Meal Ideas for the Week

When I take the time to write down my dinner meal ideas for the week, I find that things go much smoother. Not only do I look forward to making dinner, planning meals is a way to get everyone more involved. Family members look forward to dinner, and instead of asking "What's for dinner?", they are asking more "How Can I Help?" How great is that?

Easy Healthy Dinners

That's on all our to-do lists for the week, right? The recipes are linked below, but let's go through them! First up, we have Chicken Thighs with White Beans and Capers. These chicken thighs are smothered in Dijon mustard and baked atop a bed of lemon spices and caper-spiked white beans. So much flavor! I paired them with a Pear and Fennel Salad, which is light a refreshing, and a perfect counterpoint to the chicken thighs. If you prefer a vegetarian option, replace chicken with large portobello mushroom caps. You'll want to back off on the amount of Dijon and salt you use for the mushrooms. Just a little.

Healthy Meals for the Week

Moving onto Day Two, we have uber flavorful Garlic and Lemon Zest Shrimp paired with Cauliflower Fried Rice. This is a low carb meal sure to please all eaters at the table.

Mediterranean Diet Plan

I prefer Mediterranean style food, and the meal for Day Three does not disappoint. Hearty Mediterranean Style Pasta combines ground beef with spices and tomatoes for a super simple and flavorful weeknight meal. Paired with this Crisp Romaine Salad, you'll be looking forward to tomorrow's leftovers for lunch. For a vegetarian option, substitute white beans for the ground beef.

Vegetables For Dinner

For Day Four, we get down with a super simple vegetarian Chickpea-Herb Pita Pizza, and pair it with this Red Lentil Soup. (There should definitely be dipping involved!)

Hearty Healthy Dinner

To close out this list of dinner meal ideas, we finish with a hearty steak cooked in cast iron, accompanied by a refreshing Turkish-style carrot salad with Minty Yogurt Dressing. If you prefer a vegetarian option, try these Cinnamon Scented Lentil and Quinoa Patties.

Meal Planning for the Week

I have arranged this meal plan in a way that I think would be the most delicious. However, feel free to mix and mingle these recipes as they work for you. There is also the option to create a shopping list, just click on "shopping list" below to take advantage of that option.

Happy Cooking!