Remember last week when my “menu plan” wasn’t really a plan? It was a good reminder of why menu planning is important for me…we had a lot of vegetables left over at the end of the week, including peas (they’re shelling peas, not snap peas, it turns out), garlic scapes, sautéed kale, half a bunch of chard and carrots. So this week I’m trying to be a little more purposeful.
Part of last week’s lack of vegetable use was also due to our schedule. I was in class all day every day and Brian was working, so no one was eating much doing the day and we both just ate for lunch whatever we had the chance to grab before leaving. We also had company one night and ordered pizza so that I didn’t have to spend time cooking instead of playing games.
I also haven’t really felt like cooking lately. I seem to have this problem every summer: I finally have time to cook, but I have no motivation. It hasn’t even been that hot! Often we just have a salad or crudité with cheese and crackers or something for dinner. I’m in the midst of a mini-blog facelift (new recipe index! new Berkshires page!), which is taking a lot of my time and I have many other personal projects on tap. I also slept in until 9:30 this morning, which is incredibly late for me. I feel like I should be better at prioritizing by this stage in my life, but apparently not.
Selected successes from last week (featuring phone photos!):
Broccoli parmesan fritters, from Smitten Kitchen. I think they would’ve been a little better with a little more batter, but the fritters were easy to make and very tasty. I’ll be revisiting them soon.
Sriracha Cheddar Cornbread Waffles from Food 52…I’ve made cornbread waffles before but these were awesome and the sriracha maple syrup was the icing on the cake. Highly recommended.
This, always.
the pick up:
dill heads, broccoli, summer squash, turnips, beets, lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, flowers (free item!), basil
the plan:
beets: lettuce salad with goat cheese and sliced beets
carrots: part of some kind of stir-fry over rice noodles, sliced into sticks for a party we’re hosting this weekend
broccoli: pizza (this was on the menu plan for last week, but it didn’t happen), stir fry
summer squash: sliced and cooked in a pan with canned diced tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper.
garlic scapes (from last week) + basil: garlic scape pesto to freeze
green beans (from the farmer’s market): canned dilly beans
We’re in the midst of eating remaining vegetables as well. I ended up making a succotash so we’d eat most of them at once. Then I’m not making just one as the others wither.
Yeah, that’s why things like “pizza”, “stir fry” and “salad” keep appearing on my menu plans. They’re my solution to using up a random mixture of veggies!
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