If one more person asks me if I am all ready for the holidays, I may lose it. For real, what does that even mean? Are we ever totally ready? Even with all of the help I get from the Cool Mom Picks Holiday Gift Guides, I still find myself scrambling the week before the big day trying to even up the gifts for my kids, bake all the cookies, clean the house…and still planning food for all of the meals and family members that are visiting for the holidays.
So next week’s meal plan has to be some easy, low-stress meals that get on the table in a snap….because Mrs. Claus here has very little bandwidth left.
Grab your pen and paper, or open up that AnyList app and let’s make a shopping list for the week ahead.
Top Image: Pappardelle Pasta with Portobello Mushroom Ragu from Family Style Food and Meatball Stuffed Peppers from The Modern Proper
First up, how amazing does this Pappardelle Pasta with Portobello Mushroom Ragu from Family Style Food look? Mushrooms have turned into my new favorite #MeatlessMonday ingredient. Did you know that portobello mushrooms are just overgrown crimini mushrooms? I learned that reading this recipe! The meatless pasta is hearty and filling, and a nice bright salad rounds it out beautifully.
The other day I was running around and realized I didn’t eat lunch was so tempted to swing through Taco Bell, but then I remembered that my favorite item is no longer on the menu: the 7-layer burrito. So naturally, I came home and looked up a recipe so that I could make those delicious burritos here at home. This recipe from Better Living for Best Ever 7 Layer Burritos is so darn easy and so, so good. You could turn this into a DIY burrito night if your kids only like 3 or 4 layers. ha.
Related: 13 creative DIY dinners
Last week, my son came down with strep, and my husband came home from a work meeting with a cold. After numerous at-home covid tests (because that’s what we do now right?) I needed to make a quick, good-for-you soup with ingredients I had on hand. Enter this Pork and Napa Cabbage Soup from Nom Nom Paleo. This soup was downright delicious and comes together so quickly. The leftovers the next day for lunch were even better. I’m throwing this into the rotation next week as well.
Related: 10 Easy 5 ingredient soups
This is not your average stuffed pepper. These Meatball Stuffed Peppers from The Modern Proper take this dish my mom used to make up a notch. It’s a big meatball cooked in a bell pepper – and according to my 17 yo son, the best thing he has ever eaten. I love that it only takes about 20 minutes to prep this hearty meal and a simple green salad makes Thursday night doable.
I have shared this recipe before for Slow Cooker Pizza Fondue from Marybeth at My Fearless Kitchen. Our Christmas Eve tradition is pizza fondue, so that is what we will be doing on Friday night. It’s easy and best of all brings everyone around the table. And because it’s easy to prep and clean up, I have lots of energy left to make some breakfast for Christmas morning.
Wishing you all a happy, healthy holiday season!
Follow our Weekly Meal Plan Ideas for Families board on Pinterest @CoolMomEats for even more ideas!
I put these weekly meals plans together based on recipes I am actually cooking for my family, and with you in mind. If you have suggestions, tips, or recommendations for recipes, cookbooks or other food bloggers I should check out please comment here, or shoot me a message in our Recipe Rescue group on Facebook.
