Meals of the Week, October 19th - October 25th, 2025

 

Another Sunday, another Meals of the week post. The post where I catch you up with all of the things which I have cooked for myself over the previous week.  I may live on my own, but as you can see, I eat very well.  

I love doing these meals of the week posts. I know that I, myself, on occasions need a bit of inspiration when it comes to meal planning and if I can help anyone to do that for themselves or their family that makes me very happy.

I try to keep everything as nutritious as possible, and I try to cook my own meals from scratch most of the time. Readymade food is usually not all that good for you, being loaded with salt, sugar and fat. I do not believe it is meant to be consumed on a regular business.

I, like many seniors, live within a budget so what I eat also has to fit within that structure. It is getting more and more difficult to do, but it can be done with a little bit of planning ahead. 

This was not my usual week. I did not have dinner at my sister's this week and I ended up my week not being very well.  As you will see I did eat soup three times, which really isn't normal for me. In any case it was all delicious and nutritious. 

I think my favorite meal for the week was the Baked Bean Pie which I enjoyed on Monday. It was exceptionally delicious. So much so that here I am almost a week later thinking of it with great fondness.

These are my main meals, not my breakfasts and suppers. I eat my main meal at noon most of the time. (I don't like to go to bed with anything heavy on my stomach.)  Breakfast will be something simple like a protein shake. I buy my protein powder here. They have loads of flavors. The Orange Cream Pop is my favorite.  Sometimes I will have toast, and other times Oatmeal or my homemade granola. (Usually with some plain yogurt and fruit.)

My suppers will be very simple.  Sometimes a salad and some fruit, sometimes a sandwich, occasionally soup, and sometimes a bowl of cereal and milk, or some cheese and crackers. Always eaten before six if possible.  I will only ever eat a main meal at that time of day if I am eating out, entertaining, or being entertained.

In any case, here are the meals of the week I enjoyed over the past seven days!  I hope you will be inspired to want to cook a few of them for yourself! Delicious, nutritious and economical for the most part!

 

SUNDAY, October 19th - Cheesy Tortilla Garlic Bread with Tomato Soup

I had a hospital appointment about an hour away at 9 a.m. Sunday morning and ended up not sleeping all Saturday night thinking about it. As a consequence, I was not feeling much up to cooking or going to my Sister's for Dinner on Sunday.  I stayed home and sleepily made myself some Cheesy Tortilla Garlic Bread which I enjoyed with tomato soup because I couldn't really be asked to cook.

This is a great way to make garlic bread when you don't really have any bread in the house as well. It also lends itself beautifully to being gluten free by using gluten free tortillas. Quick. Easy. Delicious!

MONDAY, October 20th - Baked Bean Pie 

This was a recipe I pulled out of my Big Blue Binder. I had been wanting to make it for a very long time. Its simple to make and economical. Baked beans, lightly seasoned with Worcestershire Sauce and Tabasco, topped with sauteed onions and cheese, with a puff pastry lid.  Baked to crisp golden brown, bubbly, cheese perfection.

This was absolutely fabulous. I enjoyed a serving of it and took the remainder over to my daughter to enjoy. She thought it was delicious too.  This went down a real treat with a mixed salad on the side. I would make this again! 

TUESDAY, October 21st - Ground Beef & Barley Soup 

I had Jenni coming over to do my toenails on Tuesday so I knew I wouldn't have a lot of time to do any heavy-duty cooking.  This was another soup day.  I had some servings of this delicious soup in the freezer, so I simply took one out and thawed it for my supper.

Using ground beef makes this old favorite a lot quicker to put together. There is no need to simmer chunks of beef for hours in order to tenderize it. This is beautifully loaded with bags of flavor, plenty of veggies, and of course hearty and nutritious barley!

Once again, I enjoyed it with some crusty bread. This was hearty, filling and delicious.  Soup suppers in the autumn are one of my favorite things.

    WEDNESDAY, October 22nd - Sweet & Spicy Chicken 

Normally I might have gone out to supper with my father on Wednesday, but I really didn't feel like it this week. I stayed home and made myself some Sweet and Spicy Chicken instead. This is something that I used to make for my children quite often when they were growing up. I had not made it in a very long time. I did cut the recipe in half for myself, which gave me enough to enjoy on the night and some to enjoy cold over the next couple of days.

With only three simple ingredients, including the chicken thighs, this comes out tender, juicy and delicious each and every time. I love the flavor filled sticky coating on the chicken. It's just so tasty. It tastes like you spent hours making it, but really it takes very little effort to throw this simple dish together.

I enjoyed with some rice and a salad on the side and was very happy.  The chicken was every bit as delicious as I remembered it being and steamed rice was the perfect thing to have with it. Baked potatoes with sour cream would also be good. I could have cooked a vegetable which would have been great, but I did have salad which needed using up!  Another winner of a meal!

THURSDAY, October 23rd - Pork Steak with Mushroom Gravy 

I really don't eat red meat that often, but I had some pork steaks in the freezer that really needed using up and I was wanting something different.  I made myself Pork Steak with Mushroom Gravy. Simply seasoned pork minute steaks, pan fried in a bit of butter and served with a rich homemade mushroom gravy. So delicious and such a simple thing to put together. Juicy and tender.

I enjoyed this along with a baked potato that I had thrown in the oven earlier in the day and a mix of vegetables on the side. Mashed potatoes would also be great with that delicious gravy!!  

I sure enjoy the comfort food months. 

FRIDAY, October 24th - Enchilada Casserole

I had some cheese that needed using up and this tasty recipe called for the exact cheeses that needed using. I also had some tortillas that were close to their sell by date.  Enter, Enchilada Casserole. This is a simple recipe taken from a vintage recipe book. One of those ones that you used to be able to buy next to the cash registers in the grocery store.  I always loved picking up those books as they were loaded with great ideas. This was one of them.

Simple cheese enchiladas. Tortillas dipped into a homemade enchilada sauce and filled with a tasty mix of two cheeses, onions, and sour cream.  The remainder of the sauce is poured over top, and they are sprinkled with more cheese before baking to bubbly, gooey perfection.  These were fabulous. Rich and delicious.

I made myself a cabbage salad to enjoy on the side. It was a brilliant combination. You could top these with your favorite enchilada toppings. Sour cream, spring onions, chopped olives and peppers, salsa, etc. I just had sour cream. It went well, but I was wishing I had some spring onions.  I was too lazy to go to the store however.

 

SATURDAY, October 25th - soup and toast

Early Saturday morning I woke up in an extreme amount of pain in my abdomen. I wasn't sure what was up.  I lived with it for a couple hours and then I called my sister as I knew that I needed to go to the hospital.  Unfortunately, the closest hospital to us that is open on the weekends is about an hour away. I still haven't paid my ambulance bill from my last visit so taking an ambulance wasn't an option. Cindy popped over. We hopped into my car and off we went.

I have never experienced such pain. Not even having my babies. It turned out I was passing a Kidney Stone. Something which I do not recommend folks. Nasty business.  Anyways, I spent most of the day there, at the hospital and came home with some pretty strong pain killers.

Needless to say I didn't have much for supper. I was a bit hungry as I had not eaten since Friday.  I made myself a packet of chicken noodle soup which I enjoyed with some toast.  In its place I am sharing my recipe for Chicken & Lemon Soup.  This is a fabulously tasty chicken soup, with fresh flavours!  It uses chicken stock along with lemon juice.   

 

You might think the lemon would be overpowering, but it really isn't.  It adds a lovely layer of flavour that is quite pleasant! It is delicious and hearty.  You can make everything up to adding the pasta ahead of time but do wait until not too long before serving it to add your pasta.

And there you have it! My meals of the week for the past seven days. Once again, I think I did a great job on keeping things nutritious, balanced and within budget.  What do you think?

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. 

 Thanks for visiting! Do come again!! 

If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right-hand side of the screen.