Meal planning is one of those topics that seems to invoke a common ‘arrgghh’. We all start the week with the best of intentions, and by the end of the week.. well.. you know. It’s so easy to get into a ‘what’s for dinner’ rut and completely forget everything you’ve ever enjoyed. I’ve put together a list of some of my families favourite recipes to help shake things up in your kitchen!
Slow Cooker Korean Beef by Mel’s Kitchen Cafe – This is one of my all time favourites. We always serve over rice with steamed broccoli and carrots. You’ll definitely want to let it slow cook for minimum 8-9 hours or the beef will be chewy. Around the 8-9 hour mark it literally falls apart. I buy ‘beef stew cubes’.
Best Southern Style Chili by Mel’s Kitchen Cafe – Chili is one of my hubby’s favourite dishes ever so we have been through many different recipes and THIS ONE comes out on top. Serve with taco chips & cheese! A few tweaks I’ve personally made is:
Black Bean Burritos by Plant You – These are one of the few vegan dishes we make, and they are so delicious! I make a huge batch of these, roll them all up in parchment, and seal back up in the tortilla bag and into the freezer for easy lunches. A few tweaks I’ve personally made is:
Chicken & Gnocchi Stew by Mel’s Kitchen Cafe – Can you tell yet we are a fan of Mel? This recipe is so good. One thing I’ve tried is half chicken half Italian sausage (remove from casing, fry, add to crockpot). If you try the sausage route, omit salt until you’ve tasted it at the end as sausage is quite salty.
Taco Chicken Chili by Shugary Sweets – Can you also tell I love crockpot meals? With busy after school/evening times it’s so amazing to be able to cook dinner at 11am and be done with it! I love to throw in a block of cream cheese half way through. So creamy! Start with a little less seasoning as you can always add more later.
Chicken Brie & Pear Paninis – Yes. This. You can switch this up any way you like.. Bread, buns, or wraps. Eat it cold or press in the pan as a panini. Layer thinly sliced chicken or turkey, thinly sliced pear, and brie cheese. You can buy brie spread to make it easier. If you’re feeling adventurous you can add a little bit of pesto or spinach.
Sheet Pan Dinner – One of our most common go to’s. Chicken, sausage (any, but this one is our fav) potatoes, carrots, onions, red pepper, garlic. I typically fry up my meat in the frying pan, but it could all go in the oven depending on how many sheet pans you have. Cut up everything to approximately the same size chunks and drizzle with olive oil. Season with your heart with seasoning salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, etc. Bake (depending on your oven, maybe try 375 for 30 minutes and flip at 15 minutes). Serve with sour cream. I have recently gotten carried away and started adding more veg like celery, green beans, broccoli, sweet potato, etc. As long as everything is chopped in similar size chunks you can add anything you want!
Cheesy Mexican Chicken & Sweet Potato Skillet by Mel’s Kitchen Cafe – Honestly just make everything on Mel’s website. She is the best. This one we have served for guests many times and it is always a hit. My one tweak, you guessed it – add corn. 😉
Viral Chopped Italian Sub by Together As Family – You may have seen this on TikTok. It’s crazy simple, but somehow micro-chopping everything feels fun & fancy. Delicious! My opinion is don’t skip on the provolone, can skip on the pepperoni.
Pizza Night – Wanting to save $$ and start making your own pizza? If dough freaks you out, the Italian Center sells premade pizza dough balls for approx $2. It is soooo good.
Well, there you have it. If you have any favourites to share, I’d love to hear from you! I love experimenting in the kitchen and trying new dishes. 🙂
Chat soon! – Suzi
Check out some of Suzi’s work! Edmonton Newborn Portraits, Edmonton Cake Smash Photo Shoot, Edmonton Kids Photos, Edmonton Mommy and Me Session, Edmonton Professional Headshots
