Book Club TONIGHT At 8:30 PM EST!
PLUS: How To Make Dinner In Three Easy Steps!
THE RISE AND TRIUMPH OF THE MODERN SELF: Book Club Is TONIGHT At 8:30 PM EST!
Join us tonight for a ZOOM book club discussion! This month we read The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self, and it was so enlightening! I can’t wait to hear your thoughts!
I’m so excited to see you all and chat with you LIVE. My husband, Jacob, will be participating tonight as well. To join tonight’s book club, you must use this EXCLUSIVE link and password! Can’t wait to see you there.
Meeting ID: 893 4982 2715
Passcode: 194236
How To Make Dinner In 3 Easy Steps!
Hello classic crew! I’m so sorry for the delay in content this past week - I had what seems to be a 24-hour flu this past weekend and was down for the count. I haven’t been sick in quite a while, and this was my first time being sick as a mom! Not being able to take care of my baby was awful, but at the same time, I’m so grateful that baby boy wasn’t the one suffering. It’s really emotional to be in a position of weakness when you are the one someone is depending on, but thank God I have my parents and my husband to help out.
For today’s article, I thought I’d do something fun! Let’s talk about how to make dinner - the easy way.
If you listened to my last podcast with my husband, you will have heard us talk about food and cooking.
My husband loves a good meal, but I’ve always viewed cooking as a chore, something that just needs to get done. Because of that, I’ve never really loved being in the kitchen. But I’m currently on a journey to explore the craft of cooking, and it’s been so fun! (On another note, something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately is treating homemaking like a craft. Learning how to be good at all the different aspects of being a homemaker and really enjoying it. This is part of that process!)
One of the things that I have learned while being in the kitchen is that if you know a few basic rules when it comes to cooking, you don’t have to spend hours and hours to make a delicious meal. Jacob and I recently read Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering The Art of Good Cooking together, and even just learning about the science of food has informed the dishes we make. Sometimes, a simple recipe can truly be delicious. So what are the three easy steps to making dinner? Think of the three things you want on your plate - protein, carbohydrates, and vegetables!
Whenever I’m trying to think of a menu for dinner, I always come back to my tried and true recipe of these three items. Then I can divide and conquer. If you have all three of these things on your plate, you will feel full and satisfied. Also, it gives some variety to your meal. So let’s break it down!
Protein. This is what I also call the entree, or the main part of the meal. This is where I start whenever I come up with a menu. What do I want the bulk of the meal to be? Protein is in many ways the most important part of your diet. So I always make sure to come up with something Jacob and I will both enjoy. For us, that’s usually either chicken or beef. For a while we experimented with tofu and we enjoyed it, but now we are back to eating meat. When I want to get something on the table quickly, there a couple of methods I use to cook. The first is using our Ninja Foodi! We use the pressure cook setting and make pulled chicken, curry, or a stew of some kind. It’s fast and delicious. The other option is to fry something up on the stove - meat sauce is one of our favorite go-tos.
Carbohydrates. Next, I decide what carbohydrate I want to prepare. I choose this second because it needs to pair well with whatever our entree is! Sometimes, our carbohydrate is pasta (if we’re making meat sauce, for example). Other times, we make rice (if we make a curry, that’s a great option). Sometimes, we’ll make roasted potatoes! But we find that having a carbohydrate rounds out our meal in a wonderful way. And making a carbohydrate is so easy! Just throw pasta or rice in a pot with some water. And if you’re roasting potatoes, cut them into small pieces, cover them in oil, salt, pepper, and paprika and pop them in the oven! Delicious.
Vegetables. Last but not least, you always have to have your veggies! We have found that preparing our vegetables by broiling them in the oven is a fast, easy, and delicious way to eat them. We do this with asparagus and carrots most frequently. Again, we lay them out on a pan, cover them in oil and spices, and let the salt, fat, and heat do their thing! It comes out delicious every time. And we get those good vitamins in our diet by consuming healthy food. If we’re not in the mood for that, we also make peas on the stovetop. If you haven’t had peas in a while, here’s your reminder - they’re actually really yummy! Lastly, if we really aren’t in the mood for vegetables, we will actually throw them into our carbohydrate or our main dish (for example, peas in our rice or make a stew with lots of different vegetables). And then we can eat our veggies without even worrying about it!
Sometimes, the hardest part of making dinner is figuring out the menu. This is how I always approach it and it takes some of the guesswork out of my evening. I hope this helps you, too! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
What You Might Have Missed At Classically Abby…
Quote of the Week:
“A happy family is but an earlier heaven." - George Bernard Shaw
Classic Style Inspo
We are throwing it WAY back today to a photo I took when we lived in Omaha, but does anyone else love a cute apron? I often forget to throw one on, but every time I do it makes the whole cooking process more enjoyable. What’s more classic than a beautiful, feminine apron?
Things I’ve Been Loving: Reduce Water Bottle
I just recently got this water bottle to help me hit my water goals each day and I have to say, it’s pretty great! It keeps my drinks cold all day and it’s comfortable to hold and use. Plus, it fits in most cupholders!
Welcome to Classically Abby!
I'm a wife, mama, opera singer, entrepreneur, YouTuber, and your guide to becoming the classic woman you've always wanted to be! Follow me on YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter to see how! And together, let's be classic.
*Disclosure: This email may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click on a link and purchase something. Thank you for your support!
Adulthood really is deciding what to eat for dinner every day! LOL. Also, I am so sorry I missed book club. I had a dashboard warning light go on in my car after I got off the train from work, turns out I need a new bleeping wheel! I got home too late to join without being disruptive. I am sure it was GREAT!!
As for the couple you mentioned who has differing opinions on having kids, my thoughts were the same. Why did they not talk about this ahead of time? I think the best thing for the wife in this situation to do is talk to her doctor about her medical conditions to see if her diabetes can handle pregnancy. I could not help but think of Steel Magnolias ( if anyone has not seen this movie, please purchase 10 boxes of Kleenex before watching... you will need them all). Julia Roberts character has diabetes and chose to have a child against medical advice. In regards to bipolar disorder, depending on how well controlled it is she could be at major risk for a mental health breakdown or hospitalization. I am not a physician, but I think that is definitely who she should consult with before throwing the idea of children out the window. They are also very young and I think as years go on she will get more perspective. Maybe adoption or foster care is what is best for them? God always has a plan!