food journal: weeknight dinners for the kids

Here is my meal planning "system": I love to cook on the weekends (and can experiment with new or complicated recipes) and at least one dish usually lasts through Monday's dinner.  Then for the next few days, we wing it.  While I'm cleaning the kitchen after they go to sleep, I steam carrots, broccoli or peas, or roast brussels sprouts, for the next day or so.  That way, there's always nice veggies to quickly warm and put on the plate for them.  We always keep a ton of fruit in the house so they get a thrown-together fruit salad most nights too. 
I'm assuming that I will become more systematic as time goes on... 
But for right now, here's what we've been eating lately:

One of my favorite lazy mom meals: charcuterie

Ubiquitous Quinoa: My kids love this quinoa and black beans dish

Instructions that have room for experimenting/forgiveness:  Rinse quinoa.  Saute 2 cloves of garlic and 1/4 c of onion in olive oil for a minute.  Bring 2 c chicken or vegetable broth to a boil.  Reduce heat and add quinoa.  Add a dash of paprika.  Cook quinoa according to package instructions, about 15 minutes.  With about 5 min left of cooking add a cup or two of frozen corn.  Turn off heat and mix in a can of black beans.  Top with cheese.  My kids like it with sour cream, avocado and tomatoes on the side. 

Kale: Just because you can doesn't mean you should

Kale is superimposed onto so many recipes and much of the time, it's just not quite right.  But here is an easy, perfect pasta recipe that uses kale or any greens you have lying about.  The greens, anchovy and breadcrumbs are a perfect juxtaposition. 

I make a giant batch and take it to work for lunch too. 

From the crockpot: carnitas

I use this recipe but halve the cumin, use 4 cloves of fresh minced garlic and then double the amount of the rest of the spices.  When I get home from work, I broil the meat for 10 minutes to brown the edges.

getting closer and closer to takeout chicken and broccoli

This is still a work in progress but this recipe comes close to the  takeout dish I'm trying to replicate.

And once a week...it's pizza or nuggets...

I clean out the fridge and call it tapas

For pizza - we use Trader Joes naan, TJ pizza sauce and top it with mozarella and whatever odds and ends are in the fridge.  (TJ also has this new flatbread crust that we like too.) 

Nuggets, sweet potato fries and brussels sprouts (sprouts drizzled with lemon infused olive oil)

Cheers to happy and thrown-together meals!

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