Menu planning on the fly

Seriously.
Usually I plop myself down first thing Saturday morning with a cup of coffee and spend my morning searching on the net.
Not this Menu which we threw together in less than 5 minutes.
We have been so busy this weekend!
Saturday morning we visited the medi center where we learned Mr.D's annoying cough is allergy related.
But we aren't sure to what.
Rocked my "betsey johnsons" at the grand opening for www.thefirefitness.com last night and this morning has pretty much been a lazy day.
So much so it's almost dinner time and I am just getting ready to fly out the door and head to the grocery store.
Oi.
This weekend went by way to fast.....




**updated**
  so, now that I am not rushing around like a crazy person and actually have 5 minutes to sit I thought I should revisit my menu and see if I am even on target with our family goals.
**cough** yeah, not so much.
The whole "alpha bet thing" yeah, we have nothing for the letter B unless you count BBQ.  
Would you count BBQ?
No?
Well, it didn't hurt to ask.
Look for B related recipes on next weeks menu!
Alright, let's see....

Week 3: Meat – All meat consumed this week will be locally raised (within 100-miles of your hometown). Meat consumption will also be limited to 3 – 4 servings this week, and when it is eaten meat will not be presented as the “focal point” of the meal. Instead meat will be treated as a side item or simply used to help flavor a dish.


So, if you remember we are eating burgers, split pea & ham soup plus we are having chicken twice.
I guess we have limited our servings but I have NO idea where this came from.
I just picked them up at the grocery store down the street.
How could burgers NOT be the focal point of a dish?
This right here is the very reason as to why I menu plan on Saturday!!
**Ack!!**  Ok, lets not panic.
The burgers we made last night might not were not the best choice. 
See, this is the recipe we used.

Big Daddy prepared and manned the BBQ.  

I passed ingredients and did the cleanup.

I should have clued in when I was passing the ingredients. 

 **shakes head**

Those were the sweetest burgers that have ever touched my lips.

Thankfully we paired it with the greek salad so at least we got a healthy does of vegetables.

I realize this is a learning process.

And we will get through it.

One small step at a time....

  Have you ever made a mistake like this?  
Found "the perfect " recipe only to learn it was full of unhealthy ingredients?  
I would love to hear about it!

Bring on the BBQ!

This weeks menu has been on my mind since I finished grocery shopping last week
So this mornings trip to the store was a snap!
We are expecting the temperatures will be seasonal with only one crummy day so the plan is to get out of the kitchen and utilizing our BBQ as much as possible.

All these recipes can be tweaked and cooked indoors if mother nature is less than agreeable with my plans.

Ok,
So, last week we started the 14 weeks of mini pledges .
To recap last week:

Week 1: Two fruits and/or vegetables per meal – Eat a minimum of two different fruits or vegetables (preferably organic) with every breakfast, lunch, and dinner meal.

**coughs** so apparently one does not need to buy 6 bunches of bananas at the beginning of the week in order to get the allotted amount of fruit.
We were floating in fruit but I am not really sure who all was eating it besides the little ones and myself.

By the end of the week I needed to make banana muffins and to my horror they were horrible.
Doughy and nasty inside even though I followed the recipe to the letter!
According to Big Daddy there are two things I can not cook.
Meatballs and banana bread. (rolls eyes)

Now moving forward:

Week 2: “Real” beverages – Beverages will be limited to coffee, tea, water, and milk (only naturally sweetened with a little honey or 100% pure maple syrup). One cup of juice will be allowed throughout the week, and wine (preferably red) will be allowed in moderation (an average of one drink per day).
{Piece of cake!}
Here is what our menu is supposed to look like this week.
At least, that's what I shopped for.


and the kids favorite



with a side of

with




Sometimes things happen and we end up not eating what I have planned so, if I still have those ingredients left I will just bump that menu choice over to the next week.
For example we didn't get a chance this last week to have the beef and green pepper soup so we are going to have that on our stormy day. We also have meals that went over well so we are having them again like the avocado chicken caesar salad.
That one we are going to have when my mom is here.
Shh..don't tell her, I want I to be a surprise!
All of these recipes have been added to the recipe box so you will know where to find them later!

What's on your menu this week?
Will you indulge with the BBQ?
Let me know!

What's on your Menu?

Alright,
Now we are cooking with gas!
I think it’s easier to menu plan when you aren’t all that hungry.






And because I am starting the “eating with the alphabet”
We are going to try something I have always wanted to try.

“Acai (Ah-sigh-ee) is a naturally organic antioxidant fruit which grows wild in the Amazon Rainforest. It has been classified as the "World's #1 Superfood" by NY Times Best Selling Author Dr. Nicholas Perricone.
Acai has the highest antioxidant property of any fruit on earth - 2 times more than Pomegranates, 3 times more than blueberries and 10 times more than red grapes; Acai has a fatty acid ratio resembling olive oil and the same protein profile of an egg -Packed with healthy fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, the nutritional value of this fruit's pulp is extraordinary. “ Learn more about Acai here

All of these recipes and more can be found in the recipe box
Can not wait to try these out and see which ones are our favorites.
So, what's on your menu?

Menu week 2 #realfood

Back from another trip to the grocery store.

I wish I could say it was getting easier but now that I am actually reading the labels it's getting much more challenging.

What's in your lunch bucket?

We are having this for lunch...

SHH!!

Don't tell the kids...

Oh for the love of Pizza and the day 4 belly flop

I understand now how easy it can be to slip back into the "old"way of thinking.

Normally I start dinner around 4 but yesterday I was in the middle of an interview and we got to chatting and before I knew it it was after 6:30.

The interview ran much later than either one of us had expected.

I was hungry, the kids were miserable.

Nothing was prepared and we needed to eat.

The baby was miserable and had started turning a funky shade of red from screaming.

She even crawled up onto the table and snagged a whole tomato.

We needed dinner...and FAST!

I'm ashamed to tell you that we {GASP} ordered pizza.

Yup,  I hopped into my van and raced to Panago for two medium oh so good and probably processed to death pizza.

Plopped our butts on the carpet picnic style the kids dove into our plain cheese pizza  while we devoured  and entire medium  ham & pineapple panago pizza for ourselves.

I will admit it's hard to feel guilty while you are stuffing your face but I did and still do.

I feel like I had cheated my family.

**sigh**  I'm not even going to suggest that his pizza was anywhere close to #realfood but, it might not be as bad as I had first envisioned.

Searching the internet I found the recipe for the basic homemade pizza dough  this morning so at least I know what went into the crust.

Not so sure about the toppings..

 "Canadian ham, pineapple, bacon, mozzarella and cheddar."  Oi! 

Pretty sure all of the above are processed to some degree.

**sigh** back to the drawing board.

I need a plan that WORKS.

What can I quickly whip together to by pass running to the nearest fast food restaurant?

Anyone have any suggestions?