Monday, July 6, 2009

help!!!!!!!!!!!!

summer is here (obviously), which means i can't make chili and taco soup for dinner every week. i'm having a hard time coming up with dinner ideas for the hubs and me. so i want to know what you do.

we've tried a monthly menu deal where we make a list of 31 things to eat (with repeats of course) and then each day of the month (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc) we would eat the thing on the menu.

i've also thought about doing themed nights (monday-italian, tuesday-chinese, wednesday-mexican, etc).

i need a better, more organized way of doing things, for my sanity!

so by all means, help!!!

13 comments:

Unknown said...

well...patrick is super picky so i just rotate the same meals for him each week and make different things for myself...do you have a george foreman grill? i do a lot of sandwiches & quesidilla's on that. you could do a "breakfast for dinner" night w/waffles, pancakes, biscuits or whatever. stir fry is always good too...

if you haven't yet, sign up for kraft food and family magazine and emails. totally free and it has great easy ideas!

Cindy said...

We have learned the recipe for the yum-yum sauce and have fixed the fried rice with shrimp at home. Also we fix spaghetti or lasagna. Look for easy recipes on the back of Campell soup cans. They are always good.

emily j said...

thanks sarah! adam is super picky too. but he does try things, which makes me very proud of him! i do get kraft food and family, i need to just make myself look at it, and try things!

thanks for your suggestions though!! very helpful! :)

emily j said...

thanks cindy!

we do tacos and spaghetti almost weekly. but i haven't done lasagna. i should try it!

what is yum-yum sauce?!

the Hughes' said...

I like to grill pork chops, or bake a pork tenderloin with apricot jelly all over it. Aldi's has frozen turkey mignons that are very good *we are having that tonight*. Does Adam like alfredo? I have been looking at magazines and picking things out and it's been fun:) try it:)

Brittney said...

We do the monthly meal plan, but since that doesn't seem to work, I don't have any other ideas! Sorry! I hope you figure something out.:]

One really yummy idea could be to get a pork roast, and slow-cook it and have the typical roast & potatoes, etc. for dinner one night. Then with the leftover pork, shred it and season it for pork tacos. And if you have even more left over, add BBQ sauce and let it sit in the fridge for a day and have pulled pork sandwiches. Yum! 3 meals from one roast!

Ol' Sarge said...

Emily, for summer we take advantage of the fresh veges. (farmers market if you don't have another source) like sliced cucumbers with ranch, yellow and zuc squash on the grill are both yummy. For your meat you can always throw a chick breast on the grill too. Saves on heating up the house, also. I have a really delic chick salad recipe with several fruits in it that is also a great summer meal. (or anytime) If you are interested in it, let me know.

Ol' Sarge said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ol' Sarge said...

ol sarge is my husband. sorry. this is actually Sandra who left the previous comment. lol

Cheyenne said...

We eat as many vegetables as summer will give us!! I'm still working on the whole meal plan thing...I plan it out and then decide what I planned doesn't sound good the day I was supposed to be cooking it...and we're derailed. I have found that we do best when I keep staples we use a lot on hand (like spaghetti sauce and noodles, wraps, frozen chicken, etc.) Then at least when I deviate, it's from the fridge and not a restaurant. :)

emily j said...

wahoo!! thanks everyone!! :)

Jennie said...

Hey Emily,
I can't really help you with the meal plan because I'm like Cheyenne- it just doesn't sound good that day. I have found that having staples around really helps too, but I often wait until the day of the meal to buy the meat. We have had a lot of chicken go bad because I left it in the fridge too long without using it. I know I should freeze it, but I just hate trying to defrost chicken. I always end up over-microwaving it or setting it in the fridge to thaw for 2 days but then forgetting it. If I already have everything, then I can just grab the meat that evening (since Kroger is so close) and it is ready to be cooked right away. This actually helps with cost for us because we don't waste food.
One of our favorite meals (we eat just about every week) is easy to make, light, and super yummy. Garlic chicken and orzo. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe-Tools/Print/Recipe.aspx?RecipeID=84109&servings=4 Of course, we don't include the spinach or parsley, and sometimes I only use one pound og chicken. I think it is enough. We also use minced garlic, which this jar has lasted a really long time. I also sprinkle a little bit of season salt once it is all together. It's really good and pretty low-calorie.

Erika said...

In the summer time, we like to have chicken breasts marinated in italian dressing with some fresh summer veggies (especially fresh green beans, squash, and corn). We also do fahitas (sp?) a lot, with all the summer bell peppers available! Breakfast for dinner has been a long time favorite of mine since I was really young. Good any time of the year! :)