Menu Plan Monday 3/19-3/25

Since it has been in the 80's nearly every day for a week here in central Illinois, we nixed the oatmeal for breakfast in favor of smoothies all last week. I made up some granola and banana muffins over the weekend, so those will be in the breakfast rotation for this week, too. I put away all of our winter clothes, so hopefully this gorgeous weather is here to stay!

Here is our menu for the week!

Breakfast

• Banana muffins and smoothies (Strawberry oatmeal, green monster and sunrise) x 3
• Soaked granola and fruit x 3
• Sourdough pancakes, bacon and fruit 

Lunch

• Standard lunch 
• Leftovers
• Salmon patties, green monster smoothies, fresh veggies and dip
• Sweet potato burrito bowls, fruit, veggies and dip
• Italian stew, biscuits and fruit
• Keema, biscuits and fruit
• Hot dogs, fruit, veggies and dip
• Church lunch

Dinner

• Chicken and rice soup, biscuits and fruit
• Meat and potato meal, biscuits and fruit
• Standard lunch x 2
• Leftovers x 3 
• Volunteer dinner
• Calzones, salad and homemade dipping sauce
• Popcorn and chocolate peanut butter banana smoothies

Banana Muffins

 

3 c. whole wheat flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

6 bananas, mashed

1 1/2 c. sucanat (or other sweetener)

 2 eggs

2/3 c. butter, melted

 

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Combine bananas, sweetener, eggs and butter in a large bowl. Fold in flour mixture and mix until smooth. Pour in greased muffin tins and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. 

menu plan monday

Enjoying March

We have been experiencing BEAUTIFUL weather this week and I definitely hope it lasts! This week we have picnicked with friends, taken several walks at the nature center by our apartment, slept with the windows open all night long and played in onesies. Thank you, Lord, for the sweet blessing of warm weather right when the cabin fever was setting in!

Julian: 10 months

Julian turned ten months old on the 5th of March. He has been crawling since January, and is now pulling himself up and cautiously cruising along various pieces of furniture. He has four teeth and continues to nurse wonderfully. He is still not all that interested in table food, although we do offer it every meal. We had a terrible time getting him to look at the camera this month, but I do think the photo we ended up with is pretty cute!

Talking to his bear :)

Menu Plan Monday 3/12-3/18

I am looking for new breakfast ideas, so if anyone has any suggestions, let me know. Oatmeal is wonderful when it is cold outside, but this warm weather is making me not want to eat a bowl of steaming oats in the morning!

Here is our menu for the week...

Breakfast

• Soaked oats x 6
• Sourdough pancakes, bacon and fruit

Lunch

• Standard lunch x 3
• Leftovers and smoothies x 2
• Picnic lunch with friends (!)
• Salmon patties, smoothies and veggies
• Soup, biscuits and fruit
• Hot dogs, salad and fruit
• Church lunch

Dinner

• Standard lunch x 2
• Leftovers and smoothies (or, in the case of tonight, popcorn and fruit!) x 3
• Chicken cakes, potato wedges and salad
• Shrimp curry, biscuits and fruit
• White chicken chili, biscuits and fruit
• Volunteer dinner
• Popcorn and smoothies

Shrimp Curry

 

 This is by far one of my easiest recipes. I LOVE Indian/Thai/Vietnamese food and was super happy to realize how easy it is to recreate it at home.

2 cans coconut milk

2 tbs. red curry paste

1 tbs. fish sauce

24 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Bamboo shoots, pepper strips, baby corn, edamame etc. (optional)

In a skillet, combine coconut milk, curry paste and fish sauce (add any optional veggies at this point). Slowly bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low and add shrimp. Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until the shrimp are cooked and the flavors mellow, about 15 minutes. Serve over hot rice.

menu plan monday

Super Easy Homemade Frosting

We are having a friend of Kerry's over for dinner tonight, so Julian and I have been busy cooking all day. I decided yesterday that we would have the Sourdough Chocolate Cake from Smart Sweets for dessert. I made the cake up this morning and planned on making the almond frosting that goes along with it this afternoon. I ended up not having everything I needed for the frosting, so I improvised and came up with this super delicious and healthy frosting!

Super Easy Homemade Frosting

1 c. greek yogurt

1/4 c. real maple syrup

Put the yogurt and the syrup in a bowl and mix (I used my hand mixer since I don't have a fancy stand mixer!) on low until well combined. Feel free to lick the beaters :) Spread on cake or cupcakes and enjoy!

Real Food Wednesdayl

Menu Plan Monday 3/5-3/11

I began reading Organized Simplicity this weekend and, although this is not the order she recommends in the book, tackled my kitchen on Saturday. I re-organized the pantry, purged kitchen gadgets and tools (some that have not seen the light of day since we got them as wedding presents!) and cleaned out the fridge and freezer. I made an inventory sheet of my spices and all my pantry items, as well as a freezer inventory. Needless to say, I am SO invigorated by the overhaul and am looking forward to cooking in my newly organized and simplified kitchen this week!

 

Here is our menu for the week!

Breakfast

• Soaked oats and fruit x 6
• Sourdough pancakes, bacon and fruit

Lunch

• Standard lunch x 4 (for Kerry)
• Leftovers and smoothies x 4 (for me)
• Soup buffet, biscuits and fruit
• Snacky lunch on the road
• Church lunch 

Dinner

• Small group (bringing Chocolate-Strawberry Truffle Pie for dessert)
• Scrambled hamburger, biscuits and fruit
• Brown rice spaghetti, salad and fruit
• Sweet potato chili, biscuits and fruit
• Leftovers and smoothies (for me)
• Volunteer dinner (for Kerry)
• Calzones, Homemade dipping sauce and fruit
• Popcorn and smoothies

Sweet Potato Chili

1 large onion, sliced

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 medium zucchini, diced

2 c. black beans

1 1/2 tbs. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. orange zest

1 c. chicken stock

Combine all ingredients in a big pot and bring to a boil. Then lower and simmer for at least four hours.

Menu Plan Monday

Thank you, Jesus!

The Lord blew me away in a BIG way this morning...

Kerry and I watch a little girl a few mornings a week named Emily (not her real name). Emily is eight years old. She is dropped off at our apartment around seven and one of us takes her to school around eight. She usually arrives around the time we are sitting down to eat breakfast, so she reads quietly or plays with some of the toys we have. She is intrigued by Julian and loves to pick out his diaper cover when I go to change him. She does not come from a Christian home and does not regularly attend church. She talks and sings songs about things I never even knew about until after I was married. If Julian were any older, I would be worried about the influence she had on him.

One day while we were driving to school last week, she was telling me about what she was learning in school. She mentioned some foreign countries she was learning about and asked if I had ever been outside the US. I told her that I had and shared with her the various places I had been on missions trips. She was quite impressed with this and exclaimed "I didn't know you were a missionary!". I explained to her that I am not a missionary in the sense that she was thinking, but that I am a Christian. She told me about a VBS she had been to once before and the missionaries she met there. We got to her school and that conversation was done.


When she got here this morning, we were sitting down to breakfast. We prayed and she was just walking around the living room, talking to us while we ate. She sat down on the bench by our front door and, out of the blue, said, " I can't wait to be a Christian someday." I asked her what she meant by that and she said that she couldn't wait until she had prayed enough to make her a Christian. I was close to crying, at this point, so moved by what the Lord was allowing me to participate in. I told her that the only thing she must do to be a Christian is to accept the free gift of salvation from Jesus. So, she sat on my couch and prayed to accept Jesus as her Savior.

I am so humbled and grateful that the Lord used me to help this little girl realize her need for Him in her life. This serves as a reminder to me that God can and will use ANYONE to accomplish His purposes, even a stay-at-home mommy just trying to make a little extra money for her family by watching a little girl a few times a week. Thank you, Jesus!