Weekly Meals 6/4

We went strawberry picking this week, so guess what featured in all our recipes?

I started off by making Strawberry Jam because I was going to need it for some other recipes. It worked really well, but I wish it called for less sugar…I’ll probably cut the amount of sugar in half next time.

This morning for breakfast we had these PB&J smoothies. Hubs thought it wasn’t sweet enough and added sugar and more strawberries. I liked it as is though, I don’t need as much sugar as he does.

Also had this Ricotta & Strawberry Toast which was pretty good. We used a tangerine/strawberry marmalade, and it was perfect with the rest.

We’ve had this Strawberry Banana Bread before and it was amazing, so we decided this was the perfect time to make it again.

I made this Farro Caprese Salad which was pretty decent, but I over salted the farro a little. Definitely didn’t need as much, especially since it’s made with pesto.

This Strawberry Grilled Cheese would have been amazing if I hadn’t burnt some of it 🤦🏼‍♀️ I over toasted one side, but the flavor was good other than that.

Strawberry Balsamic Baked Wings had excellent flavor, but I think I’d do it a little differently. I’d like to do a straight double air fry instead of baking and then just toss them in the sauce at the end.

Last but not least I made these Strawberry Balsamic Glazed Meatballs. They were definitely the best, most well-rounded item of the day and that’s something I look forward to eating for the rest of the week. After I took the picture I threw some rice in the bowls and were ready to go!

All in all not a bad haul, plus a few snack size bags of fresh strawberries for snacks.

Weekly meals for the week of 5/7

Been a while since I posted, have been traveling a lot and not doing as much food prep. as much time as it takes, it feels good to be back making good food choices.

For breakfast this week I’ll be having quiche…I added spinach to the recipe, throwing it in with the parsley, so that I’d have some veg.

I’ve been wanting to try this Jaeger Schnitzel for a while. Hubby is German and there’s some good food options there, but I’ve always been a little afraid of frying meats. Turned out really nice actually, although the gravy could have been a little thicker with a little less mushroom for us.

I also made this Caprese Chicken dish, using mozzarella instead of havarti. The smashed potatoes didn’t come out as crispy as I liked, makes me think maybe instead of boiling we should microwave them first, less water can get absorbed then.

Because I’m trying to get more veg in my life but wanted to stick to the theme, I also made a caprese salad that was originally posted on cookinglight.com but the url isn’t working so it seems to have been taken down from the site. I like to use the pints of multicolored tomatoes to get good variety.

SERVINGS: Serves 6 (serving size: 3/4 cup)

INGREDIENTS
• 3 cups halved Sun Gold cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup halved young Cherokee Purple tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 ounces small fresh mozzarella balls
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/3 cup torn fresh basil

PREPARATION STEPS
1. Combine all ingredients except basil in a large bowl; toss gently. Top with basil.

NOTE
We use young Cherokee Purple heirloom tomatoes here to balance the sweetness of Sun Golds with a little acid and umami depth, but other red cherry tomatoes will work well also. Caprese salad is the perfect keep-it-simple summer recipe, since ripe tomatoes need very little adornment—just a lap of fruity olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and pepper, bright basil, and rich fresh cheese make them sing.

And last but not lease I made this Asparagus and Avocado Salad which I haven’t tried yet but am looking forward to. And I will also be making this Persian Chicken with Turmeric and Lime that we’ve had and loved numerous times.

Weekly meals for the week of 3/12/2023

I’ve decided to pick up trying to write a bit again.

I always try to cook healthy food for myself and my husband, and I’m renewing an attempt to eat a little fewer simple carbs (it makes me feel bloated and makes my stomach a little sick), and to eat more variety of vegetables and fruits.

I love cooking from recipes I’ve found online, expanding my cooking skills, expanding the different types of cuisines we eat….and vastly expanding my husband’s pallet from a strictly meat and potatoes man to encompass many many more things, even some vegetables!

This week we have a few recipes from various sites. And man, have they been absolutely incredibly delicious additions to our regular rotation of foods.

My husband chose a braised beef recipe as a different meat option for us this week. We cooked it with just some garlic mashed potatoes. The beef recipe came from Simply Home Cooked: https://simplyhomecooked.com/braised-beef/

I think we should have added a little more liquid for it to cook in, but the flavor was excellent and with the garlic mashed potatoes it’s really yummy.

Btw, my husband doesn’t use a recipe for his mashed potatoes. He peels, dices, then boils some potatoes, then mashes them first with a masher, then adds in butter and milk (or cream) and salt and blends with a hand mixer. I can’t tell you specific quantities, you just kinda do it til it tastes right.

The second thing I made tonight really floored me. I had high hopes because I love orzo, and it did not disappoint, although since I really have no heat tolerance I’d prob cut back on the red pepper flakes a bit.

These Baked Rosemary Chicken Meatballs with Tomato Orzo are an absolute must try. The site The Original Dish has a number of really good recipes, here’s the link to this one: https://www.theoriginaldish.com/2022/12/14/baked-rosemary-chicken-meatballs-with-tomato-orzo/

These 2 recipes made enough for us to get through about half to 3/4 of this week’s lunches and dinners. We still have some leftovers in the fridge from ordering Greek, and I prepped these Air Fryer Chicken Thighs from Skinnytaste to cook quickly one night later this week.

Definitely gonna eat well this week!

Initial thoughts on leaving weight loss behind

Image sourced from http://bodyinmotion.in/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/blog53-holistic-wellbeing.jpg

After listening to the podcast episode “Can you be body positive and want to lose weight” (Rebecca Scritchfield’s Body Kindness podcast, from 10/2016), I’ve started to think about what this journey means to me.

Although I’m late to this episode, I really strongly resonate with the idea of wanting to lose weight, but wanting to be positive about my body. I’ve just recently come to body kindness and this whole world of leaving diet culture, and I am definitely still feeling that desire to lose weight.

I am working so hard to try to not let weight loss or a different body shape/size be my focus or drive my motivation, but I acknowledge that I’m not there yet. I have not turned to diet culture again (I am not restrictive, no foods are off limits), but I am afraid that searching for movement that I love again will make it even more difficult to shift my focus away from weight loss, because I would hope for that to be an outcome.

I have recently thought about trying to box or dance again, have considered learning about Tai Chi (it feels like a somewhat natural transition from yoga to something else because of the mind-body connection in both areas), and I know I want to be stronger again because of my knee. I miss the feeling of strength I used to have when using my legs to jump and sprint in volleyball. And I can’t yet shake the thought that if I was lighter, it wouldn’t be so hard, and would be less strenuous for my body.

I’m also admittedly scared to death of gaining more weight before my best friend’s wedding in November. I want to fit into a nice dress in a way that is attractive, and my brain hasn’t yet transitioned to believing that my body shape is attractive.

I’m learning, and I’m working towards change, but this feeling and this acknowledgment is an indication of just how far I have to go. Figuring out what healthy means for me, and how to get where I want to be, mentally and physically, is a journey I’m both daunted by, and excited to start on.