Menu Time

We make a weekly menu. We've been doing this for as long as I can remember. I picked it up from my mother while living at home. Monday was always Mac & Cheese (not that crappy stuff in the blue box). It was a weekly adventure to figure out what to eat on what night based on what was going on. It still holds the same interest today.

During the school year we try to make our meal selections as utilitarian as possible. We steer towards one pot, one skillet meals that provide a lot of leftovers (lunch the next day and a couple of future servings in the freezer). We will put together a list and hit the stores, on an exceptional week this will be the ONLY trip to the grocery store. The whole process of menu and list usually only takes thirty or so minutes.

The shopping can be involved. It is always two or more stores. We can't stand the produce at the big chains. It taste like sand. We have a local market that literally has farm fresh produce. If it is in season then they will have not only the best of the best but also the best price on it as well. It is something that we have tried and tried to convince ourselves that we can make do at the other stores, but it is not possible. The shopping takes place on the weekend and can take a couple of hours. It beats having to do any of it after work and practice during the week.

When putting together the menu, Krista will start going through the cookbooks to get ideas going. I play along and "listen" as she goes through the recipes and starts to read them to me ingredient by ingredient. Her mother does the same. Her sister (who does not cook all that much) does the same. I try to keep in tune because it can mean the difference between a wonderful meal and an "Arby" meal. "Arbier's" are meals that are so bad you will go and eat at Arby's instead of what you just cooked (we have not had an official one in a while--we have bitten the bullet and got close--but no actually trips to the restaurant whose hat looks like a penis). We have pared down to only a few cookbooks (this means 20 or so--not counting the 4 magazines we get with recipes in them), so we know what to expect on a pretty regular basis.

We eat well. We sometimes don't always read the entire recipe and have to improvise, but the food always comes out great. You might not eat it that day (cause you forget how much time it takes) but it taste great the next time for sure. We try not to eat out because of the low quality of the food, the price, and the inconvenience that going to restaurant causes. We had three meals out over the weekend (two dinners and a lunch). We spent more on those three meals then we would have on a weeks worth of shopping. It just doesn't compute.

So the next time you are looking for something good to eat take a little time to think out your plan and be able to savor that well thought out meal.