June meal plan #1

Charred corn & chorizo pasta, a grazing board, and curried chicken salad

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Friends, hello! I’m currently writing this from our old apartment. I’m surrounded by boxes and in the midst of a move, but by the time this is sent out Saturday morning, everything should mostly be in place at our new house.

This week has had me thinking about what really makes a home. Since I moved to Spain in 2010, all I’ve known are small, rented apartments with furniture I’ve never loved, kitchens that made no sense, and questionable art on the walls at best. And you know what? I was happy all along the way. In my student apartment in Córdoba with hideous furniture and wonderul friends. In an interior apartment with Pablo, furnished almost exclusively by IKEA, but located in our favorite neighborhood in Sevilla. And in Madrid, where we downgraded to a one-bedroom in the heart of a buzzing neighborhood.

This week starts a new era for us—our house. Our furniture. The kitchen of my dreams. A lemon tree in our front yard. A pool in the back for those hot, long Andalusian summer days.

But those are just the perks. Because if there’s anything I’ve learned hopping through homes it’s this: Home isn’t the house itself or even what’s inside. It’s the memories you collect along the way. Those past apartments are where I perfected these pancakes, where we closed off to the rest of the world during COVID, where I found out I was pregnant, where I answered my mom’s phone call and learned that my aunt had passed away, where we had so many good meals, where we watched our babies take their first steps, and where we dreamt up life plans.

Laughs and cries, greatness and tragedy. Extraordinary moments and the mundane ones, too. These are the things that make a home. This week is a new era indeed, but it’s far from the beginning of our story. -Katie

Left to right, top: Chicken with the BEST buttery pan sauce, curried chicken salad, and cold soup season (pictured here, gazpacho) starts now! Left to right, bottom: A raspberry cake Katie’s been making for years (and will tell you about soon!), Aperol spritz, and roast chicken.

This is our honest feedback on what worked (or more likely, didn’t) from last week’s meal plan.

Little victories

• Meredith: This week’s adult dinner was lovely. We grilled beef (which I marinated in leftover spicy sauce from a week or two ago), chicken, and zucchini and had it with an Aperol spritz on our terrace.

• Katie: I was really inspired by Meredith describing the 🪄 magic 🪄 of making chicken broth last week, so I did the same after roasting a chicken! Speaking of which, I salted my bird the night before for the first time ever, and it made SUCH a difference in the final flavor. Do not skip this step, friends! Oh, also I roasted my chicken with butter and smashed garlic, and honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever do it any other way again.

• Meredith: I didn’t follow a recipe, but I made a really yummy pasta salad on Wednesday: artichokes, roasted red peppers, herby feta, red onion, and olives tossed with bow tie pasta and lemon juice. (Katie: Oh, this sounds perfect.)

• Katie: CURRIED. CHICKEN. SALAD. I used Sohla’s recipe from Start Here with the leftovers from my roast chicken, and I was blown away by its simplicity and its bold flavor. I think I forgot how much I love chicken salad, so may this be a reminder to us all to make it all summer long. (Meredith: Yessss, so good!)

• Katie: I’m working really hard to create a non-diet culture space in my household. I love that we have homemade meals, fruit, pancakes, veggies, legumes, chocolate chip cookies, whole milk, nuts, and churros on the weekend. When my daughter asked for a glass of milk and cookies for dessert one night, I didn’t even bat an eye. “Why not?” I said. “Sometimes it’s fun to have something besides fruit and yogurt, isn’t it?” I hope I’m showing them that there’s space for it all.

Humbling moments

• Katie: I’m my own worst enemy. Last week was the week of all weeks to take all the shortcuts and buy all the pre-prepared food, and I don’t know why it’s SO hard for me to take my own advice. I loved the support on this note, however, and begrudgingly took stuffed squid off my meal plan and replaced it with store-bought Spanish omelette and gazpacho. And yes, my mental health levels directly correlated to this decision, and yes it was delish.

• Meredith: I got hit with a few unexpected projects at work after the long weekend, so I had to cut corners in the meal plan. That meant no mussels, a lot of repeats of chicken and pasta salad, and I handed off the risotto to my husband. He didn’t follow a recipe, but it was very good.

• Katie: I asked my butcher to spatchcock my chicken for me, and I felt very humbled showing her a YouTube video of how it’s done and fumbling over how to say chicken backbone in Spanish. She laughed, she obliged, and I got to put it here. Hey, that’s life abroad for you.

This week’s game plan: As anyone who’s moved knows, the initial moving of things is just the first phase. In the coming weeks and months, we’ll slowly organize, tidy, continue to clean up the neverending post-renovation dust, and make ourselves at home. So with that in mind, I’m focusing on easy things that I can prepare in the evenings and that don’t require too much time or effort, and trying to hand over some of the cooking duties to my husband! Oh, and the damn stuffed squid, which I unfortunately can’t stop thinking about and therefore must make.

Monday: Salmorejo (via What’s on Your Plate?)
Tuesday: Spring wedding soup (via Clare de Boer), to use up my chicken broth and because these lemon zest-laced meatballs were full stop SPECTACULAR.
Wednesday: Charred corn & chorizo pasta (one of my husband’s specialties!)
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: The infamous stuffed squid (via Start Here by Sohla El-Waylly)
Other: I think it’ll take a few weeks before I feel settled into my kitchen and have the free time to bake for fun. This week, I’ll probably pull my starter out of the fridge to feed, and we might make pancakes one morning to innaugaurate the kitchen together as a family with a fun breakfast! (These are my family’s favorite ones, but I lately can’t stop gravitating towards these banana pancakes!)

This week’s game plan: My calendar is looking pretty full this week: no more long days at school, lots of meetings, and a handful of doctor’s appointments. I’m going to keep things as simple as possible.

Monday: Salmorejo (via What’s on Your Plate?)
Tuesday: Curried chicken salad (via Start Here by Sohla El-Waylly)
Wednesday: My son’s favorite Moroccan couscous (via The Mediterranean Dish)
Thursday: Meatball and veggie grazing board (inspired by Jenna O’Brien)
Friday: Crunchy, spicy salmon rice bowls (via What to Cook, ungated version here)
Other: There’s a really yummy-looking tres leches cake with corn flour in Start Here that caught my eye this week. If I can find the right flour, I’m going to give it a shot. I’d also like to make some zucchini fritters for Lola, who’s starting to really enjoy whole, solid foods!

• Meredith: I listened to Amy Poehler’s podcast this week and laughed out loud many times. I recommend the episodes with Tina Fey and Paul Rudd.

• Katie: “On whether having a baby ruins your life or not,” was the feel-good read I didn’t even know I needed. Do kids upend your world? Yep. Does it ruin your life? You should read this dad’s thoughts if you think it might.

• Meredith: I’m starting to make our packing list and get things organized for our six-week trip to the US. I ordered this Thermos to keep some puree warm for Lola on the flight (and for filling with frozen treats at the beach this summer). I also just added more packing cubes to my cart. (Katie: I have these packing cubes, and they are perfect. I bought a different color for each of us, and though it feels extra, it makes quickly grabbing what you need SO much easier!)

• Katie: OK, I’m not really in the market for new hobbies (very limited free time, most of which goes to my family, this newsletter, or my kitchen!), buuuuut I LOVE this list of adult hobbies. I’m especially drawn to inventing a signature omelette, punch needle embroidery, mastering a cocktail, junk journaling, and writing poems for nobody but me.