Monday Meals - Week 44

 Hey! Happy Monday! And happy SNOW! What a crazy sight going to work on Monday morning. I love fall weather so I'm a little sad to see it really start to go. But I also love snow and winter weather! I find it so magical and peaceful when it snows. We live in a different apartment this year so I'm very excited to watch the city snow views this year. Views like this (from last year, in Delafield, WI) help me look forward to the snow, too!

Here's our meal plan for this week! I went to Trader Joe's last week for the first time since February 😲 it was so exciting! You can see how I built some of my meals around products from there. Let me know some of your fave TJ's products. I'm always looking for more suggestions. 

Last night we made these taquitos! They are incredible. Big favorite in our household! With some guac and corn salsa. Yum!

    Also on the meal plan - 

Butternut baked ziti: 

    This looks divine! I can tell the seasons are changing/it's getting for real cold because I'm really starting to lean into this warm, comforting dishes like baked pastas, soups, chili. 

Sheet pan gnocchi: 

    With this Italian sausage-less sausage from Trader Joe's! I'm excited to try this. Aldi has had a similar product in the past we've tried in this meal and it was great. Hopefully this holds up, too!

Fall bowls! No recipe for this. I will probably make some rice, roast some sweet potatoes or squash, brussels sprouts, and chickpeas, and throw together a tahini sauce to go on top. Quick and comforting. 

Tomato/Farro/Fennel Soup: from Love Real Food ! Again, comforting and warm, perfect for fall. We picked up our last box of CSA produce last week (sooo sad) and received a bulb of fennel. That was an ingredient I was unfamiliar cooking with until last month. I put it into a soup recipe and it was sooo good! I'm excited to do it again. P.s. - if you've never looked through Love Real Food, I would highly recommend it. It is the most used cookbook on my shelf. Recipes are versatile and relatively straightforward. It would make a great gift for the holidays too! And, of course, try to buy from a local bookstore. Check this link to locate one near you! 

And then, it will be Halloween this weekend! I don't think we will do anything fancy to celebrate - maybe go to a local drive in? I'm thinking about doing the fall zucchette from Trader Joe's to be festive! It's so cute. I love it! With some of the Aldi pumpkin pasta sauce. That's our fave fall pasta sauce!

And make some of those break and bake pumpkin sugar cookies. Because, nostalgia. And festivity! If you can't tell, I love to cook seasonally and festive for whatever is going on. So fun! 

Lastly, if I'm feeling really bold, I may attempt these apple fritters for a weekend project. I've never deep fried anything before...what could go wrong?? 

Thanks for reading!