Tender roast beef and mushroom poutine, broccoli and cheddar soup, slow cooker italian turkey meatballs, zuppa toscana soup and meatball subs.
This week it was back to work and school for us - the "grind" so to speak. The first Monday back after a break is always tough, and mornings the rest of the week are never great. It is so hard to get up! It was also a busier week than usual, with a lot of appointments. As always, I was grateful for the slow cooker, and quick and easy meals.
We've been having a little problem with leftovers around here. We have too many! I ordered a new slow cooker yesterday (this one), which automatically adjusts the temperature based on how full it is. I hope to start cutting down the number of servings some of our meals make, and hopefully this will keep things from burning as well. I am not excited about trying to store two slow cookers, but my 6-quart is just a little too big for 4 people sometimes.
These days my dad is really struggling with his appetite, and frankly, leftovers served more than once are just not appealing (to any of us, really!) I hope that by cutting back on how many servings I make, we will have fewer leftovers. I hate wasting food, but there are few things worse than being faced with a meal that you just can't face because you've eaten it twice already... (First world problems, I know...) However, when your appetite is already waning, and it is important that you don't lose weight, I think it is vital to keep meals as appealing as possible.
On the menu - January 6 - 12, 2019:
Sunday Gravy Smothered Beef and Mushrooms with cheese curds, Crispy Garlic Baked Potato Wedges and green salad
This has been on my list to try for weeks, and I am so glad that I finally got around to making it this weekend. It was AH-mazing and elicited a "wow" from my son, which hasn't happened in a while... Eating leftovers of this dish was not an issue, and it made a perfect 8 servings - just enough for everyone to have it twice, which was awesome. My son has requested that I make it at least once a month. This was just like poutine, only healthier. I would highly recommend that you give this recipe a try. I served it with potato wedges, seasoned just with salt and pepper. I felt like the garlic and parmesan in the original recipe would have competed with the beefy goodness of this stew. You can also serve it over mashed potatoes if you'd like to keep it lighter.
Monday leftovers / eat out / takeout
Tuesday Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup with fresh buns and cold meat
This has been our favourite broccoli cheese soup for a long time. Super yummy. I find that broccoli is one of those vegetables that we don't love warmed up as a leftover, and we don't always eat all that I cook. I hate to waste it, so I throw any extras in a ziploc bag in the freezer and once I have a good bit, I like to make this soup. (You can also use a combination of broccoli and cauliflower). Instead of adding the broccoli with the carrot, onions and celery, I add it near the end and just warm it since it's already cooked. If you don't like the consistency of the broccoli after it's been frozen, you can puree this, although I chose not to the first time I served it. My son later requested that I puree it, and I think I actually prefer it that way. Either way it's a super way to eat more veggies.
Wednesday leftovers l eat out / takeout
Thursday Crock Pot Italian Turkey Meatballs with spaghetti and green salad
I haven't made this in a while, but these meatballs in a rich tomato sauce are delicious. I love that they are made with ground turkey (and are therefore leaner than ground beef) and that the prep is quick and easy. This was another winner according to my son. This time we were disappointed that we didn't have enough leftovers for everyone for another meal. I was planning to make Meatball Subs with the leftovers, but there was only enough for one serving (which suited the boy just fine!) Mom and Dad really enjoyed this meal. Another time, I think I would double this recipe to make sure there are lots of leftovers. One pound of ground turkey yielded about 26 1.5" meatballs. I also like to freeze leftover pasta and sauce for school lunches, and if there was too much of this recipe after doubling it, I would definitely do that. It's so nice to be able to pull something out of the freezer on a night when time is of the essence.
This is a copycat Olive Garden recipe. Since I haven't been to an Olive Garden in a very long time, I can't confirm how close it is to the original but it was really good. I used Hayter's Mild Italian Turkey Sausage. Dad has been craving kale for some reason, and this seemed like a tasty way to incorporate it into something everyone would like. And they did.
Saturday Easy Meatball Subs with green salad
If we'd had enough leftover meatballs for everyone from Thursday's dinner, I would have made these subs using those. As it was, I used frozen meatballs that I had in the freezer. I also substituted havarti cheese for the provolone and topped them with a little parmesan as well. I used submarine buns instead of hot dog buns (larger and sturdier to support all those meatballs!) Another thumbs up from the boy. Dad is doing a modified Keto diet these days, so the meatballs with sauce on their own worked well for him.
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