What’s for Dinner? – Week Starting 6 January 2018

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People are forever asking how I manage everything with such a busy schedule. I love to cook, but I don’t always have time to do so in the manner I would like. This weekly journal is a way to keep it real and show that while my intentions are good, sometimes life and all of its activities get in the way of serving a delicious, home-cooked meal and that it is perfectly okay.

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Saturday: Leftovers, leftovers, leftovers. Connor left for school today, and no one felt like making anything. The pork chops from last night provided plenty of leftovers for Jim and me while Holly made due with a salad and some macaroni and cheese.
Sunday: It was a lovely lazy Sunday, but lazy Sundays mean no one wants to cook. Jim made everyone grilled cheese sandwiches instead, and we all cheered.
Monday: Jim and I tried something completely different tonight with an Italian Sausage Swiss Chard White Bean Soup. I love soup but adding white beans and Swiss chard pushed my taste and texture envelope to the limit. Surprisingly, we liked it a lot. It won’t make the regular rotation but as a great, flavorful alternative to the cream soups I favor it works really well.
Tuesday: Jim had a mentally taxing visit with a neurologist this afternoon, so I knew that he was in no frame of mind to sit around the house while I prepared dinner. Instead, we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant, where he was able to stay distracted and recover a bit from the fears that surfaced during the appointment. I can never say no to Mexican food.
Wednesday: Jim and I further pushed our culinary palates with tonight’s Baked Chicken Parmesan with zucchini noodles. The chicken was fabulous, and the zucchini noodles were not bad as a side. When eaten together, I barely noticed I wasn’t eating my beloved pasta. Will I trade all pasta for zoodles? Hell no. Would I make this again? Absolutely.
Thursday: An unexpected cancellation of dance classes meant Holly got to eat dinner with us. Tonight, we tried Oven-Baked Risotto with Roasted Mushrooms and a side of garlicky chard and beans. The risotto was delicious, especially once I added a little butter and some freshly shredded Parmesan cheese. The chard and beans was passable. I have learned I am not a beans/chard fan. Yet, it was probably one of the healthiest meals we have eaten in a while, and the whole thing took less than thirty minutes to pull together and cook. There is something to that.
Friday: Back to a normal schedule means back to dance classes on Friday evenings which means no cooking. Instead, we stopped at Chipotle and picked up burrito bowls to take home to eat. Chipotle chicken burrito bowls never get old.