Notes on the Extended Meal Plan - Monday/Tuesday

M - Mojo Chicken, Black Beans, Rice, Yellow Sauce
T - Pork Chops (or Pork Loin Roast), Broccoli, Steamed Carrot coins

I have detailed the whole "Homemade Pollo Tropical" meal in other posts - it is easy, but not quick. Making beans is not fast, but it is not extremely involved and doesn't require any work for the last hour and a half.

Our pork meal is the one bit of spontaneity in our week - there is just so much you can do with "the other white meat". I bought the biggest whole loin I could find and par-froze it - freezing until firm, but not solid. Then I was able to slice off chops and leave the last chunk whole to roast - seems fancier that way, somehow...

Notes on the Extended Meal Plan - Sunday

U - Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes

I started abreviated Sunday as "U" in college because that's how our "Racing Forms" (class registration books) did it. Our meatloaf is probably more accurately called a "Meaty-loaf" because a good bit of it is shredded or minced vegetables. Although, it's never the same twice, I base my method loosly on Alton Brown's recipe - the main thing being the glaze. I made four loaves using only 2lbs of meat. They are kind of small, but work for now. Each gets double wrapped - plastic and freezer paper - raw and after being thawed will be cooked 10 minutes before applying the glaze. Let me just say, if you don't glaze your meatloaf, you are missing out :)

For mashed potatoes, I pick two large potatoes (about 1lb each) - one red and one russet - peeled, cubed and steamed 20 minutes, then whipped with butter, milk and salt and sometimes other things (like sour cream or parmesan cheese).

Great homey meal for Sunday night because I generally like to take a mother's version of a Sabbath rest - that is no laundry or floor cleaning unless pee is involved.

Extended Meal Plan

Things have been busy to say the least since Natalie was born and that has affected how we eat. Normally, I don't like to eat monotonously, but planning unique menus for each week is more work than I need right now. Instead, I created a basic menu that repeats for 4 weeks. I make a super-sized grocery list, stock up on food, process or prepare some of it, and the result is this:
A freezer full of food - some of it ready to go, some of it just pre-portioned.

Here is the meal plan:

U - Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes
M - Mojo Chicken, Black Beans, Rice, Yellow Sauce
T - Pork Chops (or Pork Loin Roast), Broccoli, Steamed Carrot coins
W - Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Rolls or Italian Sweet Bread
R - Chicken Stir Fry, Egg Rolls
F - Vegetable Bean Soup, Cresent Rolls
S - BBQ Chicken, Biscuits, Baked Beans, and Scalloped Corn

I chose the meals based on cost, cooking method and freeze-ability. I split the majority of the work between two days - shopping day and cooking day. On the cooking day, I made 4 meatloaves, 4 meals worth of spaghetti sauce and 4 of vegetable bean soup, and portioned 20lbs of dark chicken quarters. For the pork chops, I bought a whole pork loin and cut off the chops. I left once piece whole to roast. Also, I made two batches of cookie dough, portioned and frozen to bake later and a batch of dog treats - because I was in the kitchen anyway and can make them out of things I would otherwise throw away (and Mako likes them). It was a tiring day! But living is easy for the next four weeks!