This week’s meal plan is a little bit of everything: a few fresh summer meals, a cozy soup I’ve been wanting to make, easy work-from-home lunches, and plenty of leftovers built in so I’m not cooking from scratch every single day.
I’m still very much in summer cooking mode, but I’m starting to crave some of those warmer, cozier meals again too. So this week we’re grilling chicken, making stuffed poblanos, simmering a pot of white bean soup, and keeping Friday night simple with pizza and Caesar salad.
For lunches, I’m leaning heavily on snack plates, leftovers, and salads—basically anything I can pull together quickly between meetings without making an entirely separate meal.
Monday
Lunch: Snack Plate
Dinner: Grilled Maple Garlic Chicken Thighs + Arugula Pear Salad with Hot Honey Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette
We’re starting the week with two recipes I’ve been loving lately: my Grilled Maple Garlic Chicken Thighs (The Ultimate Summer Grilling Recipe)and Arugula Pear Salad with Hot Honey Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette.
The chicken thighs are marinated in a simple combination of maple syrup, garlic, coconut aminos, Worcestershire, lemon, and a few pantry staples before hitting the grill. They’re savory, slightly sweet, and one of those easy recipes that works just as well for a weeknight dinner as it does for entertaining.
Alongside the chicken, I’m making a peppery arugula salad with juicy pears, toasted walnuts, Parmesan, and a hot honey lemon vinaigrette. The fresh, bright salad balances the smoky grilled chicken perfectly—and I’ll make a little extra chicken to use for Tuesday’s lunch.
Tuesday
Lunch: Arugula Apple Salad with Grilled Chicken
Dinner: Tuscan White Bean Soup with Italian Sausage + Fennel
Tuesday’s lunch is exactly why I love intentionally making extra protein at dinner. I’ll slice up some of Monday night’s grilled chicken and add it to an arugula and apple salad for an easy workday lunch.
For dinner, I’m testing a Tuscan-inspired white bean soup with Italian sausage and fennel. I love the combination of savory Italian sausage, creamy white beans, and slightly sweet fennel, and I’m planning to make a big enough batch that we can have it again for lunch later in the week.
Even though it’s still summer, there’s something about a simple pot of soup that sounds so good every once in a while—especially one filled with plenty of vegetables, beans, and herbs.
Wednesday
Lunch: Snack Plate
Dinner: Beef Enchilada Stuffed Poblanos + Spanish Rice + Charro Beans
Wednesday is Tex-Mex night.
Instead of traditional enchiladas, I’m making beef enchilada stuffed poblano peppers with seasoned ground beef, enchilada sauce, and plenty of flavor stuffed inside roasted poblanos.
I’m serving them with Spanish rice and charro beans to round everything out. This is another dinner I’m intentionally making extra of because stuffed peppers reheat really well for lunch the next day—or, in this case, Friday.
Lunch is another snack plate made with whatever combination of deli meat, cheese, fruit, vegetables, crackers, nuts, and dips I have in the refrigerator. I’ve been loving these lately because they require almost no prep but still make lunch feel a little more interesting.
Thursday
Lunch: Leftover Tuscan White Bean Soup
Dinner: Garlic Ginger Brothy Chicken + Rice
Thursday’s lunch couldn’t be easier: reheating Tuesday night’s white bean soup.
For dinner, I’m making garlic ginger brothy chicken with rice, which is one of those simple, comforting meals that somehow works no matter the season. I’m picturing tender chicken in a light, aromatic broth loaded with garlic and fresh ginger, served over warm rice.
It should be cozy without feeling overly heavy—and after a few more flavorful meals earlier in the week, I like having something a little simpler on the menu.
Friday
Lunch: Leftover Beef Enchilada Stuffed Poblanos
Dinner: Pizza + Caesar Salad
By Friday, I’m officially done planning elaborate meals.
Lunch is leftover stuffed poblanos from Wednesday, and dinner is our usual pizza night with Caesar salad.
There is something very freeing about having one night of the week where I already know what dinner is going to be. No recipe decisions, no complicated prep—just pizza, a big salad, and an easy start to the weekend.
This Week’s Grocery Cart
This week’s Trader Joe’s run was filled with lots of produce for salads and dinners, including arugula, fennel, bok choy, avocados, citrus, bananas, and plenty of other staples to carry us through the week.
I’ve been trying to plan my groceries so ingredients overlap between meals whenever possible. Making extra chicken for salads, cooking a larger pot of soup for lunches, and intentionally planning leftovers makes the entire week feel much easier—and helps keep random ingredients from getting forgotten in the back of the refrigerator.
That’s really the goal with these weekly meal plans: not to cook something elaborate every night, but to have enough of a plan that feeding ourselves throughout a busy week feels a little more manageable.
If you make anything from this week’s menu, I’d love to hear what you try! You can follow along on Instagram and Pinterest for more weekly meal ideas, new recipes, and everything I’m cooking along the way.
Here’s to gathering around good food and making everyday moments a little more memorable. Happy cooking!
— MJ
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