Dinner Divas Weekly Menu Plan: Week 28

Menu plans are the key to a stress-free dinnertime. All you need is a few minutes to gather your recipes, make your list and off you go. Getting organized is half the battle and we’re here to help. Dinner Divas provides quick, healthy weeknight dinner ideas for you to help make dinner a little easier.

Here’s how it works: Every Friday morning, a new meal plan will show up in your email. It will consist of 5 dinner options, plus 2 extras. Those two extras could be side dishes, dessert, drinks, etc. The Dinner Divas weekly menu plans will feature (mostly) healthy, seasonal foods that don’t take all day to prepare. Getting the weekly menu delivered to your inbox on Friday morning gives you the chance to make your shopping list and get organized for the week ahead. I’d love to hear from you & see your creations! Post a pic using #DinnerDivas and tag @pookspantry! I hope this weekly menu plan provides inspiration and makes life a little easier… one meal at a time.

Last week, I was talking to my friend about schedules. She told me that one of her biggest obstacles is menu planning. I told her that’s exactly why we do this. She’s not alone. We all struggle with healthy, quick and fairly easy weeknight dinner ideas. While it’s easier said than done, it is worth the time you put into it. Shop your cabinets first before you make your list. Odds are, you have some of these ingredients already. That saves time and money, and who doesn’t need a little more of those? Let’s get to the menu.

THE MENU:

First up this week is everyone’s favorite: a one pot meal. Chef Next Door delivers One Pan Lemon Chicken and Rice to ease us into the week.

Next is this new salad that I’m now obsessed with: Spiralized Beet, Carrot & Apple Spinach Salad. It was an idea rattling around in my brain for ages and it finally came to fruition. I ate it as a meal, but it can easily be served as a salad or side.

Comfortably Domestic has one of my all time favorite foods, macaroni and cheese. In my most humble opinion, there is hardly a more perfect food. Her Make Ahead Macaroni and Cheese is perfect for family gatherings.

Pastry Chef Online made this Double Polar Burger with Everything. It is everything. I want to shove that in my mouth. Repeat.

Finally, we end the week with Girl in the Little Red Kitchen’s Butternut Squash Shepherd’s Pie. It is so beautiful and gloriously comforting.

This week we have two sweet offerings. Holiday baking is in full swing! First up is my Cranberry Orange Upside Down Cake. It is light, citrusy, slightly tart and slightly sweet. Crowned in ruby hued cranberries, it is a stunner of a dessert.