Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the w “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” – Roald Dahl ✨
We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister an We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister and her family were away. She has settled into a new routine here (ours 😂), and now doesn’t get up until after 9 am, stays up until well past midnight, eats a very late dinner, knows that the kitchen is where the magic happens and sits for a treat after her morning backyard visit. We’ve broken her in nicely but she will be returning with her continued bad habit of suffering from #fomo, playing tag with the cats, and barking every time she hears a door open or sees someone go up the street. We did our best. 😇
The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Gar The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Garlic butter and bleu cheese butter from @njgarlic (the bleu on steak! 😍), empanadas from @catalina_empanadas_2017, half sour pickles from @pickleculture and the quiche and bread were from a vendor I forgot to get the name of. This was all from the @bernardsvillefarmersmarket. Today I hit the @denvillemarket and added full sour pickles from @pickle_licious and a roasted garlic and duck fat loaf and cheese biscuit from @bobolinkdairyandbakehouse. Basically give us all the bread, cheese, butter and pickles and we’re happy campers! Did you hit up a farmers market this weekend? What’d ya get?
Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it is with the gnocchi from Trader Joe’s. Skip what their directions tell you and pan fry them in olive oil, add some of their 4-green bag of vegetables, salt, pepper, drizzles of pesto and a sprinkle of parm. So freaking good and dinner on the table faster than you can order take out. 🤤
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Press
  • Writing
  • Contact

Sweetnicks

Food and Life

Menu Plan, Week of October 20th

October 19, 2008 · Narrative

salty-bones.jpgA thoroughly fun family weekend, it included a Harvest Festival, a dinner party, pumpkin picking, pumpkin carving, a game of flag football, six new recipes and more.  Absolutely gorgeous weather that, although a tad chilly when the wind picked up, begged for you to be outside.  That said, I’m exhausted – much be too much fresh air – and caught myself falling asleep while lying down with the kids tonight, so a quick menu plan and I’m out.

Monday: $7 Dinner Challenge.  If you missed this, you can find the rules here, and the first challenge here.  Sarah and I are challenging everyone to roll out $7 dinners.  In light of the current economy, it’s not such a terrible thing, and we like a good challenge.  What am I making tomorrow?  I have no idea (although I have dessert figured out),  but we hope you’ll join in our new weekly fun.

Tuesday:  Fish.  It feels like forever since we’ve had fish, and I’ve got a hankering for it. I’m going to go with Pan-Seared Tilapia with Almond Browned Butter, a recipe from the 4/04 issue of Better Homes & Gardens. Baking with Nick: Maple-Walnut Spice Cookies from Cooking Light magazine.

Wednesday: Open/leftovers.  Making Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole from the 5/07 issue of Cooking Light magazine to conquer my what-am-I-going-to-eat-for-breakfast problems.

Thursday: Baked Fried Chicken, a new recipe from Penzey’s One magazine and a side of roasted broccoli and cauliflower that the boys won’t eat.  Baking with Nick: Salty Bones, a fun Halloween recipe from Family Fun magazine.

Friday:  Movie night!  High School Musical 3 hits the movie theaters, so we’re taking the kids out for a movie night.  HSM 1 and 2 were on television and didn’t appear on the big screen, so it will be a fun night out, and something to get us through the week.  Assuming, of course, that spending an evening in the movie theater with a bunch of hyped-up teeny boppers is a good thing.   Baking with Nick: Rachael Ray’s Penny’s PB&J Cookies.

Saturday: Spicy Spanish Sausages from Everyday Food, with South-of-the-Border Chorizon Burger Wraps from the 6/07 issue of Woman’s Day magazine.

That’s it for me this week… would love to hear what you’ve got cooking.

Hungry for more menu plans?
Check out Organizing Junkie for more than you can shake a stick at.

Photo from Family Fun.

Print Friendly, PDF & EmailPRINT

Posted In: Narrative

Comments

  1. Kris says

    October 20, 2008 at 8:23 am

    Sounds like you have a great weekend!

    Can’t wait to hear about Thursday’s dinner – I love fried chicken!

    My 8 year old is hitting the movies Friday night too with her friend for HSM3. Her school rented out one of the AMC theaters – it’s so nice to have everything prebought – admission tickets and snack tickets (which they will have a separate line for) – woohoo!

    Reply
  2. Patsy says

    October 20, 2008 at 8:29 am

    That tilapia sounds wonderful! Can’t wait to see how it turns out for you.

    I love that you are baking with Nicholas throughout the week. I was playing around with some cookie ideas last week and my 2 guys jumped in and helped, which was a lot of fun!

    Patsys last blog post..Cinnamon-Apple Cake

    Reply
  3. The Neighbor (Wife) says

    October 20, 2008 at 11:18 am

    I guess you and I are the “we’re” in taking the kids to the movies. Are the husband’s going?

    Reply
  4. Maris says

    October 20, 2008 at 1:02 pm

    Very excited to try my own $7 dinner challenge tonight…I have an idea all ready to go! :)

    Mariss last blog post..Let’s Go…Orange!

    Reply
  5. Cate says

    October 23, 2008 at 11:08 pm

    Kris – that’s definitely the easiest way to go to the movies. ;)

    Patsy – it was soooo good. Nicholas definitely loves to help in the kitchen. In fact, tonight he settled for washing out all of Madeline’s bottles. I’ll take it! I’ve found that the more he helps in making a recipe with me, the more inclined he would be to eat it. Every little bit helps.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Storytelling…
Through photos.
Words. And recipes.

Archives

Categories

Instagram

Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52

Pinterest

Over the years, I have slowly made my way around o Over the years, I have slowly made my way around our house … decorating, renovating and reorganizing it into a soft place to land. The only part that I haven’t touched that much are our yards (except for a fire pit area that went in two years ago, thank you pandemic). I want our outside to be as much as a sanctuary as our inside is, so I plan to spend the next year digging in (no pun intended 😂). I don’t have a green thumb, so feel free to spam me with all your awesome, low maintenance ideas as we create a Japanese-style zen garden. 🤩 I also hate gardening, so there’s that, but am hoping that some #gardentherapy changes my mind as much as it changes the space.
✌🏻 ✌🏻
About last night … we spontaneously decided to m About last night … we spontaneously decided to make a @crumblcookies run at 8:30 and snagged a front seat to Mother Nature’s show. 😍
I took five books with me when we went on a little I took five books with me when we went on a little vacation in May, and got through two of them, one of which was The Magnolia Story. You are, no doubt, familiar with Chip and Joanna Gaines, but you might not know how they became so popular or how their business exploded. This book, told by both of them, shares their journey from their dating stages to just a few years ago. It’s quite amazing how their path unfolded, with the universe seemingly guiding them every single step of the way. Every time they hit a crossroads, they received clear signs to continue to point them in the right direction. It was interesting to learn more about their story, and a great reminder that you need to trust in yourself and follow your passions, and everything really does just fall into place. Chip has his own book out too, Capital Gaines, which I added to my list after I read this one. If you’re curious about their story or just need confirmation to continue to chase your dreams, read this one. ✨ #catesbookaweek 6/52
“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the w “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” – Roald Dahl ✨
We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister an We’ve been dog sitting Gracie while my sister and her family were away. She has settled into a new routine here (ours 😂), and now doesn’t get up until after 9 am, stays up until well past midnight, eats a very late dinner, knows that the kitchen is where the magic happens and sits for a treat after her morning backyard visit. We’ve broken her in nicely but she will be returning with her continued bad habit of suffering from #fomo, playing tag with the cats, and barking every time she hears a door open or sees someone go up the street. We did our best. 😇
The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Gar The rewards of a weekend of farmers marketing! Garlic butter and bleu cheese butter from @njgarlic (the bleu on steak! 😍), empanadas from @catalina_empanadas_2017, half sour pickles from @pickleculture and the quiche and bread were from a vendor I forgot to get the name of. This was all from the @bernardsvillefarmersmarket. Today I hit the @denvillemarket and added full sour pickles from @pickle_licious and a roasted garlic and duck fat loaf and cheese biscuit from @bobolinkdairyandbakehouse. Basically give us all the bread, cheese, butter and pickles and we’re happy campers! Did you hit up a farmers market this weekend? What’d ya get?
Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it Sometimes rules are meant to be broken, and so it is with the gnocchi from Trader Joe’s. Skip what their directions tell you and pan fry them in olive oil, add some of their 4-green bag of vegetables, salt, pepper, drizzles of pesto and a sprinkle of parm. So freaking good and dinner on the table faster than you can order take out. 🤤

Copyright © 2022 Sweetnicks · Theme by Vicki Harrison Design