New Computer, Busy Week, and some Time Off

I didn't vanish in real life, just on the computer. After giving up on the old one (dead as a doornail :( ), I went out and got a lovely new one :D. So that explains a week off. Then there was this week, just crazy with Sabbot, Chag, Shabbot (and guests for all 3!), and now on Monday my Mom is coming for a visit :D.

So... I'll be taking a break probably realistically for a few weeks. I hope to come back soon with a nicer blog, and some neat meal posts. I'll be sure to let you all know when I come back. Until then, eat well!

Weekly Meal Plan - May 9 - May 15

Better late than never! Busy morning today so I didn't get this up until after the fact.

Sunday

Lunch: Leftover

Supper: Barakas

Monday

Lunch: Pasta & cottage cheese, fresh veggies

Supper: Pizza & salad

Tuesday

Lunch: Meatballs, rice, green beans

Supper: Eggs

Wednesday

Lunch: Tuna burgers, mashed potatoes, carrots

Supper: Pancakes

Thursday

Lunch: Chicken snitzel, couscous, peas & carrots

Supper: Oatmeal

Friday

Lunch: Hot dogs, fries, salad

Supper: Chicken soup, roast chicken, roast potatoes, mixed veggies

Shabbot

Lunch: Tuna pie, salads, chicken snitzel, carrot kugel, roast potatoes

Supper: Salads & puddings.

Stir Fry Tofu

Last week I made stir fry tofu. This is one of my favorite meals, because besides being fast and frugal, it freezes well together. I cook this one time, and feed the family 4 times. Can't beat that!

Yes, I know this is not "authentic" stir fry. It is fast, and frugal, and all my kids eat it. Bonus, grownups like it too :)

Begin with your tofu. Cut into small cubes and place in a pan with some oil. Sautee them for a few minutes, turning so all the sides get crispy. When almost done, add soy sauce and garlic powder (I use quite a bit, but do it by taste). Mix for another minute or so so all the flavors get blended. From 1 kilo of tofu, I did 3 pans this size.

Next take your bag of mixed veggies. I use the carrots, corn, green beans mixture (this bag was 800g). Take it out in the morning and let it defrost on the counter. When it is defrosted, dump in a pan and heat gently (you can use a little oil). Splash on some soy sauce and garlic powder and voila, your veggies are done.

Finally, add your cooked rice (I used 2 cups of raw rice for this amount of tofu and veggies). I served myself (twice!) and 6 kids, and I have two big portions to put in the freezer to reheat and serve, and 2 smaller portions to reheat and serve. I can serve 6-8 kids and myself on the bigger portions, and myself plus my kids with the smaller ones. Not bad for 15 minutes worth of work standing and stirfrying.

An Unplanned Surprise

As I mentioned before, this week we weren't feeling well. Dh only wanted soup for Shabbot, and I wanted a semi meal for the rest of us. Instead of defrosting some traditional chicken soup out of the freezer, I experimented with a combination of veggie chullent and soup, and it came out really amazing! Three out of the four kids ate it too (which is about as good as it gets here, I think the only things all four eat are pasta, cottage cheese & bananas. One doesn't even like hot dogs anymore!)

Veggie Chullent Soup (made in a 4 quart crock pot)

2 cups cooked barley & beans (my MIL had given me this frozen to make veggie soup with)

3 carrots, peeled and diced

1 onion, diced

2 celery stalks, chopped big (because yours truly doesn't like celery, so it needs to be big enough for me to avoid eating it by accident :x)

1 potato, diced (could have put in a second one)

your favorite kneidel (matzah ball) recipe

"Saute" onions in the crock pot with a bit of olive oil and a sprinkle of sugar for about an hour. Stir once or twice and watch they don't burn.

Add the cooked grains & beans (I'm sure you could have put in the barely raw, but I had it already prepared so I didn't). Add chopped potato, celery & carrot and fill pot with water. Cook on high several hours. Prepare kneidel mixture and place in fridge.

About an hour before Shabbot (or serving on a regular day), for kneidal and add to the boiling soup. Wait for it to reboil again and then switch to low.

This came out really, really good and I will be doing it again sometime. Friday night we all had it as soup, and Shabbot lunch there was soup on the top and the bits on the bottom were yummy and chullently. There was about half a ladle leftover from the whole pot.

Weekly Menu Plan - May 2 - 8

OK, I got my plan together. Let's see how it goes this week.

Sunday

Lunch: Pasta & cottage cheese, cut veggies

Supper: Shabbot leftovers

Monday

Lunch: Baked beans & rice, salad

Supper: Eggs

Tuesday

Lunch: Homemade falafal & chips

Supper: Pancakes

Wednesday

Lunch: Chicken snitzel & pititim

Supper: Oatmeal

Thursday

Lunch: Sloppy joe pasta

Supper: Leftovers

Friday

Lunch: Mac & cheese

Supper: Chicken soup, roast chicken, roast potatos, carrots

Shabbot

Lunch: Veggie chullent, leftover chicken, salads

Supper: Pudding & sandwiches.

The Best Laid Plans...

Yes, sometimes they go awry. You just need to pick yourself up and get on with the next day or week. Last week I was sick in the beginning, and dh was sick at the end. The meal plan kind of went out the window, and crisis mode returned. There were 2 successes of the week, the tofu (which is an old standby, and I did get to take pictures so I will try to post about it this week), and a new hearty soup. I didn't get pictures of the soup, but it's a true example of sometimes the best meals are spontaneous and not planned.

I will try to do this week's meal plan later today. At this point, I don't even know what I am serving for lunch in 3 hours :x