Menu Monday #17

It was great enjoying a nice, relaxing weekend at home this weekend. We enjoyed our time together as a family and made some great memories too. On Friday evening, we went out for some sushi for dinner at my favorite local Asian restaurant, then on to our local "First Friday" event which coincided with the local children's museum's 25th birthday bash. They offered free admission and hosted a "Touch a Truck" event! Awesome! Ethan was in heaven as he was able to climb into all kinds of vehicles and big trucks. Every little boy's dream!

Am I really allowed in here, Dad??

The museum was filled with lots of fun activities, so I think we'll be getting a family membership so we can check it out more often! We capped off the evening by enjoying some DQ blizzards. It was the perfect late summer evening.

On Saturday morning, I tried out a new recipe for Whole Wheat Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes. While I enjoyed them (they tasted like sweet cornbread), Josh wasn't a big fan of them for breakfast, so I guess I won't be making them again. :( After breakfast, Josh and Ethan enjoyed some bonding time by shopping all morning and most of the afternoon together, including a lunch on Panera Bread's patio. Ethan loved his alone time with Daddy. It's definitely harder for him to get that now that Noah is in the picture too, so we're trying to do our best to make sure they each get "dates" with us. :) It poured here later that day, so I was glad I had food to prepare for dinner - the pizza that I didn't make Friday night!

On Sunday morning, I decided to try making Mini Frittatas by using a muffin tin. It was super easy. Spray the tin generously with cooking spray or use foil liners. Then you just place one egg in each opening (eggs on right), scramble them with a fork a little bit (eggs in middle), then add a splash of milk (eggs on left).

Then you add the extra items you want. I used the extra onion and bacon I had from the pizza I had made the previous night (eggs on right), a pinch of mozzarella cheese (eggs in middle), then cheddar cheese, cilantro, and a quick grind from the salt and pepper shakers (eggs on left).

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 18 minutes, or until set. They were perfect and super cute! The boys loved them and they worked well for making a sandwich with an English muffin if you cut one of them in half. :)

Sunday: Cheeseburgers, hot dogs, grilled corn on the cob, baked beans

Ethan wanted to eat outside and it was such a perfect, cooler evening, so we did! Daddy fired up the grill and we had a picnic on our deck with all of the boys' favorites! :)

Monday: Grilled salmon topped with basil pesto over brown rice, oven roasted asparagus

I will make some more basil pesto (and seriously try to post the recipe soon!) with the abundance of basil that we still have growing right now! :) It is very tasty with the salmon and I'll use the leftover for Tuesday's meal. Last week we used the pesto on the Caprese burger instead of basil leaves and it was excellent! We decided we both preferred it that way. :)

Tuesday: Chicken Pesto Alfredo

This was such a hit that we'll make it again. I marinate chicken tenders in Kraft's Zesty Italian dressing all day, then those are grilled. I make a batch of my homemade Alfredo sauce and combine it with the leftover basil pesto. Add in whole wheat pasta and chopped tomato and the meal is complete!

Wednesday: Grilled pork chops, Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey and Rosemary

We use a little bit of Patti's dry seasoning on our pork chops to give them a nice flavor. The potatoes are super yummy and filling.

Thursday: Chicken Quesadillas and Spicy Cilantro Corn

I haven't made these in awhile and I like to have at least one dish that is made indoors in case I need to shuffle meals because of rain. I will cook the chicken, a diced red pepper and diced onion in a frying pan, then just toss them and some cheese on top of a tortilla in my quesadilla maker. Super easy. I'll serve them with Fresh Market's medium salsa because it's our favorite. The corn was yummy last week, so I'll make more of that.

Friday: Margherita Pizza

Simple and classic. This is one everyone loves with the fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and fresh garlic! Yum.

Saturday: Out to eat

Not sure what we'll be having, but it will be a break from the kitchen for me!

Happy meal planning to you this week! I think fall is finally starting to arrive here in Tennessee and I couldn't be happier!