We are now in the weeks counting down to Lent. It's been a longer break between Christmas and Lent this year than it has been in the recent past. We're still whittling down our freezer and pantry. We're working on defrosting and reorganizing our freezers as well. We used to have an inventory of everything that was in each freezer, but let that lapse after we moved. I've been meaning to get that taken care of for a longer time than I'd care to admit. So, in the next couple weekends, we plan on tackling that, along with more work getting the garden ready. It's butchering time, too. So, things are just a little busy here.

Amira is busy counting down to her birthday, which is the second day of Lent. Her birthday is the last possible date for Ash Wednesday in any year. However, she has figured that in two years her birthday will fall on a Sunday so everyone will be able to break the fast with her. Elijah's birthday is already a feast day and there is a party scheduled for that day this year with our homeschool co-op, so he'll get that, too.

Since Rich actually has Monday off, we will be having a bigger family breakfast. He so rarely gets to eat a real breakfast anyway, let alone with us. It's usually something he packs to eat at some point at work. He's also been pretty sick with a cold this past week, so having a three day weekend to recuperate was not a bad thing. We haven't gotten a lot of the things we wanted to do finished this weekend, but all of us who were fighting the cold or who had it, got a lot of rest and fresh air.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Dutch Baby Pancake with Butter, Lemon Juice and Powdered Sugar, Yogurt with Assorted Fruit Jams, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftover Enchiladas, Rice and Black Beans, Sliced Oranges


• Monday
  Breakfast: Apple Upside Down Pancake, Mochas
  Dinner: Black Bean and Chorizo Soup, Spelt Rolls


• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Raisins and Brown Sugar, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Slow Baked Chuck Roast, Winter Squash, Roasted Rutabaga Wedges


• Wednesday
  Breakfast: English Muffins* with Almond Butter and Honey, Dried Figs, Milky Tea
  Dinner: Vegetables Jalfrezi (using the vegetables we have on hand and garbanzo beans), Herbed Cous Cous


• Thursday
  Breakfast: Toast with Feta Cheese, Za'atar and Olive Oil, Sliced Oranges, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Teriyaki Chicken, Sesame-Garlic Green Beans, Sesame Noodles


• Friday
  Breakfast: Giant Breakfast Cookies (we use nuts or raisins), Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter with Pasta and Parmesan, Onions, Olive-Herb Cheese Bread


• Saturday
  Breakfast: Cinnamon Apple Waffles, Sausage Patties, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pepperoni, Pineapple, Onion, Olive Pizza, Blackberry Cobbler*

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Bought:

Blackberries (frozen from Azure Standard)
Mozzarella
Milk

Labels: Family, Homemaking, Menu Plans, Tales from the Kitchen