Dinner Menu - Last Week of 2020

One of our money-and-stress saving strategies is planning the dinner menu.  Planning helps us utilize what we have on hand, and to make sure the week is balanced overall.  I highly recommend giving it a try if you don't typically plan dinner.  

Last week's bean croquettes, Mexican rice, and salad.  Tasty!

I found an open package of farro in the cabinet.  Farro is a type of wheat that was pretty heavily promoted in foodie circles a while back.  We got this when it was on clearance.  Fairly plain on its own, it takes seasoning quite well, and that makes it a nice base for quite a few dishes.  Farro is a whole grain, so it provides fiber and heartiness.

Sunday morning is my food prep morning.  I listen to NPR, look at the coming week and prepare a few things to simplify our lives.  While we don't formally plan breakfasts and lunches, I often make a few things that are quick to combine for a meal or snack.  This week I baked tostada shells and tortilla chips, cooked the farro with some olive oil, salt, and herbs, made the marinated 3-bean salad, and prepared carrots and celery for snacking.  I pulled a container of zucchini soup out of the freezer for some of my lunches this week, and made a small batch of cottage cheese pancakes, to use up the last of some cottage cheese that's been hanging out in our fridge for a while.  

Here is our dinner plan:

M - ham steak, farro pilaf, green chickpeas, dilly beans, apple

T - taco salad, oranges

W - barbecue chicken, 3 bean salad, baked sweet potatoes, rolls, apple

Th - bean tostadas, oranges

F - chicken lo mien with vegetables, kimchi, pineapple

S - tuna croquettes, rice, slaw, kimchi, oranges

S - chicken curry with vegetables, rice, apples

If you typically plan, what's on your menu this week?  If planning is new for you, what's something you have on hand that could be use this week in one of your meals?