Family Meal Plan // Week 1

Hey guys, I am here to share my first ever meal plan which was totally a success! I'm as surprised as you are;) 

My favorite parts about it were that we ate some delicious meals (and tried four new recipes), I was motivated (and prepared) to cook at least one meal per day, and in the long run, I think making a plan will help me save money while permitting us to eat delicious dishes. 

My least favorite part...probably just the one meal that didn't turn out like I'd hoped--but the good thing is I do think if I had had fresher ingredients and hadn't had to improvise some key steps it would have turned out much better. 

I also loved that there was room for flexibility. I switched the order of the dinners around a couple times and no disasters happened! I initially planned the meals around the ingredients--which meats expired first, which vegetables would last the longest and so on. It turned out to be a great system!

Anyway, here are this past week's dinners in photos--recipes are linked in the dish's title above the images.

Meal one // Seasoned pork chops & veggie casserole

Pork chops seasoned with orange juice (definitely do the OJ!), lemon pepper, chili powder, tarragon, rosemary (just for me), and seasoned salt. I just use a mix of whatever seasonings and it always turn out well! Cooked at 350 for 40-50 minutes (depending on thickness).

Meal two // Beef stroganoff with egg noodles

Meal three // Flavorful chicken fajitas 

Meal four // Cucumber-avocado-tomato salad

Meal five // Lemony chicken & green beans

(Link goes to the post that inspired the green beans portion of the meal. Chicken cooked in the same pan with all the seasonings, garlic, and fresh lemon juice.) 

Meal six // Sausage & asparagus veggie stir-fry

Sausage, potatoes, peppers, and asparagus are must-haves--the rest can be improvised.
I baked the asparagus on a pan in olive oil and salt for about 15 minutes then added it to the stir-fry after.

Meal seven // Roasted tomato, basil & shrimp pasta

My least favorite of these was meal four--the salad. If the avocado had been fresher and the tomatoes sweeter (plus if I had had a real vinaigrette to add as the recipe called for) I think it would have been delicious. Lucky for me, that was one of the meals Dalin missed.

He loved all of the ones he tried and surprisingly, so did I! I am a picky chef--I usually think my food comes out fine, but I always see room for improvement. With all these meals but the one, I thought things were pretty perfect. It was shocking. But we ate really well this week and I was so proud of my cooking skills and the fact that for once, I really, really enjoyed what I made.

Well, I'd love to chat more, but I've got to tie up some loose ends with my lesson for Relief Society tomorrow morning at 8am! Yikes! If you are interested in getting more details about the recipes, let me know in the comments! (But really, most of these recipes are self-explanatory and surprisingly simple...the key is lots of spices! Yum!:)

Goodnight!!!!