Happening in the kitchen

[Nancy]

LM thank you. I do not think I've ever cooked a pork roast.
I need to containerize at least part of that meat for the basement made ahead meals.
Some of the liquid needs de-fatted too.
I will shred some for future use as well.
I put some treats in bags and I got some mini. brownies in the freezer for the next time the have a pot luck event at church even if
I do not stay I can take those for others.

[Lady Maverick]

Component cooking = preparing the building blocks of meals.
Daily maintenance to spreadsheet =
** Remove food that was eaten yesterday
** Add food that came into our home in the last 24 hours.
** Sort foods by expiration date. Review and create plans to use those foods before expiration.
** Sort foods in categories (Protein, cheese, carb, fruit, vegetables) so each group can be reviewed separately.
** Protein - is there a selection of fish, red meat, chicken, and yogurts?
** Cheese - is there a selection of sliced, grated and shredded? hot and mild?
** Yogurt - is there a selection of DH favorite lemon and my favorite Greek yogurts?
** Carbs - is there a selection of carbs - legumes, pasta, rice, potato, bread & tortillas?
** Fruit - is there a selection of fruit? Fresh, canned and frozen?
** Vegetables - is there a selection of vegetables? Fresh and frozen?

Ingredient prep today =
** Asparagus harvest, wash, eat some and put the rest into the freezer
** Romaine lettuce chopped
** Eggs, hard boiled - 14 each
** Mac & Cheese
** Onions, chopped
** Fish fillets breaded cooked
** Tartar sauce made

On shopping list -
** sliced cheese
** blueberries
** Greek yogurt
** shrimp
** cottage cheese
** salmon
** chicken fried steak
** individual pizzas
** romaine lettuce
** hamburger meat
** Chocolate milk
** Cooper street twice baked cookies
** Chicken breast tenderloins
** Miracle whip
** low carb bread
** Chicken rotisserie

[Lady Maverick]

Component cooking = preparing the building blocks of meals.
Daily maintenance to spreadsheet =
** Remove food that was eaten yesterday
** Add food that came into our home in the last 24 hours.
** Sort foods by expiration date. Review and create plans to use those foods before expiration.
** Sort foods in categories (Protein, cheese, carb, fruit, vegetables) so each group can be reviewed separately.
** Protein - is there a selection of fish, red meat, chicken, and yogurts?
** Cheese - is there a selection of sliced, grated and shredded? hot and mild?
** Yogurt - is there a selection of DH favorite lemon and my favorite Greek yogurts?
** Carbs - is there a selection of carbs - legumes, pasta, rice, potato, bread & tortillas?
** Fruit - is there a selection of fruit? Fresh, canned and frozen?
** Vegetables - is there a selection of vegetables? Fresh and frozen?

Ingredient prep today =
** Asparagus harvest, wash, eat some and put the rest into the freezer
** Lasagna for elderberry luncheon
** Chicken breast tenderloins
** Tilapia fish fillets

On shopping list -
** chicken fried steak
** Chocolate milk
** low carb bread

[Nancy]

I thawed out my foods cooked lunch.
Thought about mixing up bread but that's as far as it got.

[Lauralind]

How did I miss reading this thread. So detailed and informative. Lady maverick do you have all that prepped and on hand ? And sorted by food group?

Food is such a huge source of stress for me. It can turn a decent day into a spiral of despair just by not knowing what to cook or something not turning out. Lunch for work is supposed to be leftovers of which I either have none left or too much pasta or rice with nothing to go with it.

I have tried several different ways of menu planning and failed every time. It lasts a month or a week or less . My family has changed in the last few years from teens and a toddler to now grown kids and only ds15 at home. And sometimes he can eat as much as all 3 of them put together.


Maybe I will have to join you here and try to make some sort of plan again. Even things like Sunday lunch can take an hour to decide and end end up back at same old ... I do like your dividing into Food groups.

[Lady Maverick]

Lauralind - I have tried copying how others are successful planning their menus, but I can quickly get overwhelmed. For most of my life, a meal was cooked and everyone ate it. If you didn't like what was prepared there would be another meal in a few hours. That method of everyone eating the same thing has changed. I don't eat much of what the teens and DH love to eat so I started cooking different meals for them and me. That eventually evolved into doing component cooking. I make sure there are a variety of protein, carbs, cheese, fruits and vegetables available. Everyone can select their meal from the ready-to-eat food available or they can cook something else. Cooking for a family this way is a learning experience for me happening in real time.

Ingredient prep today =
** Asparagus harvest, wash, eat some and put the rest into the freezer
** Mustard greens harvest, wash, package, freeze
** Chicken breast tenderloins
** Tilapia fish fillets
** Lettuce, romaine chopped
** Tomatoes from garden out of freezer

[Twins' Mom]

Lauralind, another opinion on meal planning. I don't really meal plan, but we always have proteins (chicken, steak, pork chops, fish, meatloaf) in the freezer. I try to keep some fresh veggies around and sweet potatoes or winter squash in the pantry, and every a.m. I plan the evening meal and take a protein out of the freezer. We use the grill a lot because frankly, I'm tired of cooking. I'm retired and dh is still working, but retires on 30 June. He assures me he'll start to cook more when he retires, when he does I have to get used to biting my tongue.

His schedule is changeable and he'll sometimes call and say he'd like to go out for a drink or dinner after work, or suggest we go out. Whatever is frozen has been thawing and will hold over for another night. He's diabetic so we don't eat what I think of as fast carbs - bread, pasta and rice. He could probably eat brown rice, actually, if he would try it. (I think LadyM's dh may be diabetic too? or borderline?) Sometimes I add berries instead of a veggie and we eat them for dessert, with a little whipped cream from a can on top. (His is a sugar free Rediwhip or Publix brand,)

As I think back, I've done this for years - decided in the a.m. and written it in my planner in the morning. (A friend, years ago, was so impressed, lol.) The proteins don't go to waste although sometimes the refrigerated veggies do if I'm not on my game - try to use the oldest first.)

[Nancy]

Made corn bread for ddoggo & I.

My meal plan is
chicken & side veg.
Pork " "
Beef " "
fish " "
Bfast for dinner quiche has veg. in it.

[Lauralind]

I'll have to keep following for ideas. Dh does not cook much. Occasionally he will if I'm working and he's only good at a roast on grill or instant pot. Ds15 is a wannabe chef. He's actually quite good at most things though he's rather creative and does his own thing with flavor. Most of the time it works. I have just trained my family that one meal is made by one of us and we all eat it. If someone doesn't cook we don't do well with everyone fend for themselves.

We love the grill. Ds is honestly really good at the pellet smoker grill. Usually meat and some sort of starch. Most of the time a vegetable or salad. Sometimes a one pot dish. I really should start figuring out supper in the morning so we can adjust meal time a little earlier.

I've tried planning a few days at a time. A couple weeks at a time. I've tried the sticky notes on the calendar. Anything can be overwhelming and if something changes and the plan doesn't work it stops.

There's got to be a better way.

Speaking of which we just went shopping and still didn't decide what to have...

[CathyS]

Thank you for starting this LadyM!

Last night we had 3 small salmon filets baked in the oven with melted butter and lemon juice with a bit of dried dill. I also made a package of Caribbean rice for dh. I think I will make 4 the next time as 3 just weren't enough. Dh also had green jello which is his favourite flavour.

I think I will take out a package of ground meat to make cheeseburgers for tonight. When I take it out I'll ask dh what he wants me to make with it, and I can almost guess what he will say as we haven't had burgers in a while and that's his favourite thing.