Menu for Week 5 of Taking the "100 Days of Real Food" Mini Pledge (14 weeks)

Once again we have to plan at being at the hospital most of next week. I used several of the meals I made for The Elder's lunches for work. Hopefully surgery won't be canceled this week like it was last week.

Week 5: Try two new whole foods – Try a minimum of two new whole foods that you’ve never had before

I have tried many things in my time. Without going to a specialty store, I don't think I could easily find a whole food that I've never had. So, I am opting to interpret this in a different way. I think we will eat 2 whole foods that AJ or the FAMILY has never eaten. Honestly, that will be a lot easier. Although we have already tried several new things since we have started.

What are the 2 new whole foods? Eggplant and turnips. Yes, I know they are both vegetables. We tried lentils for the first time last week. Quinoa was already introduced to our diet. I am not introducing any new grains at this time because they can be costly for a family our size.

Meal plan is:

Eggplant Parmesan using homemade breadcrumbs, Pasta with sauce, and Swiss Chard.

Quinoa and Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole and  Apple Dumpling Cinnamon Rolls. I will use coconut oil in place of the canola oil.

Chicken Stew with Turnips and Mushrooms. I may serve this with some quinoa or brown rice because The Elder is never full with "just soup".

Chicken Stir Fry over Brown Rice


Loaded Baked Potatoes - Bacon, Cheese, Salsa, Sour Cream... The difference is, I use raw bacon and bake it with the potato. Works out well. Serve broccoli on the side.

Chicken, Vegetable, and Brown Rice soup. I will use whatever vegetables come with the CSA basket this week. I know there will be Turnups, carrots, and some type of green. Plus I will add in some peas, green beans, and any other veggies I find in the freezer.

Pasties - I notice that the CSA this week is also suppose to have Rutabagas in it. There we go! A 3rd new whole food this week!  I will use butter instead of lard. I may make some with chicken too and use them for lunches or to go into the freezer. Maybe add Parsnips?

They wear pjs on Sunday bowling nights.

For lunches, we will eat some Pasties and anything else I have time to make or space to pack. Otherwise we will eat in the hospital cafeteria. Where will we keep it? We will either keep it at my parents house (20-25 minutes away) or in a one of the hospitality houses the hospital has. One we can reserve a room and the other is first come, first served with special consideration tot hose who drive further than others. We are about an hour away in good traffic, so we are low priority. The other one has rooms more often and you can reserve them. It also costs a little more a night. With both, you can only stay 5 days unless you are a NICU parent (Shirley no longer is in there) or another long term situation.

The minions will remain with Julie and eat whatever is easiest for her. We have some boxed foods (I know, I know) as well as plenty of freezer meals (ones I made). She actually specifically requested the boxed items because she always forgot to grab a freezer meal the night before or early in the day last time. Is it the best thing for the minions to eat? No. Still, this poor woman is taking care of 5 kids who are 7 and under. One is Autistic. So if she wants that to make the weeks she has here easier, then we can do that for a week.

I will still make the full sized meals above. That way we have some to take and we will have several more freezer meals to add to our stash. Who knows, maybe Julie will want to try one.