Hey good looking, whatcha got cooking?

So I am a big fan of cooking. One of my favorite things to do is eat, so naturally, cooking is something I enjoy.

Eating a snack street side in London

My mom is a great cook and from her I learned so much - she can turn anything into a delicious meal and I really hope to be as good a cook as she is one day! For both health and economic reasons, James and I try to eat at home as much as possible which means I end up cooking about 5 or so meals a week. James is a big help in the kitchen but it always makes me chuckle, after James graduated from College of Charleston, he worked his way up in the kitchen at Fuel and then at Five Loaves Cafe downtown and eventually became head of the kitchen at Sesame before heading off to law school. So its always nice to have his expert help in the kitchen but because of his work schedule (hooray for law jobs) his hours are a bit crazy and I am the chef of our little family of two.  I usually make our menu for the week on the weekend and shop for our groceries then (along with half of Columbia) and I love to try new recipes - healthy ones! My girl, Gina at Skinny Taste, has never once let me down! I have made over 100 of her recipes and they have all been delicious and James approved!
This weeks menu is full of Skinny Taste as per usual!

Monday - Cheesy Jalapeno Popper Baked Chicken with Scalloped Potato Gratin and green beans. I followed both recipes to a tee and just subbed one potato for a sweet potato on the gratin. It was delicious!

Tuesday- Carrot Ginger Soup, a mixed green salad with sliced grilled pork tenderloin and Peanut Dressing. The peanut dressing was delicious and was super easy to make in my 'Not Mother's Day' gift from James - my Ninja blender! Coming from a Colombian family, I love soup all throughout the year - something James is trying to get used to!

Wednesday- BBQ marinated grilled chicken (James' homemade recipe- so good!), grilled corn on the cob and oven baked steak fries. I really like to do at least one non starchy veggie with dinner but James wasn't home until 8 from work and Hatfields and McCoy's finale was on at 9 and what's not to love about steak fries? James and I were watching tv one evening and this commercial came on - only 120 calories in a serving and no trans fat? Winner winner to go with our chicken dinner

Thursday- Another late dinner after a great walk with my friend Cam and sweet Baby Thomas! Grilled chicken, green onions and Queso Fresco quesadillas (on corn tortillas - yum!) and roasted squash, red pepper and grilled corn as our side. Can we please talk about how good the Mich Ultra Cactus lime is? Like Bud Light Lime but with 30 less calories. Win Win!

Friday- Out of work early (for both of us!) and off to Krispy Kreme for our free donuts!

 After staying at happy hour too long (Tap Room has 30 beers on tap!) to watch the USC vs. Manhattan baseball game we decided that food truck taco for me (in the Rosewood Market parking lot near(ish) our house) and breakfast for dinner at home for James would be perfect.

Saturday- Quick crust less quiche with roasted red pepper, potatoes, zucchini, squash and grilled corn from the night before - so good! We were headed to Cary, NC to see my sweet grandfather with my parents and brother and needed something filing! Perfect breakfast food!

What great meals do you cook each week? Are you the "head chef" in the family?