Menu Plan: Cinco De Mayo week!
This week we discovered a fun and exciting lack of plans. Nothing more than our bare-bones schedule. It was nice! So we opted for a more exciting (read: complicated) menu plan. Sorry I failed to post this on Sunday.
Monday: Mr. Moon's day off! We wanted to exploit his love for grilling, so we planned Brats on the Barbie (which if this weren't the first week of posting menus you would know was a boot-up from last week's Brats on Monday menu plan, which got tossed because we needed produce and 10% off for seniors day is on Tuesday). Pork Beer brats for me, chicken and sundried tomato for the rest of the folks. Chunk Salad for a side dish. But wait, where is the starch? you ask. THE BUN. That's all the starchy side you need, I promise. That being said, if you crave a little more variety, you can do what I did and snack on some of my oranges for dessert.
Tuesday: Mr. Moon's other day off! Freezer Meal for the week: we used up the two whole Tilapia. Stuffed them with lemon slices, butter, and fresh herbs from the garden (green onion, garlic scapes, dill, parsley). Side was supposed to be rice but the proper pot wasn't cleaned in time so we got couscous instead. Added some shelled pumpkin seeds to give it some texture and nutritive content. Side of roasted acorn squash, mashed with nutmeg and mace and a little stevia. Late-night dessert for Mr. Moon was strawberries & angel food cake with stevia-sweetened whipped cream. (I just had strawberries.)
Wednesday: Mr. Moon works in the morning, which sucks for Tuesday night plans, but kind of works out because we had date night on a work day. The 'Rents went out for dinner and we stayed in, watched a horror movie on the big screen while we marinated some beef. This dish was inspired by Mr. Moon's favorite dish at work, but despite getting some arrbol chili salsa from them I made it my own. Sautéed onions, orange bell pepper, mushrooms, zucchini and diced jalapeno, seasoned only with a little salt and pepper; stew beef marinated in arrbol chili salsa, with a little cumin for good measure; garlic scapes and fresh tomato, gently sweated with more arrbol chili salsa before adding cream to deglaze the pan. It wasn't quite right, so I added just a dash of dark chili powder and it was perfect! Layered in the aforementioned fashion in a nice big bowl, plenty of veggies. Mr. Moon asked if we were serving it over something and I laughed at him. My last two bites were forced in for flavor, but I was full; no need for rice! Although with fewer veggies and a little less meat, this would have been wonderful with rice, but I just don't think it needed it.
Thursday: Mr. Moon works in the evenings through the weekend, so we need meals that either are separate or easy to prepare separately, and fast when we get home around midnight. Tonight the 'Rents are having salad for dinner, and Mr. Moon and I are having meat of some kind (hot dogs for me, pork ribs for him), leftover squash, and steamed broccoli.
Friday: Grilled cheese sandwiches and crockpot tomato soup.
Saturday: Cinco De Mayo! "Mexican" Feast for dinner. Crockpot: rice & beans. Casserole #1, for the 'Rents: texmex lasagna, vegetarian with corn, not spicy, light on the cheese. Casserole #2, for Mr. Moon and myself: also texmex lasagna, with ground beef, more cheese, spicy. Side of jicama cole slaw which has been marinating since Tuesday (well, and also being snacked on for my lunches).
Sunday: Leftovers. Sunday is always leftovers, right now. I don't know if that's because by the end of the week of menu planning I get bored, or just because it seems to work for us. As it is, Mr. Moon gets off work earlier that day, and we usually have time to cobble something together. This is also where we have those single-serving Oh Shit meals stashed, in case there were no leftovers.
We also managed to make a lunch plan for most days this week, but promptly failed to follow it. In any event, having a plan seems to have at least reminded us that we're supposed to be eating SOMETHING for lunch, so that's a bonus.
And there you have it!
Monday: Mr. Moon's day off! We wanted to exploit his love for grilling, so we planned Brats on the Barbie (which if this weren't the first week of posting menus you would know was a boot-up from last week's Brats on Monday menu plan, which got tossed because we needed produce and 10% off for seniors day is on Tuesday). Pork Beer brats for me, chicken and sundried tomato for the rest of the folks. Chunk Salad for a side dish. But wait, where is the starch? you ask. THE BUN. That's all the starchy side you need, I promise. That being said, if you crave a little more variety, you can do what I did and snack on some of my oranges for dessert.
Tuesday: Mr. Moon's other day off! Freezer Meal for the week: we used up the two whole Tilapia. Stuffed them with lemon slices, butter, and fresh herbs from the garden (green onion, garlic scapes, dill, parsley). Side was supposed to be rice but the proper pot wasn't cleaned in time so we got couscous instead. Added some shelled pumpkin seeds to give it some texture and nutritive content. Side of roasted acorn squash, mashed with nutmeg and mace and a little stevia. Late-night dessert for Mr. Moon was strawberries & angel food cake with stevia-sweetened whipped cream. (I just had strawberries.)
Wednesday: Mr. Moon works in the morning, which sucks for Tuesday night plans, but kind of works out because we had date night on a work day. The 'Rents went out for dinner and we stayed in, watched a horror movie on the big screen while we marinated some beef. This dish was inspired by Mr. Moon's favorite dish at work, but despite getting some arrbol chili salsa from them I made it my own. Sautéed onions, orange bell pepper, mushrooms, zucchini and diced jalapeno, seasoned only with a little salt and pepper; stew beef marinated in arrbol chili salsa, with a little cumin for good measure; garlic scapes and fresh tomato, gently sweated with more arrbol chili salsa before adding cream to deglaze the pan. It wasn't quite right, so I added just a dash of dark chili powder and it was perfect! Layered in the aforementioned fashion in a nice big bowl, plenty of veggies. Mr. Moon asked if we were serving it over something and I laughed at him. My last two bites were forced in for flavor, but I was full; no need for rice! Although with fewer veggies and a little less meat, this would have been wonderful with rice, but I just don't think it needed it.
Thursday: Mr. Moon works in the evenings through the weekend, so we need meals that either are separate or easy to prepare separately, and fast when we get home around midnight. Tonight the 'Rents are having salad for dinner, and Mr. Moon and I are having meat of some kind (hot dogs for me, pork ribs for him), leftover squash, and steamed broccoli.
Friday: Grilled cheese sandwiches and crockpot tomato soup.
Saturday: Cinco De Mayo! "Mexican" Feast for dinner. Crockpot: rice & beans. Casserole #1, for the 'Rents: texmex lasagna, vegetarian with corn, not spicy, light on the cheese. Casserole #2, for Mr. Moon and myself: also texmex lasagna, with ground beef, more cheese, spicy. Side of jicama cole slaw which has been marinating since Tuesday (well, and also being snacked on for my lunches).
Sunday: Leftovers. Sunday is always leftovers, right now. I don't know if that's because by the end of the week of menu planning I get bored, or just because it seems to work for us. As it is, Mr. Moon gets off work earlier that day, and we usually have time to cobble something together. This is also where we have those single-serving Oh Shit meals stashed, in case there were no leftovers.
We also managed to make a lunch plan for most days this week, but promptly failed to follow it. In any event, having a plan seems to have at least reminded us that we're supposed to be eating SOMETHING for lunch, so that's a bonus.
And there you have it!
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