Indulging in a Week of Comfort Foods

including BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes, and Tomato-Garlic Pasta

After reflecting on the past month of meals (which I personally have enjoyed so much), I figured it was time for a menu of comfort foods.

Plus, in an effort to be self-aware of the copious amounts of barley or quinoa we’ve consumed, I also figured it was time to introduce a new character to the menu: Pearl Couscous (which is just undercover pasta, except you can cook it ahead of time and it reheats well).

You’ll find that this week features common comfort foods (things most of us would consider a ‘comfort food’) like Mashed Potatoes, Flatbread (aka Pizza), and Ranch. And then there are things I find personally reminiscent of my favorite childhood foods (like Tomato-Garlic Pasta, BBQ-anything, and Pesto), which make them ‘comfort foods’ to me.

Fun Fact: the Tomato-Garlic Couscous is inspired by the first recipe I became obsessed with as a kid, which was Giada’s Fusilli alla Caprese. I made it so frequently, I had the recipe memorized.

Day 1: Balsamic Chicken Skewers with Tomato-Garlic Couscous

Elements:

• Pistou (Similar to Pesto)

• Balsamic-Marinated Chicken Skewers

• Pearl Couscous

• Mozzarella

• Cherry Tomatoes

• Garlic Butter

Day 2: BBQ Chicken Flatbread

Elements:

• Flatbread Dough

• Barbeque Sauce

• Cabbage

• Gouda

• Mozzarella

• Pickled Shallots

• Cilantro

• Chicken

Day 3: Seared Salmon with Basil Couscous

Elements:

• Seared Salmon

• Pistou (similar to Pesto)

• Pearl Couscous

• Blistered Cherry Tomatoes

• Garlic Butter

• Broccolini

Day 4: BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Crispy Potatoes & Ranch

Elements:

• Barbeque Sauce

• Chicken

• Telera Rolls

• Cilantro Slaw

• Pickled Jalapeños & Shallots

• Garlic Butter

• Ranch (served on the side)

• Yukon Gold Potatoes (served on the side)

Day 5: Garlic-Butter Shrimp with Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Elements:

• Garlic Butter

• Shrimp

• Buttermilk

• Yukon Gold Potatoes

• Broccolini

This week’s grocery list is relatively smaller…

We’re slimming down on the produce (barely), while also making many things from scratch, like Flatbread Dough and Telera Rolls…again.

I also had a lot of ingredients on hand, like Pearl Couscous, Greek Yogurt, and of course, all proteins (which as you know, I’ve been sourcing from Costco).

All that said, my grocery store total was ~$50.

Suffice to say, it was necessary after last week’s accidental $75 haul.

Ingredient List

Ingredient List

36.9KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

I’m also now attaching another Ingredient List (below), which includes a second page that specifies which Essentials we’re using (in case you’re missing any) as well as *optional* “Time Savers” - these are for those of you who might not want to make your Telera Rolls from scratch or peel a bulb of garlic (which is totally valid).