Menu Plan Monday for a Busy Week

About Menu Plan Monday

Menu Plan Monday is hosted by Organizing Junkie. I try to post a dinner menu every week, but it does not always happen. All foods that I post are appropriate for a healthy pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, and childhood. Most of the foods I use are appropriate for people with allergies to milk, peanut, sesame, and egg (my son is allergic to those foods and I don't like to cook 2 different meals).

We have something going on after work almost every day this week. Therefore, I planned very simple and quick meals that can be somewhat-prepared the night before. I hope you find them useful too.

Monday
Crock Pot Lentil Soup and Hearty Bread

Crock Pot Lentil Soup
1 pound (16 oz.) dry lentils, rinsed
1 cup chopped celery
2 chopped onions
8-10 baby carrots cut in thirds
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried basil, crushed
1/2 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1/4 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
3 bay leaves
8-10 cups water (do you like thick soup?)
1 tablespoon salt
1 box chopped or stewed tomatoes
1/4 c. snipped fresh parsley
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. balsamic or red wine vinegar

Put everything except vinegar in your crock pot the night before or in the morning. Cook on low for 8 hours. Stir in vinegar before serving. Serve with a hearty bread.

Variations: Add small pieces of smoked turkey or hot dogs to the crock pot. Or top with Parmesan cheese.

Tuesday
Broiled Cod and Bulgur with vegetables

Broiled Cod
Marinate cod (or other fish) in Italian dressing the night before. Use the dish you plan to broil in and drain off dressing in the morning. Broil for about 10 minutes or until finished.

Bulgur
Follow instructions on package but add one bag of frozen vegetables of your choice to the water before boiling. You can prepare the veggies/water the night before and keep in the fridge. Spice to taste.

Wednesday
Crock Pot Taco Meat with avocado and taco shells

Crock Pot Taco Meat
1 pound chopped beef or bison
1 cup of salsa
Some water (1/2-3/4 cup)
Pinto or black beans (canned or pre-soaked dry beans)

Place all ingredients in crock pot, cook on low for 5-8 hours. Serve in taco shells.

Thursday
Tuna melt on whole wheat bread with sliced veggies or side salad.

Tuna can be prepared the night before. I like using the food processor to chop some carrots and celery in it before I add the tuna. We use chunk light tuna to minimize mercury poisoning. To learn more about safe fish, read this post. Due to my son's food allergies, we use Vegenaise instead of mayonnaise- it is surprisingly great!

Note: I have been trying to use dry beans and boxed tomatoes (like Pomi) in an effort to reduce our BPA consumption. To read more about BPA, click here.

Enjoy your meals!
Debra