Meals of the Week, March 24th - 30th, 2024

 

Hello and Happy Easter!  It's Sunday and I will be having my family over for Easter Dinner later today, but in the meantime I am sharing with you my weekly Meals of the Week post!  The one where I share all of the main meals and applicable recipes that I have enjoyed over the past seven days!  That's a whole lot of tastiness going on.  I also share menu suggestions as to what you can enjoy with them!

As a person who lives on their own, with just a couple of cats for company, cooking can sometimes be quite a challenge.  It can become repetitive or you can be tempted to want to eat out of boxes, cans or the like.  I am determined not to be that person and to that end I have challenged myself to cook  myself a delicious meal every day.

Sometimes I do eat out with family, with the exception of my Wednesday meals at a local eatery with my dad, these are also homemade meals and I also like to share recipes for these as well.

This week I did happen to eat out twice with family at restaurants. I have provided a "like" option so that you can prepare these meals at home. I also had pizza at my sister's on Friday night.  Homemade of course.

These are some of my favorite posts to do.  They not only help me to check back on how I have been eating throughout the week, but I also love sharing the recipes and menus with  you, hoping that you will be inspired to want to cook some of them for yourselves.

Whether you are a singleton learning to circumnavigate having to cook on a much smaller scale, or a couple of empty nesters, or even just a person who loves to cook and eat, I hope that you will find this round up of recipes helpful and inspiring!  

 

SUNDAY, March 24th - Sweet and Sour Glazed Smoked Pork Chops

Usually on Sunday's I go to my sister's for supper.  I was in too much pain from my arthritis knees to do so and so this week I stayed home, making myself a simple supper of Sweet and Sour Glazed Smoked Pork Chops.  I had picked up the Chops last week at the grocery store.  This was a delicious combination of smokiness with a lush and tangy sweet and sour glaze.

I enjoyed with some mixed vegetables, Brussel's Sprouts and Clapshot, which is a Scottish dish of mashed potatoes, turnips, butter and chives. This was all really nice together.

MONDAY, March 25th - Pasta E Piselli

This is a simple recipe which uses frozen peas, chopped onion, pasta, water and some cheese. You could call this Pasta and Peas. And it is fabulously delicious. You wouldn't think that you could make something so tasty out of just these few things, but like magic, you can! Poured  into heated pasta bowls and topped with some more grated cheese and some hot chili flakes, dinner is served! Voila!!

I enjoyed with a nice piece of white bread and butter. Simple.  The heart wants what the heart wants.

TUESDAY, March 26th - Frank and Potato Bake 

Frankfurters/hotdogs are not something which I eat really often, but every now and then I crave one.  This cheap and cheerful meal is one of the ways I enjoy having them.  You have a lovely layer of cheesy potatoes on the bottom, topped with sliced franks.  Simple really and a great way to use up leftover cooked potatoes.  I did a very small batch of this, just to serve myself.

I enjoyed this with some homemade coleslaw and, again, a slice of buttered bread.  It was a simple and very fulfilling supper that I really enjoyed.

WEDNESDAY, March 27th - Dinner out with my father, sister and his friend Hazel

Most Wednesday nights I go out for supper with my family and friends. We go to The Big Scoop which is a local eatery. I did not go last week, but since my sister was going this week and was driving, I did go.  I thoroughly enjoyed my meal.  My sister had the special which was a Double Cheeseburger with coleslaw and Everything Bagel Fries.  My dad and Hazel both had the Grilled Haddock Dinner. I chose to have a simple Bacon Cheeseburger with coleslaw and fries, no double patty for me.  It was so good I am still thinking about it!  It is not often I enjoy a burger as much as I did that one. That's because their burgers are all homemade, not frozen patties.

In its place I am sharing my recipe for the Smash Burger.  Two portions of ground beef, smashed and grilled to perfection with plenty of cheese in the center on a toasted bun with your favorite condiments. This is truly delicious.

THURSDAY, March 28th - Quick & Easy Cheesy Chicken & Potatoes

My sister and I had spent some time going through my freezer and refrigerator this week and I ended up with some chicken breasts that needed using up.  I made myself a delicious skillet meal of Quick & Cheesy Chicken & Potatoes.  A small batch recipe.   Chunks of potato are combined with perfectly seasoned pieces of chicken  both of which have been pan fried until golden brown. They are then combined with a simple cheesy creamy pan sauce.  A bit more cheese is scattered on top to melt. This is really tasty and such a quick and easy thing to throw together.

I enjoyed this with a tossed salad on the side.  It was quite simply lovely. I loved the ease at which it all went together.

FRIDAY, March 29th - Supper at Cindy's

My sister invited me over for supper. She was making pizza. I love her pizza. She makes a really nice one topped with sausage and bacon, peppers, olives, onions, mushrooms. She had this with a tossed salad and for dessert we enjoyed Orange Pineapple Ice Cream that Dan had got at work.  It was a really delicious meal and the best part was spending it with family.   

I am sharing my own recipe for New York Style Pizza in it's place.   I have never been to New York and had their pizza, so I cannot speak for it's authenticity, but I can tell you that this is one very tasty pizza.

SATURDAY, March 30th - Dinner out with the family

My father wanted to take us all out for dinner and took us to Swiss Chalet in New Minas. Dad really loves going there, and we like spending the time together as a family. Dan did the driving. (Thank you Dan!)  Dad and I enjoyed the quarter chicken dinner.  Dan had a burger and Cindy had the same.  The best part was being together.  I love spending time with my family.

In it's place I am sharing my recipe for Lemon Roasted Chicken Legs.  You don't need elaborate when you are talking about meat which is quite delicious to begin with.  These chicken legs are rubbed with softened butter. I, then, scatter lemon zest, salt, pepper and parsley over top.  The juice of the lemon is squeezed over finally, and they are cooked in the oven to perfection. Crispy skinned and delicious.  Rice and vegetables go awfully well, as do mashed potatoes.  The pan juices are lovely spooned over top.

And those were my Meals of the Week for this week. I think you will agree I, once again, ate very well!

I wanted to share some photos of my sister's new kittens with you. Sully is the black one and Gus is the grey one. They are totally adorable, so much fun to play with and have beautifully engaging personalities.

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