Meal Planning

Time for weekly meal planning.  I ended up skipping a few of the side dishes I had planned for last week, mostly because I was missing an ingredient or because I ended up making something that was planned for another night instead.  Vegetable Manchurian went badly because it turns out I need detailed instructions on how to fry something (e.g., how high the heat should be, how long to fry it, how to tell when it's done).  We ended up eating most of them anyway, but I didn't make the sauce at all.  I left out the chilli paste in order to keep it bland enough for Simran, and she and Sameer seemed to enjoy them well enough.  I don't think we'd fed her any deep-fried foods before that, so I guess all the oil was a novelty.  At least I managed to use the entire head of Napa cabbage over the course of the week.  That was an accomplishment.

This week I have the following in my fridge to use up:  one bunch green kale, about half a zucchini chopped, a green bell pepper sliced, half a brick of silken tofu, half a red onion, and several peeled carrots.  Here is what I'm planning to make:

Thai Green Curry
This will use up the bell pepper and zucchini, and I should be able to just throw in the silken tofu too, in addition to the usual extra firm tofu.

Healthy Burritos
These are a pretty easy, tasty, and healthy way to use up random leftover vegetables.  "Healthy" here basically means no cheese, no sour cream.  I've started buying no-oil whole-grain tortillas (Food for Life and Engine #2 brands both make these and sell them in the refrigerated section at Whole Foods), so the only thing Esselstyn wouldn't approve of here is the avocado or guacamole I always include (I find I don't even miss the cheese if there is avocado).  Everything else is just whatever you like in burritos -- beans, rice, salsa, fire-roasted corn and red bell peppers, pico de gallo, tomatoes, lettuce, etc.  Plus Simran can easily deconstruct the burritos and feed herself.  She loves the tortillas and lettuce in particular.

Black Bean Nacho Pizza and Kale with Walnut Sauce
This is one of the healthier ways we have pizza since it has a whole wheat crust (not 100% whole wheat, but better than nothing) and a black bean / roasted red pepper mixture as the sauce.  Plus Sameer and I love eating it covered in pickled jalapenos, and Simran always likes pizza of any kind.

Creamy Avocado & White Bean Wraps and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
We haven't had these wraps in awhile, and they'll use up some of the carrots in the fridge, and I'm trying hard to include more vegan meals this week since so many I'm planning this week have dairy in them.  Plus, Simran likes feeding herself sandwich-type foods like this.

Penne alla Vodka
This should use up some of the carrots and whatever bell peppers are left over from other dishes.  It's also full of vegetables and really quick and easy.

Red Chile Cheese Enchiladas and Red Cabbage Slaw
These are really good enchiladas from EatingWell.com that I've been making for years but apparently never posted here.  I always like eating them with red cabbage slaw, which will use up more of the red cabbage I need to buy for the avocado & white bean wraps.

Spaghetti Marinara and Green Banana Power Blended Salad
I didn't end up making the blended salad last week, so I'll do it this week.  I'm really curious to see if it's edible or just disgusting.  Spaghetti is an easy, vegan stand-by.