September Meals

As always, when September rolls around, we suddenly find ourselves busy, like many of you, juggling school schedules, sports, activities, and more. Then throw in a few back-to-school-nights, and the question becomes not only, "what am I going to feed them?" but "WHEN am I going to feed them?" We really enjoy sitting down to a family meal, but it is just not always possible. So I try to look at about 2 weeks worth of our schedule and plan for meals when we can sit and eat together, and plans for eating in shifts. I also plan for days when I'll be able to do some work on the meal before I put it on the table, and for days when I need it to be good to go whenever we walk in the door. So for the first few weeks of school, here are some of the meals we have gone with - it is a mix of some old favorites and some new ones that I pulled from websites and/or magazines. Overall, I'd have to say my family has been pleased.

Old favorites:

Baked Stuffed Potatoes - This is always a favorite in my house and the best part is that it can be easily tailored to individual tastes (and what I happen to have on hand). I bake my potatoes, then slice them in half and scoop out the insides. I mix this with a little butter, milk and salt... AND some steamed, chopped broccoli and cauliflower. It ups the veggie factor of the meal, plus I get to mound the inside on the potato when I refill which just makes it looks so pretty (see photo). Also, if I offer the veggies as a topping, the kids have the option of NOT putting it on, but when it is already inside it, it is a done deal. I usually also add in some shredded cheddar cheese because when I pop it back in the oven, it gets nice and melty. YUM. Then I serve with toppings. Some great ideas: bacon, sour cream, chives, chili, more veggies, more cheese, salsa, and anything else you can think of that your family might enjoy. Serve with a salad and we are good to go!

Chicken Divan - I know we have the recipe on here somewhere. An old family favorite. I have switched from using cream of chicken soup in the sauce to using cream of broccoli soup. AND I always double this - one recipe for dinner, one for the freezer.

Black Bean Soup - This could not be easier and is another recipe that changes based on mood and/or what I have in, but is always a hit at my house. I usually drain and rinse about 3 cans of black beans, add in salsa or diced veggies and a can or two of diced tomatoes, some seasonings, some broth. I like it a little chunky, I usually use my immersion blender to make it soup-like, but still leave some chunks and add cilantro in at the end. I usually serve this with quesadillas and toppings for the quesadillas or soup, such as corn, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, diced onion, salsa, sour cream. 

Tomato Soup & Cheesy Breadsticks - Much like the black bean soup, I throw in a mix of canned tomatoes, broth and veggies and blend. Then I wrap 1/2 mozzarella cheese stick in a crescent roll and bake for time on can. So easy, so yummy. Family favorite! (One of the new recipes I came across adds bacon and white beans to a tomato soup. May have to try this)

Korean BBQ Flank Steak - This recipe is also on the site. It is from Aunt Sarah on a visit a few years ago and has been a go-to grilled steak recipe here since. We love this one and the leftovers are great for a steak salad the next day for lunch.

Fajitas/Tacos/Burritos - Some version of wrapped Mexican-style food, choose meat, fish, bean or veggie and put it together as you wish. Easy to please everyone.

Some New Quick & Easy Favorites:

Thai Pork Wraps - I posted about this recipe that we found in the September issue of Rachael Ray's magazine and it is now a must-have in the rotation. I made our second batch last week and froze in single-size servings to be pulled out when needed before or after practices, etc. to accommodate different schedules. As I was packaging it, Holland came in and asked if she could have a bowl before soccer practice that day. 

Pan-fried Chicken - Marinade: 3 TBSP canola mayo, 2 TBSP low-sodium soy sauce, 2 TBSP fresh lemon juice, 1 TBSP chile pase. Marinate chicken breast in this for at least 15 minutes. Then dredge in 1 1/2 c panko bread crumbs. Heat large nonstick skillet over med high and cook chicken in two batches, 4 minutes each side. The flavor was great. Next time I'll try baking, though. 

Skinny Scampi - Spaghetti squash, cut in half, cut side down in large microwavable dish, add 1/3 c water and microwave on high until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove seeds. Meanwhile, heat 1 TBSP olive oil over med heat, add 1 chopped red bell pepper and 1 chopped clove of garlic and cook about 3 minutes. Add 1 1/2 lbs. large shrimp, peeled and deveined; 1/4 c vegetable broth and 1 TBSP fresh lemon juice and cook, tossing occasionally, until the shrimp are firm and pink, about 5 minutes. Stir in 1/4 tsp. lemon zest and 2 tsp. chopped flat leaf parsley and remove from heat. Using a fork, rake the spaghetti squash lengthwise to remove the flesh. Toss the squash with 2 tsp olive oil, season with salt & pepper. Serve shrimp on top of squash (serves 4).

Lamb & Turkey Burger - From Cooking LIght, this recipe had mixed reviews, but some are never going to like lamb, and some are never going to like burgers. Those of us that enjoyed it, really enjoyed it. I did not use the sauce with the recipe and instead did a chop of cilantro, mint & parsley, mixed with a little lemon juice and mayonnaise. We served it with a tomato-cucumber salad - thinly sliced cucs and tomatoes, tossed with chopped parsley, olives, lemon juice and olive oil. A bigger hit than the burgers with some!

Hope this gives you some ideas of new recipes to try. Would love to hear some of your favorites.

Inspiration from the Produce Aisle!

Although I enjoy cooking, too often the planning, shopping and preparing, not to mention the cleaning, becomes a chore and is not so enjoyable. Lately, I have felt very uninspired and uncreative, and I've felt like our meals have shown that. This week began not much differently, except that it was so hot on Tuesday when I went shopping that I just went right to the produce area and loaded up on fresh fruits and veggies. Thus, my week was born and we have had a week of salads and sandwiches.

The best part, it has been one of those weeks that I have done well thinking ahead and prepping extra to make the following days a little easier. Yeah. 

Tuesday - Grilled steak, peppers and onions sandwiches with salad
I shopped, came home and prepped fruits and veggies for the week and marinated steak and chicken breast. 

Wednesday - Make Your Own Tacos
I cooked some bacon and grilled some chicken breast first thing in the morning.

Make you own tacos: sliced grilled Chicken breast, avocado, tomato, Corn & Chili Salsa (trader joe's), black beans, sour cream and salad

Thursday: Sandwiches
BLTs (Bacon that I cooked Wed) &/or chicken and apple salad (reserved some chicken breast from Wed), black bean salad (beans, avocado, tomato and corn & chili salsa - all leftover from make your own tacos), roasted baby potatoes

I'm not sure what we are having tomorrow, but I boiled the baby potatoes (white, red and purple - so pretty) and then roasted half for Thursday's dinner. The other half I chopped and put a little olive oil and vinegar on and am planning to turn into a potato salad to accompany something, probably grilled.

What's for Dinner this week?

We have a busy week (if 1/2 of our activities aren't rained out). I'm feeling spent on creativity and am wondering what wonderful meals you are all having this week? Please share!

I just found this link on 30 Fall menus on myrecipes.com today. It’s really a recipe a day for the month of September, but since September hasn’t really felt much like Fall anyway here in Newburyport (I love Indian Summer!), maybe you can use these ideas to get you through the month of October.

Fun & Easy Meals for Kids

My husband will be traveling next week, and I will still have to be shuttling the kids back and forth from events, so I need thing that can be ready when we walk in the door, ie. crockpot meals, or shortly after we arrive home, or in-between runs.

Any fun, tried-and-true meal ideas? I usually try to make fun meals when George is away, but I'm not sure I can keep that up for a week...

Back to School...

and back to after-school activities. What is everybody making to get through busy nights?

Summer Recipes

Now that summer vacation is here -- regardless of what the weather is saying -- I want light, fresh food. What are your favorite summer recipes?

It’s Monday morning and there is NO FOOD IN MY HOUSE. Ugh. Since I need to get everything, I decided to get organized first, and do a little menu planning for the week.

Let’s help each other out ... what are you planning?

At Chez Habib, we’ll be eating on the run (or late, and therefore light):

Monday - Italian tomato and bread salad with grilled round steak (dinner in shifts, but it’s a nice day out and we watched the Food Network Steak Grilling Challenge last night — if you haven’t checked it out, Sam’s Club has great round steaks)
Tuesday - Cinco de Mayo Chicken and black bean enchiladas (we’re also bringing appetizers to the baseball game to have a little moveable fiesta)
Wednesday - Caesar salad with grilled chicken breasts (dinner in shifts again)
Thursday - Ratatouille (dinner in shifts again)
Friday - Grilled pizza (what are your favorite toppings?)

Share, share! Your menu this week may be my menu next week.

What's for dinner this week?

I am looking at our schedule for the week, and like many of you, I will be spending a lot of time driving to various activities, practices, games, etc. Added to that, this week, my husband (who almost never has to travel) will be traveling some. So, I am trying to plan my menu for the week to accommodate the days we may need to eat on the run, eat early or eat late. Here's hoping advance planning will help my week run a bit more smoothly.

I always love to hear what others are doing for inspiration -- what are you making for dinner this week?

What's for dinner this week?

I find that when I plan my meals and base my shopping list on them, my weeks is so much easier. So, I am trying to plan my menus for the week ahead. I am also trying to add lots of veggies to our meals, so after I shop and grab what looks good I'll let you know how I did.

Mondays are Religion days, so I feed the kids early and then G and I eat later. Most nights we all eat together and I try to do a combination of meals in the week of things George and I will enjoy, and some things the kids will enjoy. Tonight, I am going to do Turkey Meatball sliders. The kids have never been meatball wedge (hero, subs, whatever you call them) people, but I am thinking with smaller rolls they might get into it. Plus, I can keep the meatballs in the crockpot so they are ready for the kids, and still good when George and I are ready to eat.

Other than that, I am looking at Chicken picata or Tandoori chicken with spinach and rice, Lamb kebabs with sweet potatoes and butternut squash, eggplant and pasta, and I think I'm going to try those pizza bites I posted in an earlier post. 

Would love to hear what you are all having.

What's for dinner tonight?

I am always looking for inspiration in what I want to make for dinner and would love to hear what others are doing. So, what is your family having for dinner tonight?

We're having stuffed shells and salad tonight. If I get motivated, maybe I'll let my little ones help me make some bread dough and we'll have fresh bread and a salad with it.

Welcome to the virtual dinner group

I’ve had a dinner group with my neighborhood friends for several years now, and my sisters (far-flung across the U.S.) have often said they wished they could join us.

A few years ago, my sister, Maureen and her friend, Jenner started up an email list of friends and family with whom they’ve often shared recipes, and gone to for the answers to everything from “How do you feed your family at night when you don’t walk in the door until 5:30 and you have a soccer game at 6 and piano lessons at 6:15 ... on opposite ends of town?” to “What’s your Thanksgiving menu this year?"rdquo; to “Remember that punch you made for the kids at Mom & Dad’s anniversary? What was the recipe?” That email list grew as friends and family added more people to the distribution (they told two people and they told two people and they told two people and so on and so on).

From that email list, this blog was born. We want to share our recipes with one another in a more interactive forum, and we want to share them with you. We hope you'll share with us too. So come on in to our virtual dinner group, pour yourself a glass of wine and let’s start cooking together.