You know what is amazing about having family live nearby, something we’ve never had until two years ago? Thanksgiving cooking help! Not only do I not have to cook everything, but we get even more food. It’s a dream.

MONDAY – WEDNESDAY:

• NO IDEA. We are painting our kitchen, which has to get done before our floors start getting ripped out on Saturday, plus, you know, Thanksgiving. Our cupboards are currently bare and I have no idea when we’ll get to the store. Good luck, Maynard children!

2022 THANKSGIVING FEAST

• Turkey (dry brined, spatchcocked and roasted + smoked)
• Gravy
• Stuffing + GF Vegetarian Stuffing
• Mashed potatoes
• Cheese board
• Brussels sprouts gratin
• Green beans
• Sausage rolls
• Marshmallow fruit salad
• Sweet potato souffle
• Homemade crescent rolls + GF almond millet rolls from a local bakery
• Cranberry sauce
• Cranberry slush (traditional family drink)
• Pumpkin pie
• Apple pie
• French silk pie
• Bread pudding

THURSDAY – SUNDAY:

• Leftovers + floors getting ripped out kicking off a week of pure insanity…but no more cream-colored carpet! Woohoo!

Share your menus for the week! And definitely share your Thanksgiving plans along with links to recipes if you have them. Can’t wait to see what everyone has cooking!

Hello! Apologies for missing last week…I run communications at my company and we announced a proposed merger, so basically I didn’t do much of anything but work. But I’m back to normal, thank goodness! 

MONDAY:

• Spaghetti and meatballs

TUESDAY:

• Chicken piccata, mashed potatoes, salad

WEDNESDAY:

• Chicken, Tasso and Andouille Gumbo

THURSDAY:

• Leftovers

FRIDAY:

• Homemade hamburgers

SATURDAY:

• Takeout

SUNDAY:

• Spicy Chicken Tacos (going to grab the pre-marinated chicken thights from our local tortilleria)

Your turn! Share your meal plan below and have a fantastic week!

Happy November! My first menu of the month is coming a day late because we were just too busy with Halloween festivities Sunday and Monday. Here we go! 

MONDAY:

• Candy. No, really. Candy and random food people scrounged.

TUESDAY:

• Leftovers (smoked pork butt! the best!)

WEDNESDAY:

• Butternut squash soup and grilled cheese

THURSDAY:

• Chicken piccata, mashed potatoes, salad

FRIDAY:

• Tacos

SATURDAY:

• Leftovers

SUNDAY:

• Eat out

Your turn to throw a menu in the comments below! And thanks for all the well wishes last week…still recovering, it was a doozy of a flu/cold/whatever-it-was-just-know-it-wasn’t-covid-phew. 

It was bound to happen…I’m sick. Our high school of 2,000 students had 700 students absent last week. Fun times! Anyway, I’m out of it and definitely not planning or cooking or shopping. I kept thinking I’d feel better and get a menu whipped up, but I’m just gonna cry uncle, go to bed and late Nate and kids figure it out.

I am certain several of you are still on the ball this week, so please share your menu in the comments below! Can’t wait to see what you’ve got cooking!

This week I’m pulling out a bunch of old recipes I haven’t used in a while. Here we go!

MONDAY:

• Tuscan tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches (Anna’s request!)

TUESDAY:

• Beef stroganoff and salad (Cate’s request!)

WEDNESDAY:

• Chicken soup with rice

THURSDAY:

• Beer brats with salad

FRIDAY:

• Leftovers

SATURDAY:

• Takeout night

SUNDAY:

• Bistro chicken with mashed potatoes and steamed veggie (whatever looks good when I go to the store!)

Please share your own menu in the comments below! I am so grateful for your help and inspiration week after week!

You know what is crazy? I started this blog right before I became pregnant with our second child, Anna…who is now a freshman in high school. This fact is kind of blowing my mind. Anyway, late start to planning this week after a very event-filled Homecoming weekend with the kids and my niece! Back to real life…

MONDAY:

• Spaghetti and meatballs (GF tip alert! I used Delallo’s Gluten-Free Spaghetti and Mulay’s Nana’s Meatballs (also gluten free) and it was great! Tasted like legit Italian food, thank the gluten-free gods!)

TUESDAY:

• Chicken Tikka Masala and Goan Coconut Paneer (I love the Maya Kaimal Indian food grocery products. I use their simmer sauces and everyday dal packs and every one we’ve tried has been fantastic.)

WEDNESDAY:

• Ancho BBQ Sloppy Joe, salad, chips

THURSDAY:

• Burrito Rice Bowls

FRIDAY:

• Leftovers

SATURDAY:

• Takeout night

SUNDAY:

• Smoked chicken (did I mention that this is our new favorite thing to smoke? Wow.)

Your turn! Share your menus in the comments below and have a great week!

I’m here, I’m here! Finally getting a minute to sit down and figure out dinner this week. It’s a wild and crazy week…let’s so if I can bring some order to it!

MONDAY:

• Takeout (starting out the week strong! 😉 )

TUESDAY:

• Ancho BBQ Sloppy Joe, salad, chips

WEDNESDAY:

• Red beans and rice with salad

THURSDAY:

• Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani), rice, veggie

FRIDAY:

• Leftovers

SATURDAY:

• Ordering out pizza! (Homecoming dance night!)

SUNDAY:

• Smoked pork butt (this didn’t happen last weekend…I’m going to beg for it this weekend!)

It is so fun to be back at this meal planning and seeing your menus come in. Can’t wait to see what you’ve got cooking this week – please share in the comments! 

Well, week one back on the meal planning train went great. In fact, at one point last week Anna said, “What is this magical book that means home-cooked meals every night?” It was so cute! So far I am completely loving The Ultimate Meal Prep Cookbook. (Thank you, Bonnie!) Although this week it’s a mix up of their recipes and my own – looking to minimize time standing at the stove thanks to another warm week of weather!

MONDAY:

• Skillet Tortellini with Sausage and Tomatoes

TUESDAY:

• Homemade hamburgers

WEDNESDAY:

• Chicken Caesar Salad

THURSDAY:

• Spaghetti and meatballs (I have some meatballs in the freezer)

FRIDAY:

• Leftovers

SATURDAY:

• Takeout night

SUNDAY:

• Smoked pork butt with grilled veggies

Your turn! Share your own meal plans, recipes, whatever in the comments below! Have a great week!

Hello everyone! I hope you had a great summer! School started a few weeks ago, which was when I was planning to get back to meal planning. But then we tore out all our cabinet doors and painted the kitchen (still working on the cabinets) and then that heat wave hit. But my excuses are expiring, so it’s time to get serious again. I’ll be honest, I don’t really feel like planning menus, but I definitely need them back in my life. So, here we go!

Thank you to long-time menu contributor Bonnie Lawrence for telling us about America Test Kitchen’s The Ultimate Meal Prep Cookbook. This is my first week of using one of their weekly plans to a T. I’m excited!

MONDAY:

• Parmesan Chicken with Cherry Tomato Salad

TUESDAY:

• Chicken and Rice with Chorizo and Artichokes

WEDNESDAY:

• Prosciutto-Wrapped Pork with Lemony Broccolini

THURSDAY:

• Skillet Tortellini with Sausage and Tomatoes

FRIDAY:

• Leftovers

SATURDAY:

• Takeout

SUNDAY:

• Outdoor Grill Night! (I’ll buy the food for this dinner when I do next week’s shopping)

Please share your weekly menu in the comments below! I’m excited to be re-connected and see what you are all up to in the kitchen!

Hello foodie friends! I am crying “Uncle!” and going to take a summer break from meal planning (since I basically am already). We aren’t eating out a ton or anything, but we are taking a very relaxed approach to dinner each night. I haven’t ever officially taken a summer blog break from planning my weekly menu…it feels weird but also a bit refreshing. I think by the time school gets started, the break will have me ready to get planning weekly again. 

Until then, please feel free to drop your menus on this post all summer long. It can be our summer resource weekly menu spot.

Happy summer! Happy eating fresh produce!

Pictured: Sunset in our beautiful Carlsbad last week, photo by my daughter Anna 🙂