The Thursday Question

The weather here in Memphis stayed in the mid-to-upper 30s with rain, Thank God. We'll uncover everything tomorrow, when temps are definitely going up again into the 40s. I hope the orchards and farms to the north are OK, too.

Since we've been married, I've done the grocery shopping on Friday night on the way home from work or on Saturday morning early, when the farmer's market is open. So Thursday is the Compile a Menu night- examine the weekly ads, examine the pantry, Ask the Question (Do you want anything specific to eat next week?), and make the list. Sometimes I am inspired by an online recipe or a book from the library to make a particular dish. At other times I use dishes we both like (minestrone, vegetarian chili, roast chicken and vegetables followed by Other Chicken Dishes, oven-baked cereal-encrusted catfish, etc.) and pull from the "standards".  It is our routine, and it works to keep things simple and predictable.