The 2020 Week 26 Menu Plan is a milestone. The year is half over. May I just say that my hope is that the second half of this year is not as historical as the first. I pray that we enter into a new normal with health, peace, and a respect for each other
Breakfast
The breakfasts planned for 2020 Week 26 are repeats of favorites aside from the peach oatmeal. I have berries and peaches nearly past their prime that must be utilized. Thus creating this menu was extremely easy.
Lunch
The lunch plans for the week include 2 new Greek recipes. Obviously I demonstrated a love for Greek food and flavors over the past months. I plan to reduce the amount of feta in the quinoa salad to comply with a E meal.
Dinner
The plans for dinner during 2020 week 26 include eat again meals derived from successful entrees last week. In addition there are repeats of favorites, a new Orange Chicken preparation found in the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook on page 72, and an aggressive preparation for Halibut. Our original plan for Tuesday’s dinner was changed when we took advantage of Whole Food’s special pricing on Wild Caught Halibut.
Pistachio Encrusted Halibut with Spicy Yogurt Sauce
Breakfast Hits
I was actually pleasantly surprised with the ease of preparation and the flavor of this oatmeal. The ‘Ole Buckeye really enjoyed it as well, and he has become adept at making his own variations. This would also be great to include as a Time Share recipe with the entire family.
Dinner Hits
Yet another soup has been enjoyed as a cook once eat several times. This Minestrone was fine and I used black bean rotini to keep it in a E mode. Will we have it again? Fortunately over these last months I have a multitude of great soups and this one will not make the cut for rotational use.
I forgot to take a picture of our version of the rainbow peanut noodles. To be perfectly honest, my version was not as photogenic. The dish was unique and very tasty, but if I made it again I would either double the vegetable or decrease the pasta. It is definitely worth a second try.
Dinner Hits
Once again I managed to create a great salad without an image. The ‘Ole Buckeye said it perfectly…I didn’t think strawberries and broccoli would work, but it defiantly does.
A request from the Grand girls last weekend was White Lasagna. I always have the ingredients on hand and can whip it up in no time. As I began to prepare dinner I realized that I did not have a jar of Alfredo sauce….I always have a jar of Alfredo sauce. I refused to have the ‘Ole Buckeye make a grocery run. Problem solved…I made my own sauce from scratch. Lesson learned. Scratch is a must going forward. The family favorite became even more flavorful and was a major hit once again. We truly love this entree.
I went back to the salad archives and made a salad that has been a true favorite in the past. It is as close to Olive Garden as it gets…just misses the bread sticks.
Italian Salad (copy cat Olive Garden)
The ‘Ole Buckeye’s only request for Fathers’ Day was shrimp and grits. I made an old standby which I haven’t made in quite some time. For some reason it was not as spicy as in the past, but still quiet enjoyable.
Cheesy Shrimp and Grits Casserole
Misses
This French toast was tasty, but defiantly not worth the time and effort. I would not repeat this breakfast if for no other reason than the length of time it took to clean up the stove top…never again.
Vegan French Toast with Caramelized Bananas
The taco soup…not so much. It was easy, but I have too many other Mexican style soups to bother with this one.
Ok…I did learn several things making this dish. Who knew you could make sweet potato noodles…but they were quite easy and successful. Secondly, after all these years, I had never used the steamer basket. ( I will definitely do that in the future.)
Now to the entree. The first batch was over cooked…the noodles mushy. The second batch much more successful. Would I make it again…no.
Garlicky Alfredo Sweet Potato Noodle Pasta
Recap
Wow, we had a lot of food last week…a lot of successful meals. In fact even the new recipes that would not be made in the future, were enjoyable for a one time experiment. We continue on the healthy eating quest for new and enjoyable meals. Bon appetit.
