Menu Plan Monday

• Sunday: Oatmeal, Pizza, Steak with mac & cheese and Moroccan beet salad
• Monday: Eggs and toast, out with my sil!, Fajita rice and Moroccan beet salad
• Tuesday: Bread pudding, Pea and corn soup, Aloo Gobhi (man, this stuff just keeps hanging around!)
• Wednesday: Rice, Chicken Soup (made too much last week), Roast beef with potatoes and candied carrots
• Thursday: Eggs with homefries, Pea and corn soup, Aloo Gobhi
• Friday: Pancakes, Chicken soup, Shepherd's pie with candied carrots and garlic bread
• Saturday: Muffins, Pea soup, Aroz C'atum with creamed bok choy

You may have noticed by now that I have a different breakfast scheduled for every day, and that those items repeat every week. When I started menu-planning, breakfast was a big impetus for the decision. You see, I'm one of those people who can easily skip breakfast. In order to make it more likely to happen, I need it to be scheduled--less thinking on my feet. It just so happens, though, that there are about seven things that I both like for breakfast and am willing to make. Having so many options also gives me the flexibility to shuffle things around to suit our schedule and dinner plans (I wouldn't schedule eggs for breakfast if we were having quiche for dinner, for example).

Lunch works on the premise that I make two soups at the beginning of the week that last us for lunch throughout the week. When the weather warms I will switch to making sandwiches every day. This week, the Pea and corn soup is another selection from Auguste Gay's New Presentation of Cooking.

With dinner, I plan for two main courses every week: primary and secondary. The primary main course we have on Sunday, and I reincarnate on Monday. In this case, Monday's dinner will be what I call Fajita Rice--sauteed bell pepper and onion with sliced beef, seasoned with pepper flakes and cumin, served over rice with guacamole and sour cream. After Monday, I alternate the primary and secondary through the week. This week, I anticipate running out of both by the end of the week, so I will defrost some leftover Aroz C'atum to round things out.

My plans also take into account various other leftovers hanging around my fridge, since my goal is not to go shopping this week. For example, when we have eggs and homefries for breakfast, the eggs will be scrambled and include some sauteed mushrooms and onions we have leftover from dinner with my mother last night, along with some green onions and one of the bell peppers I bought on clearance last week. The shepherd's pie, while using beef from this week's roast, will also feature some leftover chicken gravy I have hanging around the fridge. The bread pudding, which has taken the place of French toast this week, will use some of the banana muffins I made for this past Friday's breakfast and for snacking this week. Waste not, want not! :D

For more menu planning, check out Org Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.