Hello everyone and welcome to the first Sunday of 2025 and my very first Meals of the Week post for the new year!
On Sundays I like to do a recap of all of the main meals that I have enjoyed over the past seven days. Seven tasty entrees with all of the sides and menu suggestions along with the pertinent recipes. That's a whole lot of deliciousness if I don't say so myself!
This was another week with a holiday meal, New Year's Day. I did eat at my sister's twice this week, and everyone came to me once. There was nothing too elaborate about any of it.
I am a senior person who lives on her own. I love to cook, and I love to eat, and I love to share what I cook and eat with you, my dear readers. This serves a dual purpose.
One, hopefully, it will inspire others who find themselves in the same boat to start cooking for themselves. The temptation when you live on your own can be to just pop a frozen dinner in the microwave or to eat a takeaway. My next-door neighbor exists on sandwiches, I am sure. I often share my meals with her just to make sure she gets something nutritious.
The sad truth is many older people are suffering from malnutrition. I am determined that won't be me, so I cook. My meals are never complicated but they are also never boring. At least I don't think that they are.
Secondly, I like to cook, and I love to eat and homemade food tastes a heck of a lot better than anything else! Its also a lot healthier and more economical than eating out or buying ready meals that are loaded with salt, sugar and fat.
For breakfast most days I will have a protein shake. I buy the powder online and it comes in a multitude of gorgeous flavors. My absolute favorite is the Orange Creamsicle flavor.
I will have my main meal around early afternoon, usually by one pm. I don't like to have anything heavy laying on my stomach later on in the day. I suffer from GERD and so I really need to watch things.
In the early evening, I will have a salad, or a sandwich, or sometimes a bowl of cereal or some toast, or fruit even. Nothing too heavy.
I try to make sure my meals are all nutritionally sound and budget friendly. I think I do a pretty good job of it. And having said all that, here are my meals of the week!
SUNDAY, December 29th - Supper at Cindy's
I had not thought to go to Cindy's for supper on Sunday night as I knew I was going there on New Years Eve, but she had made pizza and that is not something I can resist. A good homemade pizza. My sister makes really good homemade pizza. She always puts a bit of dill pickle on a corner of it for her and I.
In its place I am sharing my recipe for New York Pizza. I have never been to New York and had the pizza there, but I have heard that it is very good. A thin foldable crust with a nice sauce and toppings. I don't know if this is authentic or not, but I can promise you my version is very delicious. The crust has a lovely flavor and is just sturdy enough to stand up to all of the toppings. You can put on it whatever you enjoy having on a pizza.
MONDAY, December 30th - Macaroni, Cheese & Tomato Bake for two
This is one of my favorite recipes that I downsized for the smaller family. Easy to make. What you have here is a base of pasta in a deliciously simple tomato sauce. A rich and cheesy bechamel sauce gets slathered on top and then you crush some cracker crumbs over top of that.
The whole thing then gets baked in a hot oven for half an hour to perfection. Everything is bubbling and golden brown. It truly is delicious and such a simple make. It's one of my favorite meals. You can have meat with it if you want, but I like it just as it is. Sometimes I will have some bread and butter with it, but on that day I had only a salad. My daughter and her husband love LOVE this delicious casserole. I am not surprised as it is fabulously tasty!
TUESDAY, December 31st - French Canadian TourtiereTuesday was New Year's Eve and my sister had invited me over to enjoy some French Canadian Tourtiere for supper. I had not had any this year, and I actually had not made any myself either, so I could not resist the invitation. We all love Tourtiere in our family.My father calls it meat pie. Tourtiere to him is this pie here. Its equally as delicious, but in a different way.Tourtiere is a delicious pork pie made with a mix of ground pork, onions, and spices. They are simmered until tender and then it is thickened with just a bit of potato. Tucked into a delicious butter and lard pastry, this is a meat pie that is very hard to resist. We enjoyed it with some pan fried potatoes and vegetables on the side.
WEDNESDAY, January 1st. 2025 - New Year's Day DinnerOn Wednesday I had the whole family over for a New Year's Day Dinner. Cindy, Dan and dad. I had roasted a ham. You can find my recipe for the Apricot Glazed Roast Ham here. It was fabulously tasty. We enjoyed it with Scalloped Potatoes, steamed Carrots, Pineapple Baked Beans, and a Cheesy Corn Casserole, which my sister had made.For dessert we had sugar free Jello with squirty cream as that is my father's favorite dessert. We all enjoyed everything very much, and of course the best part was enjoying it together.
THURSDAY, January 2nd - Crispy Baked Chicken ThighsI had to take the cats to the Vets on Thursday for their shots, so I did not have a whole lot of time to make anything really complicated when I got back. For this tasty entree (sized for two people) Boneless, skinless Chicken thighs are coated with a mayo/mustard combination and then rolled in a seasoned breadcrumb mixture before baking to crispy perfection. The chicken stays tender and moist and that crumb coating is finger-licking, lip smacking delicious!I enjoyed with some instant mash and some frozen veggies. I buy the Idaho Instant Creamy Mash in single serving pots, which works perfectly for days like this one. It actually tastes really good!
FRIDAY, January 3rd - Tuna PattiesI felt like having some fish on Friday after all of the excess of the holidays. Something simple. I made Tuna Patties and enjoyed them on their own along with a salad on the side. I didn't need anything else as I ate both patties. (Oink! Oink!) I did make a homemade tartar sauce to go with them.My salad was a simple mixed salad with lettuce, cucumber, tomato and spring onions. I created a simple homemade vinaigrette to drizzle over top. I was totally happy with this.
SATURDAY, January 4th - Proper Ham and EggsA simple supper for a Saturday and I used up some of the ham I had left over from New Years. Perfectly fried sliced ham with lovely farm fresh eggs, their edges all golden brown and frizzled, the yolks perfectly runny and ready for buttery toast fingers to dip.Maybe not the healthiest supper on earth but it sure was the tastiest. It was a cold, cold day and I was wanting comfort food. It doesn't get much more comforting than this! Such a simple thing and oh so tasty!!And there you have it, my meals of the week for the end of December and beginning of the New year. I think I ate rather well, don't you! Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
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