Meal Plan Monday & Tester Yummies

Before I get to this week’s plan, here are a few of the great eats I’ve been testing for The Urban Vegan :

Delicious cinnamon-date scones

Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)

And to round things out, some Chana Dal served on homemade paratas.  I obviously can’t give you the tester recipe for the Chana Dal, but you can see the recipe for the paratas here in French, or wait until tomorrow for the English version.

Did you see who was sneaking into my Kheer photo shoot?

I was taking the shot and wondered what had fallen onto the table…baby lady birds! Or lady bugs, or cute bugs that announce spring!  Happy.

Monday : Easy-Peasy Pasta – watch for this very kid-friendly recipe on Thursday.

Tuesday : Balsamic Baked Beans (an U.V. tester recipe) and sweet potato fries.

Wednesday : French Fry Soup.  This is going to be an experiment, and I promise to share the results if it turns out!

Thursday : Spaghetti and bean balls.  I usually use the wonderful recipe for bean balls in VCON, but I’m out of gluten flour.  It’s all gone, kids, and apparently I cannot get any unless I order it via the net…and I’m not going to do that.  Have any of you made the recipe without the gluten to hold it together?  Do you have other bean ball recipes you like that don’t call for gluten flour?  Do tell!

Friday : Pizza Night!  Wee! If I’m feeling frisky I may even make a dessert pizza Friday.  Maybe.  Can’t be getting to crazy now, can we?

 

Do you blog your weekly meal plans?  Let me know, I’d love to link to your plan to share the planning mojo with everyone.  And don’t forget, if you’re looking for meal plan inspiration you can visit the MPM archives.

Meal Plan Monday : Half a plan…

I have more holiday spirit than you can shake a candy cane at, but one of the tiny frustrations about the season is not always being in control of what we’re eating.  The Fish Family will be spending a few days with family at the end of the week, and that means not planning the meals, at least not in their entirety.  I will be contributing to the meals, though, and hopefully will be able to get some pictures if it’s not to dark!

In other news, I’m excited to tell you I’ll be doing some recipe testing for Urban Vegan who has a new cookbook in the works.  The next few days will feature some of her recipes, and they sound delicious.

Here’s what I’ve got planned for the next few days :

Monday : Lemon Poppyseed Muffins (special holiday breakfast), Tuscan Bean Dip with veggies and green salad (lunch), Chickpeas with tomato, eggplant & spinach (dinner).  All three of these are tester recipes for Urban Vegan.

Tuesday : Polenta-Spinach Cutlets with Basil Aioli served with green beans (lunch), Old Bay Cakes served with mashed potatoes and green salad (also test recipes).

Wednesday : I’m not sure if we’ll be here or not yet, so today will probably be about eating left-overs to empty the fridge!

My muffins lean to the left, just like me!

Because I’m posting this after breakfast, I can share a photo of these delicious muffins from Urban Vegan forthcoming book.  The sun doesn’t rise until after 8:30am now, so the light isn’t wonderful, but the muffins were. I knew I needed to snap a picture of one before they disappeared!  Beautiful crumb, bright, lemony taste, perfect for a leisurely holiday breakfast.

Not sure what to make for dinner?  Take a peek at the sample menus on the Meal Plan Mondays page for some inspiration.

Meal Plan Monday : What’s on your plate?

Though I haven’t stopped planning our week’s meals, it’s been forever since I’ve  actually published a Meal Plan Monday, n’est-ce pas? This is a week of trying some new recipes and relying on old favourites.

Monday : Carrot, Sweet Potato & Coconut casserole. (I’ll be sharing the recipe for this family-favourite later in the week.)

Carrot, Sweet Potato & Coconut Casserole

Tuesday : Polenta with Wild Mushroom Ragu and Sun-Dried Tomato Biscotti.

Wednesday : Seitan Buffalo Wings and coleslaw.

Thursday : Left-overs

Friday :  pizza night

Has anyone guessed which new cookbook I have?  I need to make a few recipes before I can properly share what I think about it, but I’ve got a good feeling so far.

Also, there’s a holiday sale over at the Thora Thinks store (where you can purchase a copy of the great children’s book I reviewed last week, Garlic-Onion-Beet-Spinach-Mango-Carrot-Grapefruit Juice).  There’s also a free winter-themed colouring page up for grabs as well.

Will you be trying any new recipes this week?