Meal Planning Monday - the Easter holidays edition!

Nickie checked in with me on Saturday to see if I was OK as I hadn't blogged since January. Oops. Life just got in the way really - I'm working extra hours, the children have things most days and I keep forgetting on Sunday to blog a meal plan. Monkey turned 10 (heck!), I hurt my back (it's better now) and I went on a school trip to the Manchester Arena to take part in a Young Voices concert with Missy Woo.

So, my plan is done for the week and as I don't have work this week, I'm making myself write a blog. I generally plan on a Sunday so I can shop on a Monday but since discovering Asda's midweek delivery pass is £2 a month, I've been shopping online and getting a Tuesday delivery. That doesn't stop me planning on a weekend - it's actually better to do it on the weekend so I can get the slot I want.

As I'm off this week, as is the husband and the children, you will notice that there are a lot of easy meals. I make no apologies. I need a break too! I could make pizzas for The Voice final next weekend, but hell, I can't be bothered.

So, this is what my plan looks like this week.

Monday - Thai pork and peanut curry (made with leftover roast pork from yesterday)
Tuesday - Chorizo and butternut squash chilli
Wednesday - Chicken kievs
Thursday - Burgers and fries
Friday - Salmon and butterbean mash
Saturday - Pizza!
Sunday - Steak pie, mash and veg

Obviously, there are two weeks of school holidays over Easter. However, next week, the children are going away with their grandparents staying in a caravan for 4 days so I am planning that we might eat out a few times, so if I don't blog a plan next week, that'll be why. It may also be to do with the fact that April is year end deadline month for me at work and I get very, VERY busy!

Don't forget that Mrs M hosts the Meal Planning Monday linky here.

See you next week (maybe!)

Meal Planning Monday - the February half term edition!

A very quick one from me as I'm just cobbling a plan together ahead of going away to Cadbury World on Tuesday. It's half term so nothing is going to be fancy and I'm going to rely on the fridge and freezer as much as possible.

Monday - away
Tuesday - Freezer dive (probably chicken kievs)
Wednesday - Chicken drumsticks in BBQ sauce, corn on the cob, peanut slaw
Thursday - Cauliflower cheese
Friday - Roasted butternut squash, sage and garlic risotto
Saturday - Pizza
Sunday - Roast dinner probably

Enjoy half term if you've got the week off! Don't forget to visit Mrs M's for more meal planning mayhem or something like that.

Meal Planning Monday - the February at last edition!

You know I thought January went on forever. I won't go on about it anymore except to say "February, yay!" I don't know why I am saying that because this week appears to be stupidly busy. Tonight, the children are taking part in a Young Voices concert in Manchester so are going on a coach there at lunchtime with the rest of the school choir, rehearsing then staying for the concert. We're going of course, then going home and picking them up. It will be a late night for them and then Missy goes on a school trip to Salford on Tuesday. And to top it all off,  Monkey starts back at cricket nets on Tuesday evening. Eventually, life returns to normal somewhere around Wednesday (ish) and I think hoping for a fast arrival of the weekend. I don't usually wish the week away but tired children usually equals grumpy children in our house.

This is what we are having this week.

Monday - bacon butties for the grown ups, kids are taking a packed tea with them
Tuesday - Cauliflower cheese and jackets
Wednesday - Chilli and cornbread (held over from last week)
Thursday - Roasted butternut squash and carrot soup
Friday - Bhaji frittata
Saturday - Salmon, dill and mushroom lasagne
Sunday - Roast dinner (not sure which yet, we went shopping in Waitrose and I can't afford 90% of their joints)

Mrs M's is open for business (or should be soon) and you can see lots and lots other interesting meal plans. Click on the badge above to discover lots of meal planning loveliness.

Meal Planning Monday - the boring mid-January edition!

January. Doesn't it go on forever? I mean, I know I have a birthday in January, but after that, there are still 25 days to go until February. It feels like 125. Don't ask me why but it does. I'm not on an alcohol ban, food ban or other strange regime (apart from doing more classes because there are lots of new ones I want to try) but I'll be frank, it's dragging. How can there be 2 more full working weeks in the month?

Moan over. I've tried to find some new things to brighten our January. I'm doing well so far this month because the chilli with cornbread topping I made last week was fabulous and will become a regular in the house. Here's hoping for this week's set of meals.

Talking of which....

Monday - Sausage and onion rosti
Tuesday - Roast squash and sweet potato soup
Wednesday - Fish finger butties
Thursday - Tasty turkey hotpot
Friday - Sizzling salmon with bean mash
Saturday - Pizza (from the freezer)
Sunday - Roast chicken

What's on your menu? Tell me then wander over to Mrs M's blog - badge above.

Meal Planning Monday - the January back to work edition!

The day has arrived. I've been off work for 37 days which have actually passed in the blink of an eye but Christmas does that, doesn't it? Even last week flew by in a flurry of birthdays, a resumption of school activities and getting back into the exercise groove.

Thinking that this week will pass in a never ending battle against a mailbox full to the brim, I have planned early and even had a Sunday food delivery. Today is a leftovers recipe, and tomorrow's is a dish that is in the freezer. The rest is a mix of new things and old favourites - Missy Woo asked me to do the lamb pilau as both of them love it.

So, this is it.

Monday - Turkey and stuffing chelsea buns
Friday - Fish pie
Wednesday - Chilli with cornbread topping
Thursday - Chunky butternut squash mulligatawny
Friday - Cheese and lentil loaf
Saturday - Lamb, coconut and mango pilau
Sunday - Roast chicken

And now I'm starving just reading that lot, so that must be a good sign! Come back next week for more. And in the meantime, click the badge above to see more meal plans.

Meal Planning Monday - the getting back to it edition!

Monday is the start of the first week of the New Year and the children go back to school. I'd have loved an inset day but seeing as the official start of term was 2nd, school has already had two last week (yes, really!) so a third is bit beyond the pale.

Why would I like an inset day? Because it is my birthday and now the children are at an age where they feel they are missing out on things. Especially as husband and I are going out for lunch. They've made me a cake too but they want to be there and to be honest, it would be lovely to have them around. To make up, we're going for ice cream after school. Hey ho.

Apart from that, the week's plan is all about getting back into varied and mostly healthy eating. There are lots of healthy recipes in Good Food this month which is where most of this week's meals comes from. I try to get them to eat as many vegetables as possible but today is all about speed, so it's back to it tomorrow. Apart from that, the week is back to normal - well, apart from the fact that the children have nothing on Mondays this term (for now) and Monkey's swimming is now on Sunday, meaning Thursdays are no longer quite as rushed as last term. Yes!

Here's the week

Monday - Chicken kievs for the children, sandwiches for grown ups (and cake!)
Tuesday - Sweet potato shepherd's pie
Wednesday - Turkey meatballs and pasta
Thursday - Curried squash, lentil and coconut soup
Friday - Squash, mushroom and gorgonzola pilaf
Saturday - Sausages with aligot
Sunday - Roast dinner with the usual stuff

That's it for this week; I'm off to do nothing. It's my birthday, you know! PS Click on the badge above to go over to Mrs M's, where there will be much more meal planning loveliness.

Meal Planning Monday - the minimal spend December edition!

The title says it all. Time to use up as much stuff as I have already - especially as my cupboards are full to overflowing. My freezer, not so much but I have enough to make a meal plan! One is a carry over from last week as I went to the Good Food Show thanks to Barber's Cheese and it was a last minute decision to go as husband wasn't feeling well.

So I've put together a plan based on what I have to use up, so here we go.

Monday - Slow cooker butter chicken
Tuesday - Butternut squash and roasted garlic risotto
Wednesday - Cowboy corned beef 'n' beans pie
Thursday - Sandwiches
Friday - Chicken wings
Saturday - Beany nachos
Sunday - Lasagne

I think my shopping list tomorrow will consist of bread! I may need a few things here and there but I pretty much have everything in already.

What are you having this week? Anything really exciting? If you have a meal plan, you too can do Meal Planning Monday by blogging your plan and adding it to the linky over at Mrs M's, discovered by clicking the badge top right.

Meal Planning Monday - the largely recycled edition!

It was a busy week last week involving birthdays, a husband running a marathon and making 3 cakes. Never. Again. Much as I love baking, it was too much and some of the normal cooking went right out of the window. Some things got placed on the backburner so I have a few things to make leftover. And then, this week is busy in a different way - I am working on Saturday running some training at a volunteer training day which involves an overnight trip on Friday, which puts cooking down the pecking order. And then, it's our wedding anniversary on Sunday so we're going to go out for lunch. No less busy then! Husband has asked fora simple tea on Friday, meaning there is really only one or two other meals to choose. One of those days Monkey has a friend coming and has chosen tea.

This is how it's looking then.

Monday - Spiced bulghar pilaf with fish
Tuesday - Fish fingers, beans and chips
Wednesday - Curried squash, lentil and coconut soup
Thursday - Sandwiches
Friday - Pasta with bacon and tomato sauce
Saturday - Keeping free
Sunday - Keeping free

Maybe, just maybe, next week will be a little calmer. As I enter chasing mode at work next week and I have a day of volunteering on Saturday, it's probably unlikely. May is always busy!

After you've told me what you are eating this week, pop on over to Mrs M where she will have more meal planning loveliness from lots of other bloggers.

Meal Planning Monday - the uber organised busy week edition!

Hopefully, the title says it all. This week seems really busy for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's husband's birthday on Wednesday and I have to make not one, but two, cakes for him. His work colleagues have requested he bring in a "Kate cake" after I did one for him for a colleague's birthday just before Christmas. Who am I to refuse? And then, it's cake club day on Saturday. That's a three cake week! On top of all that, we are out for tea on his birthday, I have a meeting on Tuesday night and husband is running the Greater Manchester Marathon next Sunday. And I have a busy work week. Oh yes, and the children are out at multisports this afternoon, and their usual stuff on Thursday.

It's a good job therefore that I have been very organised this week. Realising it was a busy week, I started writing our schedule on Saturday and ended up putting a plan together within an hour. So then, I did my online shopping that evening and picked up on Sunday afternoon. So the plan was done, and the shopping in the house before the week even started. How organised is that?!

So, we have a plan and it's a little lighter than normal because of tea out on Wednesday plus only husband needs feeding Saturday night as the children are coming with me to cake club.

Here it is.

Monday - Chicken mustard crumble (adapted)
Tuesday - Sweet potato hash with bacon, pepper and sage
Wednesday - out for tea
Thursday - Curried butternut squash, lentil and coconut soup
Friday - Spiced bulghar pilaf with fish
Saturday - Orzo pasta "risotto" for husband
Sunday - Lamb, chickpea and spinach curry with masala mash (curry done in slow cooker)

Is your week as busy as ours? How do you cope when you have a busy week ahead? Do you plan more carefully or does it all go to pot? Let me know and then visit the other meal planning entries over on Mrs M's which you can find by clicking on the badge above.

Meal Planning Monday - the over-catering edition!

You're probably wondering what the hell I'm on about but this week, I am deliberately cooking more than we need. The reason for this is that husband is still on his course. (I thought it was one week; turns out it's two) He needs to take reheatable leftovers in with him as he only has access to a microwave and a kettle. So, I put my thinking cap on - which was a tall order after a weekend full of party, trip to Manchester and tennis! Although the recipes below are serves 4, I am in some cases going to scale them up to allow 1 or 2 extra portions.

After a hunt around on my usual places, I think I've done it. It's an odd week because of the course. We're also at school's Celebration Evening one night, and it's our last week of Thursday madness until September (it's me you'll hear breathing a sigh of relief when it's over!) although I am still cooking a chicken for tea. Yes, totally mad. Going to a wedding on Saturday night too.

Here is our week

Monday - Veggie shepherd's pie with sweet potato mash
Tuesday - Slow cooker gammon with mustard potato salad
Wednesday - Spanish fish stew
Thursday - Roast chicken
Friday - Squash, lentil and bean one-pot with fig raita
Saturday - staying free
Sunday - not sure, more leftovers probably.

That's mine, how is your week looking food wise? Don't forget to tell me, then visit Mrs M to check out the other Meal Planning Monday entries.

Meal Planning Monday - the family favourites edition!

Another week, another dollar. Or something.


Every now and then, I lose inspiration and ask the family to suggest meals to have that they liked. I am very lucky in that the children often say, "Can we have this again?" when we have new things but I like to try new things all the time (if you hadn't noticed!) and when I do get round to this , I've forgotten which ones were such hits. I figure that complete favourites will really stick in their minds.

This is one of those weeks. Trying to plan a week of meals at short notice as we got a voucher for Ocado late on Friday for delivery Saturday necessitated this strategy. I was expecting pizza and pasta and to be fair, the first thing they said was pasta based but different - as in not bolognese, pesto or carbonara based. They came up with a couple more but needed a couple of  prompts from me, we picked out a few other things we have had recently that we all enjoyed.

So, then, here is our week. Think I'll leave Sunday open because it's the Euro final and I'm going to Clandestine Cake Club early evening. Saturday is probably going to be for grown ups only, as the children are going to a party.

Monday - Toad in the hole
Tuesday - Sticky marmalade chicken
Wednesday - Butternut squash, ricotta and sage pasta bake
Thursday - need I tell you? Butties again!
Friday - Moroccan meatballs with eggs
Saturday - Spanish omelette (possibly)
Sunday - keeping free

That's us. How about you? I would love to know what you are having this week, to give me inspiration for next week, although it's Missy Woo's birthday and party next week and the second week of WImbledon. Once you've done that, don't forget to check all the Meal Planning Monday entries over at Mrs M's place for more meal planning ingenuity.

Meal Planning Monday - the vegetarian edition!

Today sees the start of National Vegetarian Week so in its honour, I'm cooking a week's worth of veggie meals. Well, kind of - Missy Woo is going to a party after school tonight and Monkey wants to play there so the grown ups are having leftovers from our Sunday roast for tea but apart from that, the week is vegetarian.

For a long time, I didn't eat meat. I never called myself vegetarian because I ate fish and seafood - but now I'd have the label pescatarian to call myself. We still eat veggie at least once a week and then a few weeks back, I came up with the idea of cooking veggie for the week and then discovered how soon National Vegetarian Week was. So this is totally off my own back - no-one has asked me to blog about it. I like cooking veggie things and so a lot of these meals are already firm favourites. There isn't a lot new because it is a very busy week - parties galore for the children, sports day and school fair on Friday afternoon and I am going to be in school all day on Tuesday as part of an interview panel for a new teacher. Eek!

So here's the plan:

Monday - leftovers for the grown ups, children out for tea
Tuesday - Mushroom burgers and sweet potato chips
Wednesday - Roast veggie moussaka with feta
Thursday - Squash, ricotta and sage pasta bake (tho the children will still be getting sandwiches)
Friday - Asparagus, mushroom and red onion quiche sans pate
Saturday - keeping free for now as the children are off to parties again
Sunday - Mixed vegetable curry with chickpea pancakes

I've realised after doing this plan that this is a lot of vegetables, a bit of dairy and not a lot else! Usually, I would choose at least one dish containing beans but I guess with it being almost summery (we're promised some warmer weather this week), they feel a bit wintery and these appealed more.

Are you having a veggie week this week? Tell me what you're having and then don't forget to check out Mrs M's place for more MPM entries.

Meal Planning Monday - the birthday / marathon edition!

So, this week is a strange combination and there is not a lot of fancy cooking going on here. Tomorrow is my husband's birthday and then, on Sunday, he's running the Greater Manchester Marathon so he has requested carby things at the end of the week. We've decided we're going out to eat after that, and on his birthday, we're going out for lunch so evening meal will be snacks for us and something quick and easy for the children. In other words, don't expect this to be the most inspiring menu plan I've ever done. I have most things in at the moment so don't really need to do a big shop this week. Always a bonus when you've had birthday presents to buy (not going to reveal what they are in case someone reads this post - and he does occasionally, to check what's for tea!).

Monday -  home made burgers and wedges
Tuesday - beans on toast or something for the children
Wednesday - Jacket spuds filled with quorn chilli or bolognese
Thursday - Sandwiches
Friday - Slow cooker risotto of some sort
Saturday - Squash, ricotta and sage pasta bake
Sunday - marathon day, keeping free.

It will be back to normal next week. Well, kind of - I'm not actually sure there is a normal in this house! Don't forget to check out the other entries to Meal Planning Monday over at  Mrs M's place. And how about you tell me what delights you're having this week. It has to be more inspirational than my plan.

Have a great week, all.

Meal Planning Monday - the My Family Club edition

This is a sponsored post. 


This week, I am doing something different again. I was approached to talk about a brand and I said yes because I took a look and liked what I saw. My Family Club is a website that wants to help parents save money and time, and from today, is starting an ad campaign coming to a TV near you.

When I first looked at the site, I noticed that it had a kitchen section. There are meal plans and a wealth of recipes that are easy to make and on your pocket. So, as I've done this sort of thing before, I decided to plan a week of meals from the site to test them out. None of the meal plans were completely right for me, so I picked out my favourites from their recipe section and made my own plan.

Here, then, is our week in meals. Two things I noticed when doing my plan - one was that the recipe section wasn't easily searchable nor the recipes grouped logically so you had to click through all the recipes to find your favourites. The other was that the butternut squash, bacon and mushroom lasagne recipe says that it is a "vegetarian" alternative, which made me laugh. Surely not?

Monday - Sesame chicken with rice
Tuesday - Butternut squash, bacon and mushroom lasagne
Wednesday - Bean burgers and paprika chips
Thursday - Sandwiches as usual
Friday - Shepherd's pie with a twist
Saturday - keeping free, although it's likely to be tapas.
Sunday -  Cheese and ham pancakes

If proof were needed that these are easy on the pocket, I bought all the ingredients in an online shop last night and I struggled to get my bill over £40, even with me stocking up the house after the school holidays, and trust me, I have run out of  most staples.  Admittedly, I do seem to be very well stocked in my store cupboard at the moment and have some chicken in the freezer. I bought some extra treats to take it over the minimum order value.

How about you take a look at My Family Club yourself? If you join as a member (which is free), you can get access to special offers and participate in the community section, asking and answering questions. There is also currently a competition to win an iPad and iPod bundle on there to enter when you give them your best money saving tip.

And of course, this is still a Meal Planning Monday post, so don't forget to tell me what you are eating this week, and to visit Mrs M who hosts the Meal Planning Monday linky.

(I have been paid a fee to write this post as well as to post a small number of sponsored tweets. I was asked to include links in this post, mentioning My Family Club but all words and opinions are my own. )

Meal Planning Monday - the children's choice edition

This week, we have a twist to the week's plan. It all started when Missy Woo came into my room this morning when I was having a lie in. She got in bed with me for a bit and was chattering away at me. I asked her to name some things that she'd like to have for tea this week and she duly named three things. Then I let Monkey come up with three more and we've jiggled it all together to make a coherent (ish!) plan. So, nothing exciting or different this week, just family favourites. Sunday is being kept free because excitingly, I've been invited by Sainsburys to the Good Food Show Winter at the NEC and they're making us lunch. There should be leftovers and the family will be able to survive without a planned meal.

Meal Planning Monday

Well, as you know, last week I tried out one of the 5 for £20 evening meal plans that Sainsbury's have been promoting. I thought, before I went on to what we're eating this week, that I'd talk about how it went.

Meal Planning Monday

Time to plan those meals again! I think last week went to plan, except Friday because I went to London at short notice and couldn't be bothered cooking when I got home. I was just going to make this week an "old favourites" kind of week but I changed this and that and before I knew it, I'm doing 3 recipes from Nick's book that I haven't made before!