Dinner Plans: Week 44

It’s Week 44 of Dinner Plans and we’re getting into the festive Halloween spirit this week!

Halloween is kicking off the holiday cooking and baking season at our house and we are here for it all. After spending the weekend picking apples the previous week, this week we got to work on peeling, coring, and dicing nearly 10 pounds of Granny Smith and Red Rome apples. I’m writing recipes for all the delicious dishes we’re making with them so stay tuned!

This week’s CSA box is definitely getting into full Fall produce. This week’s box includes: squash, dark leafy greens and peppers for soups and chilis.

Seasonal Cooking Tip: Exercising No Waste While Cooking

This season affords the annual activities like apple or pumpkin picking at our local farms. It’s a wonderful way to spend some time outdoors and support our local farmers and farms in the process. But, when we come home with pounds upon pounds of apples, we might begin to wonder: “what do I do with all the leftover apple peels or cores?” Here are 3 ways I’m using up every bit of the apples to ensure nothing goes to waste:

• Save the Peels to Make Apple Cider Vinegar: Yes! You can make your own apple cider vinegar from the apple peels! Make sure you’ve washed and dried your apples prior to peeling them. This helps to remove any dirt that may have stayed on them from the farm. I’m going to use this recipe from Wellness Mama to make a batch using the scraps. Will let you know how it turns out in the coming weeks!
• Dice Apples to 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch dices & Freeze: With all the apples we’ve picked I’m dicing them uniformly to use in a myriad of recipes. I ended up with about 5 pounds of diced apples from the 10 pounds we picked. I portioned the diced apples in half and put each 2.5 pounds of apples into freezer safe bags.
• Compost the Cores: I loved using my Lomi Classic Composter for this task! We composted the cores and sprinkled the pre-compost soil in our garden bed. This is a major win! If you don’t have the composter yet, you can find other ways to compost the cores. Two good options: donating them to a local community garden or compost center.

And there you have it! A no-waste cooking approach to the seasonal apples we’ve picked from local farms.

Holiday Meal Prep Tip of the Week

Each week I’m sharing one tip or strategy I’m using to meal prep for the holidays. It’s helping to plan with ease while cooking with the seasonal ingredients we have on hand. This week: it’s a great week to prep pie crust! When stored in a freezer friendly bag, pie crust can be frozen for up to six months!

With the Thanksgiving Holiday just a little less than a month away, prepping and freezing a few discs of pie crust today will save time in the weeks ahead. Stay tuned for the pie crust recipe I’ve been working on! It yields a beautifully flaky crust, perfect for all the seasonal fruit and classic pumpkin pies.

And, don’t forget to check out Part I and Part II of my Pantry Essentials Series for more tips and recommendations for keeping a well stocked pantry ahead of the holiday season.

Dinner Plans for the Week

With loads of Anaheim peppers and potatoes, I’m thinking a chili will work for the week ahead. I’ve got a bag of tomatillos and jalapeños I froze from summer to use. I will use them to make a salsa verde for Chilaquiles this week. Using up the freezer ingredients now will make room for the holiday ingredients to prep in the coming weeks. “Work smarter, not harder” continues to be my motto.

Our game plan for dinner this week:

Sunday: Easy Ground Turkey Chili with Anaheim Peppers

Monday: Harissa Roast Eggplant or Pasta alla Norma (recipe ideas from Bon Appetit here and here)

Tuesday: Pizza Night & Mummy Dogs from Weelicious for Trick-or-Treat Fun

Wednesday: Pozole Rojo for Dia de Muertos (recipe by Chef Rick Martinez on this Instagram Carousel Post)

Thursday: Miso Roast Radishes with Crispy Tofu, Sauteed Greens, and Rice

Friday: Gnocchi with Chorizo and Sage Sauce inspired by The Moody Foody’s Reel

Saturday: Pizza with a Butternut Squash Sauce Base, Grated Pecorino and Parm, Fontina, and crumbled Sausage and Roast Peppers.

From favorite recipes to new things with a wide variety of ingredients, cooking delicious food with our CSA definitely gets us out of a dinner rut and reduce food waste. I share meal ideas for our busy weeks with our weekly newsletter. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to be in the know when they’re live. 😉

Wishing you a nourishing week ahead. 🧡