Its hard to believe but this is my last Meals of the Week post for 2023! I did my first one of these posts back in March, and have been doing them weekly ever since! What a delicious year it has been as well!
At the end of each week I do a round-up post of the main meals that I have eaten from the seven days previous. These posts contain all of the recipes. Some are recipes I have just cooked and others are reposts of recipes that I have cooked previously. In some cases I have eaten out at a restaurant or at a family or friend's place. In those cases I have provided a suitable substitute recipe.
This has been something which I have enjoyed doing and which you seem to have enjoyed me sharing. I have always loved meal and menu planning and have been doing it since my children were small. It helped me when it came to budgeting for my weekly meal expenses and it also has helped me through the years to be more accountable and to make things interesting for those I am feeding.
When I was a child you knew exactly what day of the week it was by what was for supper. Mom tended to cook the same things day in and day out, week in, week out, year after year after year. That can sometimes get boring. We all need and can use a bit of inspiration.
Also because I am now a person that lives on their own there is a tendency for things perhaps to become repetitive and mundane when it comes to meal planning, or we resort to frozen ready meals, take aways or tins and bottles. I don't want to be that person. I have promised myself that for as long as I am able to I am going to cook fresh and exciting meals for myself, filled with variety and good wholesome ingredients. Meals made completely from scratch and using ingredients we can all pronounce.
Having said that I am not perfect and occasionally I will use a tin of soup or another store cupboard ingredient to create something delicious for my supper, but as a rule, I tend to make everything from scratch.
And I like taking you along for the ride! Here are my menus/recipes for the past week. I think you will agree that its been a really tasty week and pretty exciting. Hat's off to 2023 and here's to load of new recipes/meals in 2024!
SUNDAY, December 24th - Christmas Eve
On Christmas Eve I had my whole family over for dinner. Well, my sister Cindy, her partner Dan and my father. I cooked Cheesy Chicken Rarebits. This is one of my favorite things to cook for company. Not only are they really easy to make, but the recipe is very adaptable to making as many or as few as you wish to make. This was always a standby for me when I had the Missionaries over for supper.
Tender juicy chicken breasts bake beneath a blanket of grated cheddar, grainy mustard and cream. Clusters of cherry tomatoes on the vine are placed in between the chicken pieces whilst baking. They soften and their juices mingle with those of the chicken and that scrumptious sauce. This is really delicious.
We enjoyed this with rice, roasted broccoli and cauliflower (which both go well with the cheesy sauce also) and some rice. Of course we had some Christmas goodies for dessert. Christmas cake, mince pies, shortbread cookies, etc.
MONDAY, December 25th - Christmas Day at Cindy's
Christmas Dinner in Canada almost always means a Roast Turkey Dinner. Dan is always given a turkey for Christmas from where he works. My sister does a beautiful job of roasting it. We got together early in the day and exchanged gifts and then I helped with the dinner. We had Roast Turkey of course, along with my mother's Bread and Potato Stuffing. There were mashed potatoes, squash, carrots, green beans and my sister's special glazed sweet potatoes. She also makes the best gravy in the world. Homemade cranberry sauce.
Dessert was an assortment of baked Christmas goodies. We were all stuffed but we still managed to enjoy a few of those as well. It was a fabulous meal, but the best part of all was being together as a family. Family times are the best of times.
TUESDAY, December 26th - Boxing Day
The day after Christmas is what is known as Boxing Day here in Canada and is a holiday. It is always the day right after Christmas. Traditionally it was the day that people who worked for wealthy families on Christmas Day were given their Christmas's boxes along with the day off. A reward for having spent their Christmas Day serving their wealthy masters.
I had my daughter Eileen and her husband Tim over for the day and we feasted on their favorite meal, Macaroni Cheese and Tomato Bake. It is one of their favorites. A base of macaroni in a simple, yet delicious tomato sauce is topped with a creamy rich cheese bechamel and baked to perfection. (You can access a smaller recipe for two here.)
I also made them Weiner Wrap, which is hotdogs wrapped in biscuit/scone dough and baked. Plus we had some mixed vegetables and then for dessert I had made them Tik Tok Cinnamon Roll Hack. Afterwards we played some games and just enjoyed each other's company. I drove them home at the end of the day armed with all of the leftovers which they were very happy about.
Traditionally Boxing Day you would enjoy the leftovers from Christmas Dinner, but Eileen and Tim had already enjoyed three Turkey Dinners so I thought a change from that would be much more appreciated. Also, since I had not cooked a turkey dinner, I had no turkey leftovers!
WEDNESDAY, December 27th - Classic Tuna Melt
Normally on Wednesdays I will go with my father and his friend Hazel to The Big Scoop for a supper out. We usually have fish and chips. This week the restaurant was closed. They have sold it to a new family and it will be opening again next week. It will be interesting to see in the new year if much has changed.
Dad and Hazel still went out. They went out for a Chinese meal closer to where they both live. I stayed home and treated myself to one of my favorite hot sandwiches. A Classic Tuna Melt.
I have always loved tuna melt sandwiches. With crispy buttery toasted bread, a rich tuna salad filling, and melted cheese, this hot sandwich always goes down a real treat with me. You can have potato chips on the side or a salad, or even a bowl of soup. I am happy with just the sandwich.
THURSDAY, December 28th - Lemon and Chicken Soup
Still full up from all the richness of the Christmas holidays and so I opted for a light supper of soup. Lemon and Chicken Soup is one of my favorite bowls of soup. This is a fabulously tasty chicken soup, with fresh flavors! It uses chicken stock along with lemon juice. You might think the lemon would be overpowering, but it really isn't. It adds a lovely layer of flavor that is quite pleasant! It is delicious and hearty.
This with some crackers suited me to a "T." It was filling but not overwhelmingly so. It was the perfect meal to enjoy on a dreary, rainy and gray day.
FRIDAY, December 29th - Dinner Out
I enjoyed a meal out with friends. My sister and brother in law and my niece Bonnie who was down visiting for the holidays. We went to Angies, which is just around the corner from me. It is always nice to spend time with them. I love them very much.
I stayed pretty true to form and had their Fish and Chips. Its very good there. Battered Haddock, hand cut fries, coleslaw. Yummy. I am sharing my own recipe for Beer Battered Fish with you, just in case you feel ambitious and want to make your own! It always turns out really delicious. The fish perfectly cooked, the batter nice and crisp.
SATURDAY, December 30th - Pan Seared Steak with Garlic Butter
I thought I would just have something simple on Saturday. I had a nice steak in the freezer so I took that out and enjoyed it simply with some mushrooms and garlic butter. A few vegetables on the side. I was skipping the carbs! I figured I had done enough of those all week!
This is a great steak recipe. Simple and filled with flavor. Tender and juicy, it is a perfectly seared, cooked and flavored steak. The garlic butter goes perfectly. A cast iron skillet works best, but if you don't have one you can use any skillet with a heavy bottom that can handle a high heat well.
I enjoyed this simply with some steamed beans and broccoli. It was perfect.
And those were my meals of the week, for the last week in December of 2023! Time to begin a tasty new year! Happy New Year everyone!
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