Men Plan for Week of September 26, 2010

Fall is here, and we are slowly including more cold weather food choices in our menu plan!

Sunday: Hurried Goulash with Egg Noodles and Peas
Monday: Teriyaki Chicken, rice, and veggies
Tuesday: Tacos
Wednesday: Pasta with Spaghetti Sauce
Thursday: Baked Egg Cups
Friday: Crockpot Chicken Tacos
Saturday: Slow Cooked Pot Roast with Mini Potatoes

Menu Plan for Week of September 19, 2010

Another week under our belt, and some more growing pains along the way. Suppertime is definitely difficult, however, we are still managing to stick to our menu plan. I don't really know how we would cope otherwise. I had requests for shrimp from everyone in my house this week, so I've put it on our agenda for Monday. I'm also throwing in a couple slow cooker recipes, as fall weather has hit Ottawa and most nights there is a definite chill in the air.

Sunday: Crockpot Taco Soup
Monday: Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Coconut Rice
Tuesday: Irish Beef Stew (from freezer)
Wednesday: Pasta with Spaghetti Sauce
Thursday: Pizza & Salad (Mommy at meeting at school)
Friday: Hurried Goulash with Egg Noodles and Peas
Saturday: Slow Cooked Pot Roast with Mini Potatoes

Menu Plan for Week of September 12, 2010

The first week of school for everyone was hectic and insane, but for the most part we managed to stick to our menu plan and eat healthily. It is A LOT of work. It is exhausting cooking a meal after working a long day and picking up my children at daycare. Evenings are spent preparing and chopping food for lunches the next day. But, so far so good. Maybe the reason I didn't die from exhaustion is because I was eating healthy :)

This week's meals are foods I can prepare quickly and easily, or else make the night before.

Sunday: Barbecue Hamburgers and Hotdogs, fresh tomato salad
Monday: Layered Mexican Bake
Tuesday: Fish (haddock) and Chips
Wednesday: Bacon and Cheese Omelet
Thursday: Pizza & Salad (mommy works late at staff meeting)
Friday: Crockpot Taco Soup
Saturday: Grilled Steak, Potatoes and Veggies

Menu Plan for Week of September 5, 2010

Trying for a fairly simple menu this week for the first week back at school. We did quite well last week, aside from one rough day where we threw in the towel and went out for dinner at our neighbourhood pub.

This week I am aiming for meals that are fast to prepare, and that are tried and true favourites. No surprises - we won't have time!

Sunday: BBQ Ribs
Monday: Pasta with Shrimp and Broccoli
Tuesday: Tacos
Wednesday: Grilled Salmon with Potatoes
Thursday: Spicy, Sauteed Chickpeas, Beef and Cilantro
Friday: Pizza and Salad
Saturday: Neighbourhood Corn Roast

Menu Plan for Week of August 30, 2010

The results are in . . . and we did pretty well this week. Menu planning definitely helped life run smoother this week, although supper time is still rushed and busy. I can't imagine any way to change that right now, with three young children and two adults working full time. I was only working mornings last week, and even that was a big change for all of us.

This week I am working mostly full days, and then school starts in a week, which means I'll be busy teaching and Things 1 and 2 will both be back in their classrooms. I'm hoping this week will be a good test run for us to see how we can cope with meal times . . . and continue eating healthy meals and snacks instead of falling back on processed and quick meals.

Sunday: Leftovers
Monday: Tacos
Tuesday: Chicken Tenders with Creamy Honey Mustard
Wednesday: Pesto Cheese and Turkey Sandwiches
Thursday: Couscous Salad with Black Beans, Mushrooms, and Corn
Friday: Pasta with Pesto and Tomatoes
Saturday: BBQ Ribs

Menu Plan for Week of August 22, 2010

I truly neglected my menu-planning this summer. And in all fairness, we didn't do a lot of eating at home. We went camping, visited family near Toronto, did some cottaging, took vacation in Nova Scotia, and I even spent a few days in New York City.

But as I gear up to say goodbye to summer, I also bid adieu to any extra time I may have had in the kitchen. Starting in September I am returning to work full-time. As a teacher who has been out of the workforce for 6.5 years, I expect to be extremely busy and frazzled. One of my key objectives is to figure out how to keep us all eating healthy meals and snacks. Where do I find the time to shop for, prepare, cook, and clean up all the food? How do I manage to not cave under all the extra pressure and order pizza for my family four nights a week?

By the way, if I figure any of this out, you'll be the first to know.

Since I am starting back at school a few hours a day this week, I want to jump right back in with the menu planning, because that's one thing that certainly helps make life easier.

Sunday: Leftovers
Monday: Emeril's Oven-Roasted Chicken Wings and Mexicana Chopped Salad
Tuesday: Easy Spaghetti and Meatballs
Wednesday: Cayenne-Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa
Thursday: Couscous Salad with Black Beans, Mushrooms, and Corn
Friday: Pasta with Pesto and Tomatoes
Saturday: Fajitas

Since I have more basil than I know what to do with, I'm going to make a couple batches of this Basil Pesto so I can freeze it in small portions and have it ready to add to pasta on a busy weeknight.

I'm also using up a gazillion blueberries in several batches of these Blueberry Coffee-Cake Muffins, which are significantly less healthy than my usual Lemon Blueberry Muffins. I did cut the sugar quantity and added some whole wheat flour and flaxseed, to make myself feel slightly less guilty about giving muffins that are essentially "cake" to my children.

Menu Plan for Week of June 6, 2010

It's been a while since I updated my menu plan here. I started the South Beach diet at the end of April, and followed it strictly for several weeks. And although I'm still eating fewer carbs, I'm able to be more flexible with my meal plans now. I will usually eat what the rest of the family eats, although I will eliminate the pasta, potatoes, or bread. And while I have successfully lost ten pounds (would like to lose a few more, but it's not totally necessary), I am feeling so fantastic and have noticed such drastic changes in myself both physically and emotionally, that I am planning to continue eating like this for as long as I can.

Sunday: Sweet Potato Fries and Roast Chicken
Monday: Spring Vegetable Coucous with Chicken (May 2010 Everyday Food Magazine)
Tuesday: Fish and Veggies
Wednesday: Leftovers/Sandwiches
Thursday: Beef, Snap Pea and Asparagus Stir-Fry (June 2010 Everyday Food Magazine)
Friday: Grilled Chicken Taco Salad
Saturday: Home-made Pizza

One of the biggest changes I've made in how I eat is the fact that I eat a salad almost every day for lunch now - in the past I would have a salad WITH something else but I now eat a large salad with protein and some healthy fats, and I feel fantastic all afternoon. I'm hoping to try out these
Black Beans with Cilantro this week as something a little different at lunch time!

Many of the recipes I've been eating for the past month or so can be found at the Ottawa Life Organic blog - for those who don't know, I write a weekly post there which includes recipes for the produce delivered in each week's Harvest Box.