Family-Friendly Meal Plan: Week #16
We are heading out of town this week, so I won't make it through each of these meal ideas before we do. I love knowing these will be favorites for our Spring line-up though, as each are tried and true favorites around here whether we crave cold quinoa salad, grilling, an easy option in the oven, or a convenient take on fajitas in the crockpot.
I hope the menu for this week offers you and your family some new favorites as well!
Veggies & Virtue Meal Plan: Week of April 15
STEP 1: PLAN
We are excited to be diving into grilling season! Living in Houston, we are blessed to grill majority of the year. I know in terms of sharing these meal plans though, that many of you may lie in colder climates! So while we will still be busting out the Crockpot to save us from turning on the oven in Spring and Summer months, I am excited to also begin integrating more recipes that can be grilled!
Interested in walking through the steps to meal plan like a pro?
Download your copy of my Meal Planning Playbook. It outlines the following five steps of successful meal planning in more detail so you can achieve "Less Meal Time Stress and More Feeding Success" for your own family!
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STEP 2: PICK
A special thanks to each of the following contributors for the delicious recipe ideas this week!
Dinner Menu:
1 ǁ Seafood Sunday: Asian Salmon (Recipe by @DamnDelicious)
Made with salmon from our Fish Fixe delivery.
2 ǁ Meatless Monday: Mediterranean Quinoa Salad (Recipe by @veggiesandvirtue)
3 ǁ Taco Tuesday: Steak Fajitas (Recipe by @geniuskitchen)
4 ǁ Asian Night: Shrimp Curry (Recipe by @thepioneerwoman)
Made with shrimp from our Fish Fixe delivery.
5 ǁ Pasta Night: Trader Joe's Bruschetta Chicken (Recipe by @feedinglittles)
6 ǁ Grill Night: Grilled Lamb Chops (by @GiadaDeLaurentiis)
7 ǁ Family Night Out (slash Mom's Night Off!)
STEP 3: PAIR
Ideas and encouragement for how to offer #onemealtwoways from this week’s meal plan!
Family Meal: Asian salmon, roasted red and sweet potatoes, an avocado strawberry spinach BYO salad bar, with half of a whole grain baguette from Angelic Bakehouse with Kerrygold butter. Served family style!
Kids plate (self-served by my 4 yo):
LOVE IT: strawberries, bread with butter, roasted red potatoes
LIKE IT: Asian salmon, sugar snap peas
LEARNING IT: spinach/kale salad base, roasted almonds, feta, roasted sweet potatoes
My plate: Composed salad with salmon and a side of mixed roasted potatoes
My youngest ate all of her spinach/kale mix and my youngest ate the roasted sweet potatoes - each for the first time EVER!
STEP 4: PURCHASE
*I received our first Fish Fixe shipment for free. All opinions are my own. This post is unsponsored.
What I Buy and Why: Fish Fixe
Y'all know I tend to buy a lot of our animal products in bulk at Costco so I always have at least something in the freezer I can cook up on a whim. While I find the prices to be better on organic chicken, grass-fed beef, etc., I admittedly have never been a huge fan of the seafood I buy at Costco.
I also don't always want to have to spend time standing at the seafood counter to watch and snag sales on local or higher-quality seafood on a weekly basis, especially since I do majority of my meal planning BEFORE I head to the store.
That's why I got so excited when I heard of Fish Fixe. While it is local to me in Texas (hence the excitement over them offering Gulf shrimp!), it ships anywhere to simplify how to keep quality seafood on hand and even better, in stink-free packaging.
This is not a sponsored endorsement* (nor are any in this weekly product feature unless I disclose so), but rather a genuine mom-hack I feel has helped us to both eat AND enjoy seafood more since we got our first "fixe."
Besides enjoying each of the seafood products we were sent, I am semi-obsessed with the packaging. It helps for mess-free food prep but also to give last minute meal ideas if I don't know what I want to do to prepare it. I love seafood, but admittedly don't always feel like I know how to cook it. So simplicity always wins and makes for a healthy, EASY meal in under 30 minutes with whatever simple sides we have on hand.
If you want to include more seafood in your family's meal rotation this Spring and Summer, hop on over to Fish Fixe and use code VEGGIESANDVIRTUE at checkout for $10 off your first order. I hope you enjoy this "fixe" to your seafood dilemma as much as I do!
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STEP 5: PREP
Tips on items to prep ahead:
1 ǁ Seafood Sunday: Asian Salmon (Recipe by @DamnDelicious)
- Remove Fish Fixe shrimp from freezer and thaw according to package instructions
2 ǁ Meatless Monday: Mediterranean Quinoa Salad (Recipe by @veggiesandvirtue)
- Chop veggies and make vinaigrette in advance. Cook and cool quinoa. Assemble in advance to eat over the week, or keep elements separate until ready to serve.
3 ǁ Taco Tuesday: Steak Fajitas (Recipe by @geniuskitchen)
- Slice peppers, onions, and steak the night ahead so it can be tossed into crockpot in the morning. Shred cheese block, if needed.
4 ǁ Asian Night: Shrimp Curry (Recipe by @thepioneerwoman)
- Remove Fish Fixe shrimp from freezer and thaw according to package instructions. Dice extra onion when cutting onion for fajitas.
5 ǁ Pasta Night: Trader Joe's Bruschetta Chicken (Recipe by @feedinglittles)
- Thaw chicken. Prep sides, as needed, so all can be thrown in the oven together.
6 ǁ Grill Night: Grilled Lamb Chops (by @GiadaDeLaurentiis)
- Make rub in food processor. Store in a glass jar until time to cook.
7 ǁ Family Night Out (slash Mom's Night Off!)
