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Our Weekly Cadence – 2023 October 2nd-8th
Hey there, lovely readers! Welcome back to ‘Our Weekly Cadence,’ where we invite you to join us in the heart of our home. October is finally here and we are trying to hit pause this week. As summer comes to an end, weekly churn seems to be piling on like the leaves. With this purpose in mind we would like to slow down a bit, try to simplify things and go into the fall somewhat reorganized. Furthermore, we are traveling at the end of the week, so having a week with simple meal ideas hopefully means getting out the door less stressed. We started our week with baking bread. Our coffee roast this week proved almost mindless as it is the third time we’ve roasted the same bean. Finally, our fall garden planting continues and we are taking time to enjoy being outdoors.
Weekly Meal Plan – Simple Meal Ideas for Our Short Week
As mentioned, we are trying to keep things simple this week. We did not make all of the meals we planned last week as often happens, so we started off the week utilizing some of last week’s plan. The rest of the week our meal ideas will make use of what we have on hand so we do not have to go to the store. Because we are returning late in the day after our travels, a quick meal from the freezer will keep things easy to round out our weekly plan.
Dinner This Week:
- Homemade tortillas with from scratch refried black beans and homemade hatch queso blanco
- Quiche – wheat crust, half vegetable, half bacon
- Freezer meal – leftover broccoli rice casserole
- Build your own baked potato (vegetables, cheese, yogurt and bacon)
- Fish sticks with homemade stovetop mac and cheese (made with bechamel)
Lunch Meal Plan
School Lunches
- salad – add your own toppings (grape tomatoes, cucumbers, sunflower seeds, cheese and dressing)
- tuna salad – green pea crisps, raisins, homemade pickles
- leftover crispy chicken – with dipping sauce, roast sweet potatoes and green beans
- yogurt bowls – yogurt with honey, berries, chocolate crepe, granola/cheerios
Grown-up Lunches
- spring mix with cucumbers, tomatoes, tuna, olives and pumpkin seeds
- build your own bean taco
- leftover quiche
- sourdough grilled cheese
Breakfast Meal Plan
- Sourdough toast and eggs
- Porridge with vanilla and maple syrup
- Waffle Wednesday! (frozen multi-grain waffles and maple syrup)
- Cereal
- Leftover quiche
Meal Idea Tips for a Short Week
- Quiche
- a good way to use leftovers, this week we have a bit of zucchini and tomato to add
- picky eater side is sans vegetables and simple with bacon and cheese
- for every 1 egg, use half a cup liquid
- cottage cheese adds creaminess and more protein
- blind bake the crust at 350 for 20 minutes
- bake the quiche for about 45 minutes
- Baked Potato Bar
- build your own or choose your own meal adventure type meal – allows everyone to get something they want, how they like it
- pierce and bake a russet potato at 400 F for about an hour
- don’t forget salt
- add some dairy
- butter
- yogurt
- cottage cheese
- shredded cheese (cheddar, jack, gruyere, gouda etc.)
- try some vegetables/fungi
- green onions
- chives
- broccoli
- green beans
- spinach
- sauteed mushrooms
- add some protein
- bacon
- grilled chicken
- chickpeas
Homemade Baked Goods for The Short Week
Besides Moose, who we introduced to you a few weeks ago, we have another pet in our house. While we do have to feed her every so often, she is not as demanding as a dog, and she also gives back quite a bit to our kitchen with minimal fuss. Lidia is our sourdough starter. We birthed her on our countertop during the beginning stages of COVID lock-down. She requires a bit of flour and water to keep her bubbly, active and ready to please. Nowadays we pull her from the fridge to ferment whatever baked good we decide to create for the week. As mentioned before, we like to use The Perfect Loaf’s recipes as frames of reference when we bake, and this time we choose to make his 50/50 loaf. Because we like more whole grains in our bread, we substituted 100 grams wheat for the all purpose flour.
Freshly Roasted Coffee for The Short Week
As a result of it being our third week to roast coffee beans from Costa Rica Palmichal Los Santos, our process was streamlined and easy this week. Similarly to last week we increased roasting time and we came to a dark Vienna roast. As we explore longer darker roasts with our Costa Rican coffee beans, the roasty flavor intensifies. Subsequently it is proving fun to make iced coffee drinks with leftover brewed coffee from our mornings as the deep inky roast marries well with a bit of cream and a splash of vanilla. We will definitely take some iced coffee on our road trip. And the short week means we may not have to roast again next week.
For more information on home roasting, degassing and roast levels, see our posts on how to roast coffee at home.
Fall Potager Garden Time
As well as trying to come up with meal ideas for our short week, we want to make sure to get some more seeds in before we leave town. We are focusing on lettuce, herbs and radishes.
Lettuces
A few varities of lettuce will make their homes in our garden this fall. Gustav’s Salad is a butterhead lettuce that is a great producer for us. The leaves are soft and delicate and it is very easy to grow. We will also grow a spotted trout lettuce (a romaine type) and a bronze-purple and red types. Another fun variety we will put in is Little Gem, a tiny romaine.
Herbs
Arugula grows like a weed for us, and we love to scatter it in hard to grow areas and hope for the best. We use arugula on top of pizzas, sandwiches, in salad mixes and even in pastas. And some of us eat is straight from the garden as a peppery treat.
Radishes
Radishes are so fun to grow because of their short growing time. We like french breakfast radishes and also pink beauty.
What’s in Bloom?
Our eggplant is getting a second wind and we have noticed a bunch of new blooms that will hopefully not drop. Praying for a big fall crop so we can make baba ganoush and lamb stuffed eggplant soon. Our shishito was another plant that made it through our ongoing drought and has a ton of blooms ready to fruit. And while our lemongrass isn’t necessarily blooming, it has enjoyed the warm weather, grown a number of new stalks and is tempting us to make some Vietnamese food soon.
Until Next Time!
As we delve into our garden, planting crisp lettuces, fragrant herbs, and vibrant radishes, we’re reminded of the simple pleasures of life. Just as we nurture these seeds, we nurture the moments that truly matter – a warm loaf of homemade bread, shared meals, and the beauty of slowing down. Even during a short busy week full of meal ideas, errands and planning. We hope this week’s journey into simplicity and flavorful meals has brought a touch of inspiration to your life. Thank you for joining us in ‘Our Weekly Cadence.’ Until next time, may your days be as abundant as we pray our garden will soon be.
