Nicole Thayer

Full disclosure: Organization is not something that comes easy for me. That being said, God redeems everything so I figure he can redeem that quality about me as well. I won't be a disorganized mess anymore in the name of Jesus! Amen! Recently my husband started a new job which we're SO thankful for and SO excited about but it's a BIG change from the 7:30-4:30 Monday through Friday schedule we've been used to. He's a full time college student as well so now he's balancing about 65 hours a week at work and full time school and ministry at church. Thankfully he really enjoys his job so he's a happier person in general but for me, it's changed how I have to do things a bit. I definitely feel the pressure to be more "homemaker" which, I've gotta be honest, is NOT what I always dreamed about as a little girl. I definitely thought more about writing scholarly essays than doing laundry but our plans are not God's plans and thank the Lord for that! That life wouldn't have given me what I needed. Anyway, the 'moming' and 'wifeing' stuff are both fun and challenging to me and I love it but the "homemaking" part is a struggle. I just want an Alice. You know, from Brady Bunch. A cheerful, smiling, mom figure that mentors my kids, does my laundry, and makes dinner. Dude. She even went on family vacations with them. But since I don't have an Alice and Eric can't really help at all anymore, I figured I'd better get my act together.

So this is week one of meal planning. We do eat relatively healthy so you can expect EASY and healthy dinners. I don't really use recipes so I'll either link to a recipe or just type what I do. Maybe some ambitious day I'll come back to this blog and add pictures (but probably not.) Either way, hopefully this will help you out a little! And be sure to comment with your favorite easy, healthy meal ideas. I LOVE suggestions!

Dinner 1: Tikka Masala
- Ingredients:
  - Coconut Oil
  - Chicken
  - Tikka Masala sauce (found mine at Aldi)
  - Peppers
  - I added broccoli because it was in the fridge
  - Rice
- How to do it:
  - Put oil in a pan and pan fry chicken until cooked. Once cooked, add peppers and tikka masala sauce and simmer about 15 minutes. Serve over rice.
- Review:
  - This one was a HUGE hit with all of us. So incredibly easy and very tasty.
Dinner 2: Nicole's Italian Soup (isn't that an original name?)
- Ingredients:
  - Olive Oil
  - Butter
  - Onion
  - Garlic
  - Sausage (if you're trying to keep it healthy, even just a quarter of a roll of sausage will give a substantial amount of flavor)
  - Kale
  - Golden Potatoes
  - Diced Tomatoes
  - Cannellini Beans
  - Freshly grated Parmesan for topping
- How to do it:
  - Heat olive oil in large pot on stove. Add chopped onion until tender. Remember to add a pinch of salt and pepper after you add each ingredient. Add garlic and sausage until sausage is browned. Add LOTS of kale (remove ribs.) The kale cooks down a lot so I put tons in. Once kale is tender, add water and/or chicken stock to cover and chunked golden potatoes. About 10 minutes later, add diced tomatoes and cannellini beans. At this point, I add butter for silkiness and check the seasonings.
- Review:
  - This is always a hit at our house. We like to top with fresh parmesan if we have it and my kids will often have three or four bowls. It never disappoints!
Dinner 3: Southwest Chicken Salads
- Ingredients: (Don't ignore it because of all the ingredients. You probably have most of them or could skip some you don't have.)
  - Garlic
  - Olive Oil
  - Fresh Cilantro
  - Crushed Red Pepper
  - Salt and Pepper
  - Chicken
  - Corn (Thawed, if frozen)
  - Bell Peppers
  - Onion
  - Lettuce
  - Black Beans
  - Fresh corn
  - Sour Cream (or Plain Greek Yogurt if you want it healthier)
  - Shredded Cheese
  - Salsa
  - Hot Sauce (to taste)
- How to do it:
  - Combine the first five ingredients in a food processor until well processed.
  - Pour mixture with chicken to marinate. (Can be done ahead of time and even frozen like that if desired)
  - Grill chicken.
  - Make salad with lettuce, sauteed peppers and onions, black beans, corn, salsa, sour cream, cheese, and chicken.
- Review:
  - We love this salad. It's a hit and really hearty!
Dinner #4: Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Ingredients:
  - Sweet Potatoes
  - Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt
  - Ground Beef
  - Chives
  - Shredded Cheese
  - Butter
  - Hot Sauce to taste
- How to do it:
  - This one's SO easy! Bake the sweet potatoes and top with whatever you want!
- Review:
  - Tasty and so simple. If you want this to be the easiest ever, precook the meat and freeze it so you just have to thaw it out for dinner.
Dinner #5: CrockPot Roast
- Ingredients:
  - Beef Roast
  - Golden Potatoes
  - Onion
  - Carrots
  - Olive Oil
  - Butter
- How to do it:
  - Put thawed roast in crock pot with sliced onions, cut potatoes, and cut and peeled carrots. Drizzle with olive oil and add a dab of butter for flavor. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on high for about 4 hours depending on size of roast.
- Review:
  - A total hit every time. My kids LOVE how tender the meat is and the flavor is outstanding. Can't go wrong! This week I also set aside some of the meat to top a roast beef salad or two for my husband for work.

Well I hope I gave you some great ideas. Like I said, EASY is key here. Also, I'm thinking about getting an InstaPot. Does anyone have any experience? I'd love if you'd share your favorite EASY (and somewhat healthy) recipes in the comments!