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Good morning, and happy Sunday! I’m checking in today after another summer week at home. It was hot, but we made the most of the temps with plenty of time in the water. We also took advantage of lots of fresh local produce! All of the highlights from the past few days, along with our easy dinners, are included in today’s roundup of Our Week in Meals.
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For those of you who are new to the blog, Our Week in Meals is where I share a little bit about what we’ve been up to over the past week — as it relates to our dinners each night. This series gives you a glimpse “behind the scenes” at some highlights from our life, shows you how I balance a busy schedule with feeding my family, and offers a few new ideas for your own weekly meal plan. Now, let’s back up to last weekend…
I took the dog out for a walk on Sunday morning, and then we all headed to the pool for a swim before lunch.
Later that afternoon, I baked a couple of loaves of Honey Wheat Bread to have on hand for sandwiches and toast during the week, while Gibbs and Keith drove over to Jenkin’s Orchard to pick up more fresh peaches. They’re so good right now!
We had grilled steaks for dinner that night,
along with Rice Salad,
green beans from the farmer’s market,
fried green tomatoes (because I never turn them down when a neighbor has some available),
and Mashed Red Skin Potatoes (will share this recipe in the coming weeks).
The pool was very quiet on Monday morning!
Back home that afternoon, I made a batch of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. It’s been too long since I’ve had these, and they’re definitely some of my favorites — soft, chewy and buttery!
I bought a pork shoulder from the farmer’s market last weekend, so I cooked that in the slow cooker and served Pulled Pork for dinner.
On the side, we had Skillet Cornbread,
and Tomato Cucumber Onion Salad. Casey’s cucumber garden is still going strong!
I also finished a book that evening! A Trick of the Light is book #7 in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache mystery series, and I’ll continue to say it: these are the best mysteries that I’ve ever read. I’ll be cruising right along to book #8 in a couple of weeks, but first there are a couple of other novels that I’m excited to get to. Let me know if you enjoy this series as much as I do!
We picked up a grocery order on Tuesday morning, had lunch at the house, and then went over to our friends’ farm for the afternoon.
The Robinson River is really low at the moment, so our boys were able to play together in the water while we sat and chatted in the shade.
Dinner was a kid favorite around here: Southern Glazed Salmon, which I paired with a box of Rice-a-Roni and a green salad.
Wednesday was another scorcher, so we met friends at the pool for the morning and tried our best to stay cool in the water.
Casey and Spencer have been asking for Chinese food for months now, but we don’t have any food delivery (of any kind) in Madison, so I never feel like driving out to a restaurant to pick up take-out in the evening. Instead, I grabbed their lunch order on our way home from swimming. The boys were thrilled with their very un-photogenic, un-fancy plates of sesame chicken, rice and spring rolls! Gibbs and I just wanted sandwiches at home on a 90+ degree day. That Chinese didn’t seem appealing at all.
Keith was gone for the evening, so the boys and I had another one of their most-requested meals for dinner: homemade pizza! I tossed together a green salad on the side for some veggies, too.
And since there were a couple of overripe bananas sitting on our counter, I made my Quick and Easy Banana Pudding for dessert. This is such a classic no-bake summertime treat — I have to make it at least once each year!
We joined our friends for a swim at their pool on Thursday afternoon. I know that it seems repetitive, but at this time of year, water is the only way to keep the kids cool outside (and to burn off some of that energy).
We had One-Skillet Peach-Glazed Chicken for dinner,
along with a loaf of crusty No-Knead Bread (perfect for soaking up that delicious sauce)…
…and a side of Garlic Roasted Broccoli (made in my air fryer this time so that I didn’t have to turn on the oven again).
Beautiful sunset that evening!
I dragged everyone out early for a short hike in the woods on Friday morning while it was still relatively cool and breezy.
The boys requested 5-Ingredient Taco Casserole for dinner that night, so that’s what we had!
Plus homemade guacamole, chips, salsa and salad on the side.
I met a friend for a walk on Saturday morning and picked up my order from the farmer’s market.
So much goodness at the market right now — blueberries, blackberries, bread, cantaloupe, tomatoes (for all of the tomato sandwiches!), yellow squash (to make my favorite summer squash casserole), corn, cabbage, chicken, pasta, flowers and apple cider.
We then made our way south to Nelson County for the day, where Keith took the older two boys to swim at a lake with his brother, while Spencer and I visited my parents at their house.
We made it back home in time for supper, which included BBQ Chicken,
fresh corn on the cob, baked potatoes and Creamy Cucumber Salad.
That’s it for now, friends! I hope that you’ve found some new inspiration for your own summer meals in the week ahead. Stay cool out there, and thanks for spending some time with me this weekend!
Louise Penney’s Inspector Gamache mysteries are THE BEST!
Stay cool and safe!
Yes! So good! I know that she has a massive fan club. 🙂
We love salmon….I’ll have to try your recipe for Southern Glazed Salmon!
(So glad that the cake recipe was enjoyed by your family )
I hope you love that salmon, Shannon! And thanks again for the cake recipe — such a hit!