11/10/13: This is the 2nd week in a row that Derek and I have gotten a bunch of cooking done on Sunday morning. The weather is turning cooler and we're in the full swing of fall. Our fun summer outings on weekend mornings have naturally come to a close the last few weeks, and now we're focusing our energy on getting organized for the coming week. The weekday grind is hectic for many reasons - opposite work schedules, off-the-clock work demands, and trying to maintain exercise routines to name a few. Considering I have lost nearly 20 pounds in the last 4 months, healthy eating is also a priority on top of everything else!
The last few weeks I've managed to get the menu planning done on Thursday night, and then Derek does the grocery shopping on Friday. We still squeeze in two trips to the gym every weekend, and now we've got ambitious plans in the kitchen on Sunday mornings before Derek leaves for work at 2:00.
This week's make-ahead menu included:
-Yellow dal and brown rice
-Beer and barley stew
-Sloppy joes made with ground turkey and french lentils
-Hummus, baked lavash crackers, and cut-up veggies for lunches and snacks
Derek was off on Wednesday night this week so we planned on cooking together - salmon, sauteed swiss chard, and baked potatoes.
The only reason we can get so much done within a few hours is because a) we work as a team, and b) now that Zoe & Silas are "big kids" they can entertain themselves for much of the morning.
The last few weeks I've managed to get the menu planning done on Thursday night, and then Derek does the grocery shopping on Friday. We still squeeze in two trips to the gym every weekend, and now we've got ambitious plans in the kitchen on Sunday mornings before Derek leaves for work at 2:00.
This week's make-ahead menu included:
-Yellow dal and brown rice
-Beer and barley stew
-Sloppy joes made with ground turkey and french lentils
-Hummus, baked lavash crackers, and cut-up veggies for lunches and snacks
Derek was off on Wednesday night this week so we planned on cooking together - salmon, sauteed swiss chard, and baked potatoes.
The only reason we can get so much done within a few hours is because a) we work as a team, and b) now that Zoe & Silas are "big kids" they can entertain themselves for much of the morning.
We still LOVE our rice cooker - it's one of our kitchen workhorses and it sits right next to our coffee maker. When making a dish like dal I also make up 3 rice cooker cups of brown rice for the week.
This week's soup required quite a bit of prep but it was delicious and well worth it (and it made A LOT!).
I like making at least one soup every week. As a way to get exercise during the week I'm walking for as much of my commute as possible. On average I log over 5 miles and get about 75 "active minutes" per day (which is all power walking). Now that it's getting colder there is nothing like walking home over 3 miles in the dark and being able to heat up a big bowl of soup that was made with love as soon as I get home.
For snacks I buy Joseph's brand lavash bread which we bake on 400 degrees for 4 minutes into delicious, inexpensive, low calorie crackers.
While we cook S&Z bop around the house doing art projects, building cities, or riding bikes.
Of course they came into the kitchen to check in on our progress regularly. At one point they started getting in my hair a bit so Derek offered to give them tattoos. He asked where they wanted them, and they both replied, "on our wrists, like MOMMY!".
I hope they get a lot of things from me (cooking prowess for one!), but I'm not sure tattoos on their wrists is one of them...
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