I’ve got one of my babies home from college and I am waiting for the other who will arrive later this week. Â I can’t wait! Â As usual, I am completely behind on my Christmas shopping, I might not do a holiday card this year, and I’ll probably have to pull an all-nighter to pack for our vacation, BUT we won’t eat take-out!
I know it’s super cliche if I say “I can’t believe it’s December already!”  But, I mean seriously.  Here’s my goal the next few weeks: get my holiday shopping done and be really mindful of my eating especially with respect to sugar and fun foods.  There are a lot of parties happening and treats flying around, so it’s easy to get caught up in the holiday vortex of champagne and peppermint bark.  Mindfulness is the key.  And some good healthy dinners in between!
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you were able to spend quality time with family and friends. I was feeling extra grateful this year and cherished being with so many loved ones.  But I was a little spent afterwards, so I took the weekend “off.” I am enjoying some quality time with my daughters before they return to school on Sunday afternoon and I haven’t been in the kitchen much, except for tossing some leftovers into the waffle iron. You could have seen this on my Instagram Stories on Friday!
Not the norm for me, but I sort of overdid it on the holiday eating this weekend. Ooops! Monday I am making a fresh batch of Bieler’s broth to get me back on track. Tomorrow is always a new day.
We had a great experience with our Korean exchange students (I don’t know if I mentioned we picked up another one last Sunday!), but today we said our goodbyes and they went back to their families. Even though we’ll miss them, the timing is rather perfect since my daughters are coming back from college on Tuesday evening for Thanksgiving break. They both said they can’t wait to come home, but I think they’re looking more forward to the food than seeing me. 😉 Speaking of food and Thanksgiving, I’m getting started on my applesauce and cranberry sauce tomorrow (Sunday.) My husband told me he is going to surprise me with a specialty cocktail on Thanksgiving. I don’t like surprises on Thanksgiving.
What a week! Â In this unpredictable world, food is always there for you, consistent and unifying. Â Let’s get cooking!
This is a big week for organizing for Thanksgiving and keeping the meals simple. Â November is my busiest work month and frankly, I am toast. Â So I am really keeping it easy! Â Here’s your dinner planner for the week:
The first week with our Korean exchange student has gone very well, especially in the food department.  He has pretty much eaten nothing but Korean food his entire life, so when I ask him, “Have you ever eaten X?”  He always responds, “No, but I’ll try it!”  And he does.  Love this kid.  Mr. Picky is feeling shamed into eating everything I put in front of him. Ha!  The bigger question is, why did I not host an exchange student years ago????
Here’s your dinner planner for the week:
Meatless Monday: Â Sweet potato and black bean tacos, Mexican chopped salad with red cabbage, radishes, avocado and pumpkin seeds
Tuesday: Orange and rosemary-glazed chicken (I’m doing to add some carrots to the pan, too), millet-cauliflower mash
Wednesday: Â Roasted green beans with lemon and thyme, simple slow roasted salmon, brown rice cooked with a little garlic and olive oil
Thursday: Â Rustic butternut squash and fennel soup, avocado toast
Friday:  Turkey and pinto bean sloppy joes, cole slaw
Saturday lunch: Red lentil dalÂ
Sunday:  Turkey roulade with wild rice filling, green salad with persimmons and pomegranates + everyday salad dressing #2
Here’s what you can do ahead of time if it helps you:
Sunday
Soak and cook black beans and pinto beans
Wash salad greens for Monday
Prep red cabbage and cauliflower (wash, dry and cut)
Make dressing for Monday
Make stock for Thursday (vegetable stock recipe here, chicken stock recipe here)
Monday
Marinate chicken
Prep green beans and butternut squash
Thursday
Prep cabbage for coleslaw
Make everyday salad dressing for Sunday
Wash salad greens for Sunday
Saturday
Make rice filling for turkey
Here is a link to all my previous dinner planners.
I will admit, I was a lazy bones about dinner last week. Â My husband was out of town the entire week, I had two birthday celebrations and I taught a class one evening. Â So, Mr. Picky ate a few leftovers and random dinners like pasta with meat sauce one night. Â But yesterday the South Korean exchange student we are hosting for the next three weeks arrived and I need to get back into the groove so I can make a good impression ;). Â And uphold my reputation because apparently he and his family watched my Youtube videos before he arrived LOL!
I had a great 2 days visiting my daughters in Dallas and I was also able to teach a class at my friend Lisa’s house for her and her lovely friends.  So fun!  I’m off to Palm Springs today to meet my husband and Mr. Picky for Modernism Preview Weekend.  It’s just a quickie in PS since I have get back to teaching classes in LA on Monday.  LA fall has finally arrived, as opposed to normal fall which is actually cool weather.  LA fall means you may need a sweater when you walk out the door in the morning or when the sun goes down, but it’s still 72 (or warmer) and sunny the rest of the day.  It’s all I need to start making soups!
