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 1 | Week 2 | |
| Monday | Tagliatelle with smashed peas, sausage, and ricotta | Sheet pan salmon and broccoli |
| Tuesday | Steak and zucchini | Creamy enchilada soup topped with avocado and tortilla chips + chicken nuggets |
| Wednesday | Take out | Crispy sesame beef over rice + carrots |
| Thursday | Honey garlic shrimp over rice + asparagus | Roasted vegetable enchiladas |
| Friday | Tortellini with sautéed mushrooms and parmesan + chicken breast + pear and walnut salad | Ravioli + 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:
- Chili-garlic steak and zucchini (NYT Cooking)
- 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:
- Honey garlic shrimp (NYT Cooking)
- 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:
- Sheet pan salmon and broccoli with sesame and ginger (NYT Cooking)
- 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:
- Creamy enchilada soup (Real Simple)
- 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:
- Crispy sesame beef (Damn Delicious)
- 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:
- Roasted vegetable enchiladas (Gimme Some Oven)
- 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.
The Meal Plan That Stuck 