Meal Plan for Feb 5-12
Hello!
February is here and even though we’ve got six more weeks of winter, I’m hoping for some blue skies here and there. I hope you’re holding up where you are!
Quick Links
baked rice, salad // ground pork udon // broccoli cheddar soup // vegetarian baked beans // chocolate chip cookies
Weeknight meals
Baked Rice with White Beans and Leeks (NYT cooking gift link), Bistro salad
My sister-in-law made this for us last summer and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. I honestly thought it was going to be more labor intensive but when I finally tried it, it was so easy. And, in a real plot twist, my kids loved it.
You need something green to go along with this and this bistro salad is punchy and bright and also really easy. You can use whichever soft herbs you would like in the salad, Italian parsley and basil would be excellent.
This was a huge hit when I made it and had my kids asking for more after we had polished it off.
It doesn’t make a lot, probably enough for two adults. I used double the pork called for (a full 1 lb package) and next time I will do that and probably just double the whole recipe. No one would be mad about having more of this around.
When I make this, I usually add potatoes instead of the broccoli stems (cook this base a little longer so the potatoes start to disintegrate) and use only one cup of dairy and an additional cup of broth. We don’t like to have too much dairy here and so the potatoes provide some good creaminess.
This would be great with a crusty bread to dunk into it.
Weekend meal
It’s been really cold here this week and cooking beans from scratch warms the house and my soul. We love using cranberry beans for this recipe if you can find them. If you can’t find kombu, don’t worry about it. We haven’t ever used it and it’s always turned out really well. I just add some salt to the first stages of cooking to make up for it.
I have found a way to make this a quicker cooking project, so bear with me. First, I soak the beans for 4 hrs up to overnight with salt in the water. Then I drain that water and add the beans (I also add a bay leaf, some thyme and rosemary, half an onion, a clove of garlic and a carrot to bulk up the flavor in this stage) and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 45 minutes. After simmering (and removing the aromatics) follow the next steps and add the same ingredients as written but bake at 325 for 4 hours, stirring every hour or so and adding water if the beans are getting too dry. I hope that all makes sense! It’s an amalgam of recipes we’ve used but it has worked really well for me.
Eat with roasted potatoes, crusty bread, a green salad, or smoked chicken sausages.
Treat of the Week
Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Theeee best choc chip cookies are with browned butter IMO
Something to listen to
My girls and I listened to The Beatles’ White Album in the car the other day and I was reminded of how delightful and truly weird it is. They were loving Back in the USSR and Ob-La-Di, two of my favorites when I was a kid too. A fun one to revisit if it’s been a while!
Have a great week!
Emily