Noms 2.25.2013

Since last week didn’t involve a lot of cooking, Josh and I are trying to focus on making some simple, healthy meals this week and next.

We got most of our shopping done this weekend, but had a few things left to pick up today. (Who would’ve thought sesame seeds and quinoa would be so hard to find?)

A few things I learned today: 1) You pretty much have to go to a Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods (or a similar store) for unseasoned quinoa. 2)Same goes for unsweetened coconut (I learned this about banana chips over the summer). 3)Sesame seeds are located on the spice aisle… not the nut aisle. Go figure.

I’m sure I just helped you with your next shopping trip. You’re welcome.

We moved a lot of items over from the last round of meal planning just because there were so many we didn’t get around to making. (Josh was sick with little appetite most of the first week, and I was gone most of the second week.)

Also (and I just figured this out) the Crockpot Chicken Teriyaki recipe that I had moved from the last meal plan to this round seems to be no longer available. So I’ll have to figure out something else. It definitely needs to involve chicken and sweet teriyaki sauce. I’m open to suggestions.

Anyway, here’s this round of meal planning!

The Meals

• Oatmeal Pancakes + egg whites
  
• Grilled Tilapia w/Herbs
• Spicy Chicken Burgers
• Grilled Chicken Tenders with Cilantro Pesto
• Salads

The Sides

• Carrot Fries
• Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey & Rosemary
• Grilled Asparagus
• Olive Oil & Rosemary Quinoa
• Whole Wheat Couscous

The Snacks

• Crunchy Baked Okra
• Crispy Baked Green Tomatoes
• Mozarella Bites
• Ten-Minute Stovetop Granola

The Treats

• Peanut Butter-Chocolate Krispy Bars

Notes on the last round of meals:

Like I mentioned earlier, most of our planned meals didn’t happen last time. Aside from grilled tilapia (a go-to in our house), the pulled chicken sandwich recipe was the only one I was able to get to, but Josh got sick before he was able to eat any. (He tried to down some leftovers a couple of days after I cooked it, but was still too sick.) I really enjoyed the sandwiches, though I ate so many it may be a while before I cook them again. (After three days of having pulled chicken for breakfast and lunch, I froze what was left.)

The only thing I didn’t like about the pulled chicken recipe was the four-hour cook time. My favorite part of slow cooking is starting the meal when I leave for work and having it just finish as I get home–so, usually eight hours. Meh.

I paired the pulled chicken sandwiches with carrot fries, which was really nice. They tasted a lot like sweet potato fries. They take a lot of effort to make, but if you have the time, I recommend them. (Obviously, I like them a lot. I’m planning to make them again in the next two weeks!)

The carrot chips, however, did not get such a warm welcome. I only made the sweet chips because I didn’t have any cayenne for the spicy chips. Josh wouldn’t even try them because they looked weird (which was probably my fault for over-seasoning them…oops!) and I didn’t like the consistency. They were very soft and chewy–not at all what I expected from a chip.

Oh, but the no-bake energy bites… yes. Just. Yes. I had to make two batches because Josh and I both loved them so much. (I forgot to roll most of the second batch before I left for San Antonio, and Josh told me he just ate it straight out of the storage container. Ha!) I only wish there was some way to cut down on the sugar and still keep the bites together. Ideas?

Well, that’s all I’ve got for now.

Keep up with me on Instagram for photos of these recipes as I make them.

Noms 03.11.2013

It’s been a minute since I’ve been around here, hasn’t it? Last week was pretty hectic (mostly because of the annual cleanliness inspection–more on that another day), and it doesn’t look like things will be slowing down for me. But I’m going to try to carve out a little more time this week for sharing stories and things (especially {infatuation friday}) with you.

Anyway, on to the noms of the week!

We didn’t plan much for this round of meals because I’ll be out of town for four days next week. Josh is content with cans of soup and tuna and other quick fixes, so we made sure we have plenty of that kind of stuff, but we only planned three main-dish recipes. I did, however, come up with some interesting snacks and side dishes. Plus, I’ll be making a special dessert for Josh sometime this week (we’re both pretty excited about it).

Here’s the plan:

The Meals

• Pulled Chicken Sandwiches
• Crockpot Chicken Teriyaki
• Oatmeal Pancakes
• Grilled Tilapia

The Sides

• Crunchy Baked Okra
• Crispy Baked Tomatoes
• Carrot Fries
• Mixed Veggies

The Snacks

• Gluten Free, No-Bake Energy Bites
  
• Carrot Chips
• Baked Mozarella Bites

The Treats

• Peanut Butter-Chocolate Krispy Bars

Notes on the last round of meals:

Several meals didn’t happen because I planned too many (I forgot I’d be visiting my mom for three days last weekend). We nixed the Almond-Crusted Tilapia and the Crockpot Chicken Tacos but were able to have the Chicken Tenders (with Baked Steak Fries) at my mom’s house. (We also had skilled-cooked flounder with rice and broccoli, which was a nice change of pace.)

Again, I didn’t make time for the Snacky Black Beans; I’d love to try them, but because they have to dry for an hour, I’ll have to plan (time-wise) better. So I’m keeping them off the list this time, especially since we have plenty of other snacks planned.

The Crockpot Lasagna Soup didn’t turn out so great. Maybe it was because I subbed in extra-fiber penne noodles, or maybe I used too little meat substitute  but it was pretty awful. When I usually make slow-cooker recipes, Josh and I both love how the house smells. But this time it smelled like too many different and strong ingredients at once. And it didn’t taste much different. I won’t go as far as to say the recipe was bad (I’m never afraid to admit I may have done something wrong),but we won’t make this recipe again.

The Shepherd’s Pie was better than I expected. I’ve never tried it before and was afraid I wouldn’t like it, but I really enjoyed it. My sister ate with us and told me she wants to make it for her fiance. I’d definitely say it was a winner. It’s only downfall is it’s very carb-heavy (not complex carbs though) and didn’t keep me full for long. But if I can find a way to change out some of the simple carbs for complex carbs, and maybe increase the fiber and protein, I’d love to have this again.

I cannot say enough good things about the Gluten-Free Chicken Chili with White Beans, Sweet Potato and Lime. Josh and I both loved it. (He had to stop himself from going for seconds when he was already full.) It was fairly time-consuming and took a lot of effort, but it was so worth it. We will definitely have it again soon!

The snacks and treats were the best part of our last meal plan. I took my first attempt at creating my own scone recipe, and it turned out surprisingly good. (I honestly expected to have to throw at least one batch away, but I got it right on the first try.) You can find that recipe here. I also made Whole Wheat Blueberry Bites and loved them. Josh said he liked them but only ate one or two from the batch; I think he was concerned about the amount of carbs and sugar. Regardless, I’ll probably make them again sometime. (More for me, right?)

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