have left in the house and gets slightly overwhelmed. I guess I’ll be having a donation party in the near future! I also discovered that you can often have your local food pantry come pick up any unopened goods that are appropriate for donation. Great tip for people moving or clearing out for the summer months.

Weekly Meal Plan June

On to this week’s meal plan…

Sunday: Grilled chicken over fresh lettuce from the garden. Topped with red onions, avocado and cucumbers. Finally found a quick and easy ranch dressing recipe in Brown Eggs and Jam Jars. I could eat this dinner once a week for a good long while.

Monday: Roasted shrimp topped with feta and cilantro. Using up some pasta on the side plus more salad (and ranch dressing.)

Tuesday: Chicken Teriyaki Kabobs (last week’s kabob recipe was a HUGE hit-double the recipe), with orzo and green beans.

Wednesday: Quiche with whatever veggies are left in the fridge to use up. If I had extra time, I would make this Carmelized Pear and Blue Cheese quiche. Maybe in the fall…

Thursday: End of School Year Picnic!

Friday: Pizza night

Chicken Teriyaki Kababs

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of weekly meal plans.

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Weekly Meal Plan: Pantry Challenge

This week’s meal plan is a little different. My challenge to you is to head to your pantry first to see what you need to use up. As summer approaches, now is a great time to clean out the kitchen. That includes the pantry, the shelves and the freezer stock ups. Get through those piles of random grains on your shelves…or is that just mine? As we prepare to move, it’s a major goal to clean through our kitchen inventory by the end of June.

Kitchen Spring Cleaning Checklist

Need some direction to clean out the kitchen? Try this cute printout. (source)

I’m taking a peek at past meal plans and remembering some favorites so I can use up what I have on hand. Check out what I end up making over on Instagram.

  • Use up the rest of the quinoa and make this awesome Mexican Quinoa recipe again.
  • Clear through the coconut milk, chicken thighs and extra veggies with our favorite slow cooker meal.
  • This corn dip looks like a delicious way to use up the extra corn on the cob we cooked up. Served with some eggs it looks like an easy dinner.
  • Elderberry muffins and pancakes are in my future. I have a gallon bag of frozen berries. Any else need some elderberries?
  • Pasta tuna salad. Uses up a ton of canned items.
Corn dip recipe

Corn dip recipe (recipe source)

What are some of your favorite pantry clean out quick tips? If you are leaving town for the summer, don’t forget to clean out your deep freezer and let it defrost.

p.s. Need a dessert recipe? Check out this awesome Strawberry Cookies and Cream cake I made for Connor’s birthday. It was awesome!!

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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Weekly Meal Plan

Happy unofficial first week of summer! The weather around here certainly looks like summer for the week ahead. I tried to add in some fun summer dinners you can make all season long. We spent the weekend at barbeques with family and friends. I think the rest of my days need to be filled with green smoothies to detox from all the extra deliciousness I indulged in this weekend.

Did you notice something a little different around here this week? I updated the Random Recycling site a bit and cleaned it up. You will find I’ve pulled out a lot of the ads as I just didn’t love seeing what I’ve been recently searching for all.the.time. I thought maybe some of you didn’t want to be reminded of them either. What do you think of the new look?

Halibut Fish Taco Recipe

On to the menu plan for the week…

M- BBQ with friends…which is why this is arriving on Tuesday.

T- Morro Bay Fish Tacos. This recipe just looks pretty doesn’t it (image above). And tasty. And just a little healthy which we all need right now.

W- New BBQ Chicken in the crockpot recipe. Going out on a limb and trying this paleo/whole 30 friendly recipe. The sauce is made with dates…so curious to taste the end result.

T- C.O.R.N. (also known as Clean Out Refrigerator Night)

F- Pre 100 mile Best Buddies Bike Ride for Jim. I’m offering moral support and Chicken Piccata and pasta. Plus some lemony green beans on the side.

S- Someone turns 2 on this day. Our littlest guy will get pizza for dinner, his favorite.

S- Birthday gathering for Connor. BBQ to round out the first week of summer to use up lots of our cow still frozen in the deep freezer.

Which recipe is going on your meal plan this week?

Weekly dinner meal plan

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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Weekly Meal Plan

This week’s meal plan focuses on vegetables. As the weather heats up it feels like the right time to make veggies a bigger focus on our plates. Plus it makes it easier to serve the kids a wide range of colors from the rainbow at each meal. They have been getting a little picky lately and the dinners this week are some of their favorites.

On a personal note, we recently shared with friends that we are moving to Canada. Toronto in fact. As we start sorting through our home, I found myself looking through my cookbook collection. There were some old favorites tucked away and I look forward to enjoying some recipes from them again. Which cookbooks are the must haves in your kitchen?

Weekly dinner meal plan

On the menu this week…

Monday: Veggie Fajita Tostada Bowl (recipe from Iowa Girl Eats )

  • Everyone will get the same bowl and maybe this time our four year old will eat avocado slices

Tuesday: Roasted Shrimp with White Beans (recipe from Cooking Light)

  • Serve over a bed of mixed greens
  • Remember to soak the cannellini beans overnight!

Wednesday: Thai Chicken Salad (recipe) from Gimme Some Oven

  • Such a winner topped with a peanut butter dressing. Switch to a seed butter for nut allergy households.

Thursday: Fajita Chicken Kebabs (recipe from Well Plated)

  • This will be a great recipe to use up any of the vegetables we have leftover this week.

Friday: Pizza Night

  • The timing for making your own pizza dough…start making it around 3:30 and then it will be ready after 4:30. Let it rise a little longer for a lighter crust.

 

Enjoy the week ahead friends. Thanks for stopping by.
Monday meal plan to help organize family dinner

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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Monday Meal Plan May 11

I hope all the mothers reading this had a lovely Mother’s Day. We took off for the first beach day of the season. On most Mother’s Day we are wearing jackets and just walking the beach but we were all surprised with hot sunny weather yesterday. We could barely get the kids out of the water!

This week’s dinner meal plan has some fun new recipes. After getting breakfast in bed and having some quiet time to read the newest Cooking Light magazine, the meal plan came together rather quickly!

Rainbow Veggie Pizza

On the menu…

Monday: Over the Rainbow Pizza. Keeping my fingers crossed the kids will love these! (recipe)

Tuesday: Meatball Bake with caesar salad. (recipe from June’s Cooking Light)

Wednesday: Chicken Tortilla Soup (slow cooker recipe). (kid-tip–> strain the broth and just serve the shredded chicken and veggies.) I’m using a recipe from my favorite slow cooker cookbook, but you can also head over to Pinterest and get some easy ones to follow.

Thursday: Thai Basil Chicken stir fry with basmati rice. (again, June Cooking Light)

Friday: Pizza night with bread maker pizza dough.

Saturday: Grilled halibut with lemony green beans and couscous.

Have a great week! 

p.s. Check out the latest smoothie recipe post the kids are loving!

 
Monday meal plan to help organize family dinner

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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Monday Meal Plan May 4

Happy May to all! Spring has finally sprung. (and May the fourth be with you for my Star Wars friends) This week’s meal plan will be easy for me with my mother-in-law lending a hand with the kids. The dinners are very kid-friendly so no one should be giving Grandma any problems. Right?

On the menu…

Sunday: Grilled chicken and zucchini with salad.

Monday: Leftover chicken tossed into quesadillas, with sliced avocado and corn on the cob.

Tuesday: Cinco de Mayo! Ground beef tacos are always a winner, plus a special side treat of guacamole and chips!

Wednesday: Teriyaki chicken in the slow cooker (recipe from Not Your Mother’s Crockpot Cookbook) with steamed broccoli and a test run of the Horizon Organic Mac n’ cheese.

Thursday: Grilled steak with broccoli slaw salad.

Friday: Pizza night!

Saturday: Dinner with friends. I’ll bring dessert!

What’s on your dinner menu this week?

 

p.s. Last week’s Honey Lime Drumsticks were awesome!

 
Monday meal plan to help organize family dinner

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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Monday Meal Plan April 27

Today was a day for rambling through the woods and enjoying the tiny glimpses of spring coming into our lives. It’s hard to believe May begins at the end of this week. The chilly air continues and the hats and gloves still can’t be put away. At least there is some order in the kitchen as I have discovered the one thing that makes everything easier when it comes to meal prep.

An empty sink.

It’s so simple. As long as my sink is empty and clean, I can get the next meal done. The counters will never be completely clear, but if the sink is clean, another feast can be served. Try it…tell me if it works for you in your kitchen.

Family dinner plan

 

On the menu this week…

Sunday: Grilled Rib Eye, salad and Back to Nature macaroni (we used to buy Annie’s shells until they got bought up by General Mills, who is actively against GMO labelling. I still miss Annie’s, but I like to think my purchasing power has some leverage. Yours does too.)

Monday: Meatless Monday Omelets. This may be one of Madison’s favorite meals.

Tuesday: Honey Lime Drumsticks (recipe), Corn and Grilled Polenta.

Wednesday: Weather looks good for grilled swordfish, Alexia Oven Fries and salad. (recipe)

Thursday: Coconut Chicken Strips (recipe), Jasmine Rice and Sesame Broccoli. (If your kids don’t like coconut, you can make this mild version of homemade chicken nuggets.)

Friday: An extra set of hands arrive in the form of my mother-in-law as I disappear into the depths of the semi-annual Parent Talk Sale this weekend! Pizza night for the family.

Saturday: Family dinner out

Sunday: Beef chili. We have one more eye of the round roast to use up in our freezer (from our 1/4 cow share). I can’t bring myself to make a true roast so I’ll chop it up and make one last chili for the season.

Honey Lime Drumsticks

 

What’s on deck in your kitchen this week? Do you have a homemaking tip that makes life easier in your kitchen? 
Monday meal plan to help organize family dinner

For more inspiration, see three years of past dinner plan here,

my Pinterest board here, or OrgJunkie for a link-up of posts.

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