Improv Night: Last-Minute Menu Changes and the Women Who Love Them

Monday, January 23, 2012

Dear Weekend,

You never last long enough. And you always fool me into thinking I can have complete control over the week ahead by planning it to a tee in the down time. But then you throw me curve balls, making me have fun instead of staying focused on prepping for the week ahead! So I’m sitting here on Monday afternoon wondering what in the world was I thinking when I went to the store yesterday? And why is there a bunch of rutabaga where my fruit should be?

Sincerely, Beth

I’m sure we can all relate to this kind of dilemma: Yesterday I made a schedule for the week of meals, then hit the store with said list. Naturally though, none of the stuff I’d planned on getting looked good, sounded right, etc. So I decided to wing it, which went a little something like this:

I need a bag of frozen broccoli. Okey dokey…Oops, where did that giant tub of chocolate gelato come from? Oh well, better have it! Now on to fresh produce. Roasted veggies will be good one night…but what’s this, a rutabagaa sale? Have I ever even had one of these before? That just doesn’t seem right. I should probably load up on these because you never know…Oh and salmon, yes, a must, but—oh, no, that’s just grotesque looking.

And so forth. Needless to say, by the time I got home, my menu plan for the week was completely shot. But you know what? I’m cool with that. Because that means I can play! So many possibilities!

Shrimp and creamy deliciousness: it's what's for dinner!

I didn’t have salmon, so tonight’s grilled salmon and wild rice plan is no longer…but since the shrimp looked so much fresher, I’ve got a new idea: Penne Primavera with Shrimp. (Check out Dreamfield Pasta’s swoon-inducing recipe here.) It’s creamy, a major crowd-pleaser, and best of all, I just happened to now have all the ingredients. I still think having a menu is really useful—but being able to improvise without a fuss can be so very fun too.

Now, to figure out what to do with all that rutabaga…

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