Sunday and Monday dinner reviews

Sunday night's breakfast for dinner was an 80% success.  Maybe more.

The black bean hash was fantastic.  I subbed Yukon Gold potatoes for the sweet potatoes (because this week's menu is very sweet potato heavy), and it was a well-received change.  Rich opted for an over-easy egg on top of his hash, and it looked pretty great.

E. does not like eggs, so she went crazy on fruit salad and hash and seemed no worse for the wear.

R. loves eggs, especially omelets, so he blissed out on a cheese omelet along with fruit.  He was not interested in the hash.

I had a small omelet, hash, and fruit salad.

You notice I haven't mentioned the Brazilian Cheese Bread.  The recipe for which I purchased tapioca flour.  The recipe I read three times, and decided to make only 1/3 of a batch since it makes 36 individual mini-muffin breads.  The recipe I messed up by omitting an ingredient.  Not nice.  The texture was horrible.  But the flavor was good, so I'll try it again, this time with everything in it.

Monday's dinner was a 100% success.

The red lentil recipe was great.  Easy, quick, and very, very tasty.  The pairing with quinoa was well-considered.  I used the quinoa we had in the pantry, and added curry powder and a small squeeze of honey after it was done cooking.

I steamed the brussels sprouts and also steamed broccoli (the kids are not fans of brussels sprouts), and added a dash of dill weed when they were done.

We don't have Trader Joe's in Memphis, and I can't imagine buying sweet potato fries anyway, since they're so easy to make.  If you've never made them, here's what I do.

1.  Peel a sweet potato.  Or two.  Or more.  (For two adults and two teens, I used two big sweet potatoes, and we had a small serving left over.)

2.  Cut the peeled sweet potatoes into fry-size pieces.  You can go as big or as small as you want.

3.  Toss the sweet potatoes with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and your choice of seasoning.  I used lemon pepper and everyone loved it.

4.  Put the oiled, seasoned sweet potatoes onto a baking sheet in one layer.  Put that into a preheated oven, about 375 degrees (but if you're using the oven for something else, it's okay to go to a different temperature).

Mine took about 40 minutes to cook to a nice, caramelized finish.  I took them out of the oven once to move them around.

The whole meal took less than an hour to prepare and cook, and the last 10 minutes were not active time...I was able to change clothes and take off my makeup before it was ready to eat.  The cleanup was not difficult, either.  Two saucepans, two prep bowls, one measuring cup (I rinsed and reused it), a couple measuring spoons, stirring spoons, knife, and cutting board.  

Weekly Menu: Week 1

I am a typical teacher.  I like to share information, and I like to avoid re-inventing the wheel.  If I see another teacher's lesson and it looks great, I steal it.  (We all do this.  Sometimes we even pay for them, like on Teachers Pay Teachers.) 

So when I see a great weekly menu plan, I have no shame.  I'll use it.  I'll even change it up to suit my own purposes.  But I'm not a jerk, so I'll give credit where credit is due.

A quick google search turned me to this. The thrust of this blog is vegan, gluten-free menus that feature local ingredients from a CSA.  My family does not subscribe to a year-round CSA, but we do enjoy a CSA subscription in the summer from Whitton Farms. 

I adapted the above menu plan to my own purposes and my family's schedule and routines.  Here's what I got.

Sunday:  Breakfast for dinner is our tradition.  I'm not ready to jump on the GF Bisquik bandwagon (seems like too many ingredients on the label for this food snob), so I looked for some other options to replace homemade biscuits, pancakes, or waffles.  This week, we'll have:
Brazilian Cheesy Bread
Sweet Potato, Corn, and Black Bean Hash
Omelets or Poached Eggs (I'll share the omelet technique in another post)
Fresh fruit

Monday:
Using "In My Box" Monday menu

Tuesday:
Using "In My Box" Tuesday menu (adding slow-cooker pork tenderloin for the meat-eaters...no recipe yet)

Wednesday: 
Using "In My Box" Friday menu

Thursday:
Using "In My Box" Thursday menu

Friday/Saturday:
I never plan Fridays and Saturdays.  Sometimes I bring home fast food.  Sometimes we go out.  This week, Friday is the beginning of Spring Break, so we may do something fun.  Or not. 

My grocery list looks very healthy, with more than half of it coming from the produce aisle.  The only new ingredients I need to buy to stay gluten-free are tapioca flour and tamari (wheat-free soy sauce).  I've bought tamari in the past, so I don't even know if I count that as a "new" ingredient. 

Everyone except me eats cereal for breakfast (I don't eat breakfast), and the kids pack sandwiches and fruit for lunch.  I usually take leftovers, and Rich eats leftovers at home for lunch. 

(We also make food for the dogs - a whole different blog could be written about this - so I buy meat for that, and they get leftover vegetables.) 

Anyone out there?

I'm starting this blog because my family loves to cook and eat.  Each of us had different dietary needs and preferences, so meal planning and preparation is sometimes an adventure.  I realized that this was a great opportunity to combine my love of writing and love of food and love of photography, my family's love of eating and sharing their opinions, and the internet.  Hence, the birth of this blog today. 

The characters?
Kaleigh (me).  I'm  a forty-something mom, wife, pet-tender, special education teacher, and enthusiastic, if hurried, home cook. I've lived with an autoimmune disorder (Graves Disease, which is an autoimmune thyroid disorder) since I was 17.  While I'm fortunate to enjoy mostly good health, and to eat a mostly good diet, I've decided this year to make some dietary changes in order to enjoy better health.  Last summer, when I realized that my daily stomach pain arrived about an hour after I finished my homemade 24-ounce iced latte, I mostly quit dairy, and I felt a lot better.  Last week, after reading yet another compelling article about the thyroid-gluten link, I committed to eliminate gluten from my diet.

Rich (my husband).  He's a forty-something dad, husband, college instructor, and willing, precise home cook.  Unlike me, he is a religious recipe-follower.  He's also been a lacto-ovo vegetarian for nearly 20 years.  He prefers to avoid pasta and cheese, so my dietary issues are mostly not an issue for him.  He's lost a lot of weight over the past decade and is still trying to lose more, and he's a religious exerciser.  While he has no real reason to go gluten-free, he's willing.

E (my daughter).  Teenager. Vegetarian since birth. Loves bread, pasta, cheese, and milk.  Also loves soups, rice, vegetables, and fruit. Pretty adventurous eater with a mature palate. 

R (my son). Teenager.  Omnivore since age 3.  Loves to eat, and very adventurous.  He's been a foodie since before we had that word.  When he was little, he wanted to be a chef.  He'll eat just about anything.

The reality?  My family generally eats a vegetarian diet at home, because my husband and daughter are both lacto-ovo vegetarians and two working parents and two busy teenagers don't have time to cook two dinners every night.

The goal?  Healthy, tasty meals for my family that are relatively quick to prepare, and that everyone in the house, regardless of dietary needs or preferences, will eat.

So, here's what I propose.

I'll cook stuff (or Rich will), and take pictures.  I'll share recipes and let you know the most important information.  Did we like it?

Join us!