Meal Plan | May 2014 (Part II)

Ever since I found out about my food intolerances, I have been feverishly scouring Bloglovin. I definitely sleep later at night than I should because I'm searching for bloggers who cook the way I need to eat and make it look easy.

My stream of consciousness: I discovered nutritional yeast. You can add it to nuts to make vegan cheese! I introduced my pastry chef sister to egg-less chia eggs. I finally visited the restaurant where she works. I was reminded, yet again, that the Vitamix does NOT cook soups, even though they claim it does--unless you enjoy the raw taste of warm garlic and vegetables. I saw a garlic plant in its whole form for the first time.

Hubby & I celebrated our 3rd anniversary. Hurray!

Photo Credit: Mollie Jane Photography

Organic Garlic Plant

Please read on for my meal plan.

Meal Plan | May 2014 (Part I)

These days, I am trying to convince myself that my daily gluten-free cooking routine hasn't changed significantly after eliminating corn, soy, and oats. It's so hard to not have any dairy (oh, glorious cheese) and eggs.

Dinners typically follow the format of a grilled/roasted protein and vegetable-based side. I know starches are usually the third part of this trifecta, but gluten-free grains or carbs don't always have to make an appearance to make a fulfilling meal.

Organic CSA Basket 
It's the last basket of the Spring Quarter!

• (1) bunch scallion
• (3) bunch late Spring Walla Walla onions
• (1) bunch cilantro
• (1) bunch black kale
• (2) bunch red kale
• (1) bunch beets with tops
• (1) bunch baby turnips with tops
• (1) bunch rainbow chard
• (2) bunch collard greens
• (2) large zucchinis
• (2) cucumbers
• (3) apples
• (2) tangerines
• (1) bunch broccoli
• (1) fennel with tops
• (2) avocados

Video: Here's a look at all the produce I get for just $35 every other week. Produce is harvested on the same day. Now, that's fresh!

Meal Plan

Here's what I'll be making for the next two weeks:

Recipes marked with an * are from my latest book purchase called My Viring Diet Cookbook by
Rebecca Lorraine. Recipes are gluten-free, soy-free, egg-free, corn-free, peanut-free, and sugar-free.

Meal Plan | April 2014 (Part I)

(Very) Long time, no see. 

Where have I been?!

During Lent, I decided to take a step back from promoting myself (e.g., this blog and my business), particularly on social media. I wanted to focus on my full-time job, husband, our home, and mentoring younger women in my community.

On top of that, I recently discovered, in addition to gluten, that I am also intolerant to even more foods, quite significant ones. Want details? Check out the new About Me section.

With the overwhelming news, I returned to my blog to help me be more proactive about what I buy, cook, and eat. (The good news is that there are people out there like me, and their blogs have been a comfort and inspiration to me.)

Now that Spring is in full swing, I decided to expand my herb garden, attempt to grow some vegetables, and even worm compost!


I was a busy little shopper earlier this month. Read on to see all the yummy ingredients that I got and a meal plan to boot.

Meal Plan | Week of 12-29-13

This will be the last meal plan of 2013. Wow, I can't believe it!

Even with the holidays, I've been trying to stay on track with cooking at home. Since I have a couple days off this week, I'm going to go a little "all out," especially with the baking.

I bought my proteins from Sprouts. My CSA is still on break, so I'll be getting my produce from Winder Farms.

Organic Produce Box Items:
3 Apples
2 D'Anjou Pears
4 Kiwi
1 lb of French Fingerling Potatoes
1 Bulb of Fennel
1 Bunch of Carrots
Lettuce
1 Bunch of Broccoli I still have two heads of broccoli from last week, too. Any ideas aside from soup & roasting? Please comment below!

Meal Plan | Week of 12-22-13

Photo Credit: http://www.hdwallpapersinn.com/

My CSA is on break due to the holidays, so I'll be drawing my cooking inspiration for this week from my impromptu visit to Zion Market today and what I have in my pantry already.

Sunday

• Dine out at Pho 21 - spring rolls, pho well-done brisket I usually get rare steak (pho tai), but I was feeling adventurous.

Monday

• Bourbon-glazed ribeye steaks (marinade prepped day prior)

Tuesday - Christmas Eve

• Lemon oregano chicken (marinade prepped day prior)
• Next time, I will try this Bourbon Molasses Chicken Drumsticks

Wednesday - Christmas

• TBD  
• CSA is skipped this week, so I will get veggies & fruits through the Winder Farms' organic produce box

Thursday

• Gluten-free Sweet Potato Gnocchi (bake sweet potatoes earlier)

Friday

• Broiled Lobster
• Gluten-free Fresh Pasta (prepped day prior) with EVOO, tomato, basil, and Parm

Saturday

• Meat loaf Thanks, Lauren, for the recipe

Breakfast 

• Gingerbread Oatmeal variation
• Baked Blueberry Oatmeal variation

Dessert

• Gluten-free Carrot Cupcakes

Drinks

• Hot Toddy
• Ginger, lemon, honey tea
• Spinach & apple green juice

Do you have any special meal plans for Christmas week? Please comment below.

Meal Plan | Week of 12-15-13

South Coast Farms CSA | Fall Quarter Week 7

In this week's organic CSA box, I received the following:

• Baby turnips
• Radishes
• Fresh herbs including parsley, cilantro, and dill
• Oranges They are curiously yellow like lemons
• Grapefruits
• Fuyu persimmons
• Fuji apples 
• Spinach
• Arugula
• Rainbow Chard
• Spaghetti squash
• Potatoes I traded in a couple heads of lettuce to double my portion
• Onion
• Celery

Recipe Ideas

• Entrees
• Homemade Gnocchi
• Spaghetti Squash Lasagna with ground bison (instead of turkey)
• Flank steak I bought two (1.5-1.75 lb. steaks, each) from Costco
• Asian-style flank steak with sautéed rainbow chard
• Grilled flank steak with herb salsa verde
• Thai-style flank steak
• Flank steak with shallots and red wine sauce
• Sauces
• Herb salsa verde, or chimichurri
• Sides
• Brown butter baby turnips
• Rosemary & dill roasted carrots
• Spicy radishes
• Arugula salad with proscuitto and persimmons (see tweet below)
• Waldorf-ish salad (spinach, apples, walnuts)
• Breakfast
• Grapefruit brûlée
• Banana Orange Smoothie
• Desserts
• Orange Olive Oil Cake

Persimmons in your salad? Yes! Inspired by Bruno's (Brea). Fuyu, arugula, parm, prosciutto, lemon vinaigrette pic.twitter.com/S8I6QCOxLB
— Succulent Succotash (@asucculentblog) December 10, 2013

Meal Plan | Week of 11-27-13 & 12-1-13

South Coast Farms CSA Fall Basket

I must confess I've been MIA for the last month as I was celebrating a milestone birthday and, unfortunately and unrelated, I have been experiencing more-than-the-usual migraines (read, sleeping 10-12+ hours a day to cope). 

Now that I'm back in the groove of the daily grind, I'm feeling extra motivated to empty my overly-stocked fridge full of organic CSA produce and items from my usual grocery runs.

To make up for it, here are meal plan for two weeks.

Meal Planning ~ Week 10-27-13

Last week was a blur. I don't even remember what we ate! It was a non-CSA week and there was a mix-up with my Winder Farms order, so I didn't get my organic produce box delivery. As a result, we didn't have much in the fridge or pantry.

This week, we made a trip to Costco for proteins and got our CSA box on Wednesday. A fully stocked kitchen makes my meal plan even more important.

Here is the game plan for the week:

Sunday

• Brunch - Out with girlfriends
• Buckwheat pancakes from Early Bird Cafe This is pretty much the only gluten-sensitive item on their entire menu. 

Early Bird Cafe Buckwheat Pancakes

• Dinner - Argentine BBQ Party at Ariel's
• Asado steaks chorizo sausages from El Gaucho cooked to perfection by grill master Ariel
• Choripan My non-NCGS friends ate the chorizo with French bread as a sandwich 
• Grilled red onions You'd be amazed at how sweet and addicting these are. Just lightly salted and oiled, then grilled over Mesquite coals. 
• Chimichurri I am known to bring fresh herb sauce to BBQs, especially South American ones. My original inspiration from chimichurri was from this recipe, but I make it so often now I just wing it each time. This time around, I made it with:
• 3 small bunches flat leaf Italian parsley
• 3 tbsp dried organic Oregano flakes (fresh dried from my herb garden)
• 1/4 red wine vinegar
• 3 cloves organic garlic
• Juice from 1 lemon
• A few sprinkles of red pepper flakes
• Salt & pepper to taste
• EVOO to desired consistency I like it as a thick dressing; between the viscosity of a paste and a runny mixture.
• Dessert - Layer Cake Bakery
• Mini cheesecake with gluten-free graham cracker crust Pretty good
• Coconut macaroon cookie

My Plate

The Argentine Grill

Layer Cake's GF Cheesecake

Meal Planning ~ Week of 10-6-13

We finished almost everything in our first CSA basket in less than a week! So, my husband and I went to Sprout's for a Sunday morning grocery run.

Here's my meal plan for the next few days:

Sunday 

• Breakfast - Creamy Carrot Smoothie 
• Lunch - Gluten-free mild Italian pork sausage with caramelized organic onions atop bed of organic spinach 
• My husband hosted brunch for his friends
• Gluten-free pancakes with fresh banana, blackberries, and raspberries
• Fried bacon & scrambled organic eggs
• Orange juice and French Press coffee (Nordstrom Anniversary blend)
• Dinner 
• Citrus herb roasted organic chicken, roasted organic green beans, and organic spinach (Recipe to come later this week)
• Salad dressing - Organic shallots, white balsamic vinegar, champagne vinegar, and EVOO
• Roasted green beans - Toss beans in salt, pepper, EVOO. Roast in oven at 450F for 15-20 minutes.

Citrus Herb Roasted Chicken Thigh (uncooked)

South Coast Farms CSA Week 6 & Meal Planning

CSA Summer Basket - Week 6

Last week, we got our first CSA box. How exciting! I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of organic produce we got in the bushel. We finished almost everything in less than a week! 

Here's what our basket included:

• Veggies
• 1 bag green beans
• 1 bunch flat leaf parsley
• 1 bunch basil
• 1 large bunch Swiss chard
• 1 bunch red leaf lettuce
• 1 bunch romaine lettuce
• 2 eggplants
• 4 small yellow squash
• Fruits
• 2 cucumbers
• 2 plums
• 1 grapefruit
• 2 persimmons
• 3 apples
• Starches
• 1 yam
• 1 acorn squash
• 2 caterpillars :)

Note: I was stuck at work, so my friend (thanks, Caroline) graciously picked up the basket for me. I gave her the tomatoes and eggplants since these nightshade items are not approved on my Repairvite detox program.

Meal Planning ~ Week of 9/15/13

Today, I went to the Brea Farmers Market & Mother's with my hubby. Our priority was to buy fresh and organic produce. We also "splurged" on some artisanal teas.

While I'm on the Repairvite detox, I cannot have any caffeinated drinks. I have been craving tea lately as I have been watching my co-workers enjoy their K-Cup coffees.

We bought the teas from this local tea vendor. We got two gift-sized packages of honey chamomile ($4) and Rooibus Chai tea ($6). I am so excited to try this chocolatey herbal Chai (I will ignore that chocolate has some caffeine).

Meal Plan

My problem is that I always buy produce and "snacks," but don't get proteins for main dishes. I like to buy my meat/poultry/seafood fresh (like, same day fresh). I have been so sick of chicken lately. When I am indecisive about my proteins, I tend to ignore them altogether. 

Anyway, I created a game plan below of how I'm going to use what I bought, but, ironically, don't have many actual meals planned for the end of the week. 

Meal Planning ~ Week of 9/8/13

It's been about three weeks since I've been eating gluten-free. This week, I am going start a detox program to help heal my small intestines from gluten-related damage.

The diet is very strict and basically only allows fresh meats (no eggs), veggies, and low-sugar fruits. Paleo peeps, welcome me temporarily to your family.  

I went to the farmer's market and Sprout's today to pick up organic ingredients for me to cook meals and juice this week. I am usually accustomed to shopping for 1-2 days at a time, so it will be challenging for me to commit to almost a week's worth of food in order to minimize waste.

Here is my general game plan for this week. Detailed recipes to follow.

Meals

Wednesday

• B - Canadian Bacon & raw, sliced organic heirloom tomatoes that I bought from the Brea Farmer's Market ($3/lb.)
• L - TBD
• D - Sauteed pork chops & baked organic spaghetti squash

Thursday

• B - Baked sweet potato (made night before)
• L - Dinner leftovers
• D - Sirloin Steak, organic baby spinach salad & organic baby tomatoes

Friday

• B - Sliced heirloom tomatoes + TBD
• L - Dinner leftovers
• D - Cauli rice + protein TBD

Saturday

• B - TBD
• L - Dining out with bestie
• D - Baby Shower

Juices

• Green Juice I: Organic baby spinach, organic cucumber, organic celery, organic baby lemon
• Green Juice II: Organic beet tops, organic cucumber + fruit TBD
• Green Juice III: Organic lacinato kale, organic cucumber, organic celery, lemon, honeydew melon
• Beet Juice: Organic raw beets, organic kale, apple, ginger
• Carrot Juice: Organic carrots, lemon juice, water

Snacks

• Carrot sticks
• Cantaloupe sorbet

Salad Dressing

Green Goddess: Avocado, garlic, parsley, olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, champagne vinegar, shallot, basil (some or all of ingredients)

Meal Planning ~ Week of 7-29-13

Bon Appetit Magazine

I like to grocery shop often to prevent myself from over-buying and throwing out spoiled, unused items. Yes, it is inconvenient. But, this has literally saved me money in recent years. Plus, I stay inspired by fresh ingredients. 

In the past, I used to grocery shop for an entire week's worth or so. But, alas, unexpected events or laziness would arise and I would neglect my food in the fridge. I don't know how much money I wasted by "wishful thinking" shopping.

Additionally, now I only buy ingredients that I have high probability or plans to use in a dish (aside from staples like spices or oil, and fresh fruit).

I am starting to incorporate more organic produce into my diet (which I will share more about in a future post). The organic grocery store is further from me than my go-to market(s), so I will need to buy more per visit. This means that I need to start meal planning, so I can ensure I use all of the products I buy, no mater what they are. 

I literally cook on daily inspiration, so meal planning is going to be a growing experience for me. Here's my first attempt. There are some holes, but at least I am giving myself some structure. In the long run, I hope this will save me stress from coming up with new menu items daily.

Dinner for the Week

• Sunday - Leftovers from Saturday
• Monday - Mesquite grilled chicken thighs with BA "7" dry spice rub (picture above)

Organic arugula + caprese salad in lemon/mustard vinaigrette (and roasted sweet potatoes as a snack for tomorrow)

• Tuesday - oven-roasted organic Portobello mushroom steaks; oven-roasted herb potatoes; sautéed organic kale (with garlic & parmesan cheese)

• Wednesday - TBD (my husband is working late so it can be as minimalistic as a snack)
• Thursday - TBD (dine out with a friend or cook something simple at home)
• Friday - out of town
• Saturday - out of town
  
  

Snacks

• Fresh blueberries, strawberries, and figs


• Here's a short video on how I made an easy yet fanciful fruit parfait 


• Organic plain yogurt
• Organic Chia seeds in my drinks and lunch salads
• Organic dark chocolate (gluten-free, too)

How do you like to meal plan?