Meal Planning

Time for weekly meal planning.  This week is the 4th of July, so I want to make some kind of cook-out style food that day, and I need to pick up supplies for making S'mores with Sameer while we watch the town fireworks display from our deck (last year Sophie cuddled with us through it while Simran was asleep already in her crib -- I'm hoping for a similar experience this year).  Here is what I currently have leftover in my fridge that needs using up:  one bunch of green kale, one head of green leaf lettuce, about 8 oz of fire-roasted corn (previously frozen but now thawed), one sliced red bell pepper, one chopped sweet potato, and about two chopped carrots.  You may notice I'm making a lot of dishes and with more new recipes than usual.  This is because Simran has been somewhat pickier lately than before and has started rejecting foods that she previously liked.  My goal is to give her enough healthy options at each meal that I can be sure she won't go hungry (and that I won't cave and just increase her intake of cinnamon-raisin toast and hemp milk).  I usually try to get her to eat at least two bites of each dish (followed by letting her fill up on as much fruit as she wants), and I figure eventually she'll learn to like most of them.  Here is what I'm planning to make this week:

New York-Style Veggie Pizza and Kale with Walnut Sauce
I already had pizza dough in the freezer, so I threw it in the fridge before bed last night to thaw, figuring I'd make this meal tonight.  The place we'd planned to get takeout from was closed this past week, so we ran out of planned meals two days early and have just been making do.  We have leftover mozzarella from last time I made this pizza, and it will also use up the last of the kale in the fridge.

Thai Green Curry with Brown Rice
We make this almost every week, and it will use up the chopped sweet potato.

Veggie Sushi and Miso Soup and Green Banana Power Blended Salad
I love veggie sushi, but I've never mastered making it.  It seems like something Simran might be able to feed herself now (we have photos of her trying when she was younger), miso soup is tasty to me and will add the protein of tofu to the meal, and the blended salad is a new drinkable-sounding recipe from Joel Fuhrman's Disease-Proof Your Child.  I figure between all this stuff Simran will find enough of it edible to fill herself up.

Vegetable Manchurian with White Rice and Broccoli Stir-Fried with Orange and Toasted Garlic and Hot-and-Sour Cabbage Salad
This will be my first time making Vegetable Manchurian, but it sounds pretty simple aside from the frying, which is not something I'm used to doing.  The broccoli and cabbage dishes both come from Esselstyn's Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

Black Bean Burgers and Broccoli with Garlic and Split Pea and Tofu Dog Soup
I think this will make a decent 4th of July meal.  The broccoli with garlic is a new-to-me recipe from Joel Fuhrman's book, but it sounds almost exactly like another garlic broccoli recipe I used to make and love.  The soup is also from Fuhrman and sounded like a fun and healthy way to introduce Simran to tofu dogs, which I enjoy having on summer holidays.  I already have the burgers pre-made and waiting in the freezer.  I think I have more than two in there anyway.

Chilli Garlic Noodles and Asian Chik'n Salad
I'm making these noodles and Vegetable Manchurian the same week because they have so many ingredients in common (e.g., cabbage and green onions) that would probably end up going to waste otherwise.  I've made Asian Chik'n Salad before with Morningstar Chik'n Strips, and it was good.

Healthy Taco Salad
I'm going to just make this one up myself.  It'll be similar to the black beans and rice I made last week, but since it's hard to get Simran to eat beans, I'll either puree them into refried beans (maybe with roasted red peppers) or make some kind of fake meat, like seasoned tofu or ground seitan.

Spaghetti Marinara?  
I'll just keep ingredients on hand to make spaghetti in case we still need another meal between now and next Sunday night.