Here’s the menu for this week:

Sunday – breakfast – oats and milk; early dinner – bagels, cream cheese, vegetables

Monday – b – bagels and cream cheese ; l – cream of tomato soup, English muffins; d – cream of tomato soup, baked salmon, vegetable platter with cream cheese dip (changed from chicken and dumplings)

Tuesday – b – pumpkin bread; l – corn salad, sandwiches; d – huevos rancheros and Brazilian black beans

Wednesday – b – lemon blueberry muffins; d – burritos with beans and cheese, sauteed zucchini with tomatoes

Thursday – b – polenta ; d – red beans and rice, roasted vegetables

My older two girls, 14 and 12, volunteered for hours yesterday at our shul (synagogue) Chanuka party.  They had also helped out last year, and it was a good thing, because this year they were the only ones who knew how to set up (the adults in charge were doing it for the first time)!  The turnout was less than expected, and they came home with a bunch of bagels, cream cheese, and fruit salad (other people helping out also took food home).  So that was integrated into the plan for yesterday and today.    They had a great time helping out, and everyone else in the family enjoyed the ‘fruits’ of their labor when they got back!

I also have some new recipes to try for Shabbos – beef stew, eggplant curry, and baked onions.  I have the right combination of ingredients for all of these things this week, and I like to try new recipes.  I never make the same things for Shabbos, even after all of these years.  We do have our favorites that occur on a somewhat regular basis, though!

Avivah