Meal Planning

I've got a lot of cheese planned for this week.  Not on purpose, but I'm not going to go out of my way to come up with more vegan stuff right now either.  I'm hoping these are all dishes Simran will eat.  Here is what I have in the fridge to use up this week:  a red bell pepper, about half a chopped zucchini, nearly a pound of fresh spinach, half a chopped sweet potato, some julienne carrots, some chopped red onion, an avocado, and two Roma tomatoes.  Here is what I'm planning to make:

Gnocchi with Spinach and White Beans
I have tons of spinach to use up, and this is a great dish for doing that.  Simran didn't like the gnocchi the last time I made it, but I also ran it through her baby food processor -- something I don't bother doing anymore because she can chew most things and hates pureed food that won't allow her to do that.

Pita Pizzas and Winter Squash Puree and Kale with Walnut Sauce
I have some walnut sauce to use up, and I want to keep serving Simran kale occasionally so that I know when she starts liking it again.  (Sameer and I have gotten a little sick of the kale in walnut sauce too after having it nearly every day for weeks, but add a little coriander/garlic chutney and it's different and good again.)  The pita pizzas are really easy and will use up the Roma tomatoes and some more spinach (since I plan on needing another entire container of it this week).  The squash puree is just a plastic baggy of frozen squash puree from the organic frozen vegetables section of the grocery store that I heat up in boiling water.  It'll add some nutrition and color and variety to the meal, albeit without adding a lot of flavor.

Summer Vegetable Crepes and Sauteed Sweet Potato and Fruit Salad
I figure I'll just saute the leftover cubed sweet potato in a little olive oil -- Sim likes it that way when it's in Thai green curry -- and serve it as a side dish on its own.  I'm not sure what I'll put in the fruit salad, but stone fruits are in season, and we end most of our meals eating / feeding Sim enormous amounts of sliced stone fruits anyway.  I might just pre-chop some peaches, plums, and cherries for this.  We all loved the crepes the last time I made them, and they will use up the leftover zucchini in the fridge.

Falafel and Cucumber Yogurt Salad
Simran hasn't had falafel before, but I think she'll enjoy feeding it to herself.  It will also use up the pita pockets leftover from the pita pizzas.  I want to serve some sort of light salad alongside the falafel and immediately thought of Jerusalem salad like our favorite falafel shop serves, but I would rather it have a light yogurt base than the heavy tahini base, so I'm going to chop up some cucumber and Roma tomatoes (like in Jerusalem salad) and maybe some red onion and mix it with the same yogurt sauce I make for the falafel.  I'd say it's going to be like raita, but it will be more vegetable than yogurt and have fewer seasonings than raita -- just salt, white pepper, and garlic.  I might buy a little container of hummus and some pita chips from Whole Foods too, just to eat.

Red Chile Cheese Enchiladas and Red Cabbage Slaw
I asked for Sameer's input on what meals to make this week, and he suggested making enchiladas again since we all like them.

Creamy Avocado & White Bean Wraps and Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Since we're doing enchiladas again this week, we'll have lots of red cabbage to use up again this week.  This meal will also use up those julienne carrots, red onion, and avocado in the fridge.  This is the only vegan meal I have planned for the week.

Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Spinach and Goat Cheese and Wild Rice Pilaf and Green Salad
I have been wanting to try marinated mushrooms again ever since the barbecued mushrooms were such a bust, and I found this new recipe.  It sounds delightful and rich, so I'm pairing it with a light rice pilaf and green salad -- maybe with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette.  Based on the recipes I've looked at, my rice pilaf will probably just be white basmati and black wild rice mixed together and cooked in vegetable broth and a tablespoon of butter.