This week’s menu is a very special one because it includes three very important days: Wesley’s birthday, our 6th Paleo-versary, and Mother’s day! Plus, at the commencement of this meal plan, Stacy will be heading off for a dream trip to the Mediterranean with her father and sisters to visit the city where their grandmother was born and then enjoy a family cruise. So, this is the last plan for a couple weeks!
Stacy leaving for nearly two weeks is a big deal to the boys, so we’ve been talking about what we’ll do while she’s gone, counting down the days until she leaves, and making some her favorite meals… especially those that are usually full of nightshades that we’ve adapted to be nightshade-free (so she won’t feel as deprived surrounded by all the tomato-based dishes in Rome!).
There are some really good eats in this week’s meal plan, so lets get right into it!
♥♥♥
If you are just getting caught up on this series, feel free to check the archives of past meal plans HERE – we hope to help you incorporate balanced meals into your weekly planning.
Here’s what we ate for dinner this week:
Monday: Grilled Lamb Chops and Poached Pear Salad with Maple Balsamic Dressing
—> Grilled Lamb Chops from The Organic Butcher of McLean from Make it Paleo II
—> Poached Pear Salad with Maple Balsamic Make it Paleo II
Don’t freak out – remember that budget post we made here and on social media? These lamb chops were included! When you plan out your week you can balance proteins – from seafood, ruminants and chicken. Both from an amino acid, healthy fats, and affordability of different kind of cuts.
It sounds fancy, but this meal was actually really simple! And sooo good. We smothered both the salad and the grilled lamb chops in the Maple Balsamic Dressing (which we highly recommend!). The grilled chops were insanely delicious – tender and healthy from pastured lambs and perfectly off-set by the acid yet sweet sauce. The boys fought over the last chopped and literally licked their plates.
Tuesday: French Onion Soup and Meatloaf
—> French Onion Soup recipe from our blog, courtesy of The Bare Bones Broth Cookbook
—> Meatloaf recipe from our blog smothered in Fauxmato Sauce (<— recipe also on our blog!)
This pair is a common appearance on our dinner table- and one that Cole originally thought up! This soup, with crispy potato topping, goes great with our meatloaf.
Wednesday: Peruvian Chicken, Yuca, and Salad
—> Peruvian Chicken recipe from our blog and in Real Life Paleo
—> Yuca recipe from Real Life Paleo and Beyond Bacon
—> Salad is whatever veg we have in the fridge, but you can find inspiration here!
A recipe we re-created based on one of our favorite local restaurants, this chicken is incredibly tender and has just the right amount of flavor. Yuca is simple to make (check your co-ops freezer section for already baked, frozen yuca) and tastes like a big pillowy french fry… perfect with this roasted chicken!
Thursday: Chicken and Roasted Vegetable Soup
—> Chicken and Roasted Vegetable Soup recipe from Against All Grain
We planned extra chicken into our menu yesterday, so that we had leftovers to make this soup! That means all we had to do was roast up the veggies and throw everything together with our favorite broth!
Friday: Wesley’s Birthday Dinner and 6-Year Paleo-versary!
It’s dinner out for us tonight… and comic book hero cupcakes for the birthday boy! We made angel food cupcakes with melted chocolate on top because they’re nut-free for Wes to take to school!
Saturday: Honey Sesame Wings and Japchae
—> Honey Sesame Wings recipe from Make it Paleo II
—> Japchae recipe from The Domestic Man
We love simple yet flavorful food – which is exactly what these two dishes are! The wings couldn’t have been easier to make, and the sweet sticky sauce went perfectly with our favorite sweet potato noodle (find them here!) and veggie Japchae.
Gorgeous photo courtesy of The Domestic Man
Sunday: Pad Se Ew with Beef, Chicken Massaman Curry, Mango Sticky (not) Rice
—> Pad Se Ew with Beef from Paleo Takeout
—> Chicken Massaman Curry (adapted to be nightshade-free) from Paleo Takeout
—> Mango Sticky (not) Rice recipe from our blog
The request on Mother’s day was a full spread of ethnic “take-out food,” made at home and adapted to be nightshade-free! We spent the day together laughing, exploring one of our favorite cities, and watching the boys perform plays in superhero costumes for the family… it was perfect.
Monday: Leftovers
After the feast we had planned for Mother’s day yesterday, we knew we’d have plenty of leftovers!
Tuesday: Less-Lasagna and Salad
—> Less-Lasagna recipe from our blog
—> Salad is whatever veg we have in the fridge, but you can find inspiration here!
Stacy’s last meal at home before heading off across the globe! This nightshade-free lasagna was a strategic meal plan pick, as we knew Stacy would be surrounded by lots of pasta and tomato-based dishes in Italy that she won’t be partaking in.
♥♥♥
Books featured in our meal plans are among our favorites and ones we actually use!
Make it Paleo II | The Bare Bones Broth Cookbook | Real Life Paleo | Against All Grain | Paleo Takeout
