Our Week in Meals #254

Good morning, and happy Sunday! It was another routine week around here, complete with soccer, school, and lots of fall baking. 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…

Keith and the boys spread seed on Sunday morning, while I spent some time photographing a new recipe.

We went to a local orchard near Sperryville to pick up apples after lunch, and stopped at the Etlan Country Store for ice cream and cold Coca Cola in glass bottles on the way home. My idea of a perfect afternoon!

Keith grilled salmon for supper, which we served with rice and a green salad with red wine vinaigrette.

It was back to work and school on Monday! I snuck out to pick up eggs at my neighbor’s and to run a few errands, but otherwise I had a quiet day at the house.

Since we had soccer practice that evening, I prepped a cozy fall-inspired dinner in advance so that I could just pop it in the oven when we returned. On the menu: Chicken and Stuffing Casserole, broccoli, store-bought cranberry sauce…

…and baked apple slices (of course, I had to take advantage of the fresh fruit that we picked up the day before)!

Not too much to report from a cool, cloudy Tuesday…

I do have a new book to share, though! My mother-in-law gave me her copy of Dorothea Benton Frank’s Shem Creek after our trip to Charleston this summer. We stayed right near Shem Creek, ate at the Shem Creek Crab House, and took walks along the water — so Carole knew that I would enjoy reading this novel! It’s a fun, quick, “beach read” that just makes you feel good.

Coincidentally, a blog reader recently recommended one of Frank’s other novels, The Land of Mango Sunsets, so that’s waiting on my bedside table, too. She’s a prolific author, so let me know if you have any other favorites that I should check out next!

I kept dinner really simple that night and served French Bread Pizza with side salads. Sometimes the easiest meals are also the most popular in my house…

It rained all day on Wednesday, so my only outing (aside from picking up the boys) was a stop at Yoder’s for buttermilk, country ham, and other weekly staples. Fall has definitely taken over the market, including loads of local apples and pears!

We had 5-Ingredient Crispy Slow Cooker Carnitas for dinner that evening, which is a great way to mix up taco night (and they’re so easy)! Served with tortilla chips, guacamole and corn on the side.

The sun returned on Thursday, the air was much less humid, and it was absolutely gorgeous!

I spent most of my day in the kitchen working on some new fall baking recipes with the orchard-fresh apples that we picked up last weekend. Can’t wait to share them with you this season…

Plus a couple of short walks to take advantage of the weather…

We had multiple soccer practices that evening, so I made a pot of classic Beef Chili in advance, which we just reheated for supper when we returned home. We paired the chili with cornbread, naturally!

Friday started with a walk with a friend, followed by a grocery order pickup, and then computer time back at the house…

One of Casey’s favorite dinners is spaghetti (he asks for it almost weekly), so that evening I thawed some leftover meatballs from the freezer and warmed them with this can of spaghetti sauce. My friend Sallie’s mom recommended the sauce, and said that it’s the closest she has found to an authentic, homemade Italian “gravy.” We really enjoyed it, and it’s certainly more affordable than our favorite Rao’s brand. I got mine at our local Food Lion grocery store, but a quick Google search suggested that it’s also available at Walmart…

Served over pasta and paired with salad and garlic bread (so easy)!

We spent another Saturday on the soccer fields out in Rappahannock County…

…and stopped at the Yoder’s outdoor Chicken BBQ for lunch on the way home.

I bought some pumpkins, gourds, and mums for our front porch at Madison Gardens that afternoon. The boys all roll their eyes at my excitement over seasonal decor, but I know they secretly love it…😉

I took the night off from cooking and put Keith in charge of dinner. He picked up Chinese takeout, so we had a big spread of Moo Shu Pork, Kung Pao Chicken, Sesame Chicken, Sweet and Sour Chicken, and enough rice, spring rolls, and veggies leftover for lunch the next day!

And that’s all for now, friends! Thank you for joining me here each Sunday. I hope that you’ve found some new inspiration for your family’s table in the week ahead. Happy Fall!🍁🎃🍂🍁🎃🍂🍎