Meal Planning Mondays July 21st ~ 27th

Well after a fantastic weekend camping we are now home and back to the daily grind! Unfortunately the sun seems to be taking a bit of a holiday as well as it has clouded over and cooled down, but after the extreme temperatures of last week the cooler temps aren't too bad!

I'm so excited this week as Mum & Dad are coming to visit - yay! We have been on countdown for so long and finally it's just 1 more sleep until we get to see them. That means this week's Meal Plan is taking their arrival into account and I have also had a quick look at the weather forecast as well to make sure I'm not cooking for hours when it's 35C out! Tonight it's just Ben and I so I'm going for a quick and easy Mac & Cheese which he has been asking for for a while. Tomorrow and it's my all time favourite pasta dish - a super simple Fresh Tomato Sauce served with Penne Pasta. You never know how you are going to feel after travelling and being stuck on a plane for hours so I'll have this made up and ready to go but I'll also have lots of Antipasto as well in case Mum and Dad just feel like snacking. Either way I will be delighted as I absolutely love both dishes! Wednesday and with rain being on the forecast and all of the ingredients in the house already I thought a Thai Red Curry would be perfect. Unfortunately the chillies in the garden aren't quite ready but I always have plenty of fiery red chillies stashed in the fridge which I'll serve on the side so that Ben can enjoy it as well! Thursday is my Birthday(!) and my ideal evening is to hopefully sit out in the garden with a glass of Prosecco, a big sharing plate of antipasto and a super thin pizza cooked on the barbecue! Perfect! Now I can control the food but not the weather so here's hoping it cooperates so that we can relax outside. Friday and although I have a few ideas I'm not entirely sure so for now that's still to be decided but Saturday is all organised as we are having a big Birthday meal here. Not only is it my Birthday this week but it's my Mother-in-laws on Saturday and my Brother-in-laws on Sunday! (Busy week for my husband!) so every year we always get together to have a big family meal and this year we are hosting. I am keeping things really simple and everyone is helping out by making a dish or a starter/appetizer. The star of the show will be a delicious Spiral Ham that just needs warmed up and covered with a delicious sticky, sweet glaze. My Sister-in-law is making some Schwarties (delicious potato dish that Scott's family introduced me to and I now love, but Dauphinoise Potatoes would be just as good if you prefer). I'm going to make a big bowl of coleslaw and then will just serve a nice big green salad with my standard viniagrette and a lovely tomato salad as well. Finally on Sunday Scott is making his Best Ever finger-licking Smoked Ribs (recipe to hopefully appear on my blog this week!) to end the week on a high note!

So there you have it! I'm so looking forward to this week. Have a great week everyone with family, friends and of course, lots of good food! x

 Monday July 21st - July 27th

                                  Monday  -       Macaroni & Cheese; Green Salad

                                  Tuesday -       Penne Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce
                                  Wednesday -  Thai Red Curry with Chicken & Bamboo Shoots; Jasmine Rice

                                  Thursday -      Antipasto and BBQ'd Pizza

                                  Friday -          TBD

                                  Saturday -      Spiral Ham; Schwarties; Coleslaw, Tomato Salad & Green Salad

                                  Sunday -        Scott's Best Ever Smoked Ribs (recipe coming very soon!); 

                                                               Coleslaw & Salad