Leigh-Ann's Dinner Dilemma: Hey ma, look at me cook!

Leigh-Ann's completed one week of successful meal planning - follow her family cooking adventures!

My first week of meal planning is quickly drawing to a close (…otherwise known as my valiant attempt to learn how to cook), and I have to say, that Shoana Jensen sure knows what the heck she’s doing when it comes to her binder organizing system! For the first time EVER, I actually gave some advance consideration to what I was going to cook in the coming week. And better yet, my kidlets helped me pick out the recipes for our weekly “menu” which I hoped would increase the likelihood of them eating what I made.

Well, there were many “hits”, and a few minor “misses”, but bottom line…I COOKED! I can’t tell you how easy…dare I say enjoyable…it has been to flip through my “Shoana Binder” (that’s what my boys now affectionately call it) and pull meal ideas from a collection of recipes that are simple, quick, and kid friendly. Now that is a trifecta of cooking fantastic-ness! I even attempted one of Shoana’s fave recipes that she included in the binder to kick start my culinary adventure: Penne with shrimp, feta, and spring veggies.

Since I shared last week that I don’t really own any cookbooks, I decided to set out on a quest for more recipes. First stop on my search…Pinterest! I’m a serial pinner, and ironically, I have a board called “Mmmmmm”…which one might think is dedicated to great recipes, but the reality is, I had gotten into the habit of pinning “pretty food” with little interest in how the meal was actually created. But that has since changed! This past week I started a new board called “Look at me Cook” where I have been swiftly collecting some fab recipes that are not just pretty, but also pretty easy to create.

I also stumbled upon a great collection of free recipe cards this week at the grocery store of all places. (Duh, the place where all the FOOD is!). I had never noticed them there before hiding on a turn-style in the seafood section, so I snagged a choice few, and have also added them into my meal planning binder. On the menu this week…Salmon Cakes! I’ll be sure to keep you posted on how they turn out!

Where do you find fab recipes? Care to share your fave?

Happy meal planning!