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Meal plan for week of July 24th

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Monday – Asian inspired teriyaki-glazed salmon served over rice noodles.


Tuesday – Mexican chicken and rice skillet. A one pot meal and the left overs are fabulous!



Wednesday – Chicken Fajitas. My trusty favorite Trader Joe’s came to the rescue with this meal. I used half a bag of their frozen peppers and onions, heated it in a skillet, added sliced chicken, and cooked until no longer pink



Thursday – Stuffed peppers with ground beef. Use left over stuffing to make a taco salad for lunch!


Friday – Stuffed chicken with Gorgonzola cheese, dried cranberries, and sage. A restaurant worthy dinner that you won’t believe you cooked!

Meal Plan for July 17th

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Monday – Elote style zucchini noodles.  For any Mexican corn lovers out there, this is the recipe for you!


Tuesday – Trader Joe’s chicken fried rice. Sometimes you just need a Trader Joe’s frozen dinner. I try to avoid as many processed and frozen meals as I can, but knowing this summer would be super busy with my husband back in school, I stocked up on some of my favorite easy and quick dinners from Trader Joe’s. For those of you who are from Northern/Central CT, you know the pain of not having a Trader Joe’s close by! Please take the time to join and like my Facebook group “Bring Trader Joe’s to South Windsor, CT.” Hopefully with enough votes, they will consider bringing a store closer to us!

Tonight, I made their chicken fried rice. It couldn’t be simpler! I actually was able to multitask – cook dinner and feed the baby, which doesn’t happen often! Listen closely, this might get confusing. ;o)

Steps

  1. Heat olive oil over wok or large skillet.
  2. Pour bag into skillet.
  3. Cook 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  4. Serve!

I’ve also bought the veggie fried rice and added my own cooked chicken.


Wednesday– Gnocchi with zucchini and cherry tomatoes. A perfect summer recipe. Light, fluffy gnocchi and, if you’re lucky, garden ripened cherry tomatoes and zucchini!

Thursday – Cobb salad. Simple, healthy and very easy to prep the hard boiled egg and bacon in advance. If you want more protein, add grilled chicken!


Friday – Steak with grilled sweet potato wedges and squash. Everything cooks together on the grill.

Baby foods 

I asked my husband to pick up lettuce and he came home with collard greens?!??  🤦🏼‍♀️. Hating to waste food, I decided I have to use this somehow!  One of the recipes I made was collard green pesto! I mixed it with Trader Joe’s veggie pasta and gave it to my son! Double whammy of veggies!


Collard Green Pesto
 
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A healthy pesto packed full of fresh vegetables. This sneaky mommy recipe will leave you happy and your kids eating vegetables without them knowing it!
Author:
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • ½ zucchini
  • 3 large collard green leaves
  • 1 large carrot or 4 baby carrots
  • ⅛ cup olive oil
  • 1 cup pasta of choice
Instructions
  1. Add zucchini, collard greens, and carrots to a food processor and pulse until thoroughly blended
  2. Continue to pulse and slowly drizzle in olive oil until combined
  3. Meanwhile cook pasta according to package directions
  4. Use a slotted spoon and pour over pasta, stir to combine

 

Week of June 4th 

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Just when you think life couldn’t get any crazier, guess again! My hardworking hubby is going back to school. He works as an 8th grade English teacher, runs the after school program, and is now getting his reading certification. So for the next 15 months, he will have night classes 2-4x/week! Yikes! So now our dinner, Noah’s dinner, bath time, bedtime routine, lunches for the three of us, and dishes will all be me! I’m not looking for sympathy; in fact, I look at it as a challenge! How can I master my meal planning? The answer – cooking meals in advance.  This way by 8pm I can still park my butt on the couch with a glass of wine and watch The Bachelor!

So moving forward I will mention which meals I prepped in advance and what I did the day I served the dinner.

Monday – Avocado/spinach pasta. This was an easy make-ahead meal. The sauce couldn’t be any easier, and it makes a great finger food for baby, too! Reheat in microwave when you’re ready to serve it!


Tuesday – Sirloin steak with roasted brussel sprouts and parmesan riced cauliflower. For those who follow my IG account, @megsmealplanning, thank you for all the recommendations for riced cauliflower. This entire meal was prepared in advance. I know reheated steak isn’t as good as fresh steak, but I’d rather reheat than eat at 9 pm, and you know what, it still tasted pretty darn good!


Wednesday – Peri peri chicken with brown rice and kale chips. This was my first time having peri-peri, sauce which is basically a red pepper sauce. Both the chicken and the brown rice were cooked in advance. I made the kale chips 20 minutes before we were going to eat. The prep work is minimal, so it’s easy enough to do and still keep an eye on the baby.  TIP- Make extra chicken  and brown rice for Friday night’s dinner! 


Thursday – Stir fry with brown rice, mushrooms, and kale served over brown rice. Who knew how much two cups of rice really makes! I had enough rice left over from last night’s dinner that I could make a 3rd dinner using it! And we used the rest of the steak from Tuesday’s dinner , as well as the rest of the kale.


Friday – Leftover peri-peri chicken wraps. This is the 2nd dinner using the left over chicken and rice from dinner on Wednesday.

Week of May 28th

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Monday – Feta and spinach stuffed turkey burgers with grilled squash and sweet potato fries 


Tuesday – Parmesan crusted pork chops with roasted brussel sprouts and bacon! This is the 2nd time I’ve made the pork chop recipe and both times the chops didn’t need the 30 minutes of cooking time like listed. Good thing I was using a meat thermometer. Pork is done cooking when internal tempature reaches 145 degrees.


Brussel sprouts and bacon

Ingredients

  • 12 oz brussel sprouts, washed, ends cut off and cut in half (if really large quarter them)
  • 4 strips bacon
  • 1 shallot, sliced thin
  • 1 tablespoon balasmic vinegar

Steps

  1. Place cast iron skillet over medium heat, add bacon and cook until crisp, flipping once. Set aside on a paper towel lined plate.
  2. In same pan, add the brussel sprouts and cook 20 minutes or until charred and starting to soften. Stir often.
  3. Add shallots and cook another 2 minutes.
  4. Add balasmic vinegar, stir together, serve.

Wednesday – Crockpot ribs with mac and cheese and three bean salad! To make this meal easier, you can make up the mac and cheese the night before (all but the last step) and 20 minutes before you need it, add the shredded chedder and breadcrumbs. 


Thursday – Kale greek salad. Healthy and refreshing! I grilled up some chicken to add to it. Leftovers make a great lunch the next day! 



Friday – BBQ chicken thighs with green beans and cheddar/sage biscuits! These biscuits are da bomb 💣(sorry for my corny joke). I’ve made these for the past few years everytime the weather warms up and the BBQ’s start! 

BBQ chicken thighs

Ingredients

  • 1 package boneless chicken thighs
  • BBQ sauce
  • Salt and pepper

Steps

  1. Season chicken thighs width salt and pepper. Slather BBQ sauce on chicken. Please on heat grill. Cook over medium heat 5 mintutes per side.

Week of May 15th 

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Monday – Baked pesto chicken with caprese salad – I followed this recipe, but used breadcrumbs instead of almond meal



Tuesday – Taco salad – Besides this dish being tasty, it’s also a one pot dish! 

Taco Salad

Ingredients 

  • 1 lb ground turkey
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 yellow onion, diced 
  • 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles
  • 2 tablespoons taco seasoning – click here to see my homemade taco seasoning
  • 1 cup shredded mexican cheese
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • Handful of fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
  • Romaine or iceburg lettuce 
  • Scoop or two of salsa 

Steps

  1. Heat olive oil in large skillet, add ground turkey and cook on medium heat until browned
  2. Turn heat down to low, add onions and cook until translucent, stirring often
  3. Add tomatoes and taco seasoning, mix well
  4. Top with shredded cheese and cook until cheese melts
  5. Add lettuce to plates and top with taco salad 
  6. Top with avocado, cilantro, and salsa



Wednesday – Blackened salmon with tomato, avocado, and corn salsa  – The smoky char from the blackened salmon adds depth and intense flavor!  Silly me forgot to take the thawed corn out of the microwave and didn’t find it until dinner the following night! 🤦🏼‍♀️



Thursday – Velveeta one pot cheesy chicken and broccoli rice – I changed this recipe up a little. I used brown rice, instead of white. And let the rice cook in the chicken broth (with the chicken) for 45 minutes.  Brown rice always takes longer to cook than white rice, so it needed much more time. 



Friday – Garlic lime chicken quinoa. Great family recipe! 

Week of April 30th 

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Monday – Pesto pasta with fresh mozzarella and cherry tomatoes. This recipe is so easy and is a perfect dinner for busy nights! Pesto is a great sauce to keep on hand. You can either buy it from the store or make ahead of time and freeze it! Click here for my pesto recipe] I use almonds instead of pine nuts because they are more affordable! 


Tuesday – T-bone steak with roasted vegetables and beans. This is why I don’t let me husband do the food shopping. T-bone steaks, despite not being on the grocery list, somehow made it into the shopping cart! But I have to give him credit, they tasted great!


Wednesday – Acini de Pepe with spicy sausage, cherry tomatoes, and spinach. A one pot dinner…Woohoo!

Acini de Pepe with spicy sausage, cherry tomatoes, and spinach


Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup acini de Pepe
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2 1/2 sausage links, casings removed
  • Handful of fresh spinach
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Steps

  1. Heat olive oil over large cast iron skillet. Add sausage and cook until brown, about 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently. Set aside.
  2. Add tomatoes and cook until soft, about 5 minutes, and set aside
  3. Add 1/2 cup acini de Pepe and 2 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to medium-low and cook until all water has absorbed, about 10 minutes, sitting constantly. 
  4. Add spinach and another 1/2 cup water, cover and simmer until spinach is wilted and water has absorbed
 

Thursday – Cheeseburgers with coleslaw and tator tots! You don’t always need a fancy dinner, and sometimes tator tots just call your name!


Friday – Pork enchilada skillet dinner. Happy Cinco de Mayo! Celebrate with this one pot meal! 

Week of April 16th!

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Monday – Fried rice and ham.  This is an easy recipe to use up left over Easter ham


Tuesday – Split chicken breasts with rice and green beans


Wednesday – Risotto with peas and ham. Another great way to use up left over Easter ham.


Risotto with peas and ham

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil 
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 cup cooked ham, cubed
  • 1 cup arborio rice
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup frozen peas 
  • 2/3 cup parmesan cheese

Steps

  1. Heat olive oil over medium heat in large skillet, saute onion until translucent
  2. Add rice and white wine. Let rice absorb the liquid, then add the chicken stock, 1 cup at a time, letting the rice absorb the liquid before adding more
  3. Add the peas and ham, cooking until heated
  4. Remove from heat and add the cheese
 

Thursday – Superfood salad! This kale, black bean, sweet potato, avocado, and quinoa salad will make you feel good and kick some a$$!



Friday – Grilled salmon and asparagus with rice. Grill season, it’s back! Grilling salmon is my favorite way to eat it. The depth of flavor is much greater than baking it! What makes this meal so great is you can grill the salmon and asparagus at the same time! Both are seasoned with olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill the asparagus for 8 minutes, rotating occasionally and grill the salmon skin side down for 8 minutes, then flip it over for the final 1-2 minutes. 


Baby food 

Mini salmon cakes inspired by the Baby and Toddler Cookbook. My husband and I were having salmon for dinner, so I ordered a little extra and made these salmon cakes for my son! They are a perfect finger food and so tasty! I kept stealing a little from him! Only store for up to 1 day in the fridge.

 Mini Salmon cakes

Ingredients

  • 1 slice whole wheat bread
  • 1/3 lbs salmon, diced
  • 1 green onion, minced
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 egg

 Steps

  1. Place bread in a food processor and blend into fine crumbs. Place in a large bowl
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bread crumbs, stir to combine
  3. Gently divide the salmon mixture into four equal portions and pat each portion into a small cake
  4. Place on plate and cover and refrigerate 10-15 minutes
  5. In large frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat
  6. Add the salmon cakes and cook until golden brown about 2-3 minutes/side
  7. Cool and serve

      Week of April 9th 

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      Monday – Stir fry with quinoa, broccoli, and salmon.  I used a cup of frozen broccoli instead of snap peas, cooking it on the stove top over medium high heat until soft. 



      Tuesday – Pork chops with mashed potatoes and broccoli.


      Wednesday – Chicken fajitas. I cooked one pound of chicken breasts and used half for this recipe and the other half in Thursday night’s meal.  Slice chicken into thin strips, season with fajita seasoning, and cook on stove over medium heat for 5-6 minutes or until no long pink inside.  Remove from pan.  Add sliced bell pepper and onion and cook until soft.  I used a frozen mix from Trader Joe’s, but you can also use fresh. Heat wraps according to packaged directions. Add chicken, peppers, onions, sour cream, shredded cheese, and top with salsa! 

      Thursday – Stir fry with chicken, sliced bell peppers, and broccoli served over noodles.  YUM! I knew I wanted left overs of this, so I increased the quantities slightly. I used 2/3 cup soy sauce, 6 oz of pineapple juice, and cooked 3/4 box of linguine. This also makes a great meal for your little one! Mine scarfed it down.

      Friday – Pesto chicken with blistered tomatoes. This recipe reminds me of SUMMER! Who else can’t wait for it to be here?! 

      Baby food
      This week I made a couple of spinach pops! I froze the shake I made for myself into two ice pop container.  This makes a great teething food!

      Ingredients

      -handful of fresh spinach

      -1/2 banana

      -1/4 sliced apple

      -1 teaspoon ground flax seed 

      -water

      Add all food ingredients to a nutribullet and cover all ingredients with water. Blend until smooth. Pour into ice pop tray and freeze!  To remove, run under warm water until pop wiggles free!

      Family friendly meals for baby

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      Since my son was born, I’ve always been concerned about his food!  Is he eating enough?  Eating too much?  When should he start solids?  Should I skip rice cereal?  Suffer through breastfeeding or start formula?  It’s exhausting and reading articles on the internet is no help because everyone says something different.  It took a while to figure out (and I’m still learning with every new stage), but eventually I learned my son has all the answers.  If he opens his mouth, feed him.  I started solid foods around 4.5 months because he was up to 40 oz of formula!  I did start with rice and quickly expanded to different fruits and veggies.  I’ve made all my own baby food and had a lot of fun figuring out combinations!  Now that he’s almost 11 months, I’ve started to increase his finger foods.  I started searching for recipes that my husband and I like, but also include ingredients my son can eat! 

      Family friendly meals for baby

      1. Crockpot chicken noodle soup – Put the following items into the crockpot: 6 cups chicken stock, 2 cups water, 2-3 diced carrots (peeled) and celery sticks, 1-2 cups diced rotisserie chicken, mini meatballs, 2 bay leafs, salt and pepper to taste. Cook on low for 6 hours. Add 1 bag of egg noodles and cook until tender.
      2. Pasta and meatballs with homemade sauce – I made rotini for my son, overcooked by 5 minutes to make sure it was very soft and tender. I cut it into bite size pieces for him and he went to town!  I didn’t add the red sauce, but drizzled olive oil instead.  For another variation, I’ve added peas and carrots that simmered for 20 minutes on the stove, then mashed/cut them into smaller pieces and added to the pasta. 
      3. Veggie enchilada casserole – This recipe is packed with vegetables and since you bake it, they are all soft!  I gave my son mashed up black beans and spiralized carrots. 
      4. White bean soup – So far, this is one of my favorite family friendly meals! Not only is it easy and fast to make, but there is also little to clean up – one cutting board, one knife, and one pot gets me all the ingredients my son can eat!! Time for a victory dance! After the soup simmered for 15 minutes, I sliced the carrot and chicken into small pieces for him, mashed the white beans and put everything on his highchair tray! 
      5. Crockpot chicken taco bowl – This is another perfect meal for the family. The chicken is already shredded, so all you need to do is scoop and give to your little one. I gave my son shredded chicken and black beans served over brown rice.
      6. Fish tacos – The fish is seared on a cast iron skillet, not fried, making it flaky and soft, perfect for those little teeth!
      7. Chicken minestrone soup – Your baby will love everything in this soup. Just cut into bite size pieces and it makes great finger foods!
       

        Meal plan week of March 19th 

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        Monday – Noodles and pork – This recipe calls for almond butter, which I didn’t have, so I used peanut butter instead.  Cooked up a pork tenderloin on Sunday night and used half with this recipe and the other half for Thursday’s dinner.


        Tuesday – Velveeta crockpot mac and cheese –  Mac and cheese is one of my favorite foods!  (I’m such a kid) This recipe was super creamy and unbelievably easy to make in the crockpot! I’ll definitely be using this recipe again! 


        Wednesday – Turkey chili in the crockpot 


        Thursday – Pork tenderloin on top of a kale salad with grapes and feta cheese – Used the other half of the pork tenderloin that was cooked on Sunday. Cooking the pork in advance makes this the perfect effortless meal!


        Friday – Skillet pizza pie – I’m all about using my cast iron skillet. My husband was a little skeptical of this recipe, but the pizza tasted great! Crispy and satisfying! 

        Baby food 


        Spinach/banana muffins – My little one loves these and I don’t feel guilty giving them to him!  I made the mini muffins, they keep great in the freezer!