Let’s Cook!
Hi everyone! Just here meal planning like always with a big old stack of my favorite cookbooks and a warm cup of coffee. A meal plan creates a sense of routine and also might help reduce stress around dinner time. When I got ready to meal plan today, I was surprised by how much I already had in my refrigerator to use up: kale, herbs, leafy greens, kohlrabi from my Farmhouse Delivery and a big batch of rosemary-garlic white beans that I made in my Instant Pot. So while this is my real life meal plan that I will make for my family, you can adjust it depending on what you have. Remember that recipes are a blueprint and you can substitute or change a variety of things at will. Please continue to send questions and DMs via Instagram and I’ll send you all my ideas and recipes!
SUNDAY
Chicken Noodle Soup. I’m trying to nail down my own recipe since this is something I typically make freestyle. Follow along in Instagram stories if you’d like, I’ll be recipe testing and taking notes on Sunday afternoon. I make my variation with a double chicken stock (bone-in chicken poached in stock), egg noodles, scallions, tamari, ginger and a hint of sriracha. I’ve linked a good basic recipe above, feel free to use thighs or breasts.
MONDAY
It’s my sweet husband’s birthday! We’re celebrating with grilled marinated flank steak, chimichurri, smashed potatoes with herbs and sea salt (leaving out the sour cream), sautéd greens with garlic and red pepper flakes (a mixture of beet greens, Swiss chard and spinach) and a good bottle of red wine. Dessert is a Miss Jones vanilla cake mix and homemade chocolate frosting. A couple notes about substitutions: For the flank steak, if you don’t have limes, use any type of acid: Red wine vinegar, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, etc. Don’t worry if you don’t have cilantro or green onions, just leave them out. The dry rub of spices could be used on any cut of red meat, chicken or pork. For the frosting, any type of cocoa powder works, it doesn’t need to be Hershey’s of course. But I love this basic recipe for frosting cakes!
TUESDAY
Black bean soup topped with pickled jalapeños and plain Greek yogurt. I love the black bean chili recipe from Greens Restaurant in San Francisco, where I did my “stage” internship after cooking school in 2001. Their soup is delicious, but seems a little time consuming for my current energy level! Soooo I’m leaning towards my friend Katie’s 3-ingredient black bean soup or Minimalist Baker’s version (intrigued by the addition of dark chocolate or cocoa powder!). A couple notes: If you don’t have pico for Katie’s version, you can sub any red or green salsa. If you don’t have stock, use water for any of these! If so, you may need more aromatics, like garlic or onion powder, and a little more salt. The photo below is my pumpkin black bean chili which is available on the Houston Chronicle.
WEDNESDAY
Joshua McFadden’s Kale Pasta! I’ve been wanting to make this recipe for a while, and now I have a big bushel of curly kale from Farmhouse Delivery to use up. CAN NOT WAIT.
THURSDAY
Egg roll bowls. I need to find fresh ginger before making this, but you can always leave it out if you can’t find (don’t sub dried ginger). I’m using regular green cabbage instead of Napa cabbage. If you have a pound of ground pork or ground chicken you’d like to add, go for it! No bok choy? Replace with spinach or other leafy green. Leave out the mushrooms if you don’t have them. Mirin not one of your pantry staples? Use rice vinegar and add a teaspoon of sugar. One other idea, I think this could be delicious with a fried or poached egg on top, and a drizzle of sriracha would add some pep. Or I might cook some udon or rice noodles and stir that into the stir fry, too.
Friday
Sun dried tomato and any greens pesto with frozen cauliflower gnocchi. I plan to use up carrot top greens, parsley, chives and Swiss chard from my garden. if you don’t have sun dried tomatoes in your pantry, just make an “any greens” pesto without them. If you don’t have frozen cauliflower or kale gnocchi from Trader Joe’s, toss the pesto with cooked tortellini or any type of pasta or spiralized veggie. Just leave out the Parm if you’re dairy free.
RECIPE EXTRAS
These are a few things you could make this weekend and enjoy all week long:
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