What I’m Cooking This Week
Project 365, Day 10
Remember how I mentioned in my Project 365 post #1 that I had garbage discipline? Here, let me provide you with a visual reminder, you know, in case you forgot:
One thing I’m religiously consistent about, however, is planning my meals for the week. There’s nothing that can get between this woman and her meals. I sit down every Saturday come rain (haha, not in LA) or shine (always in LA), plot out the dinners and lunches I’m going to make, make my grocery list, and boom, I’m fed for the next seven days. I even wrote about my “technique” to keep things organized here.
So, in the spirit of bringing some sense of routine to my new routine of writing, I think I’m going to share my meal plan, or at least the recipes I’m most excited about making, every Sunday here for the foreseeable future. If it starts feeling tired, I’ll pivot to something else. But I’m personally always looking for something new to cook, and maybe you are, too.
Of course this month, all my meals are Whole 30—don’t know what I’m saying? I wrote about it right here—but it’s all yummy regardless, to me. In no particular order, here’s what I’m cooking this week:
Grilled Salmon with Mango Salsa & Asparagus
I probably won’t follow much of a recipe on this one because I’ve been making a variation of this meal for years, but linked up a recipe in case someone is interested! I like to throw in something green, so asparagus it is. If you want to get wild, throw this onto a corn tortilla for a great taco option.
Buffalo Chicken Sweet Potatoes
Another one I completely riff off without a recipe. If you’ve never tried the combination of buffalo chicken with roasted sweet potatoes, just wait. It’s so fantastic. I would see it pop up on Pinterest for a long time and it just never appealed much to me until I finally decided to give it a whirl. I’ve never looked back. You won’t either.
Lettuce-Wrapped Burgers with Roasted Potatoes
The attached recipe is for elk burgers, but I’ll be using the beef burgers I got in my monthly Butcher Box instead (here’s a link for $30 off if you’re interested!). Ronnie from Primal Gourmet is one of my favorite Instagram food follows. His recipes are really good (even if you don’t follow Paleo or Whole 30) and it’s been so fun seeing him blossom into a full-blown recipe developer and cookbook author over the years. His burgers? They’re awesome…better with buns, yes, but not too shabby wrapped in iceberg.
Dairy-Free Shepard’s Pie w/ Kale Salad
This is a new one for me. I 100% prefer my shepard’s pie slathered in shredded cheese, but sometimes, sacrifices need to be made. The kale salad has no recipe, just something I make on the regular and it’s one of my favorite things. If I ever feel like going full-on food blogger on you, maybe I’ll take photos of me making it and write it out. It’s so easy but so good.
BBQ Chicken Thighs w/ Potato Salad & Red Cabbage Slaw
Have some bone-in chicken thighs from my Butcher Box to use up, and these do particularly well with a hefty coating of BBQ sauce (this is the Whole 30 one I’m using). Pairing them with a potato salad that looks pretty solid and a very simple red cabbage slaw I love.
Tomatillo Chicken Tacos with Coconut Flour Tortillas
I started making those linked tortillas this past week and while technically they break the “rules” of Whole 30 in practice, they don’t in terms of ingredients and I’m okay with it. This week, I plan on using them for tacos but also for BBQ ranch chicken wraps (which I’m just going to improvise with some chicken breast I have in the freezer I need to use).
Chia Seed Pudding w/ Fruit
Show me a chia seed pudding, and I’ll show you a happy person staring lovingly at a chia seed pudding (I’m that person). Gonna whip some up to shake up my eggs-every-morning routine.
And there you have it, my week of meals. Since it’s just the two of us, I make a dinner for four and then we eat the leftovers for lunch to keep things simple and reduce food waste.
One last thing before I go, I wanted to update anyone who left me their input in my Ask the Audience post about the frequency of emails you want to receive, I’m currently trying to find a way to let that be an option you can control. So if you want a daily email or a weekly email or even a monthly email, I’m working to make that happen for you! I know there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. Stay tuned!
See you tomorrow, friends.