Julia Child's Birthday and menu plans

August 15th is Julia Child's Birthday. I rarely have to look very hard for a reason to cook a themed menu, so I opened Mastering the Art of French Cooking, invited a friend, and we made a lovely summer dinner with Julia's wonderful recipes.

We roasted garlic and served it with brie and baguettes while we worked on dinner.

Our main course included Bifteck Hache A La Lyonnaise (Ground Beef with Onions and Herbs,) Puree De Pommes De Terre A L'ail (Garlic Mashed Potatoes,) Tomates A La Provencale (Tomatoes Stuffed with Bread Crumbs, Herbs and Garlic.)

For dessert we made a cold fruit compote, Peches Cardinal (Fresh Peaches with Raspberry Puree.)

Our dinner plan was guided mostly by a trip to the farmer's market, Saturday, where we found peaches and raspberries, garlic, tomatoes and artisan bread. The onions and some herbs came from my garden.

Menu plan August 16 - 22

School starts on Wednesday, so lunches will have to figure into our plans again. My daughter wants to pack some of the bento style lunches I took during summer school, it's easiest to pack those the night before. My son is a PB&J guy and he can fix those on his own before school, getting them into his backpack and out the door is usually the biggest stumbling block for him. I have good kitchen facilities at work and we often plan meals that 2 or 3 of us can enjoy together, but I'll be packing for the first couple of weeks until we get into a regular routine. My lunches will consist of leftovers and fresh fruits and vegies.

Monday: Ham and Cheese Spoon Bread (made with whole kernel corn meal we watched being ground at Spring Mill, pictured here), Tossed Salad

Tuesday: Deli Sandwiches, Chips, Carrot and Cucumber slices

Wednesday: Wednesday Night ant the Nic Picnic, BBQ Pork Sundae, Corn Bread

Thursday: Back to School Night, dinner TBD

Friday: Pan-fried Walleye, Coleslaw, Foil Packet Potatoes

Saturday: Chicken Kebabs, Salad,

Sunday: BBQ Pork Belly, Corn on the Cob, Beans

With school starting, MPM will most likely turn into menu planning Saturday so I can plan and go grocery shopping during the weekend, but I'll still post them here to share with Laura and everyone else who is a fan of the Organizing Junkie.