Our Weekly Menu: September 19-25, 2010

This week's menu has been thrown together haphazardly. It was one of those weekends--on Saturday, by 2:00pm I had already been to a soccer game, spent some time at work and attended a birthday party. This included a lot of car and kid switching, but also meant that grocery shopping didn't get tended to on Sunday. I'll have to figure out a day to get over to the store this week, but I'm trying to plan my menu based on what I have in the house just in case that doesn't happen. Our Thursday is a nightmare, and although I really would like to get something healthy on the table, there's a good chance we'll be eating out. Anyone else having a crazy week???

Sunday, September 19
Grilled cheeseburgers**
Summery Potato Salad with Cherry Tomatoes
(Beef from local farm; tomatoes (both sliced and cherry), potatoes, and onions from local farms)
**We are not having this again after just two days (if you remember last week's menu)...it got bumped to this week after an impromptu dinner with friends.

Monday, September 20
Leftover West African Stew (from freezer)
Brown rice
(Squash and okra from local farm)

Tuesday, September 21
Pizza

Wednesday, September 22
Dinner Party

Thursday, September 23
Ratatouille
(Eggplant, tomatoes, bell pepper and onions from local farms)

Friday, September 24
Grilled Lamb Chops with Oregano Dressing
Green Beans
Arugula Salad

Saturday, September 25
Eat. Drink. Danville. aka Oktoberfest

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Our Weekly Menu: September 12-18, 2010

Organic, local haricot verts on sale at the farmer's market...how could I pass those up?! The farmer we buy much of our produce from is swimming in green beans, so offered me the exceptional price of $1.50/lb. if I bought 10 pounds or more. (At the local WalMart, regular non-organic green beans are currently selling for $1.68/lb. Who says organic has to be expensive?) I bought them...and then subsequently spent the rest of the weekend in the kitchen cleaning, cutting, blanching, shocking and freezing the lovely haricot verts in 1/2 pound increments. After trimming and weeding (and snacking), I ended up with enough frozen beans for 18 meals. Crazy. I also froze some okra and made some chicken stock. Up for the rest of the week (when I get two seconds)--preparing edamame for some yummy dip!

On an unrelated note (to green beans), but related to weekly menu planning, Kathy of Panini Happy started a very interesting discussion last week about how busy people get freshly-cooked, healthy meals on the table. Meal planning and having freshly frozen ingredients on hand are a couple of ways I do it. How about you?

This week is super crazy with three soccer days and one evening spent at a play. This leaves very little time for cooking, so I tried to prepare this weekend. Here's what we're having:

Sunday, September 12
West African Stew
Brown Rice
(Okra and butternut squash from CSA)

Monday, September 13
Pizza
(Bell peppers and homemade pizza sauce with veggies from CSA)

Tuesday, September 14
Panini
Chips

Wednesday, September 15
Chicken Schnitzel
Spaetzle
Pickled Beets
(Beets from a local farm)

Thursday, September 16
Leftover West African Stew
Brown Rice
(Okra and butternut squash from CSA)

Friday, September 17
Fettuccine Alfredo alla Romana
Green Salad
(Peas and tomatoes from CSA)

Saturday, September 18
Grilled Burgers
Summery Potato Salad with Cherry Tomatoes
Other veggies from CSA
(Potatoes and tomatoes from CSA; beef from local farm)

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Our Weekly Menu: September 5-11, 2010

After a little glitch last week in planning (as in we were lucky we had time to eat dinner, let alone plan it!), I'm back to meal planning! This week is hectic too, so we'll have to hope that our CSA share gets us through the second half of the week in veggies.

Sunday, September 5
Potage Crécy
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Monday, September 6
Bratwurts
Stovetop Roasted Potatoes
Green Salad
(Fingerling Potatoes and dill from CSA)

Tuesday, September 7
Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Leftover Potage Crécy
(Chicken from local farm)

Wednesday, September 8
Scrambled Eggs
Bacon
Sliced Tomatoes
(Bacon from local farm; tomatoes from CSA)

Thursday, September 9
Fried Rice
(Green pepper and green onions from CSA)

Friday, September 10
Pizza
(Homemade pizza sauce made from CSA veggies)

Saturday, September 11
Lamb Chops
Various veggies from this week's CSA share
(Lamb from local farm)

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Our Weekly Menu: August 22-28, 2010

I'm a little slow posting our weekly menu this week, and I'll be lucky to post a recipe later on in the week--because my husband and I both work for a college, and tomorrow is freshman move-in, we're just a little bit busy. It's an exciting and fun time on campus, but it means lots and lots of meetings and last-minute organizing. We're lucky to eat at the same dinner table during the first couple of weeks of school, but we're doing the best we can this week! Before we had kids, we probably would have ordered a pizza or two and just eaten off of that for the week, but now that my daughter is four years old, I feel guilty doing this (even if she would love it). As it is, we're doing lots of leftovers to get us through healthily.

Here's what we're eating this week:

Sunday, August 22
Thai Peanut Chicken
Rice

Monday, August 23
Dinner Party
Homemade pizza for Sophie and babysitter
(Sauce made from tomatoes from CSA)

Tuesday, August 24
Leftover Arroz al Horno
Patatas Bravas
(Fingerling potatoes, tomatoes for sauce from CSA)

Wednesday, August 25
Nachos w/ leftover shredded beef
(Beef from local farm)

Thursday, August 26
Gallo Pinto (Costa Rican Rice and Beans)

Friday, August 27
Homemade Pizza
(Sauce made from tomatoes from CSA)

Saturday, August 28
Rogan Josh
Indian Spicy Rice
Green Beans
(Jalapeños from CSA, lamb and green beans from local farms)

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Our Weekly Menu: August 15-21, 2010

This week's menu has already changed because we've made plans to go out twice and because of soccer practice. I'm going to have to start paying attention to our calendar when planning meals again!

I highly recommend the sausages from Bavaria Sausage in Madison. You can order them online (which isn't very local unless you're in Wisconsin, but hey, it's more local than ordering from Germany!) My in-laws brought down five pounds of these bratwursts last time they visited, and we're making them last!

The tortilla (which means "omelet" in Spain) is an easy, cheap meal that can be made ahead. I actually prefer this room temperature, so it's a great meal when you're busy.

What are you cooking this week?

Sunday, August 15
Nürnberg bratwurst from Bavaria Sausage in Madison, WI
Stovetop Roasted Basil Fingerling Potatoes
Caprese Salad
(Potatoes, basil, and tomatoes from CSA)

Monday, August 16
Tortilla Española
Warm Chickpeas and Chorizo
(Eggs and potatoes from CSA)

Tuesday, August 17
Pizza
(Homemade pizza sauce from CSA veggies, local onions)

Wednesday, August 18
Cookout at friends' house

Thursday, August 19
Tacos
Mexican Rice
(Beef from local farm)

Friday, August 20
Eat out at Restaurant

Saturday, August 21
Peanut Chicken
Rice

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Our Weekly Menu: August 8-14, 2010

I think it's universally known that when you plan your meals out and then go shopping with a list based on that plan, you save time and money. I often loosely plan out the week's meals, but lately, I've been more strict about when we'll eat which meal because local fresh produce just doesn't last as long as grocery store produce. If I'm not careful, I go crazy at the farmer's market, and then half of the food goes to waste because I don't use it fast enough. I'll be posting our weekly meal plan here, partly so you can see what we do with our produce/meat, but also to keep me accountable! Whenever possible, I'll link to the recipe and come back to make notes on how we stuck to the menu.

This week's menu is a little strange since my husband will be out of town and I'd like to use up what's in the fridge (and also because I asked for my four-year-old daughter's input this week!).

Sunday, August 8
Fettuccine Alfredo
Salad with baby romaine, bell pepper, tomato and mozzarella
(Peas, bell pepper and tomato from CSA/farmer's market)

Monday, August 9
School Picnic Dinner
Sandwiches
Leftover Green Potato Salad
Homemade Pickles
Cookies
(Potatoes and cucumbers from CSA/farmer's market)

Tuesday, August 10
Scrambled Eggs
Bacon
Beets w/ chive cream
(Eggs and beets from CSA/farmer's market; Bacon from local farm)

Wednesday, August 11
Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes
Salad
(Tomatoes from CSA/farmer's market)

Thursday, August 12
Rice with Tomate Frito and Fried Egg
(Eggs from CSA)

Friday, August 13
Pizza
(Tomato sauce made from tomatoes from CSA)

Saturday, August 14
Pork Chops
Stovetop Roasted Dill Fingerling Potatoes
(Potatoes and dill from CSA/farmer's market; Pork chops from local farm)

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