Weekly Menu Ideas: 17-02

I say I eat everything, but we all know that’s not true. Deciding who does what in any household is always a great debate, especially in today’s day and age. It often sparks huge discussions in our household about who handles which chores.

Being the modern woman that I am, and also the minority gender in the household, I usually get first dibs on the best tasks and assign the ones I dislike to the other family members.

This is the reason I cook. My husband is great at many things, including cooking certain dishes, but to be honest, I prefer having control over the meals. There's one reason, and one reason only—I hate baked beans!

In the kitchen, baked beans for me are like the jam sandwich of lunchtime. I know they’re there, and we could have them, but I just don’t want them. My husband really enjoys them—they’re his go-to—but if I give up my role as head chef, we’ll be eating them way more than I’d like. It’s a bit bizarre that my dislike for one meal drives me to take charge in the kitchen.

I thought this would be a great task for AI, so I went onto ChatGPT and asked for a great baked beans recipe. To my surprise, it suggested how to make baked beans from scratch instead of buying them in a can or bottle. I asked again for a recipe that included baked beans, and the grand suggestion was frying bacon and adding it to the previous recipe. I was not impressed. So, I’ve decided I will keep control of the menu and continue sharing my ideas on this blog—at least until AI can master my palate.

Weekly Menu - 17 February

Monday

School Lunch: Cold Mayo Pasta

Dinner: Stew and Dumplings

Tips for this idea:

Stew is a delicious meal, very nutritious and is a great way to get a good amount of vegetables in your diet. It can be easily adapted to a vegan or vegetarian meal with the same ingredients excluding the meat.

Tuesday:

School Lunch: Toasted Cheese

Dinner: Greek Chicken/Chickpea Shawarma

Tips for this idea:

I usually use pita bread for the Shawarma, adding some meat to greek yoghurt with Italian herbs. This has been a childhood favorite for me and is really enjoyed by my kids to. You can add all your favorite vegetables in this or just a basic green salad.

Wednesday:

School Lunch: Croissants with Cheese

Dinner: Basil Pesto Gnocchi

Tips for this idea:

Whenever I am out of ideas on what to cook, this is my go to recipe. We get our pesto ready made, but even if you need to make it from scratch it is quite easy. The recipe only requires basil pesto, gnocchi as well as a heavy cream which can be switched for coconut or soy based creams for vegans.

Thursday:

School Lunch: Chicken Wraps

Dinner: Cottage Pie

Tips for this idea:

Cottage pie is a great recipe for a busy weekday, it is also a great way to hide vegetables similar to lasagna, you can add in multiple hidden vegetables. This recipe can also be adapted for vegans and vegetarians by switching out the mince meat with mushrooms and stock.

Friday:

School Lunch: Sliders

Dinner: Dagwoods

Tips for this idea:

Dagwood's is a South African Wimpy Special, there is no place in the Netherlands where we get this ideal recipe ready made. It is extremely unhealthy as all ingredients are fried. You can add mushrooms or lentil patties to this for a more traditional flavour if you do not eat meat.

Saturday:

Lunch: Shakshuka

Dinner: Family Nacho Night

Tips for this idea:

I love Shakshuka, it is essentially tomato chutney with fried eggs, my two favorites. If you skip the eggs , a tomato chutney is an amazing dish served on its own.

I usually add grilled mince on our nachos to make it sustaining, but you can add chicken or any toppings that suit you and your family, you can also opt to add all sides seperately and have each person make their own nachos which is an easier option for families with varying needs.

Sunday:

Lunch: Fish Paella

Tips for this idea:

Paella can be made with different kinds of meats and fish and is a great rice dish, since moving to the Netherlands the way in which we make Paella has changed to a more traditional tomato rice based meal. I absolutely love it, definitely worth a try.

I hope this makes this week easier for you. If you feel like you this is something you need for the weeks ahead, please subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas for next week. ♥️