Violet Sky

New

Greek pasta salad – My husband loves pasta salads. I, on the other hand, do not, and apparently have been subtly resisting any meal plan suggestions that veered into that territory. I must have been oddly receptive this month, as I, myself, suggested this recipe, after seeing it on Budget Bytes. With the chicken thighs grilled, it was great! As I write this, it’s on our meal plan for a second time this month.

German potato salad – This was another Budget Bytes find, which conveniently used up some ingredients we had leftover from other meals. With some bratwurst and kielbasa, it was great, though I think next time I’ll also sauté up some cabbage for added bulk.

Revisited

Roasted fennel and prosciutto flatbread – I’ve made this twice before, but not since I found several lactose-free, real-dairy options for cheese being sold in my area. Though I love fontina cheese, I opted to make this safe for weekday consumption but switching it to lactose-free mozzarella. Super delicious as usual, though it would absolutely be better with the fontina.

Chinese chicken salad – I have a different Chinese chicken salad recipe saved, but this one was way better, in my opinion. The dressing was the best part, plus it was a textural delight with all the different types of crunch. I usually boil chicken for shredding, but this time I cooked the chicken breast in a little chicken broth in the slow cooker for a few hours, and it was way better the boiling – much more juicy even after shredding.

Pan-seared salmon with gnocchi and sage – It’s been a long time since I had this recipe, so when I made it this time, it really felt like I was making it for the first time. Usually, I skin salmon myself when working with it, but I decided to follow the instructions exactly (a novel idea, I know). The salmon turned out amazing! It was missing some parmesan (and I was also missing parmesan, unfortunately) so I would add that to it next time.