What I Cooked This Week - Vegetarian

Meal planning can be one of the most challenging things. It’s something you have to do every day or week. You can eat out all the time but who feels good about that (either in your health or in your wallet)? Meal planning takes time and then you have to shop and cook everything. A Personal Chef can help if you don’t have time or enjoy meal planning or cooking. If you do like to cook but are not very creative on meal planning, I thought I would share some of my meal plans.

What I do most often for myself is meal plan for two maybe three days. I grocery shop all at once so everything is in the house. I may follow the batch method and cook everything upfront if I know my week is busy or I will wash/clean everything and maybe do minor prep to have things that are ready to cook fresh that day. 

Having food ready for a couple of days at a time helps me be flexible for things that may come up during the week or if my “food mood” changes in a couple of days. I do have to do meal planning more often and hit the grocery store a couple of times a week. But, the trade-off is I eat more of what I am in the mood for, and if plans change, I can slip a meal I planned for Tuesday for Thursday without having to let the ingredients go bad.

Here’s What I Cooked This Week

I am a semi-vegetarian, and most days, I do not eat meat. So, the meals this week were vegetarian and took advantage of the fresh summer produce from my garden and at the market.

Day 1

Breakfast - Steel-cut oatmeal with fresh fruit.  I love making a batch of oatmeal for a few days to have it ready to go in the morning, adding whatever fresh fruit/berries looked good at the market.

Lunch - Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

A light but hearty salad for warm August days. It’s also one that you can make ahead and take to work.

Dinner - Black Bean and Toasted Corn Tacos

Might not be a Tuesday but these tacos are delicious. You can spice them up or keep them mild.

Day 2 

Breakfast - Berries and Spinach Smoothie

Using some of the leftover fruit and spinach from Day 1 to make this smoothie to start the day.

Lunch - Southwestern Salad with Avocado Lime Dressing

I love sweet corn in late summer, and this salad makes a great lunch with fresh tomatoes (or red peppers), lettuce from the garden.

Dinner - Vegetable Paella

If you haven’t tried Phoenix Bean tofu (in Chicago), you really should grab some the next time you see it. They grow the non-GMO soybeans in IL and make their tofu in small batches. I see them in most farmers markets and in more grocery stores, too. I love the five-spice tofu in this paella filled with summer vegetables.

I hope this inspires you for your meal planning. If you like these ideas and want these in your fridge, let me know. My services range from full service (meal planning, shopping, cooking, packaging) to helping with the planning and shopping. Whatever you need, I’m here to help!