November Meal Plan, 2013

At the inspiration of Life in Grace, I decided to create a meal plan for the month.  Usually I create a plan for the week, and it turns out to be a bit stressful because I don't know what to make or I start to feel like we've been eating the same thing over and over.  Planning for the month was surprisingly fun and pushed me to be creative in what we'll be eating.  

 

We have been making a push to eat mostly vegetarian and as much unprocessed food as possible {it's important to us that we avoid hormone-laden meat, especially since we have a little one on the way}.

 

 

{Image found here - Wouldn't you just love to have a Thanksgiving table this beautiful!?!?}

 

Week 1

·         Monday, November 4 – Spicy Vegetable Soup, Baked Potatoes

·         Tuesday, November 5 – Out to eat {Mediterranean Café}

·         Wednesday, November 6 – Creamy Garlic Shells, Asparagus, Farmer’s Salad

·         Thursday, November 7 – Mexican Lasagna and Mexican Rice

·         Friday, November 8 – Dinner at church

·         Saturday, November 9 – Quinoa burgers, French fries, corn on the cob

·         Sunday, November 10 – {Grace’s Birthday Party}  Potato Soup, Crusty Bread

 

Week 2

 ·         Monday, November 11 – Sweet potatoes, Hoppin John, Green Beans

·         Tuesday, November 12 – {Take meal to the Li’s} Baked ziti, Asparagus, Crusty Bread, Pineapple Poke Cake

·         Wednesday, November 13 – Leftover Mexican Lasagna, Rice and Salad

·         Thursday, November 14 – {Family Dinner} Cheese Tortellini Soup, Chocolate cake

·         Friday, November 15 – Beef Stew, Egg noodles, Collard Greens or Salad and Incredible Edibles

·         Saturday, November 16 – {Anna’s Birthday Celebration} Homemade Pizza, Salad, Mike’s Apple Pie.  I hope you get to come over to try my hubs’ pie sometime.  It is really a special treat!

·         Sunday, November 17 – Roasted Veggie Wraps, Mexican Rice, Key Lime Pie

 

Week 3

 

·         Monday, November 18 – Lentil Dish

·         Tuesday, November 19 – Quiche and Farmer’s Salad

·         Wednesday November 20 – Lentil Wraps

·         Thursday, November 21 – Patty Melts

·         Friday, November 22 – Dinner with Complete Joy

·         Saturday, November 23 – Leftovers plus a Mixed Greens Salad with Pomegranate seeds and Gorgonzola

·         Sunday, November 24 – Spaghetti alla Carbonara or Marinara, Green veggie option

 

Week 4

·         Monday, November 25 – Homemade Pizza

·         Tuesday, November 26 –  Autumn Chopped Salad and Baked Potatoes

·         Wednesday, November 27 – Spicy Veggie Soup and Grilled cheese – I want something easy for today since it will be filled with cooking preparations for our big Thanksgiving meal.

·         Thursday, November 28 – Traditional Thanksgiving meal {still deciding our meal plan}

·         Friday, November 29 – Leftovers

·         Saturday, November 30 – Vegetarian Chili, Cornbread

·         Sunday, December 1 – Spicy Noodles

 

Let me know if you want recipes for anything without links.  I'm happy to share!  Would love to hear what you're eating these days.

 

Tasty Tuesday: Baked Couscous

When Mom and Dad were visiting a couple of weeks ago, Mom cooked dinner a couple of nights.  She's been trying to get me to try this dish for almost a year since I mentioned that hubs and I have been eating less meat.  It's been on my radar, but I just haven't gotten around to it.  Well, let me say it's delish!  {Sorry, I don't have any cool, step-by-step pictures to go along with the recipe}

Disclaimer: This recipe does not have specific measurements, so I apologize.  I'm usually a strict recipe follower {at least the first time around}.

Baked Couscous
1 cup Israeli couscous {this is the larger pearlized kind}
Broccoli chopped
Carrots chopped
Spoonful of mayonnaise
1 teaspoon garlic
1 cup grated parmesan 

Step 1:
Cook couscous according to the directions.

Step 2:
Chop broccoli and carrots and steam together for 3 minutes.  You still want your veggies to have some crunch to them as they are going to be baked.   I usually eyeball the amount of vegetables {well, the one time I made this dish} to use in this dish.  Special note: you can choose whatever veggie combination you like.  I happen to like broccoli and carrots together.  Plus, my mom said it's the best combo.

Step 3:
Mix together couscous, vegetables and remaining ingredients in a casserole dish {maybe an 8x8 pan}.  You want just enough mayo to wet ingredients.  I would rather skip the mayo bit but I haven't made this recipe enough to figure out what else to use.  Sprinkle top with parmesan.  

Step 4: 
Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Flex-itarian Ways

Hubs and I have been making an attempt at eating less meat {I know I've mentioned this in previous posts}. Over the summer, hubs read this book that convinced him we should eat less meat for health, societal, humane, and environmental reasons {I haven't been brave enough to read it yet}. Interestingly enough my whole family is choosing to eat less meat.

Anyway, I had this eggplant in my fridge we had to use or toss so tonight we tried a new veggie pizza recipe I found from the web {I'm making a renewed effort to make sure I'm not throwing out unused food}. I would have taken a pic of the process, but I didn't think of it. And, because I came home from the grocery with a terrible headache, my sweet hubs made our supper. We were pleased with the recipe and will make this pizza again.

Garden Eggplant Pizza

1 large eggplant, peeled

1 medium tomato

1 red bell pepper

1 onion

1 small zucchini

3 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1 (14 oz.) prebaked Italian pizza crust {I made my own pizza dough}

2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/2 tsp. dried basil

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Chop first 5 ingredients coarsely, sauté in 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat 10 minutes or until tender. {We should have put some of the seasonings in the skillet with the veggies before we layer the toppings on the dough}. Layer pizza crust evenly with cheese and eggplant mixture, sprinkle with basil and next 5 ingredients. Drizzle with remaining oil.

Bake pizza at 425°F for 10 minutes or until golden

Here's what's on the menu for the rest of the week:

Polish sausage, potatoes & onion skillet with green beans

Spicy Vegetable soup

Baked Ziti and Asparagus

Bean enchiladas & Spanish rice.

Do you have any delish eggplant recipes...or other vegetarian recipes? I think I'm trying to convince myself to like eggplant. :)

Fish Tacos!

A couple of months ago {I can't believe it's been that long}, I mentioned we had fish tacos. It was my first time using tomatillos, and I was pretty pumped to try something new. Our friend Janna came over to hang out, eat good food, and play Mario Bros on the Wii. It was such a fun night with her! We've been friends with Janna for several years now; we worked together for InterVarsity in the Southeast. She moved to Pasadena this past spring to start her master's degree at Fuller and pioneer a new InterVarsity chapter at Pasadena City College.

I found the recipe from Better Homes and Gardens in May.

1 1/2 lb. cod or halibut fillets, but into 1-inch pieces {I used tilapia}

2 fresh tomatillos cut into 1/2-inch pieces {2 cups}

2 tsp. olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp orange zest

1/2 tsp lime zest

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl toss together the fish, tomatillos, oil, garlic, orange peel and lime peel. Season with salt and black pepper; set aside.

2. Cut six 12-inch-square sheets of foil. Place one-sixth (about 2/3 cup) fish mixture in center of each square. Fold diagonally in half in a triangle. Fold edges two or three times to make a packet. Place packets in single layer on a large baking sheet.

3. Bake fish 10 to 12 minutes, until packets puff slightly (carefully open a packet to check fish doneness; fish should flake easily with a fork). Meanwhile, in dry skillet warm tortillas over medium-high heat until soft, about 15 seconds per side.

4. To serve, divide fish mixture between two tortillas. Top with Cabbage and Chile Pepper Slaw. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings.

I didn't use the slaw for ours, but am interested to try it. We just had ours with plain shredded cabbage tossed in vinegar and guacamole. The flavor of the fish was very light & tasty. If you like spicy tacos, I think the cabbage & chile pepper slaw would add it.