Date: May 6, 2013

Recipe: http://www.annies-eats.com/2013/03/20/lets-do-lunch-quinoa-salad-with-roasted-tomatoes-broccoli-and-feta/

Modifications:  None

Time to table: 35 minutes (most is inactive roasting time)

Servings: I hope to get 3-4 lunches out of this.

Erin: Like

Notes: I made this last night to bring for lunches this week. Definitely a quick and easy recipe that would be great to whip up on a weeknight. It is surprisingly tasty, I think the roasted veggies and feta give it really good flavor. Especially the juices of the tomato mixed in made it delicious. Really loved it, although I just never stay full with dishes like this and at 2pm am really intensely craving a cheeseburger. Or pizza.

Date: May 1, 2013

Recipe: http://www.annies-eats.com/2012/11/28/skillet-lasagna/

Modifications: We only had one can of whole tomatoes by mistake, so I used half a can of crushed tomatoes in addition. I added frozen chopped spinach to the tomato/sausage mix. Didn’t have any basil.

Time to table: nearly an hour when all was said and done

Servings: 6 adults

Ben: Like

Erin: Love

Annie: Like

Luke: Love

Notes: I’m not sure why, but this took me a long time to make and was sort of annoying. No real reason other than my own ineptitude, like I accidentally put the tomatoes in before the noodles so it was hard to stir them in, then the tomatoes after I chopped them leaked all over the place. Stuff like that. I was skeptical that the noodles would cook, but yes, they did. I did like how adaptable this recipe was, you really could throw in any veggies you wanted, not use meat, whatever your preference. It’s far less fussy than normal lasagna as well and tastes just as good. A big hit with everyone.

We haven’t been posting as much lately because we’ve been using this blog for it’s intended purpose: going back and making our favorites again and again.

A few recent weekly meal plans:

White Bean Chicken Chili, Cassoulet from the freezer, Burrito Bowls, Chicken Biscuit Sandwiches

Mexican Stuffed Shells, Carrot and Broccoli Orzo, Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, Crockpot Burrito Soup

Salmon Pesto Pasta, French Toast, Skillet Lasagna, Fajitas

Date: April 2nd, 2013

Recipe: http://www.closetcooking.com/2013/03/roasted-brussels-sprout-carbonara.html

Modifications: None

Time to table: 30 minutes

Servings: 2 adults

Ben: Love

Erin: Like

Notes: We had this after the kids went to bed for a stay-at-home date dinner. We’re nothing if not consistent, since the last time we had pasta carbonara was almost exactly a year ago……….for another date night

We liked the addition of the brussel sprouts quite a bit, but this recipe was not as saucy as the previous recipe we used. Maybe next April we can combine the best of both worlds and have an awesome carbonara.

Date: March 28th, 2013

Recipe: http://www.annies-eats.com/2011/09/07/halibut-with-chipotle-compound-butter-in-foil-packets/

Modifications: Let’s see, we used tilapia instead of halibut because it was way cheaper. I didn’t use the chipotle chilies because Erin is not a spice fan.

Time to table: 45 minutes

Servings: 3 adults

Ben: Dislike

Erin: Dislke

Annie: Like

Luke: Dislike

Notes: This dish was surprisingly bland. We didn’t think tilapia would taste much different than halibut, but maybe there is a reason it’s cheaper Luke was NOT a fan of the fish, in spite of its blandness. Annie tolerated it, but more enjoyed the beans and corn.

Date: March 20th, 2013

Recipe: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/poultry/tortellini-and-garden-vegetable-bake/

Modifications: We don’t like mushrooms, so I omitted those. I added more carrots, and used frozen peas instead of snap peas. We bought chicken, but on that night I didn’t feel like going through that extra step of cooking it, so I just didn’t use it and we felt it was plenty filling. We didn’t have parmesan.

Time to table: About 30 minutes prep, 30 minutes baking time.

Servings: 6 adults

Ben: Love

Erin: Like+

Annie: Like

Luke: Dislike

Notes: I saw this mentioned on a blog recently and figured we needed some new recipes to try so I gave it a shot. I did like it quite a bit, and I really don’t think it would need chicken at all. Annie ate this but only the requisite amount of bites so she could leave the table. Luke would not put a single bite in his mouth because he’s a lunatic sometimes. Ben says he liked this a lot more than he thought he would. I did find it a little weird to have basically a cheese sauce coating cheeses tortellini but I got over it. It was slightly rich but with all the vegetables in the dish, it worked well.

Date: March 18th, 2013

Recipe: http://ellysaysopa.com/2013/02/01/skillet-shepherds-pie/

Modifications: I used a couple more carrots and celery stalks than it called for because we had extra. I also cooked the ground beef separately because I wanted to drain the fat.

Time to table: 50 minutes

Servings: Four adults, two toddlers, and two more lunches

Ben: Like

Erin: Like

Annie & Luke: Like

Notes: This was a great cold weather meal that we’ll have to add to our repertoire for next winter, and it’s also versatile. I think I would mix in some sausage next time too. With all the vegetables it ends up being decently healthy I think, too.

Date: March 11, 2013

Recipe: http://www.annies-eats.com/2013/03/07/broccoli-pesto-pasta/

Modifications: None, but I did use the greek yogurt instead of cream and that worked well.

Time to table: 20 minutes prep

Servings: 4 adults

Ben: Like

Erin: Like

Annie & Luke: Like

Notes: We all enjoyed this okay, but it wasn’t anything special. Without the large amounts of parmesan it would have been not good at all. Since there was no basil or nuts, it really did not have any sort of actual pesto flavoring. I found it pretty bland but the kids ate it well which is a win. Both of them seem to enjoy broccoli on it’s own though, but if yours don’t this is a good way to get it in. I prefer this recipe instead, which is always a winner with both kids.

Date: February 20th, 2013

Recipe: http://clippingmoney.blogspot.com/2012/07/crock-pot-cheesy-chicken-brocolli-over.html

Time to table: 30 minutes prep, 6 hours cook time.

Servings: Two dinners

Ben: Dislike

Erin: Dislike

Annie & Luke: Like

Notes: This meal was a case of the kids liking it, but us not so much. This just tasted a little bland to us, and I didn’t really care for the cheesy flavor. I can’t put my finger on it, but it didn’t sit right with me. This was a very easy meal to make and a good week night option if you can spare the time in the morning to get it in the crock pot.

Date: February 13rd, 2013

Recipe: http://www.erinsfoodfiles.com/2012/11/slow-cooker-white-bean-chicken-chili.html

Modifications: We used chicken thighs instead of breasts because they’re cheaper. We also threw in some onion, celery, and garlic to add some veggies.

Time to table: 30 minutes prep, 6 hours cook time.

Servings: Dinner with the neighbors and two lunches

Ben: Love

Erin: Love

Annie: Love

Notes: This chili was awesome and incredibly easy. I chopped up the veggies the night before so in the morning I just had to dump everything into the crockpot and turn it on. We brought this next door to eat with the neighbors and still had plenty leftover for our lunches, even after having second helpings for dinner.

Date: February 10th, 2013

Recipe: http://hannahholzmann.com/cilantro-lime-chicken-enchiladas/

Modifications: None, but we used some frozen shredded chicken and turkey that was leftover from a previous meal.

Time to table: 60 minutes

Servings: dinner and three lunches from leftovers

Ben: Like

Erin: Like (did not like the leftovers)

Annie: Like

Notes: I made the cream sauce earlier in the day, which made dinner time go a little smoother. Despite the long list of ingredients and instructions, these are rather simple enchiladas. I used salsa verde instead of red salsa, just a personal preference. I really liked the avocado cream sauce, we had not had that before and it was really good. Erin did not care for the way these reheated for lunches though, they were too soggy and kind of grossed her out.