Meals of the Week, October 6th - October 12th, 2024

 

Hi everyone and welcome to my Sunday Meals of the Week post.  Every Sunday I like to do a recap of all of the meals that I have enjoyed as my main meals over the past seven days, and from the feedback that I get from all of you, this is something that you also enjoy seeing!

I like to cook, and I like to eat, and I don't ever want any of it to be boring.  Now, in my golden years, I find myself having had to go from cooking for a large family down to cooking for just myself.  I also find myself having to live on a limited budget, so meal planning is something which really works for me.

When you live on your own, the temptation can be strong to want to eat only ready meals, or frozen dinners, or from cans.  It can sometimes seem like too much effort to cook for only yourself.  But, I am here to tell you, YOU ARE WORTH THE EFFORT!  You really are.

Even if you are a smaller family, or a couple of empty nesters, cooking for yourself is so much healthier and cheaper.  All of those processed foods are always high in salt, sugar and fat. Cooking for yourself helps you to control that and to eat much healthier and actually, cooking from scratch, you get a lot more bang for your buck as well!

Why waste time and money on highly processed foods when, with only a tiny bit of effort and a lot less dosh, we can cook simple, nutritious and healthy meals for ourselves. That is my goal.  And in that process my goal is to also share them with you in an effort to inspire you to want to do the same!  

Whether you cook for yourself, or a small family, or a large family.  There are plenty of things here to tempt your tastebuds.  And all of them are quite adaptable to cook for a large family or a small family or a singleton.  Got questions about that?  Just ask and I am only too happy to help!

Usually I will eat my main meal at noon.  For breakfasts, I normally have a protein shake or some overnight oats, sometimes a bowl of oatmeal. My suppers are usually something light, such as a sandwich, or a salad, sometimes toast and occasionally a bowl of cereal.

Here are the main meals that I indulged in over the past seven days. I truly hope that you will find something here to tempt your tastebuds to want to cook for yourself also!

SUNDAY, October 6th - Easy Crockpot Ham & Bean Soup

Normally on Sundays I have a family dinner at my sister's place. We did it on Saturday last week and had cabbage rolls.  I stayed home this week for Sunday and watched the General Conference of my church which I thoroughly enjoyed, along with this really delicious soup. It was very simple to make and surprisingly quite hearty.  I enjoyed it with crackers and then I had a cheeky pot of vanilla pudding with some whippy cream on it for my dessert.

I gave half of it to my next-door neighbor who also enjoyed it very much. A pleasure shared is a joy doubled!

MONDAY, October 7th - Garlic Cashew Chicken 

This is something that I had not made myself in a very long time. It is a dish I really enjoy. I love any kind of casserole filled with veggies and color.  They are also a great way to stretch a small amount of meat.  

With an abundance of crunchy vegetables and a delicious sauce, this tasty casserole appeals on many levels.  It's also healthy and diabetic friendly.  A very tasty meal in one,  although you could certainly enjoy a salad or some crusty bread on the side if you are a really hearty eater.

I cut the recipe down by 2/3 to make only 2 servings and froze the second serving to enjoy at another time.

TUESDAY, October 8th - Air Fryer Hot Dogs

Every once in a while, I get a real hankering for a hot dog. These days I like to cook them in my air fryer.  It does a really great job! With all of my favorite hot dog fixings, mustard, relish and topped with some cheese and crispy onions.

Normally I would make some mac and cheese to enjoy with my hot dog. They go so well together, but this week I did air fryer chips.  Not such a healthy meal I guess, but at least none of it was fried in the conventional way!

WEDNESDAY, October 9th - Dinner at the Big Scoop

Most Wednesday nights I go out for dinner with my father and his friend Hazel to the Big Scoop, which is a local diner type of restaurant.  This week my sister decided to join us.

Dad had his favorite, a Hot Diggity Dog with chips.  Hazel had the grilled haddock dinner.  She likes that because it comes with a roll and vegetables.  Cindy had the double cheeseburger special with onion rings and a coffee. I had their Beef Stew Special with a roll.  It was pretty good but not quite as good as my Oven Braised Beef Stew.  And that is the recipe I am sharing with you on this occasion. 

It is always delicious and freezes very well.  In fact, it tastes even better after freezer. Stews and soups are more often than not like that I find!

THURSDAY, October 10th - Lunch out with Cindy

My sister and I wanted to take a trip up to Jonnys in Berwick before it closes for the season, plus we had a few other errands to do up that way and so we went out to lunch together.  What a beautiful drive it was. The sun was shining and the leaves were looking just beautiful.

Cindy had an order of their Beer Fries with a side of stuffing and some gravy.  I had an order of Beer Fries with their Crispy Chicken Sandwich. It was good, and I loved the fries, but it was not as good as my homemade Crispy Chicken Sandwich! Complete with a garlic mayo, brioche bun and a tangy homemade coleslaw vinaigrette my homemade version is pretty hard to beat!

My dad had been suffering with a cold on Wednesday night and my sister was starting to feel a bit punky by Thursday afternoon. She called me Thursday evening to tell me that they had both tested positive for Covid.  This meant all of our Thanksgiving plans for this weekend were now put on hold.  I had to call my son and cancel and to cancel the motel rooms I had booked for them, etc. 

Having spent so much time in close proximity to my father and sister, I think I will be very lucky if I don't also come down with it.

FRIDAY, October 11th - Pepperpot Soup 

It was a quiet day for me on Friday. I puttered about the house. I did another YouTube video which you can see here (Peanut Butter "Butter" Cookies) It kept me pretty busy most of the day.  I made myself a simple soup because that is pretty much all I was feeling.

Pepperpot Soup is a very simple soup and one which I have been making for years. I got the recipe from the Fanny Farmer Cooking School Cookbook, and it is delicious with potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, green peppers, all in a creamy base.  Extraordinarily flavorful and it also freezes well. I enjoyed with a grilled cheese sandwich for a simple supper.

SATURDAY, October 13th - Salmon and Broccoli Cakes

I will put my hand up right now and admit to all and sundry that I am not fond of Nova Scotia Fish Cakes. They use salt cod to make them, or chicken haddie and it is not my favorite thing at all.  

If I am going to enjoy a fish cake, I prefer to make my own, and these Salmon & Broccoli Fish Cakes are a real favorite of mine. They are a delicious fish cake made from poached salmon, broccoli and potato, with dill and lemon. You can also use tinned salmon to make them in a pinch. I used some leftover cooked salmon I had frozen from last week's Crispy Coated Honey Mustard Baked Salmon, which I used for this.  Waste not want not!

 You know salmon and broccoli are beautiful flavor partners, and these fish cakes are really delicious. Two of these really fill me up.  I enjoyed with a wedge of lemon and some salad on the side. For someone who is looking for a heartier meal you could add some macaroni and cheese on the side as well.

And there you have it, these were my Meals of the Week for the past week. I think I ate pretty well.  What do you think? None of it was very complicated at all, and I think it was pretty healthy for the most part.  It was also quite well within my budget.   I hope that you will be inspired to want to cook at least a few of these things for yourself!

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