Menu: Nov 10-16

Mr. Moon has a busy week ahead, only one day off work and it's for a metal concert. I had to pull him back from saying we'd just eat out at least three different days this week, not just because our budget is a little uncertain at the moment, but also because we did agree to reduce those temptations a bit and get back to good, home cooking now that our wedding is over and done with. Still, with my health, there's no way we will ever get away from convenience foods completely, and since we have been selective about which ones we keep around for just these occasions we might as well utilize them.


What's on the menu?

Breakfasts: .

Lunches: .

Snacks: .

Dinners:
Monday: Chicken & Rice [chicken, rice, leftovers, fast]
We just got a new rice cooker, and wanted to try one of the recipes in it. Originally this was going to be a rice cooker meal, but the fact is that we have leftover rice we decided not to use today. So I think instead it's going to turn into a skillet meal where we dump in the leftover rice, pre-roasted chicken, and some tomatillo salsa, sprinkle some fresh cilantro on top and call it a day.

Tuesday: Wonton soup [fusion, soup, fast]
This is a quick & easy meal we've been making for about a year now. It started as a phó craving when we didn't have the cash to go out, and morphed from there. We have wonton dumplings in the freezer that hang around like ravioli until we want them, and then craft a frothy soup around them. Honestly this soup does not even always have wontons or noodles of any kind. One of these days I'll post a methodology on it.

Wednesday: Ginger pumpkin carrot slow-cooker soup [slow-cooker, vegetarian]
I picked up a giant pumpkin last week for $2 and we roasted it off with just a little salt, pepper & nutmeg. So now I have 5 meals' worth of pumpkin bits awaiting inspiration. I made a pumpkin curry with one, this soup is the second one. We'll throw it in the crockpot before he goes to his concert, and have a nice warm meal ready when he gets home with a sore throat.

Thursday: Spaghetti [pasta, italian, vegetarian]

Friday: Tuna mac [ ]

Saturday: Baked potato soup [slow-cooker]
Again, a nice easy meal in the crockpot to be ready & waiting at dinner time. Saturdays are always a late night, and with an 8am shift the next day we have a habit of picking up either Wendy's or Subway on the way home. But both make me pretty sick the next day, and I'm done sticking my head in the sand about it. To resist the temptation, I've found that including bacon in the meal for Saturday nights, no matter how simple, is a guaranteed way to get Mr. Moon excited about coming home even if it still means a little cooking. This is a lovely dish that we can throw a box of cream of celery soup in the crockpot, toss in some potatoes or even some of these boxed mashers I've got that I'll never use, some more broth, garlic & onions, and let it simmer for a little while. He can fry up the bacon bits earlier in the day, have cheese grated, scallions chopped, and when it comes time for dinner it just means serving it up. Heck, now that I have a rice cooker with a delay timer, I could have him set it up before he goes to work & be able to ignore it or nap without worrying about what time I need to start dinner.

Sunday: Tortellini [pasta, italian]
I love ravioli. Like, a lot. But I find that the tortellini make me a lot happier to keep around, and we're much more experimental with it, despite still being ricotta-stuffed eggy pasta. I'm not sure if we'll make tortellini soup, throw some fresh moss & marinara on it, or even tortellini piccata two Sundays in a row. But I do know, it will be delicious.

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What's on your menu this week? Need planning ideas? I'll be linking up at orgjunkie.com, if you need other ideas!