Hi Everyone! Welcome to the first edition of the weekly menu planner with FREE Printable Menu and Grocery List. This week's menu features some wonderful spring flavors, easy leftover meals and a little variety too. We try to keep things healthy and kid-friendly around here and I hope you enjoy this week's menu!
Menu Recipes
Sunday : Pork Tenderloin, Steamed Artichokes, and Roasted Potatoes
For the pork tenderloin make sure you get a piece of meat that is large enough to feed your family for two meals. For us, I'll get between 3-4 pounds so that we have leftovers for lunch and for dinner later that week. You will need to DOUBLE the pork recipe to make this much meat.
Recipe : Pork Tenderloin with Pineapple Glaze
Artichokes : Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the artichokes. Simmer the artichokes in a large pot of water for 25-45 minutes until the large leaves on the outside peal off easily. Serve warm (optional: melt some butter in a dish and dip the leaves in the butter - not the healthiest but definitely yummy!)
Roasted Potatoes : Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Quarter red potatoes and place in an oven proof baking dish. Drizzle the potatoes with olive oil (about 1-2 Tbsp) and sprinkle with salt and pepper (sometimes I'll also add a little dried or fresh rosemary). Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes until the potatoes are done.
Monday : Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup and Spring Salad
The Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup is new to us this week and fingers crossed that it's yummy! The Spring Salad is one of my favorites as it incorporates some wonderful flavors of the season. Serve with a crusty baguette and enjoy.
Recipe : Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Tuesday : Beef and Broccoli Bowl
This is one of our go-tos because it's easy and healthy. Miss N loves it and so does my husband. PLUS, it usually makes enough so that my hubby can bring it for lunch later in the week. Don't you just love meals that make great leftovers?!?
Recipe : Beef and Broccoli Bowl
Wednesday : BBQ Pork Sandwiches and Cole Slaw
By mid-week I am usually tired of cooking and getting ready for the weekend so I try to do something nice and easy on Wednesday night to give us a bit of a break. This week we're using the leftover pork from Sunday to make some delicious pork sandwiches and pairing them with cole slaw for a little southern flair. NOTE: I use half of the cole slaw recipe since we usually only eat the cole slaw for this meal and don't need a ton. Then I can use the remaining cole slaw mix for the fish taco topping as well.
BBQ Pork Sandwiches : Nothing fancy here... Slice the remaining pork into pieces. Put the pork in a pot on the stove and add enough BBQ sauce to make you happy and heat the pork until warm. We love Sweet Baby Ray's Classic BBQ sauce and it works really well with the pork. Serve hot on kaiser rolls.
Thursday : Fish Tacos, Chips and Guacamole
Thursday night is our tex-mex night. We started this tradition a little while ago and it's probably my favorite night of the week. My husband whips up some skinny margaritas (yum!) and we indulge in chips and guacamole. Plus, I also love that it's healthy and pretty low cal.
So, here's the scoop on our twist on tilapia tacos.. Make the Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw and top the tacos with the Lime-Cilantro Crema. NOTE: Rather than using a head of cabbage we just use the leftover cole slaw mix from the night before.. saves us a little more on prep time.
Recipe : Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw
Friday : Pizza Party
Take out and my favorite night of the week because I get a break from cooking and dishes! Hit your local pizza joint, make a Boboli or just pop your favorite freezer pizza in the oven and enjoy the night.
Saturday : Roasted Chicken with Spring Risotto
Roasted chicken is such an easy meal - we love them! Pair the roasted chicken with a nice spring risotto and you have a gourmet dinner at home for a Saturday night. This also goes great with a nice crisp glass of white wine - I personally like a dry Riesling but a Sauvignon Blanc would work well too. Bon Appetit!
Recipe : Spring Asparagus Risotto
I hope you enjoy the menu this week. Please let me know if you have any questions / comments or suggestions for future menus by commenting on this post. Have a great week!
I tried a number of these recipes this week with great results. The Pork Tenderloin and BBQ Pork sandwiches were a big hit. I loved the Spring Salad. The Lemon Orzo soup needed a little less lemon and orzo for our taste. The Roasted Chicken and Risotto were wonderful. We did enjoy the leftovers. Thanks for perking up our spring menus.
Posted by: Patk | Wednesday, April 02, 2014 at 11:34 PM
I am so glad that you liked them! We loved the Pork Tenderloin as well and are trying the chicken/risotto this weekend. Stop by again for the weekly menu and thanks for commenting :-). Enjoy the weekend!
Posted by: Kristen | Thursday, April 03, 2014 at 06:52 PM