No Menu Plan This Week

Sorry! Due to unexpected travel and illnesses, I'll be living off frozen leftovers all week. Check in next Saturday for a new menu plan!

Menu Plan 2/20-2/24 and Weekend Forecast

So at the last minute, I decided to go on the "retreat" for the new company I work for (they call it an "off-site"). It's going to be this Saturday afternoon through Thursday, though I'm coming back Monday night. And we're going up to Hunter Mountain for some fun in the snow! 

Alex is working basically dawn 'til dusk on Saturday and then my assumption is he'll be putzing around the house on Sunday. While the cat's away the mouse will putz. And due to my last minute decision I'm now going to spend a wild Friday night blogging and packing and working, oh my! But it will definitely be worth it. Especially if I get to strap on a snowboard at any point this weekend.

So anyway, here's this week's menu plan. Note, Alex and I aren't cooking Monday night since I get in late and he has an ultra-late basketball game to work.

Tuesday: Home-made Fish Sticks (#41 on that list) with leftover butternut squash that I'll probably just roast

Wednesday: Roast Chicken and Balsamic Bell Peppers with Braised Fennel and White Beans

Thursday: Fennel Mushroom Bell Pepper Pizza based loosely on this. 

Friday: Slow-Cooker Bolognese with  mini shells

Produce

1 red and 1 yellow bell pepper

1 shallot

1 celery stalk

1 carrot

1 medium fennel bulb

Handful crimini mushrooms

Dairy

1 lb. pizza dough

1-2 cups shredded mozzarella

Meat

2 chicken breasts

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef and pork or meat-loaf mix (I guess that's a thing? It's what the recipe said...)

12 oz. cod filet (can be in several or unequal filets since it's getting cut into fish sticks)

Grocery

1 6-oz. can tomato paste

6 14-oz. cans dices tomatoes

Whole wheat bread crumbs

I Have/You May Need

Salt and pepper

Fennel seeds

Garlic powder

Rosemary

Dried oregano

Ground nutmeg

Paprika

Olive oil

Cooking Spray

Butter

2 cups chicken broth

Balsamic vinegar

Red wine vinegar

1 yellow onion and 1 red onion

1 egg

1 can white beans

1 lb. mini shells or other pasta. 

How to Live in Manhattan for Cheap

1. Go to Ikea.
2. Buy this Vilshult giant photo for your wall.
3. Hang the Vilshult on your wall.
4. Take a close-up picture of it and post to facebook.
5. All your friends will admire the amazing view from your new apartment. Bask.

No, you won't really live in Manhattan, but it is (comparatively) cheap! And your friends will believe it and that's all that matters. (For the record, Alex did in fact do this, and it worked like a charm.)

This weekend I spent my birthday cash on some major apartment improvements—among them, some new wall art. The first and most important addition, though, was new blinds. The old ones were just not my style, for starters, but one of the three also didn't work. Did I mention those three blinds spanning one window were two different sizes and the one bigger one wasn't even in the center to make it all symmetrical. AND I'm pretty sure they didn't even block out the prying eyes of those outside. Alex says they worked, but I don't buy it, seeing as I could see the silhouettes of anyone who walked by when it was dark out. AND they were a kind of fabric-y material that clung to cat hair. URGH.

The whole thing was a big old mess, which is why I'm extremely excited to show off these new 2-inch white faux wood blinds.

Why yes, we did move our furniture once again! The new arrangement just has the bed turned 90 degrees so it's parallel to the window wall instead of perpendicular. Now we can get in and out on both sides of the bed. As you can see, we also added curtains. They're sheer-ish panels with a geometric kind of flower print. I don't adore them, but they're neutral and nice and the window was lookin' all kinds of naked without them.

Here's the bed from the other angle. We still haven't gotten a nightstand for the other side of the bed, because I want the option to change my mind and move it back. 

Aaaaand the exciting new addition I alluded to:

Oh yeah, that's a whole lotta wall art. It totally dwarfs the TV in a ridiculous way, but I love it. The photo doesn't do it justice; it still startles my every time I round the corner. It looked smaller in Ikea. We also hung this stuff over the desk:

We also added some new drawers in our wardrobe, but nothing too exciting. I'll leave it there for now. I know I need to report back on the awesomeness of my birthday, but I'll wait til after V-day to share all the mushy stuff at once :).

Menu Plan 2/13-2/17

The good news is, yay new menu plan! The bad news (not for me, but for anyone using this meal plan) is, I'm only planning three regular dinners this week. I've got something special planned for dinner Valentine's Day (it's a secret for Alex so I can't share it here) and we're seeing a show on Broadway (what show we're seeing is a surprise for me) on Wednesday. So here are the three meals I am actually planning, plus a couple ideas to round out the week for anyone not planning to go out.

Butternut Squash Pizza
Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
Seafood Arrabbiata
If you're looking for a couple more recipes, I'd recommend this quick and easy tortellini with squash and mushrooms and yogurt marinated chicken with sweet potatoes and mushrooms. Note: These ingredients are not on the list below.

Produce
1 butternut squash

Meat
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Dairy
1 lb. package pizza dough
1/2 cup fresh ricotta
1/2 cup heavy cream

Grocery
15 oz. can crushed tomatoes
15 oz. can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup clam juice

I Have/You May Need
2 yellow onions
Fresh basil
12 oz. seafood of your choice (I'm using shrimp and bay scallops, but the recipe also calls for mussels and clams)
1 cup basmati or rice of your choice
2 servings long pasta, like linguine or spaghetti
Garlic
Garam masala seasoning OR cumin, coriander, cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg
Tomato paste
Corn meal
Thyme
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Resolutions Update: Part 2 and News

Exciting news: I am officially employed at Noom, Inc. as a copywriter! I'm working there two days per week writing content for their app and marketing materials while maintaining my usual three days per week at Greatist. Very exciting stuff. Now on to the resolution updates (see part 1 here):

Things that will make me happier
1. Visit a friend where they live. Nothing yet technically. I did book a trip to Florida in March (as mentioned in the last part) to go to Harry Potter World with my mom for her b-day and to attend my BFF's wedding shower. I'll probably save the real "visit a friend" (as opposed to the visit my home town and family) trip until the summer or even next fall.
2. Never go a full week without working out. Fail. I don't want to talk about it. I just failed for the first, oh I don't know, three weeks of January. Though I may have made up for it with Kettlebell Kickboxing and actual boxing the last two weekends. 
3. Clean daily, not weekly. Make my bed every day, even if it's just before getting back in to go to sleep. This one's touch and go. I've been doing better, but it's more "Clean every three days" and "make my bed whenever Goose isn't sleeping too adorably to move her."
4. Read on the train instead dealing with emails/stressing out. I did really well with this for a while and then I ran out of books. Fortunately, I rallied again and read all of The Tiger's Wife and started in on The Leftovers. 

Work stuff
1. Branch out more in my freelance work. Try to find some new gigs. See: above...
2. Keep my resume and clips up-to-date. I overhauled my resume, and I'm really happy with it, but I really need to update my clips. I did fix up the "About Kelly" page on this site though.
3. Check out by 11pm every night. And try to go to sleep within an hour. Doing really well! I've left my computer at the office a lot lately, and even when I don't I've gotten much better about steering clear of it after dinner. However, I am starting to turn back to my old ways, what with the five-days-a-week employment and still freelancing on the side. 


Now, time for bed! I'll be back later this week with a menu plan and maybe even some new resolutions I've been stewing over...

Weekly Menu Plan: 2/6-2/10

So as I mentioned briefly in another post, I've been blogging for the past month for Greatist as a part of a project called a "Greatist Challenge." My challenge was to eat healthy and cheap for a full month. And now that the month is over, I'm not falling off the wagon. Primarily at Mom's request, I'm going to continue posting my weekly menu plan and shopping list (formerly posted to Greatist's site) right here on Sorta Stylish.

Generally, I like to keep these pretty seasonal, and seeing as I'm no longer trying to please a national audience, I can focus on what's in season right here in NY. Which is apparently nothing, according to this in-season map (actually super helpful, I recommend using it!). So seeing as nothing's actually in season here, I'm going to focus on what's in season elsewhere. Say, Florida. Like avocados, radishes, cabbage, and cauliflower.

So here's the plan for this week—in no particular order:

Oh She Glows' 15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta
Slow-Cooker Chipotle Beef Taco Salad (I'm subbing salad for tacos, but feel free to buy tortillas and have tacos or burritos)
Lime and Soy Chicken with Cabbage Slaw (I'm using boneless breasts instead of bone-in to cut cook time)
Grilled Chicken Cobb Salad
Buttery Shrimp and Radish Pasta

Produce
2 medium avocados
1 tomato
2 lemons
3 limes
1 bunch radishes
1 head red cabbage
1 large head romaine lettuce or 2-3 hearts of romaine
1 bunch scallions
Onions (I need to restock, but the recipes only call for 1 yellow, 1 red)
Garlic


Meat
1 lb. beef chuck
4 boneless chicken breasts
4 slices bacon (optional, for Cobb Salad)
1/2 lb. frozen shrimp

Dairy
2 eggs

Grocery
4 servings long pasta
Small can chipotle chilis in adobo

I Have/You May Need
Basil
Olive oil
Dried oregano
Bay leaves
Soy sauce
Brown sugar
1 carrot
Fresh ginger
Canola oil
Sesame seeds
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 stick butter

Resolution Update: Part 1

It's been a full month since I shared my New Year's resolutions, so I figured I'd check in and let you all know how I'm doing (it's this whole accountability thing). I'm doing it in two parts so this doesn't get excessively long and boring, because I'm going to add new resolutions for February, too! This first half is going much better than the second half of the resolutions:

The UGH, boring, financial stuff
1. Save up an emergency fund and stick it in a high-interest savings account. Oy. I'm not going to lie, getting the credit card bill from December really, really sucked. That said, I did still get that deposit in the bank and opened a new high-interest savings account, so I think I can say I'm doin' well on this one so far.
2. Do my taxes within a month of having all the necessary forms. Haven’t gotten those forms yet…so technically I'm still doing a-okay.
3. Do whatever legal things are required to become a resident of this state. Learned that you have to be a resident for at least six months so I only just became eligible. But my mom asked me to remain a FL resident until after we go to Universal Studios in March. So this is temporarily on hold.
4. Eat on a budget for at least a month. Success! Alex and I are going to keep this up, but probably try to supplement with more snacks— he doesn't think he's getting enough calories from the meals.

Pretty, girly stuff
1. Wear perfume and jewelry every day— err, everyday I leave the house, that is. So far, so good. I think I may have missed, like, two days. But in my book, that is still a win.
2. Keep my nails under control. Going pretty well. For the most part, my nails have been properly polished or completely naked. Very little weird in-between, chipping time. Oh, and I've been filing/shaping them at least weekly.
3. Treat myself to exactly two wardrobe overhauls/refreshers when the seasons change. Confession session: I bought a dress and belt for my birthday dinner. But it's my birthday! Otherwise, I've stuck to this.


New resolutions: Apartment stuff
1. Replace our awful blinds with new ones. 
2. Rework our Ikea wardrobe to be more functional—i.e. new drawer/shelf situation. This requires a field trip to Ikea!
3. Hang art on the few naked walls we have left.
4. Create some sort of filing system for important papers.