Meal Planning: Week of October 21st

I have to start by saying how I feel like so much more of a chef now that I have this fancy new apron ;)  Rachel got it for me for my birthday, and it's now my official kitchen attire.

 

Review from last week:

 

I think if anyone were to ask me or Greg what our favorite dish is lately that we have made, it would be the Boursin and Bacon Stuffed Chicken Breast.  We immediately declared it the next thing we would make when hosting a dinner party.  It was probably the most silent dinner we have had, too, because neither of us could wait to put the next bite in our mouths.  (Maureen, is this the "passion for food" you were referring to)? ;)

 

 

The pot roast that we slow roasted all day on Sunday was also amazing.  Greg isn't a huge pot roast fan, but he cleared his plate.  I also made mashed potatoes (and added lemon juice and garlic powder) - yum.  Due to this, and the massive amounts of bread we consumed when out to dinner for our anniversary, this week is going to be a low carb one!

 

Here is how I protected myself when searing the roast.  I have learned my lesson when it comes to cooking with hot oil (and have the battle scars to prove it).

 

 

 

 

And speaking of our anniversary dinner, we had a fantastic afternoon and evening celebrating!  We went to the Cinebarre for drinks and a movie (Don Jon) and then had dinner at Palisade.  My friend Cara was working that night, so she made sure to give us a fabulous table :)

 

 

But back to what we cooked...

 

The stuffed peppers were just okay.  I omitted the rice in order to make it a little less carby, and then also forgot to put the sour cream in, so perhaps it was an execution issue and not a recipe problem.  Ben, however, ate about THREE pepper's worth of meat.  He just kept clearing his plate and asking for more, so it was a satisfying meal in that sense!

 

 

 

On my birthday, Greg asked if I wanted to go out to dinner.  Since the thought of rushing through dinner (Ben) and actually paying for wine did NOT sound like the most fun way to spend the evening, he was awesome and picked up Spaghetti Factory for take out and we ate (and drank!) at home instead :) 

 

I made a triple batch of the chipolte sauce that we had with cod this week, so it will be perfect for a busy night when all we need to do is thaw and cook some meat or fish up in it.

  

Finally, on Sunday I woke up to a picture of these pumpkin pancakes on my Instagram feed and HAD to have them.  As I have mentioned before, I LOVE the age that Ben is at where he can (and wants to) help me with things!  He was very eager to help me dump ingredients into the bowl, but not very eager to actually consume the pancakes.  :/

 

 

This week is going to be light on new meals and heavy on "use what we have": 

 

Saturday:  We are heading to Lake Chelan for 1 day/1 night!  One of the resorts over there is trying to recruit me to plan my next staff retreat on their property, so they are putting us up for the night and paying for our dinner at the hotel :)  It was hard to pass up!

Sunday:  Chicken Potato Florentine Soup - I made an enormous batch recently and froze some of it.

 

Monday: Leftovers (or salad).

 

Tuesday: Halibut chipolte and sauteed mushrooms/onion/bell peppers.

 

Wednesday: Meatballs and salad. #welovemeat

 

Thursday: Soup (canned) and salad

 

Friday: Dinner at Brenna and Noah's new house!  So excited to see them and check out their new place :) 

"Bye Bus"

One of my favorite things Ben is doing right now is saying "hi" and "bye" as often as he possibly can.  He will say "Bye!!" when he is leaving the side of the room I'm on, just to stay in the same room and walk a few feet away from me.  Also, upon seeing Greg has arrived home from work, he will yell "BYE" to me, as if to say, "peace out, the more fun parent is here and I no longer need to hang with you".

He will say hi/bye and wave to almost anyone we see when running errands.  He will also greet things (a bus, Mickey Mouse on the TV, etc.) this way.  Adorable.

Here is is saying "Bye bus" to a large van we saw in a parking lot the other day.

 

And speaking of vocab, we have noticed him combining 2 words a lot more often lately.

 

"Done, Mama".

"Mama, Down".

"Crackers gone".

:)

Mean Mug

This kid has a serious mean mug.  Where does he get it from?

 

 

 

...oh wait.

 



Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday we took a trip to Craven Farm to pick out some pumpkins!  It was the perfect day to be outside wandering around a pumpkin patch - sunny and not too cold.  Ben was VERY into pushing the wheelbarrow with Greg.  He also loved picking up every pumpkin he could lift and putting it into the wheelbarrow.  We had to keep sneaking them out when he wasn't looking.

 

I think we are actually going to CARVE our pumpkins this year, something I haven't done for the longest time.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meal Planning: Week of October 14th

Review from last week:

Mmmmmm carnitas in a bowl.  This was so filling and so delicious.  (And sooooo easy).

 

After having lunch during a work meeting (sandwich, chips, cookie, NOM), I really just felt like a salad for dinner.  I thought Ben might be into it too, but he literally just ate spoon after spoon full of ranch dressing.

I decided to postpone the pot roast until this weekend because I was anxious to try this chipolte sauce, which I used to smother chicken thighs and it was so. good.  

Saturday: Out to dinner for our anniversary! :)

Sunday: Pot Roast and mashed potatoes.

Monday: Left overs!

Tuesday: Stuffed Red Peppers

Wednesday: Out to eat?  Left overs? 

Thursday: Boursin and Bacon Stuffed Chicken Breast

Friday: Halibut chipolte - again, in this chipolte sauce.  

 

6 Years of Marriage

 

And still making me laugh (hard) every single day.

 

Thank you for being flexible.  Thank you for being someone I can trust, always.  Thanks for always turning off the lights I leave on, for tolerating when I shop at QFC ($$$) instead of at Fred Meyers, and for doing your share of the laundry/dishes/toy clean up. 

 

Thanks for being someone I can roll my eyes at when Ben is driving us both up the wall, (and for being quick to open up a bottle of wine to help ease the situation).  And on the flip side, thank you for enjoying his fun and silly moments to the fullest extent.  There is nothing that will make you smile more than when Ben is giggling his face off, and watching a scene like that unfold gives me happiness and satisfaction on a level I never could have imagined.

 

Marriage (particularly when a toddler is involved) can be tough at times.  Life can become a series of routines and the lack of downtime can make us cranky.  (A blog about this exact experience I read recently that echos how I feel in this stage of life).  The great news, however, is that I always know I can count on you to try your hardest and do your best.  And you can count on me for the same.

 

Greg - I love you, even when I kind of want to punch you. Which to me feels like a pretty good sign that we are on the right track.

 

Looking forward to many more life stages and experiences with the best partner I could have ever chosen.



Pizza Party!

 

As I had mentioned before, I had purchased a catered pizza party deal from Groupon (or Living Social - can't remember) awhile back.  The time had finally arrived to cash in on it, and we ALL were in agreement that this was an excellent purchase and experience.

 

The deal had been for 8 people (with an option to add additional people for $20/person), but we decided that 4 adults and 2 kids was enough.  More pizza/wine for all, right?

 

Our chef arrived with 3 pizzas, 2 appetizer pizzas, a big salad, and three bottles of Washington wine.  Oh, and cookies.

 

He started by bringing out the appetizer pizzas - one was just your average garlic flat bread, the other had pears and caramelized onions on it.  (So delicious).  It was paired with a bottle of Chardonnay. 

 

Next up was a salad: spring mix greens, dried cranberries, chevre and pine nuts.

 

And then the pizzas.  The delicious pizzas.

 

First up was the Roasted Veg Head pizza: Roasted bell peppers, zucchini, red onion, crimini and button mushrooms, garlic, basil, Parmesan & mozzarella.  This was paired with a Pinot Noir, I believe.

 

Next was the Arugula Patch (which obviously was my favorite): Prosciutto, cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, Parmesan and mozzarella with arugula added after baking.

 

The last was the Chicago Deli: Thick-cut bacon (which should belong on every pizza - how have I never had this before??), prosciutto, pepperoni, provolone, mozzarella and asiago.  This was paired with a Red Blend.



 

The chef ended his stay by baking and serving 2 different types of chocolate chip cookies and cleaning my kitchen.  

 

Me and Jeannette enjoying ALL THE WINE.

 

Laryd and Ben playing "together".

 

What we all found so cool about the experience is that the chef would explain all of the ingredients as it was served (all local as possible, seasonal, and fresh - not previously frozen). It was also awesome for all of us to be able to sit and enjoy, instead of someone having to be cooking at the same time. I do not posses the skills to carry on a conversation while cooking at the same time.

 

The chef said that they would likely be doing another pizza party deal sometime in January, so be on the lookout for 'zaw Artisan Pizza!  I think I will probably purchase it again, too :)