Week 48 Menu + Annelise 2nd Birthday!

Hello helloooo!

Hope yall had a great Thanksgiving! We had a lovely, relaxing time in Knoxville. Steve planned a couple of excursions for us. Tropical Bird Sanctuary, Dixie Stampede (Medieval Times meets Dolly Parton and Baby Jesus), and ice skating.

Will dropping his extensive parrot knowledge on Amelia.

Annelise didn't love it.

52 card pickup!

Annelise didn't love it.

Amelia loved it!

Here's what we have going on this cold cold week.

Monday: Chili
Tuesday: Chicken Marbella (love this!)
Wednesday: Chicken Broccoli Quinoa
Thursday: Leftovers. I have the industry holiday party that I'm way too old to attend. I'll be sneaking way as early as possible.
Friday: Annelise's Birthday!! Hopefully we'll go out
Saturday: Spaghetti Carbonara - old family recipe that is super easy.
Sunday: Annelise's birthday party- I'll be making all sorts of little sandwiches (baked ham sandwiches, turkey and cranberry, and blts) for the adults, and the usual (mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, and pigs in the blanket) for the kids.

What do you have going on? xoxo

Aji de Gallina

Aji de Gallina is a traditional Peruvian dish that we grew up eating at my cousins' house in Dallas. I always loved it, but never tackled the recipe myself- until today. It turned out to be pretty easy. And came out delicious. The hardest part was combining the 3 different recipes that I was given, and translating both the language and the foreign measurements (like kilos). The simplified version is below. Happy eating! 

Note: I ordered the aji paste from a gourmet foods site online (which is really second best to using the real aji peppers). 

Aji de Gallina

Ingredients:

-       4 chicken breasts

-       2.5 yellow onions

-       1 large box of chicken broth (32 oz)

-       4 garlic cloves

-       4 slices of white bread, with out crust

-       2 cups of chopped walnuts

-       2 cups of shredded parmesan cheese

-       1 can of evaporated milk

-       aji paste (to taste)

-       4 russet potatoes, boiled and chopped - optional 

Directions:

-       boil chicken breasts in chicken broth with salt and 1/2 quartered onion

-       Once chicken is cooked, remove from liquid and set aside to cool

-       Shred chicken thickly, and set aside

-       In a separate bowl, shred bread and allow to soak up a bit of chicken broth

-       Finely chop 2 cups of walnuts in a food processor. Set aside.

-       In a skillet, heat oil

-       To skillet add 2 onions chopped and 4 pressed garlic gloves

-       Once onions are translucent, add aji paste to taste (start with 1 spoonful; I used 6)

-       Once onion and aji mixer has cooled, blend in food processer

-       Add soggy bread to processor and blend as well 

-       In a skillet over low heat, add shredded chicken, can of evaporated milk, parmesan cheese, chopped walnuts, and onion & bread mixture (add optional potatoes here too)

-       Once all ingredients are blended together, taste and add more aji paste if necessary

-       Season to taste (for more heat, I decided to add a bit of cayenne pepper)

-       Traditionally, this dish is served over rice, with chopped hard boiled eggs and olives sprinkled on top (I never liked those toppings, so feel free to skip)

Week 45 Menu + Back to the routine

Hi everyone, I'm so exhausted I want to give up right now and crawl into a hole. Annelise was sick the entire car ride home from Minneapolis. Minneapolis was great and always so comforting to see Eli and Alex. The car ride home was terrifying. I had to pull over to the side of the road twice because of Annelise getting sick and it was already dark out so I had images going through my head of getting hit by an out of control 18-wheeler. Terrifying. We abandoned a sweatshirt on the side of the road because it was so covered in sick and there was no way in hell I was letting that in the car. Poor dear was sick when we got home too so she slept in my bed (after she got sick all over her crib) and I was so scared she'd choke on something I was up all night just staring at her. We struggled.

I took a whole wardrobe full of maternity clothes for Eli (whoop!) and we had pizza and cocktails (for Alex and me) and went to brunch with Brad. The girls had a blast and hearing Annelise say "Donde esta mi padrino?" is the most adorable thing I've ever heard.

Here's what we have going on this week - hope to stick to it as much as possible!

Monday: Order in
Tuesday: Baked Chicken Mushroom Skillet (didn't do this last week)
Wednesday: Zuppa Toscana. I know. AGAIN. It's so good and it's cold out.
Thursday: Chili
Friday: Lasagna (the frozen kind. yep.)

What are yall up to? xo

Week 9 (of pregnancy, not the year hahah)

Welp, the first trimester exhaustion everyone talks about is starting to hit me. I get so tired much earlier than I used to! I'm also starting to feel "thicker" in the midsection, even though I don't have a bump yet by any means, and not thrilled in general about upcoming body changes. But all I can do is be healthy and exercise, so that's what I'm gonna try to do! Honestly, all I wanna eat are PB&Js but I will do my best to resist.

I've been blogging a lot lately for that site I write for because the money is so, so easy, but it also means having to go to restaurants when I really just wanna stay at home.

Here's what's on tap menu-wise this week:

Sunday: Chipotle lime salmon with roasted broccoli and a rosemary dinner roll.
Monday: Going to Taco Flats with another couple cause I need to blog about it by Thursday. Tortilla soup and a taco sound pretty good.
Tuesday: Going to Juiceland with a girl friend cause I need to blog about it by Friday. They have tons of ultra healthy food and smoothie/juice options so this will be good. Pilates class after.
Wednesday: Mushroom poblano tacos with tomato avocado salad. Candlelight yoga after.
Thursday: Turkey meatloaf, asparagus, rice
Friday: Fish sticks, roasted potatoes, salad. Afternoon barre class (wanted to barf the entire time I went to this last week but was so sore after- always a good sign).

Might need to sub out Thurs for Michi's One Pot Chili Mac recipe- sounds so good.

Eli, how are you feeling?

Everybody else, whatcha cookin?

xo bef

Week 43 Menu!

Hi everyone, I'm taking it easy this week since I'm recovering from the Dallas wedding and Will is traveling. The wedding was beautiful and we had a great time. Always too short of a visit though. It was great to see all the cousins and so funny to see all of our kids playing together.

Amelia slept until 7am, which is when I woke up too so this morning was crazy rushed to get Amelia ready for school and out the door.

This is what we have going on this week. Lazy and uninspiring, but, for consistency sake, still posting :)

Sunday: Ordered in Mediterranean food
Monday: Homemade Tuna Mac and Cheese with veggies (girls loved it!)
Tuesday: Chicken Broccoli Casserole (don't judge)
Wednesday: Frito Pie
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Halloween! No plans yet.
Saturday: Date Night. Much needed.

What do yall have going on?

A semi-lazy week

I think the week ahead might be semi-lazy for me. Not feeling up to cooking anything extravagant, so will be keepin' things simple!

Mon- Meeting a girlfriend for dinner. Leaving Ryan with marinated chicken, couscous, and broccoli to make for himself (and extra for me for lunch tomorrow)
Tue- Chipotle lime salmon, asparagus, rice
Wed- Going to a new place called Taco Flats cause I need to blog about it on Thursday
Thur- Turkey chili with cornbread (prob need to throw in a veggie here...)
Fri- Going to friends house for dinner

I'll be tryyyyyying to hit the gym 3x this week. I walk Fonzie for like 3/4 mile every morning, but it always feels good to get my blood moving after sitting all day at work (when I can manage to motivate myself to get outta the house). If I don't go to the gym, I try to do the Kayla Itsines (have y'all heard of her yet?) circuit workout, which is actually way, way harder than going to the gym, but shorter and more convenient. If anyone's interested seeing those workouts, lemme know and I'll send ya the PDFs. They're 30 min workouts but will kick your ass. The trainer's Instagram is good motivation and the before/after photos are always kinda amazing to me.

Other than that, probably just lots of Netflixing. I started watching Parenthood from the beginning and I really like it so far! I have tons of episodes left, so that makes me happy.

Week 42 Menu - A short week!

Hi everyone! Hope yall had a good weekend!

We totally laid low on Friday night - had another movie night. Annelise has decided The Nightmare Before Christmas is too scary, so we watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. It was ok. Can't wait for Christmas when we can really dive into all the classics!

Saturday, Will took the car in after Bubbles and Ballet so the girls and I had a day of fun. We walked to the zoo, even though it was too far and too cold to walk. We had a great time, though.

Yesterday we went to brunch with Lydia and Karla, then went to look at some puppies. We were SO CLOSE to getting a dog, but Will talked as away from the point of no return. I think we'll revisit after New Years when all the holiday traveling is done.

It's a short week because of Ali's wedding this weekend! The girls are in the wedding and they're so excited to wear the pretty dresses. Here's what's on the menu for the short week.

Sunday: White Fish Special for me and Will, Fish Nuggets for the girls

Monday: Spaghetti with Bolognese sauce. Made this on Sunday so we can eat as leftovers all week

Tuesday: Chicken with Sherry and Mustard Sauce

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Out/Leftovers

Friday- Sunday: DALLAS!

What are yall up to this week?? xoxo

Week 41 Menu

Hello hello! Hope yall had a great weekend!

We had an awesome, jam packed weekend. Will and I went to dinner and saw Gone Girl on Friday. Really good. Then Saturday, we met with the contractor, went to a Bubbles class for Annelise and Amelia was the teacher's helper (by helper, I mean riled up Annelise and all the little kids to not pay attention and run around like chickens instead of participating in the class). Afterwards we went to a pumpkin patch with another family - Amelia and Nola are super friends even though they only see each other a couple of times a year. They love each other and it's so fun to see her form relationships. Saturday night I made white boy tacos and we watched The Walking Dead until 1am. Sunday was the marathon, we saw our friend running in it, then we met them up for margaritas and tacos at Big Star.

Lunches for Amelia have been going smoothly. I have a good rotation of pasta with peas (tortellini or elbow or something like that), sandwiches (peanut butter, turkey) or wraps (turkey, hot dog). Every once in a while, I'll do leftovers, but she had to have really liked it. My focus with her is protein - she doesn't naturally gravitate towards it so I have to make sure she's getting enough. I'll add in a fruit, cheese, carrot sticks, and a cookie- usually a few nilla wafers or a milano. She devours her lunch which I love to see. On Fridays, I've ordered her the hot lunch at her school to give me the day off. I keep an eye out for good/easy lunches though because I don't want to wear out the lunches I'm currently using! Any ideas are super welcome :)

Here's what I have on the menu for the week:

Monday: Shepherd's Pie
Tuesday: Slow cooker Tikka Masala - I have a Junior League event so this will be ready for Will and the girls.
Wednesday: Lou's Chicken Marbella 
Thursday: Honey Garlic Chicken
Friday: Out or leftovers

What have yall got going on? xoxo

Week 40 Menu

Hi everyone! Hope yall had a good weekend. We had a really great time. Friday night we did a movie + pizza night. We watched The Nightmare Before Christmas and the girls loved it. We ate pizza on the floor while watching the movie. They were riveted. Scared at times, but nothing too bad.

Saturday we had Bubbles and ballet class, then went to a deli to get sandwiches and matzo ball soup. The girls also got haircuts.

Sunday we went to Ikea to look at kitchen layouts and then to Fall Fest at Amelia's school. Bouncy Houses, huge slides, face painting and ice cream. It was a great time - below was the post-fun bathtime.

Here's what we have going on this week:

Sunday: Brisket, veggies, and beans. Dad sent these beans- they were sooo good.
Monday: Shrimp Scampi
Tuesday: Korean Beef with rice and broccoli
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Braised French Onion Chicken
Friday: Out

What do you have going on? xo

Week 38 Menus

Hi everyone, hope yall had a good weekend! We had a lot going on, but at the same time, felt like nothing really happened :) Friday I randomly saw Julie on the train so we grabbed a drink on the way home. That was fun and so nice to see her and catch up. Saturday, Ballet and Bubbles, then Will took me shopping for pants for Abu Dhabi. Those bad boys were at Nordstrom Rack for $69! Whoop! Got a few other ones. Tight pants are not allowed (neither are bare arms or cleavage) so I needed to get some new things to wear.

Saturday night we had a date night. We went to Osteria Langhe and then to a bar. Great to get out and have a real conversation. Then yesterday we went to mass then to lunch in Vernon Hills with the Callejas. Since we leave for Abu Dhabi this Thursday night, it'll be a short week for us and the girls are headed out to Minneapolis with mom to see the Taveras!! Lucky girls.

Sunday: Leftovers for the girls, Will and I scavenged - we were so full from lunch!
Monday: Irish Beef Stew (didn't make it last week.)
Tuesday: Chancho en pepsi cola
Wednesday Beth's Korean Beef
Thursday-Sunday: Out of town!!

What do yall have going on?? xo

Week 37 Menus!!

Hi everyone! After moving and getting settled, I'm finally posting. Been cooking a ton, but didn't feel inspired to post. We've also been sending Amelia to school with lunch everyday which adds a fun new complexity to menu planning. So far so good though! It's fun to plan everything out.

We had a fantastic weekend of ballet and Bubbles class, apple picking, dim sum, and parks. One of the best weekends in a long time.

Below is our menu for the week.

Sunday: Lighter General Tso's Chicken and rice *First time making this and turned out really well! Lot of work so peepeepared.
Monday: Chili mac and cheese  *Made this a few weeks ago and it was a HUGE hit with Will and the girls.
Tuesday: Slow cooker Irish stew and mashed potatoes *An oldie but a goodie
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Herb roasted chicken with roasted broccoli
Friday: out

What do you have going on?? xo

Week 31 menu @ The Mirshaks

Hi everyone, hope you had a good weekend! We had Will's dad visiting. He took the girls to the zoo on Saturday and Will and I went to a movie. We saw A Man Most Wanted. Really good and Philip Seymour Hoffman's last movie.

I have a few work outings this week, so I did a ton of cooking over the weekend to have leftovers for Will and the girls. Below is what we have going on:

Saturday: Moroccan chicken with couscous and caprese salad
Sunday: Spaghetti and bolognese sauce. I generally wing this recipe.
Monday: White Boy tacos
Tuesday: Leftovers for the family; I'm going to Embeya
Wednesday: Lou's Chicken Marbella 
Thursday: Leftovers for the family; I'm going to Nico Osteria
Friday: Garlic Butter Shrimp and Quinoa
Saturday: Out with Eli and Sal who are visiting from Minneapolis!! I'll be making a reservation soon.

What are yall up to??

xo

Week 29 Menus @ The Mirshaks

Hello! I'm so excited for this week because it's a short week!! Leaving for Houston on Thursday night with Annelise. Will and Amelia join us on Friday. I have a feeling Amelia is not going to take well to being left behind. Not only is she already fighting me on it ('But last time we went all together on the airplane!'), but she has also been a big mamma's girl lately so Will might have an interesting time traveling with her on his own. We'll see!

Given that, this week's menu is light, so here's what we have going on:

Sunday: Spicy scallops and couscous That recipe was awesome- really recommend it! Girls loved it. Annelise stole a scallop from my plate when I wasn't looking. I also made this basic vegetable soup for the girls to eat throughout the week. I used to have that for dinner all the time when I was living in Paris. Hope the girls eat it!
Monday: Spaghetti and meatballs. Will's out of town, so something easy and brainless :)
Tuesday: White boy tacos (just ground meat- turkey, beef, or bison) with seasoning and beans. Low brow.
Wednesday: Shepherd's pie
Thursday - Monday: Houston for dad's birthday!! Can't wait to see everyone!

Hope everyone is doing well! xo

Whew, what a weekend!

Had a great weekend with my sister, bro in law and nephew here in Austin! So many fun things happened-- great Mexican food, went out on the boat, took the dogs to Barton Springs, went to the new children's museum. And now I am soooo pooped. Just enough energy left to clean the bedding (clean sheets on a Sunday night? Da best), sweep, and empty the dishwasher - a good start to the week.

Sun: Pecan crusted rainbow trout, roasted brussels, smashed baby potatoes

Mon: Turkey chili, cornbread, grilled okra. I always just buy this and add beans, corn, meat.

Tue: Out to dinner at Cru with a girl friend cause I'm supposed to blog about it

Weds: Breakfast casserole I've been meaning to make

Thurs: Chipotle lime salmon with tomato avocado salad

Fri: Almost never cook at home on Fri nights

I feel ridiculous doing this, but I've been getting groceries delivered lately.  Absolutely no reason I should be doing this instead of going myself but whatever. There's a new service in town that delivers within 1 hour of placing your order online and it's just soooo nice.

Week 27 Menu

Hope everyone had a good Fourth of July!! We had an awesome time with Eli and Alex in Minneapolis. There are a ton of mosquitos in Minneapolis- tons! As of yesterday, Will was still recovering from drinking with Alex until 2am. The girls had so much fun and Annelise especially loved hanging out with Alex - it was adorbs. Eli can't wait to have you and Sal in Chicago!

I am going a bit crazy with work this week so I don't have too much exciting to write. Here's the menu though. Womp womp.

Monday: Sausage pasta
Tuesday: Chicken Enchiladas
Wednesday: Chicken Curry
Thursday: Crockpot Balsamic Pork Tenderloin
Friday: Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole
Saturday: My cousin Lydia and her boyfriend are coming over so I'm thinking burgers or something like that

xoxo