New Rotation Deep Dive: Spring 2026

Here is a deep dive on the current rotation. In this post, I detail the current dinner rotation, recipes I’m using, prep notes, and why these meals made the cut.

The New Rotation

Week 1Week 2
MondayTagliatelle with smashed peas, sausage, and ricottaSheet pan salmon and broccoli
TuesdaySteak and zucchiniCreamy enchilada soup topped with avocado and tortilla chips + chicken nuggets
WednesdayTake outCrispy sesame beef over rice + carrots
ThursdayHoney garlic shrimp over rice + asparagusRoasted vegetable enchiladas
FridayTortellini with sautéed mushrooms and parmesan + chicken breast + pear and walnut saladRavioli + chicken breast + roasted broccoli

Recipes and Links

Tagliatelle with smashed peas, sausage, and ricotta

  • Recipe inspiration:
    • Tagliatelle with smashed peas, sausage, and ricotta (Food Network)
  • Notes:
    • x

Steak and zucchini

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • I cut the chili flakes, knowing that will be too much spice for my young kids
    • The recipe calls for 4 zucchinis, but the steak is a lot more popular than the zucchini in my family, so I just use 2 zucchinis.
    • If you have a pot or any amount of dirt in your yard, plant mint and use it fresh for this recipe. Just be aware that mint will try to take over any container you plant it in, so always give mint its own space.

Honey-garlic shrimp over rice + roasted asparagus

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • My children think sauces are very scary, but they love marinades (just please don’t tell them that). With that in mind, I pull their shrimp out of the pan before adding the additional sauce to thicken and reduce. I just do that step for the adults – more sauce for us!

Tortellini with sauteed mushrooms and parmesan + chicken breast + pear and walnut salad

  • Recipe inspiration:
    • No recipes here, really. Cook a pack of Costco tortellini and saute some mushrooms that you like in lots of butter (or leave them out). Serve with the extra butter from the pan and parmesan cheese. I also like to add a drizzle of balsamic glaze.
    • Air fry your chicken breast with a seasoning you like.
    • Put together a quick salad of romaine, sliced pear, and toasted walnuts. You could add more if you want, such as goat or blue cheese, some other fruit, or more nuts and seeds. I usually keep it simple, and dress it with olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper.
  • Notes:
    • This dinner has lots of components, but they all run on autopilot, making it a perfect Friday dinner. Start the chicken and the tortellini, and make the salad while those cook.
    • Only one of my kids will go near salad. The other 2 just get pear slices.

Sheet pan salmon and broccoli

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • There are a million versions of this recipe out on the internet with all different flavor profiles and seasonings, so find one you like!
    • Great with rice or some other grain, if you want.

Creamy enchilada soup topped with avocado and tortilla chips + chicken nuggets

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • Soup is tricky with kids – with my kids, at least. I love to make it, but they don’t like having all their food swimming together in the same dish. I serve beans and corn separately on their plates, plus the avocado and a few tortilla chips, but I’m also adding chicken nuggets for them to fill up on.

Crispy sesame beef over rice + carrots

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • I roast or steam the carrots because my 1 year old loves them that way. You could do any vegetable that your family likes.

Roasted vegetable enchiladas

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • This is a great prep-ahead recipe, based on how much time you have earlier in the day and before dinner. You can roast the veggies anytime, and could even roll up the enchiladas earlier in the day. Then just pop the pan of enchiladas into the oven for 20 minutes before dinner.

Ravioli + chicken breast + roasted broccoli

  • Recipe inspiration:
    • No recipes. Make a pack or 2 of ravioli that your family likes (I almost always make Costco ravioli with cheese and spinach).
    • Air fry your chicken breast with a seasoning you like.
    • Roast some broccoli (or another veg you like/have on hand)
  • Notes:
    • Similar to the other Friday meal in this rotation, this meal has multiple elements but is designed to be pretty hands-off. We do dinner and a movie on Fridays, so I don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen while the rest of my family is enjoying the movie.

Why These Meals?

I always look for recipes that are simple enough that I can make them quickly while distracted. I love it when there are elements that I can prep ahead of time to simplify dinner prep. And I need recipes that are flexible so I’m not making a different dinner for every person. These recipes all meet the mark, and feel seasonably appropriate for spring when we have more vegetables.

Our house gets cleaned every other Wednesday and I refuse to cook in a freshly cleaned house, so we get take out that night. Feel free to swap this to a night when you don’t want to cook.

What About Weekends?

We keep weekends simple and flexible, so I don’t have meals planned for those nights. When the weather is nice, my husband grills burgers, sausages, or chicken breast. Sometimes we pull some ravioli or chicken nuggets out of the freezer. And at least once over the weekend, we’ll get take-out or go out to eat.

Grocery Shopping and Prep

Having a meal plan for the week is a great first step, but it falls apart if you don’t follow through. Here’s how I structure my week to make sure I have everything that I need to cook the meals in my 2-week rotation.

(1) Keep your recipes in one place. Pick out the recipes that you want to make and put them in a note in your phone. This keeps everything accessible in the grocery store, in the kitchen, or when your family asks what’s for dinner.

(2) Build your master ingredient list. Copy-paste the list of ingredients from each recipe into the same note. Yes this is a bit tedious, but I promise it is worth the time and effort now. Future-you will be grateful!

(3) Do one main grocery run on Sunday or Monday. I buy everything from my ingredient list that is shelf stable or can last in the fridge (basically everything except proteins and any finicky produce like fresh herbs), plus proteins for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday dinners.

(4) Do a quick midweek grocery refresh. On Wednesday or Thursday, I go back to the grocery store for proteins and any other super perishable items for Thursday, Friday, and weekend dinners. This is a quick and targeted grocery run.

(5) Use your freezer strategically. I keep a number of proteins on hand in the freezer so I don’t have to constantly buy those. Costco ground beef and frozen chicken are MVPs in this house! Set a recurring calendar reminder to thaw what you need the day before you’re cooking so they’ll be ready when you are.

Spotlight: Sheet pan sausages with roasted potatoes and broccoli

Here is a bit more detail on the sausage sheet pan dinner, how I prepare it, and how I serve to kids vs adults.

Recipe

I don’t use a recipe for this dinner, but if you need some inspiration and more concrete steps then I recommend this recipe from Number 2 Pencil as a good starting point.

How I cook this meal

I typically cut the potatoes into bite-size pieces, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, and any other spices and seasonings I’m feeling that day (smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder are all good options). That goes in a 425º oven for about 20 minutes.

Once the potatoes are in the oven, I start on the other elements. Chop the broccoli and toss that with olive oil, salt, and pepper. The broccoli will only take 10-15 minutes, so try to add it when the potatoes have that much time left.

For the sausages, it depends whether you’re cooking raw or fully cooked sausages. For fully cooked sausages, I typically put them in with the broccoli. 10 minutes is plenty of time for them to warm up. Raw sausages need more like 20-25 minutes, so they’ll need to start with the potatoes.

Do a quick 1:1 mix of honey and dijon mustard as a dipping sauce. YUM!

The final result

Kid serving

Adult serving

Ratings and reactions

Husband: 9/10. Loves the sausage. Could do without green vegetables)

Kids: 9/10. They all demolished their sausages. I made 6 thinking we’d have plenty of leftovers, and it was all eaten. Potatoes were the next to go. Broccoli was sniffed and poked a few times, but otherwise ignored.

Leftovers: 8/10. We didn’t have any sausages left, but they always make for great leftovers. A few pieces heated up for lunch, or chopped and added to an omelet are easy options. The potatoes are yummy the next day, especially smashed and fried in oil so they get all crispy. Toss broccoli into a salad or just eat it cold.

Spotlight: Pasta e fagioli soup

Here is a bit more detail on pasta e fagioli soup, how I prepare it, and how I serve to kids vs adults.

Recipe

Pasta e fagioli (Cookie and Kate)

How I cook this meal

  • I follow the recipe to the letter. It’s a perfect recipe. No notes!
  • I like to make a can of biscuits or crescent rolls alongside this. First off, they are always flakey and delicious and perfect, and who would not want to eat 1 or 2 of those with dinner? But also I think it makes the whole dinner more accessible for the boys. There is something about soup that scares them away, but biscuits bring them right back.
  • I always throw a few chicken nuggets on the plate with this meal, partly to offer some extra protein (though there are plenty of beans in the soup) and partly to offer one more option. Sometimes they one or the other, and sometimes both. It’s more of an insurance policy than anything else.

The final result

Kid serving

I try to serve a “chunkier” soup to kids, especially my 1 year old. That way, they can see the yummy stuff and it’s more accessible for them to pick out what they want.

Sometimes I also save elements of the soup, upon request. For example, I am often asked for a whole of plain cannelini beans when I cook this soup, which I am very happy to serve to that child instead of the soup.

For adults, I serve a bowl of soup with parmesan cheese on top, and a basket of biscuits to share (though they are always stolen by children and we have to quickly defend our servings).

Ratings and Reactions

Husband: 7/10. He was upset there weren’t any chicken nuggets on his plate, but very excited about biscuits and always enjoys this soup.

Kids: 6/10. 1 year old loved the soup, especially the carrots. 3 year old ate beans and chicken nuggets. 7 year old only ate the soup so that he could have another biscuit.

Leftovers: 10/10. Literally the best leftovers, especially on a cold day when I want something warm and cozy midday. This also freezes and reheats beautifully.

Weekly prep: Monday March 2

We had a busy weekend of sports and birthday parties, so I didn’t get a chance to do any meal prep over the weekend. I’m playing catch-up today, but still trying to get some things done so that the rest of the week will be a little bit smoother.

(1) Flourless muffins

My husband saw a reel describing flourless muffins, and requested that I make them. The reel that he shared didn’t have much by way of measurements or baking instructions, but I found this recipe from The Peanut Institute that helped fill in the gaps. We didn’t have blueberries so I subbed chopped up strawberries, and baked them as mini muffins because they seemed like they might be kind of dense (this was a good move). They definitely taste like healthy muffins with kind of a peanut butter and jelly vibe. My 1 year old thinks they’re amazing.

(2) Grocery shopping

The usual Whole Foods stock-up to start the week, including sausages for tomorrow.

(3) Hard boiled eggs

These were primarily for my lunch salads (see #4) but also an easy item to pull out for breakfast or a snack.

(4) Lunch salads

I tend to pick one breakfast and one lunch for the week. I will eat leftovers if we have them, and I generally know when that will be ahead of time, so I can plug in the gaps with at least a semi-prepped lunch plan.

This week I’ve got a basic salad with the Miso Ginger Dressing from 100 Days of Real Food. I love this dressing recipe! I make it 90% as-written, with a couple of tweaks:

  • I add the juice of 1 lime for some citrusy freshness
  • I learned a few years ago to keep ginger in the freezer. It lasts basically forever as far as I’m concerned, and is easy to grate. I don’t bother peeling it, which already saves me some time, and grated ginger is so much easier to incorporate into dressings than anything chopped.

I only put some of the ingredients into the tupperwares at the beginning of the week – basically lettuce and chopped veggies – to avoid any sogginess. This week I’ve got little gem lettuce, chopped cucumber, chopped apple, and shredded carrots.

The bowl at the bottom of the below photo is my fully prepped lunch for today, which also includes quinoa, a hardboiled egg, some peanuts and some crispy fried onions. I’ve got more quinoa and dressing in the fridge, plus the eggs that I hardboiled, so I can easily toss everything together for lunch each day. It doesn’t completely remove prep time but it cuts it down significantly.

(5) Egg cups

These are a quick and easy breakfast for anyone, and a good way to use up veggies or proteins from your fridge. I make them in a WELL-GREASED muffin tin with bacon, zucchini, bell pepper, and grated cheddar cheese.

Have a great week!

Asian beef bowls

Here is a bit more detail on the asian beef bowls, how I prepare them, and how I serve to kids vs adults.

Recipe

Gochujang Beef Bowls (Little Spice Jar)

How I cook this meal

  • I follow the recipe for the ground beef, though I leave out gochugaru. This is partly because it is a unique ingredient and therefore difficult to find, but also because it would add more spice than we want. I do include the gochujang, which can easily be found in most grocery stores, though I keep it to 1 Tbsp.
  • I make a very simplified version of Little Spice Jar’s cucumber salad. Before I start cooking the beef, I thinly slice 1/2 of a large English cucumber, then add about 1/2 cup of white vinegar, a big pinch of salt, and a couple Tbsp of olive oil in a jar or tupperware. Give it some good shakes and let it sit while you cook rest of the meal. These are a huge hit among my pickle-loving kids!
  • I grate up some carrots to pile on the top, since I left those out of the pickle salad.

The final result

Kid serving:

Adult serving:

* The recipe suggests topping with the sliced up green parts of a scallion, which clearly I forgot. You can also top with sesame seeds, which doesn’t do much for the flavor but does make it look fancy.

Ratings and Reactions

Husband: 10/10. Polished off a second serving of beef without hesitation.

Kids: 7/10. They all liked different things but everyone found something to fill up on. 1 year old had 2 servings of beef and nothing else. 3 year old ate carrots, pickled cucumbers, and rice. 7 year old ate everything, licked his plate, and came back for thirds of pickled cucumbers.

Leftovers: 8/10. I had the remaining ground beef and rice for lunch the next day. It was missing the freshness of the veggies, but still tasted good and was filling.

Weekly Prep: Sunday Feb 22

Here is what I did today to prepare for the week ahead, in order to make things just a little bit easier.

(1) Grocery shopping

I did a big run at Whole Foods, including our household staples, shelf-stable ingredients for the week, and some salmon and ground pork sausage for Monday and Tuesday meals (Wednesday is take-out this week).

(2) Made blueberry muffins with my son

These are an easy breakfast or snack, and made for a fun activity with my 3 year old this afternoon. I love this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction, though I ALWAYS forget to soften the butter ahead of time. I chop it into small pieces on a cutting board while I prep the rest of the ingredients, and usually it’s soft enough in time for that step.

(3) Roasted veggies for breakfast

I love a quick veggie scramble in the morning, but don’t want to spend time chopping and sautéing veggies in the morning while we’re racing to get everyone ready and out the door. I roasted 2 zucchinis, 1 red bell pepper, and 1 yellow onion with some olive oil and salt at 425º for 20 minutes, and will store in the fridge for the week. I’ll put a scoop of roasted veggies into a small pan with 2 scrambled eggs for a 5 minute breakfast that includes a full serving of vegetables.

(4) Made a pack of bacon

Some people keep a bottle of champagne in their fridge at all times. I keep cooked bacon. Warm up a few slices in the air fryer to go alongside breakfast, or toss it in a breakfast burrito. Add some to a sandwich when you really need that salty savory kick. Hell, eat it straight out of the fridge as a snack! Bacon always makes things great and it’s far better when you don’t have to cook it every time.

A suggestion: bake your bacon. 425º for 15-20 minutes (I check it at 15 and then decide whether it needs to be crispier. It usually does). It doesn’t destroy your stove top, and if you lay it out on a sheet of parchment, then half your clean up is taken care of once the grease cools.

Have a great week!

New Rotation Deep Dive: Winter 2026

Here is a deep dive on the current rotation. In this post, I detail the current dinner rotation, recipes I’m using, prep notes, and why these meals made the cut.

The New Rotation

Week 1Week 2
MondaySausage and pesto pasta with peasPasta e fagioli soup + rolls
TuesdayGlazed salmon + fried riceSheet pan sausages + roasted potatoes and broccoli
WednesdayTake outGnocchi with brussel sprouts and brown butter
ThursdayAsian beef bowlsSalmon pasta with cream sauce + quick salad
FridayNaan pizza barHoisin burgers + roasted potatoes
Continue reading “New Rotation Deep Dive: Winter 2026”

New Rotation Deep Dive: Fall 2025

Here is a deep dive on the current rotation. In this post, I detail the current dinner rotation, recipes I’m using, prep notes, and why these meals made the cut.

The New Rotation

Week 1Week 2
MondayCrock pot chili + biscuitsCrock pot tortellini soup with pork sausage
TuesdayTeriyaki salmon + roasted brussels sprouts + riceGreek yogurt marinated salmon + couscous + roasted carrots
WednesdayTake outPizza + salad
ThursdayRavioli + roasted broccoliStir fry with chicken
FridaySimmer sauce with peas and paneer or chickenSpaghetti and meatballs + caesar salad

Recipes and Links

Crock pot chili and biscuits

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • The NYT Cooking recipe above is perhaps the best chili that I’ve ever made. Don’t let the long list of ingredients intimidate you. I promise you have 80% of them in your pantry already, and the other 20% will bring you great joy.
    • I usually serve this with canned biscuits, crescent rolls, etc. Whatever is available where you do your shopping.
    • Leave 1-2 servings of chili in the fridge for lunches, and then freeze the rest in Souper Cubes to reuse in 2 weeks.

Teriyaki salmon + roasted brussels sprouts + rice

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • The salmon recipe above links to a specific teriyaki sauce. My kids and I prefer Bachan’s Japanese Barbecue Sauce. Use what your family likes.
    • If you think of it, pour the teriyaki sauce over the salmon in a bowl sometime in the afternoon and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to cook. Your salmon will be MUCH more flavorful if it can marinade for a few hours before you cook it.
    • I did not include a recipe for rice – I serve this meal with plain jasmine rice. I usually make some extra rice and then freeze the leftovers to repurpose later.

Ravioli + roasted broccoli

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • This dinner couldn’t be easier! Pick up a package of ravioli that look good to you – cheese, spinach, veg, meat….whatever! Cook according to the instructions on the package while your broccoli roasts. You could boost the flavor with a sauce, but we serve them plain to kids and drizzle with balsamic glaze, some olive oil, and parmesan for adults.

Simmer sauce with peas and paneer or chicken

  • Recipe inspiration
    • Chop your protein of choice – paneer (Indian cheese) or chicken – into bite size pieces and saute in a pan until cooked (the paneer doesn’t really have to cook, just brown it). Pour half a bag of peas into the pan, and then dump in a jar of simmer sauce.
  • Notes:
    • Have you discovered simmer sauces yet? They’ll change your life. I like the Maya Kaimal brand (we usually buy tikka masala or butter masala, which are not spicy and very flavorful), but there are many different brands and flavors. Try a few and see what you like.

Crock pot tortellini soup with pork sausage

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • Make the soup in the crockpot, but cook the tortellini on the stove just before you’re ready to serve. If you’re going to store leftovers, keep them separate. The tortellini get bloated and soggy sitting in the soup.

Greek yogurt marinated salmon + couscous + roasted carrots

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • Marinating salmon in yogurt and then baking it freaked me out at first, but it is one of the best ways that I’ve found to bake salmon. It comes out so tender and delicious, with very little extra effort.
    • If you have a few minutes in the afternoon, get the marinade for the salmon going and let it sit in the fridge for a couple hours before cooking.

Pizza + salad

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • I started making my own pizza dough a few years ago, and it has been hard to go back. It takes less than 15 minutes to mix and knead it, plus a couple hours of rise time, and then you have delicious and fresh pizza dough to roll out and load up with toppings. My kids love to help roll it out and decorate mini pizzas, or you can do 2 big pizzas and choose the toppings yourself.
    • Top the pizzas with whatever you want! We start with a jar of pizza sauce, some mozzarella, and then clean out the fridge and freezer to top it. Sauteed or roasted veggies are great (zucchini, onion, bell pepper, mushrooms are some of my favorites), plus any proteins you’ve got lying around like leftover chicken breast, sausage crumbles, pepperoni.
    • Melissa eats her pizza salad IN her slice of pizza, but I like to have it as a side with fresh pizza. Do you!

Stir fry with chicken

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • These 2 recipes have different spins on stir fry, but you can do literally whatever you want and it will be delicious. I love to add some chopped pineapple at the end for some sweet bites, and sometimes add in shrimp as well. Anything goes.

Spaghetti and meatballs + caesar salad

  • Recipe inspiration:
  • Notes:
    • Double the number of meatballs that you need for dinner, and store the extras in the freezer. In 2 weeks when you cook this again, you can pull them straight out of the freezer and just warm them up (I like to use the air fryer for this)
    • Both of the caesar salad recipes above include ingredients and instructions to make your own dressing, which of course is optional. If you want to make the dressing yourself, it will keep for about 2 weeks, so you could easily use it twice for dinners, or just use it for lunch salads in the meantime.

Why These Meals?

The fall is generally a very busy time of year for us, with a lot of new routines and activities. With that in mind, I made this menu to be very simple and straightforward so that I can put my time and thought into getting everyone where they need to be, rather than making a complicated dinner every night.

On the first cool day of fall, I am always eager to break out my crockpot and start making chili and soup, so my top priority was getting multiple of those recipes in here. We’ve got a busy evening of activities on Mondays, so that was a logical night to do a crockpot meal this fall. You could easily swap this to another day when you’ve got lots of activities to drive to, or when everyone is eating dinner at different times.

Our house is cleaned every other Wednesday afternoon, and I hate ruining it immediately by cooking, so we always do take out that day.

On weekends, when it is decent outside (above about 50º F), my husband wants to grill, so I leave the weekends for him to do that. He’ll usually grill burgers, brats, or chicken breasts one night over the weekend and we get take out or go out to eat the other night. Because of that, I left the weekends off this meal plan entirely.

Grocery Shopping and Prep

Having a meal plan for the week is a great first step, but it falls apart if you don’t follow through. Here’s how I structure my week to make sure I have everything that I need to cook the meals in my 2-week rotation.

(1) Keep your recipes in one place. Pick out the recipes that you want to make and put them in a note in your phone. This keeps everything accessible in the grocery store, in the kitchen, or when your family asks what’s for dinner.

(2) Build your master ingredient list. Copy-paste the list of ingredients from each recipe into the same note. Yes this is a bit tedious, but I promise it is worth the time and effort now. Future-you will be grateful!

(3) Do one main grocery run on Sunday or Monday. I buy everything on my ingredient list that is shelf stable, plus proteins for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday dinners.

(4) Do a quick midweek grocery refresh. I go back to the grocery store midweek for proteins and any other super perishable items for Thursday, Friday, and weekend dinners. This is a quick and targeted grocery run.

(5) Use your freezer strategically. I keep a number of proteins on hand in the freezer so I don’t have to constantly buy those. Costco ground beef and frozen chicken breasts are MVPs in this house! Set a recurring calendar reminder to thaw what you need the day before you’re cooking so they’ll be ready when you are.