Up until I switched my eating to Vegetarian/Vegan meals, I had my October dinner menu planned. I had also purchased and prepped most of the ingredients I would need. It included cheeseburgers, meatballs, Mac & Cheese with turkey sausage, etc.
My husband is a meat and potatoes person. I used to be, but now, I’m eating vegetarian/vegan meals. Thus, I’ve redone the menu. We’ll still have theme nights (thanks to The Food Nanny) with similar foods on most nights, but my husband will eat the foods that he enjoys, and I will eat vegan variations.
For Monday Comfort Food Nights, my husband will have soup, Hamburger Helper with biscuits, Mac & Cheese with turkey sausage, etc. I’ll have veggie or bean soups, as well as other comforting vegan choices. I’ve got a recipe for a caramelized onion soup that I look forward to making.
On Tuesdays, I have grad school out of town, so I’ll pack a sandwich, leftovers, etc. My sweet husband will have a cornucopia of choices from the freezer: homemade pizza, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Cookbook hamburgers, chicken fajitas, etc.
On Wednesdays, Italian Night, I listed spaghetti, but for me it says sauce and veggies, such as onions, carrots, and mushrooms. For my husband, he can alternate adding meatballs and breakfast sausage to the sauce each week.
I have several jars of store brand pasta sauce, because it was inexpensive to purchase when I was buying ingredients for October. I looked at the ingredients of several store brands and realized that I didn’t like what I saw. I think when I run low on sauce, or when I have some free time, I’ll make and freeze a huge batch of marinara sauce. I used to make and freeze sauce a few years ago, so I can look for that recipe. I think it was from the Everyday Italian Cookbook.
For Thursdays, Mexican Food Nights, my husband will have chicken fajitas, quesadillas, burritos, etc.. Mine will be sans cheese and chicken, with added veggies, beans, and rice.
I went ahead and purchased just under four pounds of marinated chicken fajita meat. We cooked it, sliced it, and froze it in single layers. There should be enough for my husband
For Friday Pizza Nights, I’ll do veggie pizzas (I did one with black beans and red bell peppers the other night), and my husband will alternate breakfast sausage and turkey pepperoni.
Saturdays are Grill Nights. We’ll stick with burgers for October. My husband will do cheeseburgers and I will alternate Morning Star Farms Chick’n patties with Grillers, veggie burgers that look like hamburgers.
Sundays are Family Tradition Nights. My husband will do things like BBQ chicken quarters and potatoes. I’ll probably do beans and rice, or other vegan meals.
I’m still looking to find more vegan/vegetarian recipes. I expect to make some changes to the menu throughout the month. Still, I want to begin the next month by having a menu planned with food for it ready to go. Work and school keep me very busy. When get home from work, I’m hungry for dinner. I prefer to have it ready in about 10 minutes, if possible. For that to happen, I need to have ready ingredients. I usually save longer-cooking items for weekends or evenings when I want to use cooking as a way to relax.
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