Meal Planning

Time for weekly meal planning.  Here is what's currently in the fridge to use up:  a couple romaine lettuce hearts, half a cup of pumpkin puree, about a cup of cubed sweet potato, about half a pound of baby spinach, a couple of peeled carrots, one bunch of green kale, and a crown of broccoli.  Here's what I'm planning to make:

Red Lentil and Squash Curry Stew
I didn't get around to this one last week, so I'm making it tomorrow night.  I'll add the pumpkin puree and cubed sweet potato in addition to whatever butternut squash is in the freezer.  It'll use up the green kale in the fridge too.

Crispy Breaded Tofu Strips and Winter Squash Mac 'n Cheeze and Buffalo Hummus with Celery Sticks and Peas & Carrots
This meal went over well with everyone last week, so I'm making it again.

Veggie Summer Rolls with Spicy Peanut Lime Sauce and Green Banana Power Blended Salad
I plan to use up the last of the spring rolls skins with this recipe.  I figure I should put away the cold summer dishes like this one for awhile since it's getting all autumnal outside, but I do love this dish so much.  The green banana salad should use up the last of the spinach in the fridge too.

Black Bean Burgers and Curry Pumpkin Soup and Crudites with Homemade Ranch Dip
I'm making these burgers the tasty way -- served on pretzel rolls with sliced provolone and homemade chipotle mayo, among other things.  The ranch dip will finish off the broccoli and probably any baby carrots currently in the fridge.  The curry pumpkin soup is a favorite of both Simran's and mine.  We eat ALL the leftovers, and that's not something she will do with many other dishes.

Tofu Kiev and Wild Rice Pilaf and Peas & Carrots and Spiced Red Lentil, Tomato, & Kale Soup
I've wanted for a long time to find a really good stuffed tofu turkey recipe, and none of the ones I've tried have passed muster.  I saw single-serving stuffed tofu made by Gardein in the freezer section the other day and it got me thinking.  Since the crispy breaded tofu strips have been such a success, and because I used to LOVE Chicken Kiev from the freezer section before I went vegetarian, I thought I'd try making a vegetarian Chicken Kiev with tofu instead of meat.  It will give me a chance to try out hollowing out the tofu in a mold and filling it and using another basting/breadcrumb mixture without having to make a proper stuffing for the inside that may or may not heat through properly.  Plus, I figure even tofu cooked poorly can't be that bad when it's filled with herbed garlic butter.  I'm trying to keep the rest of the meal simple and relatively healthy on account of the effort and butter involved in the Tofu Kiev.

Spaghetti Marinara with Vegan Meatballs and Kale with Walnut Sauce
The vegan meatballs recipe is new to me.  It sounds healthy and good, so hopefully it will be worth what looks like a sizable amount of effort.

Pita Pizzas and Kale with Walnut Sauce
We haven't had pita pizzas in ages, but I'm getting sick of the Easy Healthy Veggie Pizzas, so I thought this would be a decent, reasonably healthy meal to make again.