I can't believe that is is Sunday again as well as being the end of June! June has just whizzed by at the speed of light!
On Sundays I like to share with you, my readers, my Meals of the Week. All of the deliciousness which I have enjoyed eating for my main meals over the past seven days! There's a whole lot of tasty going on here and a pleasure shared is a pleasure doubled!
Generally speaking I live by myself, although I have had my daughter living with me since January. That is soon going to end however as she is about ready to move into her new apartment. I will miss her being here with me, but we hope to get together several times a week.
As a person who lives all alone, I am responsible for cooking for myself. The temptation when you are living on your own, or even if you are an empty nester can be to want to just eat ready meals or cook out of cans, enjoy frozen dinners. Or even to eat out or enjoy a takeaway more often than not.
That is not me. I love to cook, and I love to eat and I will be honest with you, most of those tins, cans, frozen dinners, takeaways and restaurant meals are, more often than not, very disappointing! And so, I like to cook as much as possible for myself, and I like to take you along on the journey.
I almost always eat my main meal about mid afternoon, unless I am out, or at someone else's house. I don't like to go to bed with a lot on my stomach and these days I am in bed most nights by nine PM. (I must be getting old!)
For breakfast these days I enjoy a protein smoothie/shake, or a bowl of yogurt with my homemade granola. I really enjoy the protein shakes. They help me to keep my cravings down and up my protein, not to mention my calcium and a whole lot of other stuff. Plus they are delicious. I usually sip on it all morning as I am working away. It helps to keep the cravings at bay and keeps me satisfied.
I will have my main meal about 1 to 2 pm. That will be a full dinner that I have prepared myself. Most of the time.
Supper will usually be some toast, or a sandwich, perhaps a bowl of cereal, or, more often than not, a salad. I love salad and they are usually filled with loads of greens, veggies, sometimes some protein (cheese, egg, chicken etc.) I always make my own dressing and if I am feeling especially indulgent I will add some croutons or seeds or nuts as a topper.
I try to keep everything within budget. I am living on a meager pension and whatever I make on here from the ads. (Thanks so much for visiting. You help to keep me afloat!) I also try to keep things fairly healthy. I also try to keep waste at a minimum.
Anyways, without too much more twaddle, here are my main meals for the past seven days! I hope you see something that will inspire you to want to cook it for yourself also! For the odd time that I have eaten out of house, I have provided a suitable alternative for you, plus I have also added suggestions for any sides that will go well with the mains.
SUNDAY, June 21st - Father's Day Family Dinner
Sunday was Father's Day so we did our typical Fried Chicken Father's Day special dinner. Yes, we pick it up at Mary Browns and we all enjoy it. Chicken, taters, gravy, coleslaw and buttermilk biscuits. In it's place I am sharing my recipe for Oven Fried Chicken with Chive & Buttermilk Mash. Always delicious.
This comforting supper pairs irresistibly crisp, oven‑fried chicken with a cloud‑soft chive and buttermilk mash that’s tangy, buttery, and beautifully flecked with fresh herbs. The chicken bakes up golden and crunchy, the kind you can’t help but nibble with your fingers, while the creamy potatoes make the perfect cozy companion. Simple, nostalgic, and downright irresistible — a true family favourite in every bite.
MONDAY, June22nd - Crispy Chicken Salad
We played things a bit lighter on Monday with my favorite Crispy Chicken Salad. This always goes down a real treat.
This bright, satisfying salad brings together golden, Parmesan‑panko chicken filets that fry up irresistibly crisp served on top of a bowlful of fresh, vibrant greens, cool cucumber, sweet carrot ribbons, and de‑seeded tomatoes that keep everything crisp and flavourful . A zesty lemon‑Parmesan dressing ties it all together — creamy, tangy, and sunshine‑bright in every bite . Light, wholesome, and wonderfully crunchy, it’s the kind of summer supper that feels both refreshing and deeply satisfying.
For the hearty eater you could add a baked potato, but we were quite happy with just the chicken and the salad. We had our father's favorite, Wild Blueberry Pie for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
TUESDAY, June 23rd. - Italian Sausage Meatballs
We are meatball lovers in this house. I like to make up big batches of meatballs and freeze them, ready to take out and enjoy whenever we want them. This week we enjoyed some of my Italian Sausage Meatballs with some gravy, mashed potatoes and vegetables on the side. This is a small batch recipe which you could double or triple to freeze if you wished.
This cozy, small‑batch recipe turns simple sweet Italian sausage into tender, juicy meatballs with just a handful of ingredients and barely any effort. A touch of grated onion, cream, and breadcrumbs keeps them beautifully moist and flavorful, while a quick roast in a hot oven gives them that irresistible golden finish. Perfect with gravy and mash or tucked into your favorite sauce, they’re the kind of comforting, no‑fuss meatballs you’ll want to keep on repeat — and they freeze like a dream for easy future meals.
WEDNESDAY, June 24th - Dinner out with Dad and the family
This was a recipe that I had seen on YouTube on a channel called Feeding the Byrds. She had adapted the recipe from my friend Kevin of A Closet Kitchen in which he used whole chicken breasts. Cutting the chicken into manageable sized bites which reduced the cook time by quite a lot.
I cut the recipe in half. Tender and juicy pieces of chicken breast with garlic, shallots and cherry tomatoes. Mozzarella pearls melted in amongst those delicious juices and drizzled with a sweet Balsamic glaze. A scattering of fresh basil is thrown over top.
This was quite simply fabulous served with some steamed Basmati rice. If you wanted to you could serve with crusty bread to mop up all of those tasty juices, but you really don't need anything else!
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
There’s something wonderfully old‑fashioned and comforting about Boston Brown Bread, with its deep molasses richness and hearty whole‑grain texture. These Boston Brown Bread Toaster Cakes/Muffins capture all that nostalgic New England flavour in a quick, modern format you can bake in minutes.
No steaming, no fuss — just tender, wholesome little cakes perfect for toasting, and slathering with butter. They’re ideal for breakfast, alongside baked beans, or as a cozy anytime treat that brings warm, homey goodness to the table.
- 1/4 cup (31g) plain all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (31g) whole wheat flour
- 1/4 cup (40g) yellow cornmeal
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp of baking soda
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp of salt
- 3 TBS molasses
- 1 TBS cider vinegar
- 3 fluid ounces (90ml) whole milk
- 1/2 TBS butter, melted
- 1/4 cup (37g) raisins
- Do not be tempted to use self-raising flour. It works best with all-purpose plain flour.
- Whole wheat flour is flour that is made by grinding the entire wheat kernel, including the bran, germ, and endosperm, retaining all its natural nutrients. In the U.K. this would be called Whole Meal flour.
- Cornmeal is a coarse flour made by grinding dried maize (corn), used in a variety of dishes worldwide. Do not use self-rising cornmeal. In the U.K. you can use polenta.
- Baking soda is also known as bicarbonate of soda.
- Molasses is a by-product of the sugar refining process. It has a lovely almost smokey flavor. If you cannot get it where you live (U.K.) you can combine equal parts of dark and light treacle to use in it's place.
- By cider vinegar I mean apple cider vinegar.
- I used whole milk.
- I used salted butter.
- If you don't like raisins, feel free to use another dried fruit such as cranberries, blueberries, currants, chopped dates, etc.
- Preheat the oven to 400*F.200*C/gas mark 6. Have ready a 6-hole muffin top pan that you have buttered really well. (Alternately you can spray it well with non-stick cooking spray.)
- Whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Stir in the raisins. (I use a wire whisk to do this, alternately you can sift the dry ingredients together. Stir the raisins in with a fork or a spoon.)
- Whisk all of the wet ingredients together. (Again, I use a wire whisk to do this. You will note that the baking powder immediately begins to react with the vinegar.)
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients all at once. Quickly mix together to combine. (It doesn't have to be completely smooth.)
- Immediately spoon into the prepared muffin top pan, dividing the batter equally amongst the holes. (Work quickly so that you can take full advantage of the reaction between the soda and vinegar.)
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (They should also spring back when lightly touched.)
- Tip out onto a wire rack to cool.
- To serve, warm lightly in a toaster and pass the butter! (They only take about a minute or so in the toaster.)
Boston Brown Bread Toaster Cakes
All the deliciousness of Boston Brown Bread, except in a handy form that you can pop into the toaster for instant gratification. Delicious with baked beans, soups, salads, for breakfast with eggs, etc.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (31g) plain all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (31g) whole wheat flour
- 1/4 cup (40g) yellow cornmeal
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp of baking soda
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp of salt
- 3 TBS molasses
- 1 TBS cider vinegar
- 3 fluid ounces (90ml) whole milk
- 1/2 TBS butter, melted
- 1/4 cup (37g) raisins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400*F.200*C/gas mark 6. Have ready a 6-hole muffin top pan that you have buttered really well.
- Whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Stir in the raisins.
- Whisk all of the wet ingredients together.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients all at once. Quickly mix together to combine.
- Immediately spoon into the prepared muffin top pan, dividing the batter equally amongst the holes.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. They should also spring back when lightly touched.
- Tip out onto a wire rack to cool.
- To serve, warm lightly in a toaster and pass the butter!
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
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