September is approximately half over, which means my attempt to successfully carry out a month-long menu plan is half over too. I’ve been pretty pleased with how everything’s gone so far. My only current worry is that the end of the month will roll around and I won’t remember to make a menu for October. I know I could re-use September’s menu, but when I reorganized my kitchen and laundry room I noticed some things I should really try and cook next month, mostly pastas and grains. When I made my September menu, I started by looking at the non-perishables I had on hand. There are a few things I’d like to make again, but I’d like to have some variety in October so I’m planning to make a new menu.
- My primary motivation with my menu was to reduce the number of restaurant meals we were eating because there was no dinner plan in place and we needed dinner. So far this month, we’ve only been out once, and we made that decision based on the heat and humidity and not because I didn’t have something ready to cook.
- I haven’t stuck to the plan 100%. My plan for Saturday was to make chicken parm, but I realized I only had meat sauce. Since I didn’t feel like making sauce again, I defrosted one of the containers of meat sauce I made during the first week and we had pasta and salad.
- Forgetting to defrost things has been my main problem. I don’t like to defrost meat in the microwave so I’ve tried to take it out the night before to defrost in the fridge, but I’ve forgotten a few times. Each night before bed I set up the coffee maker and run the dishwasher, and I’m trying to get in the habit of looking at the menu at that time too, so I can take things out of the freezer if needed.
Photo credit: Pexels
- I’ll need to make some more changes before the end of the month. For example, despite all my reviewing, I planned ground beef meals two nights in a row (shepherd’s pie and Salisbury steak meatballs for this weekend). I’m not sure what I’ll do yet. I have a few days to figure it out.
- It takes a lot for me to eat vegetables. I’ve always liked salad but I’m getting a little bored having it every night. A few months ago I got a Pampered Chef vegetable steamer and I love it. It’s really easy to make vegetables this way. I’ve been surprised by how much I like carrots and broccoli. My steamer’s similar to this (not an affiliate link). I hate to say I paid a lot more for mine!
- Planning around our activities has been successful. Emma started dance on Monday, and though Bob took her, I had some work to do and it was great to have dinner in the slow cooker and ready to go. Thursdays are also busy, so soup and sandwiches works well because it’s fast and simple.
I haven’t taken photos because my cooking’s not photo-worthy. But here are some recipes for things I’ve either made or will make this month. With one exception these are all things I’ve made multiple times in the past.
Asian five spice meatballs I use 93% lean beef. They come out really well.
Pioneer Woman Salisbury steak meatballs. Bob loves these. I use the very lean beef and cut way back on the amount of butter because I don’t want us to die. It still comes out really good.
Crock pot lemon garlic chicken. We have this over orzo and I love it. It’s Monday’s dinner and I can’t wait. I saute the chicken in olive oil instead of butter.
Skinnytaste crock pot honey sesame chicken. This is also a repeat meal. It’s so good.
This is the only thing I haven’t made yet: Blackened chicken and cilantro-lime quinoa. There are lots of great recipes on TakeThemAMeal.com.
Since the weather’s cooling (finally!) I’ve been going through my clothes and am seeing I really need to rethink my 33 pieces. That story’s coming on Friday.
Will make the slow cooker recipes, definitely the type of meal we love. You’re doing so well with your menu planning, it has inspired me to give it another go (I didn’t do so well last time) as I really want to cut down restaurant meals.
You’re impressing me with the meal planning! Go girl, go! We eat out at a restaurant, maybe, once every 2 months. Truth be told, we like our home made meals better! And the savings, well, there’s no comparison! By the way, what’s wrong with having the same type of meal two days in a row? We make meals larger than what our family of 3 eat at one sitting, so that we have leftovers!
I’m a picky eater when it comes to vegetables, but there are a couple of recipes that work well for me.
One is a dish I call Mediterranean roasted vegetables, and it’s very simple and flexible. Choose a selection of mostly firm vegetables (e.g., carrots, beans, potatoes, bell peppers, fennel – excellent in this) plus a few softer ones if you want (big mushrooms, tomatoes, squash, eggplant). This is a great way to use up random, small quantities of veggies in your fridge. The balsamic vinegar added to the dish plus roasting the veggies makes them sweeter, and people who like different veggies can choose the ones they like from the dish (and you can try small quantities of a veggie on your plate without committing to a big serving.)
Preheat the oven to 400. (If you’re cooking something else in the oven at the same time, you can use whatever temperature that dish calls for – just adjust the cooking time.) Wash the veggies and then cut them up into fairly large chunks (don’t forget to seed the peppers first). I usually cut things up into pieces that are least 1″ by 2″. If you only have about 30 minutes of cooking time, microwave the fennel, carrots and potatoes for about 30-60 seconds (depending on quantity). You don’t want to make them squishy, just start the cooking process.
Toss the veggies in a baking dish with some olive oil, chopped garlic, dried herbes de provence (or use a mix dried herbs like rosemary, basil and oregano) and balsamic vinegar. Quantities of oil, vinegar and herbs depend on how much you’re cooking but if I cover a layer of a 13×9 baking dish, I usually use about a tablespoon of oil, 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar and 1.5 tablespoons of dried herbs. And as much garlic as you like – I use a lot (and buy chopped garlic and keep it in the fridge). Cover the dish with tinfoil and put it in the oven for at least 30 minutes. Check the cooking a few times and stir the veggies occasionally. It’s done when the potatoes can be pierced with a fork and are cooked to the level you like. If you want, take the tinfoil off for about the last 3-5 minutes, so the balsamic vinegar just starts to caramelize – but be careful because you won’t want too much caramelization.
The second dish is a pasta dish that is based on a Jamie Oliver recipe. You simply makes a creamy, cheesy pasta sauce and add veggies to it. (I don’t make this dish any more because I’ve cut out dairy from my diet but when I did, it worked like this.) Choose a few veggies, like baby spinach, red peppers and mushrooms. (But it also works with other veggies like squash, green beans, other green leafy veggies like kale etc. I try to use one veggie that eaters in the famliy find a bit challenging or new, and one or two veggies that they like.) While the pasta is cooking, saute the veggies of your choice in a bit of olive oil, garlic and herbs (like herbes de provence). If you add a green leafy veggie like spinach or kale, try adding a sprinkling of nutmeg (cuts down the bitterness). I’m careful to add green leafies in the last minute or two of cooking so that they wilt but don’t over-cook. Just as the leafy veggies start to wilt, add about 1/3-1/2 cup of cream cheese and about 1/4 cup of skim or 1% milk. Stir until the cheese melts into the sauce. Turn off the heat. When the pasta is cooked, drain it and then toss it with the sauce. Add parmesan cheese on top. You can also add a protein to this dish – generally works best with mild tasting proteins like tofu, seitan (if you’re vegan), or seafood or poultry – rather than beef or pork.