Good "first week" :)

I had a very enjoyable experience meal planning.  Though it was a bit humorous. 

I woke up Monday morning - as planned - and pulled out all my supplies: cookbooks, computer, paper and pen.  I then...stared at it all.  Where to start?  I remembered the list of categories I'd come up with (i.e. mexican, pizza, sandwiches, etc.) and that helped.  First memo to self: Use the week to browse and start marking things to try - so come Monday I'll have a list to work with.

I came up with: Monday - Spaghetti Squash and Black Bean Tacos (from Smitten Kitchen); Tuesday - Margherita pizza (also from SK); Wednesday - at work, so leftovers for Mike; Thursday - Grilled Shrimp; Friday - Grilled Chicken and Lemon Basil Pasta.  Though I knew four meals was a bit ambitious - I figured something would flow into the weekend.  I also slipped in another SK recipe - Apricot Breakfast Crisp! Mmm. 

As I set off to shop - I realized I left my wallet (and whole purse!) down at work.  Fortunately, for me, Mike had happened to leave his wallet at home.  So I was not put off track!

I had a few things on my list I can only get at Trader Joe's (why is that - only certain stores have the very specific things you want?!), so I went there.  It was probably my most enjoyable TJ experience ever.  Coming with my list, I wasn't distracted by all the fun stuff they're always putting out.  But I realized that their produce is WAY cheaper than Lowe's Foods where I usually go.  For example - at Lowe's, Organic Gala apples are $2.79 a pound. At TJ's, 2 pounds is $2.49!  They didn't have spaghetti squash, so I went with butternut squash.  A huge one for only $1.99!  Mike loves when I go out and "save" him money.  And who can argue with a grocery store that provides free coffee and a lovely sample every time of day :)

I must say - it has been an easier week thus far knowing that meals are planned out and I have most of the ingredients I need.  Wish I'd started this sooner!

Meal Planning Basics

I decided January would be my "figure out how to do meal planning" month.  I have gotten recipes organized, been reading through food blogs, but haven't done much on meal planning. 

I stumbled upon a website today that seems like pure gold to me.  Surprisingly - its as simple as setting aside TIME to think through your week.  Each week.  Admittedly its been a hard six months trying to figure out what my routine will be for work.  But I've managed to cook and grocery shop, so clearly I have time to plan meals. 

I am looking forward to putting this into practice.  She suggests categorizing meals.  I came up with the following we like: burgers, soup and sandwiches, pizza, chicken, Mexican (tacos, enchiladas, burritos), Pasta, Vegetarian, Seafood, leftovers and eating out.  I'd also add Ethnic food - particularly Thai and Indian.  Obviously its hard to do all of these in one week - but perhaps a two week rotation?  

I've also found these gems on Pinterest.  This is a good visual of planning out what the meal is and what the required ingredients are.  And this is a really neat tool I saw last summer while visiting at one of Mike's co-worker's home.  She had gone to the extra work of putting the recipes on the back.  It was very impressive!

Again - this all takes time.  And today has been the perfect day to sit in a chair and watch West Wing while hearing the snow and ice fall around our house.  Like I said - January was my target month.  And I am just now getting to this - but I haven't sat much since we entered 2013.

As I mention a goal for the month, I'll also share that my hope for this year is to build some foundations.  Learn to make some basics and take one month to focus one thing.  I think it takes a few weeks to get the hang of something and hard to do too much at once.  I haven't decided on February - or the rest of the year - but its nice to have a start with meal planning. 

I think the best time for me to take this on is Monday mornings.  Usually this is my day to be at home and get to the grocery store and do some laundry.  At least it was before Christmastime hit.  So here's to getting back to that routine - y'all can keep me accountable!

Challenge Extended, Challenge Accepted: Chicken dinner that 'isn't sweet'

We are trying to eat less sugar.  Which you probably couldn't tell with the previous post about tomato soup (lots of sugar, some natural) and cookies with ice cream (lots of sugar, all added!).  So in trying to come up with a good dinner, I did lots of scanning.  It seems there's a plethora of poultry recipes - until you need one.  But in going through one of the many blogs I've been following, I found a great idea that I adapted.  It had a sweeter flavor with the orange, but didn't put any sugar in.  Our dinner was adapted from this recipe - 30 Minute Lemon Brown Sugar Chicken.

I took two larger chicken breasts - cut them into pieces, and then pounded thinner.  Into a mixture of flour, paprika and black pepper, I coated the chicken liberally. 

Trying my hand at photography...

Perhaps an unspoken 'resolution' - or hobby is a better word? - learning to capture better shots.  I was inspired by the breadth of nature all around.  The shots before and after sunrise were breathtaking.  Pictures don't do justice, but still fun to try..

Taken in the mountains of Wintergreen, Virginia at my parents' mountain house