This Week for Dinner – Weekly Meal Plans, Dinner Ideas, Recipes and More!: weekly menus

Category: weekly menus

Sunday, May 20

Week 278 Menu

This past week was Cate’s school Open House. They did the coolest thing. A bunch of local food trucks came so people could buy dinner and have a picnic. I loved the idea! It was a great way to support local businesses, it was fun, and oh-so-delicious! Our friends’ food truck Pollo Fritto was there. Their fried chicken is just so darn good.

I was much better about cooking last week. I think my schedule might be getting a little more manageable (knock on wood!). We also ended up throwing a barbecue birthday party for my sister, which gave us lots of great leftovers throughout the week.

MONDAY:
- Kitchen Sink Quesadillas
- Guacamole

TUESDAY:
- Orange Chicken
- Rice and veggie

WEDNESDAY:
- Bistro Chicken (I rant into someone at the store this week who said they made and loved this recipe, one that I had forgotten about! back on the rotation it goes!)
- Mashed potatoes & veggie

THURSDAY:
- Leftovers

FRIDAY:
- Eat out

SATURDAY:
- Brats & hot dogs on the grill
- some combination of barbecue side dishes (beans and/or potato salad and/or fruit etc)

SUNDAY:
- Breakfast for dinner! I think omelettes this week!
- Smoothies

Your turn, my friends! Get your menus up here! (Sorry, feeling a little bossy today.)

Posted by Jane Maynard at 10:09 am 53 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, May 13

Week 277 Menu

Happy Mother’s Day, my friends. I hope you have a lovely day honoring all of the great women in your life. Lucky for me my mom is actually here with us this morning, which is such a great thing! Nate and Anne (my sister) are busy in the kitchen making a wonderful brunch…including this fruit salad, which was a true labor of love!

I can’t believe I’m sitting here posting a menu on Mother’s Day. My dream Mother’s Days are those where I do nothing…Nate likes to call it “Mother’s Day Off.” But the more compulsive side of my personality simply can’t let a Sunday morning go by without a menu going up! Although, I am just going to copy and paste last week’s menu. I’ve never done that before! But, as you learned on Friday, I did not cook this past week and didn’t ever get to the grocery store. We’ll see if I can get back on track this coming week.

MONDAY:
- Kitchen Sink Quesadillas
- Guacamole

TUESDAY:
- Lasagna

WEDNESDAY:
- Leftovers

THURSDAY:
- Oriental Chicken Salad

FRIDAY:
- Eat out

SATURDAY:
- If the weather is nice, grilling! I’m thinking brats and hot dogs
- Fresh fruit and baked beans

SUNDAY:
- Waffles
- Scrambled Eggs

Your turn! Everyone please share your menus for the week! The moms out there can take a break from planning today…but you know I’m going to be looking for your menus starting tomorrow!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 10:10 am 52 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, April 29

Week 275 Menu

I love bedhead, blankies, Christmas jammies in April, and big yawns. How can so much cuteness be rolled up in one little person without them even trying?

I am swamped with work right now. And on Thursday I am heading to Miami (woohoo!) for the Mom 2.0 Summit with my DailyBuzz Moms colleagues. I’m starting to hyperventilate just a little thinking about the week…so, I am going to make this a super easy plan. It involves more prepared foods than I like to use…but…it’s between that and my sanity, which is hanging by a thread, so I choose sanity!

MONDAY:
- Spaghetti
- Sauteed zucchini

TUESDAY:
- These frozen chicken cordon bleu things from my grocery store
- Cauliflower and long grain rice

WEDNESDAY:
- Pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw (buying pre-made BBQ pork and coleslaw!)

THURSDAY:
- Family fending for themselves!

FRIDAY:
- Family fending for themselves!

SATURDAY:
- Family fending for themselves! I’ll be partying at the Versace Mansion for Cinco de Mayo…with Owen in tow. How many 7 month olds can say they’ve done that?!

SUNDAY:
- Waffles, scrambled eggs and fruit

Share your menus for the week, please pretty please! Since I’m not providing much inspiration, you’re going to have to rely on each other for that!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 8:42 am 75 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, April 22

Week 274 Menu

We have a giant patio with a teeny tiny outdoor table that we never use. Well, I use it all the time to photograph food, but that’s about all it is good for. I’ve been really wanting to get a big table and chairs for the patio. Yesterday Nate bought and built a beautiful table, chairs and a bench. I AM SO EXCITED. Our family will finally be able to enjoy eating outside in the lovely weather together. It’s about time…we’ve only been living in California for 10+ years! Owen loves the set up, so I think we made a good pick!

Also, won’t this table be pretty for food photography? I have a feeling you will all be seeing it quite often!

MONDAY:
- Rachel Sandwiches (Cate’s favorite)

TUESDAY:
- Stuffed Peppers (didn’t get to these last week!)

WEDNESDAY:
- Omelettes (Anna’s favorite)
- Fresh fruit

THURSDAY:
- Family Fun Night at school – pizza will be served!

FRIDAY:
- Grill night…hot dogs, hamburgers (Nate’s favorite)
- Baked beans, fresh fruit

SATURDAY:
- Eat out

SUNDAY:
- Orange Chicken (Nate’s other favorite)
- Rice & Veggies

I wasn’t feeling super inspired to plan a menu this morning, despite reading through all of your great menus from last week. So, I went with my family’s favorite foods. At least I know everyone will eat what I make this week!

Time to share menus! Please let us know what you’re eating this week for dinner!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 7:27 am 48 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, April 15

Week 273 Menu

Good Morning! Or afternoon or evening…whatever it is for you right now, I hope it’s good! And no matter the time of day, I’m pretty sure waffles are always welcome!

Life has been busier than normal work-wise. I’ve still gotten meals on the table, but not as many as I’d like. Hoping things calm down a bit this week, although I’m not holding my breath!

MONDAY:
- Enchiladas
- Guacamole and chips

TUESDAY:
- Leftovers

WEDNESDAY:
- Caprese paninis (didn’t get to them last week, but my basil arrives from the CSA this week, so it’s all good!)

THURSDAY:
- Island Pork with Sticky Coconut Rice

FRIDAY:
- Eat out

SATURDAY:
- Breakfast for Dinner

SUNDAY:
- Stuffed Peppers

Your turn – what are you eating this week? As always, thank you for sharing your menus…they really are such a help every week when I sit down to plan!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 11:12 am 84 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, April 8

Week 272 Menu

Happy Easter!

MONDAY:
- Leftovers, of course!

TUESDAY:
- Lentil Soup (using up leftover ham!)

WEDNESDAY:
- Frittata (will add the last of the ham, if there’s any left at this point)

THURSDAY:
- Enchiladas of some sort…sounds good to me!

FRIDAY:
- Leftovers

SATURDAY:
- Eat out

SUNDAY:
- Caprese paninis

Your turn! And, don’t forget, we don’t care what day you post your menu. If you don’t get around to it today because of the holiday, no worries…just come back in a few days and share your food plans for the week!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 8:21 am 58 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, April 1

Week 271 Menu

Wanna hear a crazy story, perfect for April 1?

Our maintenance guy Ivan stopped by on Friday. He had two little pieces of paper with him…a lottery ticket and the winning numbers from the most recent drawing. And they matched. That’s right, all five numbers PLUS the MEGA number MATCHED. Which means he was the MEGA lottery winner, right? Well…Ivan bought his ticket on Wednesday, thinking the drawing would be happening Thursday night. He picked his numbers based on his daughter’s ages, his wife’s age, his address…you get the drift. He then went in Friday and asked for a printout of the numbers that were drawn. He looked, looked again, looked AGAIN…they matched! So he confirmed with the cashier that the winning numbers had been drawn the night before, to which she clarified that they were Tuesday night’s numbers and the next drawing (as indicated on his lottery ticket) was for Friday night. Ivan PICKED THE WINNING NUMBER from Tuesday night…but he had bought the ticket on Wednesday! So, Ivan won the lottery. Too bad there won’t be any money associated with the win! A cruel early April Fool’s joke from the lottery gods.

I know that story had nothing to do with food, but it was too funny/crazy/tragic not to share!

Okay, menu time. My girls have Spring Break this week, so we’ve decided to do a cooking week! Cate is super excited and wrote down her list of recipes she’d like to try (many of which are desserts…surprise surprise).

MONDAY:
- Leftovers

TUESDAY:
- Stir Fry (one of the recipes Cate picked out)
- Rice and dumplings

WEDNESDAY:
- Soup (Cate chose this…flavor TBD)
- Homemade rolls

THURSDAY:
- Pasta with Arugula and White Beans (we didn’t get to this last week)

FRIDAY:
- Leftovers

SATURDAY:
- Eat out

SUNDAY:
- Easter Feast! We’ll plan our menu in a few days…I’ll either share in a separate post or just update it here!

Please share your menu for the week! Can’t wait to see what you all have cooking!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:53 am 52 Comments
Categories: musings, weekly menus
Sunday, March 25

Week 270 Menu

My baby is six months old. I can’t believe six months have passed since Owen’s momentous arrival. It seems like just yesterday but also like another lifetime. I personally feel a million times better now than I did then…physically, mentally and emotionally. But I am still feeling every bit as grateful, grateful for this sometimes fragile yet always beautiful experience called life.

Now for a bit of the routine of life…

MONDAY:
- Pasta with Arugula and White Beans

TUESDAY:
- Penne with Broccoli & Chicken in Cream Sauce

WEDNESDAY:
- Vegetarian Chickpea Burgers

THURSDAY:
- Leftovers

FRIDAY:
- Homemade pizza, flavors tbd

SATURDAY:
- Eat out

SUNDAY:
- Rachel sandwiches

Please share your lovely menus for the week! Remember…all menus welcome! We don’t care how fancy or un-fancy they are! And feel free to share any day during the week.

Posted by Jane Maynard at 8:54 am 85 Comments
Categories: musings, weekly menus
Sunday, March 18

Week 269 Menu

Well, the leprechauns struck again. This time they turned an entire brand new gallon of milk green. Pesky leprechauns.

Really? Time for another menu already? Goodness!

MONDAY:
- Orange Chicken with rice (didn’t get to this recipe last week)
- Purple cauliflower

TUESDAY:
- Spaghetti and meatballs
- Broccoli

WEDNESDAY:
- Leftovers

THURSDAY:
- Aaron & Lindsay’s Chicken Tortilla Soup Extravaganza

FRIDAY:
- Eat out (pizza with some friends)

SATURDAY:
- Leftovers

SUNDAY:
- Pasta with arugula and white beans
- Salad

Your turn! Please pretty please share your menu for the week! And remember, it doesn’t matter how fancy or un-fancy the menu is, and feel free to post any time during the week!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 9:43 am 83 Comments
Categories: weekly menus
Sunday, March 11

Week 268 Menu

When I could only eat soft foods two weeks ago, Susan and Sarah commented suggesting I get cream of wheat. I loved that stuff as a kid but had totally forgotten about its existence. I promptly bought a box. It was perfect for when I had to eat soft foods…and I’m still eating it. I don’t know why, but I love it just like I did way back when! Especially with white sugar mixed in. Mmmmmm….

Menu time!

MONDAY:
- Tuscan Tomato Soup

TUESDAY:
- Leftovers

WEDNESDAY:
- Orange Chicken

THURSDAY:
- Fajitas

FRIDAY:
- Pesto Tortellini Soup

SATURDAY:
- Eat out

SUNDAY:
- Paninis (flavor tbd)

I think I might have planned too many meals and one of those nights might end up being more leftovers, but we’ll just play it by ear!

As always, can’t wait to see your menu for the week. I absolutely LOVE browsing through your previous week’s menus on Sunday morning when pulling mine together. It is unbelievably helpful!

Posted by Jane Maynard at 10:45 am 64 Comments
Categories: the goods, weekly menus