Weekly Menu Ideas: 20-07

A South African Affair

Each day goes by and I miss South Africa slightly more and slightly less. It is a weird feeling to describe. As a person who always likes to find a pattern, I set out to figure out what I love the most and what I really do not like. In this search for self, I realized that being South African, we mostly eat in varieties.

Hear me out, have you ever had a braai with one kind of meat, or perhaps even eaten a family lunch with only one kind of meal? The answer is probably no. South Africans need options, we have grown up this way.

Lately, my kids have had a very healthy appetite. I never complain especially because my kids are not the Nutella and Ramen kind of kids any longer. So I found myself cooking so much more - which to be honest I really love.

For context, everything in the Netherlands is sold in small portions, the shops do not sell in bulk unless you are have a business registration number. So sometimes, I look at the food and just think this may not suffice so on a Saturday afternoon I started a new tradition multiple dishes for one meal. For example today we ate hotdogs, fries and pizza. For me, nothing feels more South African!

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Weekly Menu - 20 July

Monday

School Lunch: Noodles

Dinner: Poke Bowls

Tips for this idea:

A Poke Bowl is a traditionally a dish of marinated raw fish served over rice, with a slide of freshly cut vegetables like radish, avocado, some edamame beans and even in the summer months some fresh mango. I like these kinds of meals because you can add the protein of your choice, if you want to add some roasted chickpeas you can, my kids love this with crispy chicken pieces. In addition to this

Tuesday:

School Lunch: Pizza Rolls

Dinner: Big Mac Tacos

Tips for this idea:

Big Mac Tacos, are a great idea. There are tons of online recipes for this including some Lentil Based vegan options. Everyone loves a Big Mac and its so easy to make. To create the big mac flavored meat - it is really simple; salt, pepper and onion and garlic powder.

Big Mac Copycat Sauce

• 3 Tablespoons Ketchup

• 3 Tablespoons Mayonnaise

• 1 Tablespoon Mustard

• 1 Teaspoons Apple Cider Vinegar

• 1/2 Teaspoon of Sugar

• 1/2 Teaspoon of garlic powder

• 1/2 Teaspoon of onion powder

Wednesday:

School Lunch: Muffins

Dinner: Orzo Salad with Meatballs

Tips for this idea:

Orzo is a delicious pasta that looks like rice. It pairs really well with a significant amount of foods. You can add as much vegetables like corn, or even peas so you can really go wild with the toppings.

Thursday:

School Lunch: Pulled Chicken Sandwich

Dinner: Turkish Lentil Pasta

Tips for this idea:

This is a Turkish inspired pasta, which if you do not want to eat vegan, you can swap out the lentils for mince and it tastes exactly the same. As a topping, I make a mint and coriander yoghurt mix which really pairs well. This is always a hit!

Friday:

School Lunch: Chicken Wings

Dinner: Loaded Fries

Tips for this idea:

Loaded fries is an absolute favorite of mine. I love mine to be a creamy cheese sauce filled with macon and chicken pieces. The great thing about loaded fries is everyone can choose their flavor, if you love a more heavy cheese sauce then you can go for that, if you want to load it with sweet chilli and steak , that is also an option.

Saturday:

Lunch: Tacos

Dinner: Raising Cane's Chicken Tenders Copycat Recipe

Tips for this idea:

Chicken Tenders are super easy to make yourself and also super easy to buy if you feeling really exhausted. It is up to you.

Raising Canes Copycat Sauce:

• 3 Tablespoons Ketchup

• 1 & 1/2 Tablespoons Mayonnaise

• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

• 1/2 Teaspoon of black pepper

• 1/2 Teaspoon of garlic powder

Sunday:

Lunch/Supper: Bunny Chows

Tips for this idea:

This is one of my most favorite Sunday meals, you can make a butter beans bunny chow. Basically making a delicious curry and then cutting unsliced bread and adding your curry in the middle.

I hope this makes this week easier for you. If you feel like you this is something you need for the weeks ahead, please subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas for next week. ♥️