It felt like a scorching heat wave hitting the area as temperatures suddenly soared to 30 C (86F) for a few days, and it was pretty apparent that spring had arrived, although it almost felt like summer.
But don’t be fooled! The warmer weather is still not shorts and t-shirt weather as the temperature fluctuates, causing you to be cold, super warm, and cold again. It is the perfect recipe for catching a severe cold and throat infection.
My tinfoil hat and tingling neck hairs believe that this is an evil April Fool’s prank by Mother Nature.
The downside of working in an office is that you only enjoy the summer from the safety of a window. As a result, you rarely get to go out to enjoy the warmer temperatures. That said, I do try to go for a walk during lunch, but I avoid too long walks as I do not want to display large sweat patches in the armpit areas.
During the nice weather, a large woodpecker visited our garden and snacked on worms and insects from an old tree on our property. I was tempted to put on a drum solo by Matellica’s Lars Ulrich to match the knocking by this amazing bird.
Cooking for the masses
Before I even start sharing this week’s meal preps, I just wanted to share that we had a simple and damn delicious Sunday Traeger experience. First, I roasted baby potatoes in a Lodge cast iron skillet with plenty of butter and garlic. Then, once the potatoes were almost done, I added 1.5lb of cubed London broil.
Many people claim the London broil is a shitty cut and cannot get tender. While I somewhat agree, the key is in the preparation. First, I place the steak bites in a bowl or ziplock bag and add BBQ sauce, spices, and beer. Then, I marinate the meat for 2-4 hours before I use it.
Now, it does not make the meat super tender, but it does help break it up a bit, making it delicious and chewable.
This week will introduce a few simple dinners that do not require much prepping. Unfortunately, there are only two dishes that I could take pictures of on Sunday afternoon, as I make the fried fish on the day of the dinner.
With Mother Nature’s evil hot n cold streak, I want to load up on some natural ingredients to fight off any potential virus causing discomfort. A few of the best natural immune boosters are garlic and ginger. As such, it is stir fry time, using ginger, garlic, fresh vegetables, and chicken thighs.
Why chicken thighs?
As you have read in previous posts, I’m a sucker for thighs, not just because of the word but because of the beautiful flavor and softness. And they contain a little extra good for your immune system.
Because we love chicken, which is good for you, I also decided to make some ricotta meatballs with a creamy mushroom and spinach sauce. We will cook and add the spaghetti when we heat the dish.
During the week, I will make fresh fried fish tacos using cod. Unfortunately, you cannot premake fried fish and reheat it – well, you could, but the taste and consistency would be rather dull and not nice.
We will make a few sandwich options for the kids’ lunches with chicken, salami, mozzarella, lettuce, and boiled eggs in different configurations. It’s easy to make and not messy to eat in the school cafeteria.
They will also get grilled chicken in the salad and add it to the fried noodles.
Lunch & Dinner Plan
| Lunch | Dinner | |
| Monday | Hoagie – salami & mozarella | Chicken ricotta meatballs with pasta |
| Tuesday | Hoagie – egg, lettuce & tomatoes | Baja Fish Taco Tuesday |
| Wednesday | Fried noodles with grilled chicken | Chicken Ramen stir fry |
| Thursday | Deep-fried chicken sandwich | The left-over platter |
| Friday | Spring salad; corn, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and croutons | Take-out Friday Delight |
One day, I might get so organized that I will link the meals below to my recipes. We can only live in hope!
Have a fantastic week, my friends. I hope you enjoy these meal plans. It is much easier to make food in advance, although you must invest several hours preparing meals during the weekend.
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