Let’s talk about summer meal planning.
I find it’s more difficult to plan our weekly meal plan during the summer months. Perhaps that’s counterintuitive to what you may think given the abundance of vegetables growing in our garden, but that’s the very reason why it’s so tough! I am constantly on the search for creative ways to use up our bowls of tomatoes & piles of squash, aside from my usual canning & freezing for the winter months ahead.
I’ve shared several tips & tricks for budgeting & meal planning (here, here & here), but I’ve never shared how my system adjusts during the summer months.
As with every season, I assess what we have. I check my pantry, dig around in the freezer, walk the garden & talk to Luke about what we’ll be harvesting this week. Once I’ve got a pretty general idea of what ingredients we already have on hand, I make a plan.
I pull out my favorite cookbooks (I’m a huge fan of Simply in Season & the Skinnytaste cookbooks), check my recipe box, gather saved recipes from magazines & scan my saved images on Instagram (I love that new feature!).
Once I have my recipes, I check our weekly calendar of events & plan our meals out for the next seven days (this is my favorite meal planner to date – it has the detachable shopping list, which I love). I typically only plan dinners & fill in our lunches with leftovers/sandwiches/salads & breakfasts with peanut butter toast/eggs/smoothies.
Here’s this week’s meal plan:
M: Peach & Tomato Salad (from Better Homes and Gardens)
TU: Zucchini Garden Chowder (Simply in Season)
W: Pizza Lasagna Roll Ups (Emily Bites)
TH: Grilled chicken with squash & basil salad (Simply in Season)
F – SU: Camping! (Separate meal plan)
I typically only jot down the main meal & add in fresh sides as we harvest vegetables from the garden (sautéed zucchini, roasted new potatoes, cucumber salad, etc).
As for potlucks, picnics & special events throughout the week, I make a note of sides & desserts I will need to bring.
Last week I brought along this delicious caprese salad dish to book club & thought I’d share the recipe with you!
Caprese Salad on a Stick
Ingredients:
– Cherry tomatoes, halved
– Handful of fresh basil
– Mini mozzarella balls
– Balsamic vinegar
– Olive oil
– Course sea salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
– Toothpicks or mini serving sticks for taste-testing
Directions:
Pierce one ball of mozzarella on your mini stick or toothpick followed by a leaf of basil, half of a tomato, another leaf of basil & a second ball of mozzarella. Place on a cookie sheet & repeat until you have enough tomato/basil/mozzarella sticks for your gathering.
Drizzle olive oil & vinegar on each stick. Sprinkle salt & pepper to your preferred taste. Transfer the sticks from the cookie sheet to a pretty serving tray. Refrigerate or serve immediately. Enjoy!
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How do you use up the abundance of produce in the garden during the summer months & plan your weekly meal plan? Share your thoughts below!
love,
natalie
We’ve made quite a few food changes in our home over the last two years (more on that soon, I promise!). One of those big changes includes regulating our processed sugar-intake. Of course, we love dessert & would never eliminate it from our diets. But as with all things, moderation is key.
I love a delicious slice of cake or pie just like the rest of ’em, but I’ve come to appreciate & even crave the simple sweetness of fruit. There’s nothing quite like in-season berries during the summer months!
In celebration of Berries & Cherries Sale at Whole Foods Market (starting June 28th through July 4th!), I thought I’d share my favorite ever-evolving crumble recipe! You can use any berry that you like, mixing & matching whatever you may already have in the fridge or freezer.
I so appreciate that Whole Foods Market offers a wide variety of fruit that is organic, responsibly grown and/or local because you will find cherries & some berries on this year’s Dirty Dozen List! Whole Foods has a commitment to supporting farmers and their families who address sustainability, soil health, pesticide use, worker welfare, water quality & so much more. Plus, who doesn’t love to save a buck or two during this upcoming week’s berry & cherry sale?!
I plan to bring this crumble recipe with us to the river this weekend for our family’s Fourth of July festivities! It’s also a delicious addition to any summer potluck or enjoyed on the front porch during the heat of the day & it’s so much easier to throw together than baking a fancy pie.
It’s quick to make with simple ingredients & was inspired by my friend, Amanda (@awilsonwellness on Instagram), & her yummy blueberry crumble. I must mention, she’s a wealth of knowledge if you’re looking to incorporate more whole foods into your daily diet.
I hope you enjoy this crumble just as much as our family does!
See below for recipe…
Berry Cherry Crumble
Ingredients:
– 4 cups of berries & cherries (pitted), fresh or frozen… I used frozen cherries & fresh blueberries both from Whole Foods & their quality was amazing!
– 1 cup old fashioned oats
– 1/2 cup almond meal
– 1/4 cup halved pecans
– 1/4 cup maple syrup
– 2 tablespoons olive oil
– 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– dash of cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mist a pie dish with olive oil spray & layer your berry/cherry mixture inside the dish. Set aside.
In a medium-sized bowl, mix together oats & almond meal. Sprinkle the pecan halves on top, crushing them in your hands as you add them to the bowl. Add maple syrup, olive oil, vanilla extra, salt & cinnamon to your bowl & mix until your oats are wet & the ingredients are lumpy.
Spoon your lumpy oat mixture on top of the fruit until a thin layer is covering most of the berries & cherries. Bake for 40-45 minutes until your fruit is bubbling. Turn on the broil & allow to cook for 3-5 minutes until the top oat layer is golden brown.
Enjoy with a delicious scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on the front porch!
Do let me know if you try this recipe with your bounty of berries & cherries this season!
love,
natalie
*Disclosure: I have a partnership with Whole Foods Market & was compensated for my work, but all words & opinions, recipes & inspiration are my own.
A quiet, cloudy morning with an armful of recipe books, fresh flowers, my new weekly meal planner (sold at our shop – oh, I love it so!), hot coffee & the laundry basket nearby.
I find it so important to carve out time at the beginning of the week to set my intentions for the days to follow. A large part of that time is spent meal planning. Our meal planning & prep has looked different over the years, but it still remains one practice I cannot do without.
This week I thought I’d share our meal plan for the week along with recipes & what we’re harvesting from the garden.
Harvested from the garden: Lots & lots of greens. I plan to eat a large salad every day this week. We also harvested radishes, a delicious topping on homegrown greens. I want to also use up frozen broccoli from our freezer because a crop is coming in soon. If we don’t end up with a generous amount of leftovers on Sunday, I’ll make a crustless quiche with our bounty of farm fresh eggs.
Week of April 17th – April 23rd Meal Plan
Monday: Broccoli, cheese & potato soup with salad
Tuesday: Strawberry, blue cheese & poppyseed salad with rolls
Wednesday: *Date with Oliver* Flatbread pizzas with salad
Thursday: *Family dinner night with Luke’s family*
Friday: Fried rice with chicken wontons (from Trader Joe’s)
Saturday: Chili cornbread bake with light salad
Sunday: Leftovers
Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead… please share your planned meals for the week in the comments below!
love,
natalie