Weekly Meal Plan // August 22-26

Late Summer Inspiration

I have so much to share with you all, but not enough time to share it. My husband and I stopped for a coffee and some shopping at Central Market today and it inspired ideas for new recipes (yay!). This week’s meal plan continues with slow cooker, Instant Pot and grilling recipes. Friday we depart for Paris to move my oldest into AUP and there are about a million things that need to happen before then. It’s already 8 pm on a Sunday, which is not when I usually sit down to write my meal plan. Forgive me in advance if there are typos and non-sequiturs this week. Here we go.

SUNDAY

We drank the kool-aid and picked up Hatch chicken kabobs, Hatch lamb koftas and Hatch guacamole. I dare you to try to leave Central Market right now without buying something “Hatch.” I also cooked beets in the Instant Pot (30 minutes on high/manual) and peeled them wearing my plastic catering gloves so as not to end up with stained hands and fingernails for the next two weeks (no I don’t cater, love ya’ll). Toss the beets with white balsamic, olive oil, red onion, salt and pepper.

MONDAY

Enchilada casserole made with leftover Hatch chicken from Sunday.

TUESDAY

Grilled chile-rubbed flank steak and corn relish. Don’t sleep on this recipe! It takes no time to assemble, tastes delicious and can be used for a quick weeknight dinner or to entertain friends. While you’re at it, grill eggplant, bell peppers and zucchini and then drizzle the vegetables with balsamic glaze or good olive oil.

WEDNESDAY

Instant Pot gumbo over steamed cauliflower rice. One and done!

THURSDAY

It’s our last family meal at home before our oldest departs for college (I could wax on about this, but I’m deciding not to wallow in it). For dinner, it’s orecchiette pasta with Italian sausage, kale and goat cheese. It’s a recipe I did for Sunset magazine about two decades ago.

Orecchiette with Italian Sausage, Kale, and Goat Cheese

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ yellow or red onion, sliced in half moons
• 1 pound mild Italian sausage with fennel, casings removed
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 bunch of kale, lacinato, curly or red, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ½ cup dry white wine
• ½ cup low-sodium chicken stock
• 1 pound orecchiette
• 2 ounces goat cheese
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

1. In a large pot, boil well-salted water for the pasta.
2. In a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and add the onion. Sauté until softened. Add the sausage to the pan and break up with a wooden spoon. Cook the sausage until it is browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 or 2 minutes. Add the kale. Stir until heated and wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir until mixed. Then, add the wine and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Lastly, add the chicken stock and reduce heat to low.
3. Once boiling, add the pasta and cook to al dente, following package instructions.
4. Once the pasta cooks, set aside ½ cup of the pasta water, and then drain and add the pasta to the skillet. Toss the pasta with the kale mixture to evenly coat, keeping the heat on low. Add the goat cheese and stir to combine.
5. To serve, top with a sprinkle of course sea salt and red pepper flakes (if you want).

FRIDAY

Instead of making dinner, I hope to be sipping champagne and watching movies on Air France. I’ll post about our restaurants while I’m there, but there won’t be a meal plan next week. There are about seven years of meal plans here if you need inspo!