Are you ready to get a glimpse into our world this week? As promised, here are some pictures of the food we ate today.
What was on the menu:
Sunday, January 27
Oatmeal, fruit
Cheesy beef and rice, tossed salad, green beans
Leftovers
Did I stick with our menu plan today? Yes. But it’s always easiest to stick with it on Sunday since I’ve just made the plan. ;)
I began my day with one of the last of the oranges we brought back from California. I still can’t get over how delicious they are! And by the way – starting your day with a piece of fresh fruit is always a great idea. :)
While I was eating my orange, I made oatmeal for the family and set it out for them to come eat after they got dressed for church. For some reason, in the picture these bowls look very empty. I promise I fed my husband and boys more than three spoonfuls of oatmeal.
I decided to make myself some Warm Vanilla Soother – just because it sounded good. I can’t figure out what I did wrong, but it never did thicken. Oh well. It tasted good just the same, even it if was like drinking warm, sweet milk. :)
Before we left for church, I got out a frozen Cheesy Beef and Rice casserole and put it into the oven at 200° to thaw and bake while we were gone. I love being able to do this to save time and effort on a Sunday morning!
When we got home, I made green beans and Matt made a salad to go with our casserole. We had our meal on the table in a very short amount of time! It’s a good thing too, because we had stayed and talked to friends after church for a long time and didn’t get home until 1:00. We were hungry. :)
Tonight, before heading back to church to listen to our York College Choir sing, I told the boys to pick out some leftovers from the fridge. We had all sorts to choose from.
Here is a blurry, semi-unappetizing picture of the Spanish Rice that I warmed up for myself. I love that our boys know how to either warm up food on the stove or use our toaster oven so that we can avoid using a microwave.
So there you have it. That was our Sunday. Just curious: Did you make a plan today and stick with it?
Check back in tomorrow to see how our Monday goes. Here’s this week’s menu plan if you want to imagine us eating those specific foods. But the question is…is that what we’re really eating??? We’ll find out. :)
First, let me say I am impressed. I am just starting to eat Real Food and trying to menu plan. I only recently started making buttermilk and sour cream (haven’t ventured into anything else yet). Couple of questions, how do you know what is in each jar (in your refrigerator) you have so many – how do you keep track?
Also, (not food related), in your picture of your cup f the warm vanilla soother, you have your cup on a surface that is mult-colored pattern (is that a tablecoth or tile)? It is so pretty and the colors I am trying to put in my home.
How big is your kitchen too? Would you ever consider posting pitures how you have it set up (baking area, patry etc..). I ask, because mine is so small, I am always looking for ways to improve it.
Thank you.
Susan
I typically label my dairy products in jars so I know the differenct between my yogurt, sour cream, etc. Otherwise, since I can see through the jars I find it very easy to tell what leftovers I have in my fridge. AND, if I really can’t tell, I just have to take the lid off and give it a good sniff – fancy, huh? :)
That’s a tablecloth, which I just got at Walmart. I LOVE it!!
My kitchen is big. I’m very blessed. You can “take a kitchen tour” here: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/feeding-the-family-the-kitchen-tour
Meal-planning is an important part of how I keep my family on-track nutritionally and budget-wise. I work full-time, so I don’t have time to run to the grocery store every day to pick up food for supper. My mom always made a meal plan when I was a child, so it was a natural thing for me to do when I moved out on my own. Now that I have 2 kids, a husband, and a full-time job, meal-planning helps keep me sane(r). :)
Ha! Love how you said that it keeps you sane(r). I SO hear you on that one! :)
What kind of jars are those you use for leftovers? Are they glass or plastic? I struggle so much to NOT use plastic bags, especially in the freezer, but they do stack so much more nicely in the freezer than glass containers, especially when you freeze stock in 1-cup increments…
Here’s a post that tells more about how I store leftovers in jars: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/how-to-store-leftovers-in-jars :)
This is a little off topic, but you mentioned that your warm vanilla soother did not thicken and I thought of this. I have been making your pudding recipes with great success, but the last time for some odd reason it didn’t thicken. Not wanting to throw it away I put it in small cups in the freezer and it made the most wonderful pudding pops that the family quickly devoured. Just thought you’d like to know.
Yum, I’ve done that before too and love it!
mmm pudding pops, wonderful idea!!!
My microwave bit the dust & we’re considering getting a toaster oven to take it’s place. When you warm up leftovers in your toaster oven, do you transfer the food to a place or casserole dish? We’ve read about all the health issues with using microwaves and plastic storage containers, but I REALLY miss the convenience of my microwave!!! Also, storing leftovers in one container, and then having to transfer to another container to re-heat doubles the dishes. Bleh!
Yes, you do need to warm up most foods in the toaster oven either on a stone or a casserole dish. I typically have my leftovers in pyrex, so I don’t have to transfer it. But if it’s in a jar, we usually just put it on a small stone pan to reheat. It rinses off easily later so I don’t even think about it being extra work!
Laura, you are doing the best thing for your family. I love the way you cook. Your sweethearts will have a life time of benefit from what you do with your meals. I cook mostly from scratch as well and serve the meals to someone we take care of. From what the nurses and doctors say they are a lot healthier from what I make. Wow, does that feel good :-> Fresh, fresh, fresh with lots of love mixed in is the way to go :-)
Thanks for your encouragement. Sounds like you are doing a wonderful job yourself! :)
I menu plan on Saturday and generally shop on Sunday after church. I stick with our plan for breakfasts and dinners but lunches sometimes are changed around. We are out of the house 3 days during the week and sometimes it’s hard to get home to fix lunch. On those days that we go to Zoe’s Kitchen and have grilled cheese on whole wheat and fruit for the boys and I have hummus with pita and a greek salad. All their food is fresh and they boys love it. I LOVE meal planning. Been doing it for over a year now and I don’t now how I managed without it! Thanks for your recipes and for sharing your life with us. God bless you and your family and your online ministry!
Your fridge looks just like ours with all of those glass jars! Love it!!
Sorry, this is not about your food but you mentioned York College Choir. Are you located in PA?
Your Sunday plan is awesome. I am not so good about making double my recipe and freezing. This is a smart way to do it and have a meal ready without you being there the whole time.
No, we’re in Nebraska. I had heard though that there’s also a York, PA with a York College there too! :)
We already broke our menu plan for the week! But, we got home so late last night that leftovers were quicker and easier than the beef & lentil tacos we had planned. I feel that our menu plan is more of a way to avoid standing in front of the freezer/pantry/fridge thinking “what should I make tonight?” than something I absolutely have to stick to :-)
I was wondering how you freeze your casseroles. I read what I thought was a good idea – overlapping foil before cooking and using that to freeze – is that what you do, or something different?
The overlapping foil is a good idea and works well if you are limited on casserole dishes. I have a large suppy of pyrex, so I freeze my casseroles in the dish. Plus, while I’m not “over the top” about it, I do try to avoid using aluminum foil very much, which is why I don’t use the “freeze it in foil” method. :)
How do you make oatmeal? We’ve been using Rachel Ray’s, which is good and semi-whole foods, but EXPENSIVE!!! I tried to make regular oatmeal and not even me, the non-picky eater, liked it :(
I’m taking today to look up baked oatmeal recipes and try them out over the month!
I simply boil 4 cups of water (with a little sea salt), then add 2 cups of whole, rolled oats. Once it’s cooked (about 5-7 minutes) I add honey and serve it. Simple and yummy!