My poor neglected cooking blog

My poor cooking blog has been neglected of late. I have has some camera issues which have meant when I have cooked something new and interesting the photos haven't worked.

One thing I find when I'm busy is that I tend to fall back on tried and true recipes rather than getting creative and making something new...it doesn't make for such an interesting read.

For example tonight we're having Chinese Style Ribs which I have already blogged about before. Simply because when I saw the right cut of on sale meat at the supermarket I knew it would be a quick (well not so much quick as not labour-intensive) and tasty dinner!

We still like to eat well when we're time poor and that's when planning comes it. I was putting something in my extra freezer today and I realised I had the makings of quite a few freezer meals and that it would be a really good idea to have a freezer cooking day.

The questions is when? It won't be this week...but maybe next. I am thinking food even if not much is happening.

So what have we been doing/eating? I've been focussing on making things that have a duel purpose or get us through two meals

I've taken to poaching some chicken breasts on a Sunday night and making half into chicken salad and half into chicken pasta salad. That's great for lunches. And the pasta salad is the same with pasta, corn and tomatoes...

Last week I made meatloaf so my husband and daughter would get meatloaf sandwiches for two lunches.

I turned last week's roast chicken into soup today which I had for lunch and will again on Thursday.

Chinese-style Ribs http://mysydneykitchen.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/chinese-style-pork-ribs.html

Oh yes and we did make this cake for my daughter's birthday last week. She had an archery party!



Menu and Easter planning

It's a short week with Easter and the end of the first school term. How it can possibly be April already I do not know.

My menu plan therefore is brief:
- Honey mustard chicken, brown rice and green veggies
- Steak sandwiches and onion rings
- Soup and homemade bread, baked apples for dessert
- Taco night

The weekend is still up in the air plan-wise but I do know we are having my folks and my mother-in-law on Easter Sunday.

I am thinking:
- seafood chowder
- BBQ leg of lamb with a pumpkin rice bowl and greens
- dessert

My daughter thinks she and I should make the dessert on the cover of this month's Australian Good Taste magazine which is a Chocolate Salted Caramel Cheesecake. It looks delicious but I am worried my mother-in-law will go into diabetic shock...so the jury is still out on that.
http://www.taste.com.au/good+taste/

Menu Planning Monday

I haven't done this in a while because I seemed to be planning for no purpose because the plans changed. This week looks a bit more normal so let's give it a try.

Monday - Pork cutlets, potato bake, ccorn, carrots and asparagus
Tuesday - Crumbed whiting and salad
Wednesday - Burgers and Onion Rings
Thursday - Chicken and Asparagus Strudel
Friday - Homemade pizza

Let's see how I go?!

Menu Planning Monday

This week is a busy one. Our activities are back in full swing, weird work and life schedules and lots of evening meetings so I am keeping it simple.
Tuesday's cornbread can re-appear on Thursday and Thursday's coleslaw can appear on Friday. Why make life more complicated than it needs to be?

Monday - stir fry
Tuesday - chilli and cornbread
Wednesday - slow cooker corned beef
Thursday - oven fried chicken and cornbread and my version of Nigella's coleslaw
Friday - pulled pork and coleslaw on buns

Menu Planning Monday

Well I have committed to doing this so I will but if last week is anything to go by whatever I plan will go out the window quickly. Between changes schedules, visitors and illness our plan went quite array but perhaps having a plan to fall back on is really the key.

Monday - dinner out
Tuesday - our daughter is away so maybe shrimp or maybe we will sneak out on a date
Wednesday - smoked salmon crepe cakes
Thursday - homemade meat pie in honour of Australia day
Friday -Sunday I am away.

See not too much to plan.

I do however need to do some baking for my weekend away, and I think I am making a curry as well. School is back next week and I need lunch-box fillers for that as well so my kitchen will see some action but not too much at dinner time.

Menu Plan January 17-21

So here is my menu plan for this week. it's actually already Tuesday in Sydney but my blog doesn't seem to know that yet so maybe I am not technically late yet.

We're on holidays and so we're keeping it loose for the next couple of weeks. The order of things may change as the week progresses but for now here we go!

Let's hope the weather stays nice and we get to have lots of lovely breakfasts and lunches like these.
Monday - BBQ tuna steaks, sweet potato fries, salad and mango mayonnaise (We already had this and it was delish!)
Tuesday - paella
Wednesday - San Choi Bow and eggplant Sichuan-style
Thursday - tacos
Friday - homemade pizza or lamb shoulder on the BBQ
Saturday - will be which-ever we don't have on Friday

Menu planning Monday

All over the internet you will see references to Menu Planning Monday. This is a movement where food, organisational and frugality bloggers share their week's menu on a Monday.

I think this stems from the US where Sunday newspapers include the week's coupons and loss leader advertisements. As a result people plan their menu on a Monday when they shop.

Here in Australia the deals start Wednesday or Thursday. My fliers arrive in my letterbox on a Sunday but the deals are not available until mid-week and sadly we really have no coupons. As a result I don't really plan my menu on a Monday but I like the idea that I could be part of a cyber community of people (mainly women) all planning their week's menu in unison.

So I think from this next week I will join in. When I plan my meals sometimes a week and sometimes a month at a time I don't set the meal to a fixed day because my lovely husband never knows what his work schedule will be.

I include a mix of easy meals and complicated meals, meals using red meat, fish, chicken and vegetarian options too. I try to also include a mix of family favourites, a variety of international cuisines and new ideas. To me whether we eat paella on Saturday or Tuesday is not as important as knowing we can eat it sometime this week.

So we will see how participation in Menu Planning Monday pans out but I'm prepared to give it a try.

Menu planning - part one

I know plenty of people who never menu plan or have never even thought to. Some people think it inhibits creativity and boxes you in.  It’s a bit like people who write books, lots of them think plotting/planning is creative death.

When I write a book I like a rough outline. I know sometimes I will deviate from it and plans will change and I’m prepared to be led wherever my characters want to take me.

I’m the same with menu planning. I like looking at the list on my fridge and knowing that we have the food and the ingredients  to keep us nourished for the week but if my husband’s shift changes or friends invite us over for dinner I am happy to change my plans.

I happen to have a husband with a rather unpredictable job which means some days he starts work at 5am, sometimes he starts at noon and some days he doesn’t start at all, so flexibility is key.

I find menu planning saves me stress and money. We have been on a no-takeout policy around here since January 2010. I think we have had take-out for dinner maybe twice in all that time.  At $20 a week that’s quite a saving.

I’m also a very lucky gal because my lovely husband is a great cook. If I have a menu plan on the fridge and I am held up I can say “pick something off the list” and he can make dinner. 

Strategy

I menu plan in two ways. Sometimes  when life is extra crazy I just plan for the week ahead and other times I plan for the month.

The weekly plan

If I’m doing a weekly plan and I have a vague idea of my husband’s schedule I like to plan around that and my daughter’s schedule and mine.

For example she has activities that keep her out until 7.30pm Monday’s and Wednesday’s but she is ravenous when she walks in the door. On Thursdays I take her to clarinet from 5.30-6.30pm so there isn’t anyone here to cook then.

I also try and incorporate the following into the menu

-          Chicken

-          Red meat

-          Meat free or not so meaty meal (eg quiche, risotto, vegetarian pasta, spanokopita)

-          Fun (pizza, tacos, burgers, myo crepes)

-          Restaurant style ( a fancier more labour intensive meal)

-          Something DH cooks (So I get a night off)

-          Roast (this might be the beef or chicken or pork…it gives us meat for sandwiches and usually for another meal eg a pie, a stir fry)

-          Leftovers or a makeover meal

So our menu might look like this:

Monday – slow-cooker pot roast

Tuesday  – oven fried chicken, cornbread and coleslaw

Wednesday  – quiche

Thursday – spaghetti and meatballs

Friday – homemade pizza

Saturday – bbq

Sunday – paella

How will I have reached that menu?

Well I buy meat that looks good at a good price wherever I see it so firstly I look in my freezer. What have I got? A piece of beef? A whole chicken? Prawns and chorizo? Lots of eggs? And what haven’t we had lately…we really don’t want to eat roast chicken three weeks running or too much pasta or rice either.

You can search all over the internet for lots of information about menu planning.

Come back later for planning the monthly plan