Weekly Menu Plan 11-29 to 12-5, 2020

 

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

It's that time again, right?  This year has seemed like the slowest year ever, and at the same time it has flown by!  How can that be??  But here we are, approaching December and the end of 2020!  I can't say I'm sorry to see 2020 go, but then again, we have all learned a lot this year, haven't we?

I am ready to start baking cookies.  I normally don't make many cookies, but for some reason I am in the mood to bake them.  I have been pinning away on Pinterest, with lots of new cookie recipes to try.  Some are gluten free, some are not.  I plan on giving most of them away, so most I make will not be gluten free.

This week's menu has some links to recipes that, even though they are not gluten free, are easily adapted to be gluten free.  I use gluten free cream of mushroom soup from Walmart whenever a recipe calls for regular cream of soup.  I use gluten free gravy mixes in place of regular gravy mixes, and no one ever knows the difference.  I often substitute rice for pasta, or use gluten free pasta.  Most recipes are easy to switch over to gluten free.  Baking is a different story.  Whenever I try to convert a regular recipe to gluten free, it's a toss-up whether it will turn out or not.  Sometimes it's great, sometimes I just pitch it.  I have to be very selective in what I attempt, because gluten free baking supplies don't come cheap!  I hate to waste them!

Here is this week's menu plan.  It's a pretty simple week, and I am trying to use recipes that allow me to prep a lot of it in the morning or early afternoon.  That way, getting dinner on the table is much quicker, and I like that!  Here you go:

As always, I hope you find something you like and can use for your family!  Take care, and

have a wonderful week!  

Weekly Menu Plan Nov. 22-28, 2020

 

Hello!  

I am so sorry to be late this week!  I had a super busy weekend, and today and tomorrow I am watching the youngest granddaughter, as she is off of school for the week but her parents are not!  My daughter has to work today and tomorrow, then she is off the rest of the week.  So I have not had much free time!

Since this is a holiday week, I am preparing easy to make meals most evenings.  And since everyone seems to overeat a bit on Thanksgiving, I am trying to scale back a little bit on the rest of the meals.  Maybe that will help us not gain several pounds this week!

We are going to my daughter's home for Thanksgiving.  There will be 8 of us.  I see them every day anyway, so it's not like I will be exposed to anything new!  Usually she invites a whole lot of other family members, but this year we are her only guests.  So it will be a bit smaller scale than usual.  

Because of that, I am not making much.  She is having the traditional turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, corn, green beans, rolls, and pumpkin pies.  I am making a big salad, a jello salad, some roasted vegetables, and a brownie/pumpkin cheesecake.

I do not ask her to make anything gluten free, because I am the only gluten free person in the family.  So here is what I do:  

Turkey is gluten free, but no gravy for me.

Mashed potatoes, corn, and green beans are gluten free, and I do not put gravy on the mashed potatoes.

All the veggies are gluten free.  

I bring my own rolls (actually I bake some gluten free biscuits and I will take a couple of them over.)

For dessert, I bake a crustless pumpkin pie, which my daughter said she will do.  My son requested the brownie pumpkin cheesecake, and I still have to find the recipe he is talking about and make that.  It is not gluten free.

Here is my menu for this week.  I hope you get an idea or two to make your life easier this week!  

Even in these difficult times, we still have so much to be thankful for, especially our Heavenly Father who is filled with forgiveness, grace, and mercy.  

Have a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving!  See you next week!

Late menu

 Just a quick word to let you know I will post my menu tomorrow! I had  a super busy weekend and didn't get it finished.  I will work on it tonight and hopefully post it tomorrow.

Weekly Menu Plan Nov. 15-21, 2020

 

Hello again!

Another week flew by!  I got a lot done this week, and got a really good start on my Christmas shopping.  It seems like COVID is increasing in our area, and the high school just went back to a hybrid schedule last week.  Elementary is going to stay open, at least for now.  My middle granddaughter, who is a junior in high school, goes to school 2 days each week in person, and has virtual learning for the rest of the week.  I decided to stay over at her house with her each day, because I just don't like kids staying home alone all day so often.  Now and then it's okay, and I'm sure she'd be just fine if I left her home, but in this day and age I worry.  Last week she just enjoyed having company when she was taking a break between her classes, and I fixed her a good lunch and she had someone to talk to at lunch time.  

My daughter's elementary school, where she teaches, is going full-time virtual after Thanksgiving.  However, teachers still have to go in to work.  They will teach from their classrooms.  My youngest granddaughter's elementary school is still open.  But that got me thinking that things may start closing down again, if the rates keep climbing.  So this weekend I hit the stores, and got a bunch of my Christmas shopping done!  That feels so good!  And this week, when the middle granddaughter is at school, I have a list to go get done so that I will be very close to finished, if not completely finished.  WOOHOO!

For awhile, I will be making dinners that are easy to fix.  Since I pick up the little one from elementary school each day, and then wait at their house until either my daughter or son-in-law gets home, some nights I don't get home until 6:00 or 6:30.  I prep what I can during the day, and do most of my baking at their house.  I feel almost like I've gone back to work full time!  But it's so great being able to be there for my family when they need it!

Since next week is Thanksgiving, I will have an easy week next week.  We are going to my daughter's house for Thanksgiving, so I will not be cooking that day.  I plan on making a few things to take over there, as well as a gluten free dessert, but that's a whole lot easier than hosting the whole dinner!

I hope you all stay safe and healthy this week, and always!  It's a crazy world we live in right now!

Here is my menu plan for this week.  Just click on the links to view the recipes from the great many blogs where I get them.  I love recipe blogs!  It's like having an infinite number of cookbooks right on hand, whenever you want them!  If you haven't checked out my Pinterest boards, please feel free to do that!  I have a huge collection of recipes and quilting/sewing ideas!  You might find something you like!

That's it for this week!  Have a wonderful week, and take care!

Weekly Menu Plan Nov 8-14, 2020

 

Hi there!  Here we are again, back for another week of planning.  I am in a bit of a rush tonight, I still have a bunch of stuff to do before Monday hits!

Here is this week's menu plan.  I have a busy week again, so lots of quick to fix recipes are being used.  I will prep as much ahead of time as I can.

My favorite this week is definitely the Taco Salad on Saturday night!  But I also love everything that comes from Mama Knows Gluten Free.  She is an amazing gluten free cook and baker!  I can't think of anything I have had from her website that didn't turn out.  

Have a wonderful week, and take care!

Weekly Menu Plan Nov. 1-6, 2020

 

Hello, friends!  How are you all doing this week?  Did you all have a fun Halloween?  We did!  It was trick or treating as normal here, and the kids were all out in full force having a ball!  We really enjoyed seeing people out and having fun.  I am looking forward to more of these fun holidays!

The weather here this week is going to be great!  Today it is very blustery and cold, but in two days we are headed back to the 60's and 70's for the week.  I will be taking some nice walks with that kind of weather!

I have a busy week of baking this week, so dinner menus are quick and easy to throw together.  My daughter needs several goodies baked for her school staff for Friday, and I love to bake for them.  They are having a breakfast, and I will be making several different kinds of scones for a sweet treat.  Last year I made chocolate chip scones for them, and they requested scones for the rest of the year!  So hopefully they will all enjoy them.

As usual, I alter some of the recipes that I've linked to, to make them gluten free.  I also am becoming more and more sensitive to dairy, so I usually sub almond or coconut milk for regular dairy milk.  Most of the time my little tweaks work just fine, and no one notices...(or they just don't care anymore!)  Here are some of the tweaks I will make with this week's recipes:

Sunday - I will use rice instead of pasta in the soup, and gluten free meatballs

Monday - I will use gluten free oats in the baked oatmeal, as well as almond milk

The rest of the week is most of the recipes are gluten free, except the desserts.   I am making regular desserts this week, because I am trying to cut back on them.  So if I make them with gluten, I can't eat them!  I keep some gluten free cookies and dairy free ice cream bars in the house, so if I absolutely have to have something sweet, I can have a cookie or an ice cream bar.  I find at this time of year, a cup of hot tea after dinner with a cookie just hits the spot!

I am finishing up a couple Halloween zipper pouches I wanted to give away at Halloween, but never finished them.  So this week I will try and get them done, and put them away for next year.  Then I am ready to start some Christmas sewing!  

Here is this week's menu plan:

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I hope you can find a couple meal ideas or recipes for your family!  Have a great week!