Meal planning and putting up these posts is sooo much more fun in our new house. I have always loved cooking and meal planning, but getting food pictures in our old condo was really hard. The lighting was terrible (one of the things I actually loved about the condo, but bad for blog life) and it was super hard to photograph recipes. This new kitchen is filled with natural light and has so much open space to get pics of the food we are eating! I am hoping to share more of my own recipes (if you can call it recipes when I just eyeball things). Personally, I don’t love going off of a strict recipe.
Since I am going to try to use more of my own recipes and meals we cook on a regular basis, you guys might notice that I will post what we actually ate the week before, instead of what we plan to eat the next week! So I can try out the recipes, photograph them and post. I will still post our meal plans, but it will just be our meal plan from the week prior!
Per request, I am also going to share more packable lunches! When I used to work at an office, it was really hard for me to get in a good routine of bringing my lunch consistently. First, I usually needed that break and wanted to actually leave the office. Second, the lunches I did pack on occasion were never very good, which made me want to eat out even more. So if you struggle with the same dilemma, I feel you. Although Blake has an odd schedule, not the typical 9-5, he is usually gone for work during lunch hours. Some days, he has to go out to lunch for work, but he has been getting really sick of eating out every single lunch. So he’s been asking for packed (but still yummy) lunches! I will start to share more of those as we come up with winner lunches. Last week, we stuck to salads, so I will share the ones we tried out below.
Trying again to meal plan based off of what we have in the fridge! We still have lots of brussel sprouts and carrots from our costco run, so going to use those! Leftover cucumbers from our greek meatballs last week, so going to repurpose into one of my favorite salads! And we also have a bunch of sweet potatoes leftover from the sweet potato tacos. I guess I need to start buying smaller quantities! Going to make my favorite chipotle, garlic sweet potatoes to top on salads and bowls for lunches this week!
chipotle, garlic sweet potatoes
If you go back through my story highlights “eats in” tab, you can see these sweet potatoes and how often we eat them! They are so easy to make in large quantities and hold over really well in the fridge for leftovers. We throw them onto salads, as a base for breakfast skillets, top them on quinoa bowls and just eat them straight up for snacks! I make them at the beginning of the week then use them throughout the week! Highly, highly, highly recommend these as an easy + healthy fridge staple!
recipe:
sweet potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
olive oil
garlic granules
chipotle seasoning
salt + pepper
instructions:
combine all ingredients and bake in the oven at 400 for about 30 minutes. stir once halfway through! voila, so easy. you want them to be slightly browned and crispy, but not burnt!
the salad we served these on was escarole, slivered almonds, mozzarella, avocado + a sweet vinaigrette (evoo, sherry vinegar, honey, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt + pepper. this is a perfect packable lunch, pack the dressing separately and add in the avocado at the end!
spicy cucumber salad
I have posted some version of this salad before, but it is so good that it’s worth sharing again! It’s fresh and light, but packed with flavor. It is also a perfect packed lunch. BB loves this recipe too, I just leave out the red pepper flakes, which can make it a little too spicy for her!
recipe:
persian cucumbers
tomatoes
green onion
lemon
slivered almond
evoo
balsamic vinegar
red pepper flakes
salt + pepper
instructions:
combine cucumber, tomato, green pepper and almonds. drizzle with olive oil, balsamic, salt + pepper and red pepper flakes. squeeze fresh lemon right before serving. if you as bringing as a packed lunch, add the avocado last, right before eating so it does not get brown!
lamb chops served with caramelized shallots & chimichurri sauce
This is not a meal I suggest whipping up on a Tuesday after a long day of work. This is more of a sunday night dinner when you have a couple hours to spend in the kitchen. Blake got back from a three day road trip and I was ready for some me time. So he took bb to the library and I spent the afternoon in the kitchen and it was glorious. Some days, I just am in the mood to cook all day, so this meal was perfect. And in reality, it is actually a quick meal. the lamb chops only marinated for about 30 minutes and they took 7 minutes on the stove. It’s just the prep work and sides that took some extra time! I was also meal prepping for the rest of the week, which took a lot of time too. But there is no better feeling than waking up on a Monday with a fridge full of food ready to eat throughout the week!
pan seared lamb chops
I have helped my parents make lamb chops before, but this was actually my first time making them myself! And these were surprisingly easy and so quick.
recipe:
15 lamb chops (I did about 3 per person with a handful of extras)
evoo
6 cloves of garlic, minced
red pepper flakes
salt + pepper
instructions:
combine all ingredients and marinade for 30 minutes
coat the bottom of a cast iron with olive oil
heat until hot but not smoking
sear each side of the lamb chop for 2.5-3 minutes until browned
let stand for 5 minutes before serving
caramelized shallots
I love caramelized shallots. They are slightly sweeter than onions and just add the best pop of flavor, especially with red meat. But, be warned, they are a pain to peel. They are worth the extra effort, I promise.
recipe:
shallots, peeled (cut the large ones in half)
evoo
instructions:
coat the bottom of a cast iron with olive oil
heat until hot but not smoking
add shallots and cook on medium heat until golden brown and fragrant (the trick is to not stir them too much, you want them to sit in one place so they can get that good, golden brown sear)
chimichurri sauce
I am not a fan of mint. If there is even the slightest bit of mint in a meal or drink, I cannot stomach it. I don’t know why, the flavor is just not for me. So I did a cilantro + garlic chimichurri to go with the lamb instead! I make some version of this chimichurri a lot, and love to pair it with red meat or veggies. It is fresh and flavorful.
recipe:
1 bunch of cilantro
4 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon juice
red pepper flakes to taste
salt + pepper to taste
instructions:
combine all ingredients in a blender or cuisinart and mix!
pack your lunch salad
This salad was a big hit. The trick for packing a lunch is something hearty that will stay with you throughout the day without being too heavy. Nothing worse than getting back to your desk after an indulgent lunch and struggling to keep your eyes open. Avocado, cheese and nuts are all packed with nutrients and will fill you up without giving you that heavy feeling. A tip for packing an avocado, keep it whole or at least in it’s skin to prevent it from getting brown! Another must for packing a salad, you must pack the dressing in a separate container so the lettuce doesn’t get wilty.
recipe:
escarole
fresh mozzarella (or blue cheese would be good too, if you like that)
avocado
walnuts
dressing: evoo, balsamic vinegar, s+p
seared brussel sprouts + caramelized onions
Ok, this is one of my favorite recipes ever. It works as a side, as a salad or as a meal. We served it with the lamb chops last night, but plan to eat the leftovers with grilled chicken as another meal. It is sooooo good.
recipe:
shaved brussel sprouts
sliced sweet onion
butter
evoo
s + P
instructions:
add about 1 tbsp evoo to a hot skillet, sear brussel sprouts until browned and crispy
in second skillet, heat 1 tbsp butter and add in sweet onion
cook onion on low heat for 20 minutes until golden brown and soft
combine onion and brussel sprouts and season to taste with s + p
serve warm (I also sprinkled with slivered almonds this time because I wanted a little extra brunch, but it doesn’t need it!)
MEAL PLAN
lunches
strawberry salad (packable)
sweet potato salad (packable)
cucumber salad (packable)
dinners
lamb chops
chili (I almost always have these ingredients laying around the house in case of emergency, I keep 2 lbs of frozen ground beef in the freezer and the rest can be kept in the pantry! recipe HERE)
brussel sprout salad + grilled chicken
GROCERY LIST
lamb chops
ground beef
shallots
green onion
tomato
strawberries
cilantro
garlic
lemon
spicy V8 juice or whole foods equivalent
ALREADY HAVE
almonds
walnuts
sweet potatoes
fresh mozzarella
onion
escarole
cucumber
brussel sprouts
chili beans
kidney beans
black beans
butter
evoo
balsamic
red pepper
chipotle seasoning
garlic granules
chili powder
paprika
cumin
