Dinner Recipes, Summer Meal Plan #3

What to cook for dinner this week:

1.) Southwest Summer Corn Chowder 2.) Skillet Cod with Blackened Corn Relish and Tomato Bacon Salad 3.) Stuffed Poblano Peppers and Watermelon Salad 4.) Paprika Chicken with Bell Peppers, Yogurt Sauce and Smashed Potatoes 5.) Black Bean Tostadas with Corn Salsa and Enchilada Cream 6.) Cocktail: Watermelon Tequila Spritzers

On this page, you’ll find a meal plan for the week. Each meal is designed to build on the previous night’s efforts by using leftover ingredients. A little = a lot. You’ll also find a preparation schedule and grocery list.

Individual Recipes:

(A shopping list for this week’s meals is at the bottom of this page)

Meal Prep, Day by Day

Day #1

What’s for Dinner Tonight: Southwest Summer Corn Chowder

Making dinner tonight will be a double-whammy combination of cooking super-yummy Southwest Summer Corn Chowder and getting a bunch of ingredients prepped for the rest of the week at the same time.

Croutons: If you want to top tonight’s chowder with a few croutons, follow this super simple homemade crouton recipe to get those going before diving into chowder preparation.
Enchilada Sauce: The recipe for tonight’s chowder offers the option of using prepared enchilada sauce or making a batch “from scratch” – a process that only requires about 10 minutes of hands on time and produces a sauce far superior to anything you’ll find in a can. Since you’ll be using enchilada sauce later this week in Black Bean Tostadas with Enchilada Cream, I encourage you to make a batch. It’s really easy and sooooo good. To make the sauce, follow the instructions in this Enchilada Bake recipe. For this week’s meal plan, you only need to make a half batch. However, the sauce freezes well, so you might want to go ahead and make a full batch, putting the extra sauce in the freezer.
Roasted Poblano Peppers: Follow the Corn Chowder recipe instructions to roast a total of 14 poblano peppers. Peel and seed all the roasted peppers. Reserve 8 of the peppers for Stuffed Poblano Peppers on Day #3. Chop the remaining peppers and add 2/3 of the chopped peppers to the chowder. Reserve the remaining 1/3 of the chopped peppers for corn salsa on Day #5.
Sweet Corn: You’ll need a total of 14 ears of sweet corn for this week’s meal plan. Shuck all the corn and slice the kernels off the cob. Follow the instructions in the recipe for Corn Chowder to sauté all the corn kernels to “blacken” it. Reserve 3 cups of kernels for the corn relish on Day #2 and 3 cups for corn salsa on Day #5. Use the remaining corn for tonight’s chowder.
Potatoes: Instead of cooking the potatoes for tonight’s chowder in the soup’s broth as the recipe instructs, cook a double batch of potatoes – 48 oz total – in a large pan of boiling water. Add 1 tbs of salt to the boiling water along with the potatoes and cook them until they are about 75% of the way done. You should be able to poke a fork into them, but will be able to tell that they aren’t quite soft enough to eat. Drain the potatoes and add half to the chowder to allow to cook completely. Reserve the other half of the partially cooked potatoes in an airtight container in your refrigerator. You’ll use them to make Smashed Potatoes on Day #4.
Bacon: Follow the Corn Chowder recipe instruction to cook a total of 16 oz of bacon. Use 12 oz of the bacon in the chowder and reserve the remaining 4 oz for Fresh Tomato Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette on Day #2. Either reserve 1 tbsp of rendered bacon fat in the refrigerator to make the Bacon Vinaigrette on Day #2, or just go ahead and make the Vinaigrette now, storing it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

To get an even bigger jump on the week:

Follow this recipe to get a batch of black beans going in the slow cooker. Once tender, scoop the beans along with some of their cooking liquid into an air-tight container and reserve in the refrigerator. You’ll use them in Stuffed Poblano Peppers on Day #3, and in Black Bean Tostadas on Day #5. (You can also use canned black beans for both of these recipes. But, slow cooker black beans are much tastier and only take about 5 minutes of hands on work.)

Day #2

What’s for Dinner Tonight: Skillet Cod with Blackened Corn Relish and Fresh Tomato Salad with Bacon Vinaigrette

How much do I love tonight’s meal? If you could see me right now, you’d see me spreading my arms as wide as I can and yelling, “THIS much!” Tonight’s dinner is my definition of the perfect summer meal. Quick, easy, full of summer produce, and packed with flavor. I could seriously eat this every week. Perhaps I will.

Use the blackened corn that you reserved on Day #1 to make quick work of the Creamy Corn Relish. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
If you didn’t make the Bacon Vinaigrette on Day #1, make that before you cook the cod. The cod only takes a few minutes, so have the corn relish, salad and dressing ready to go before you lay the fillets in the skillet.

Day #3

What’s for Dinner Tonight: Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Tortillas and Savory Watermelon Salad with Chili and Lime

Stuffed Poblano Peppers is a favorite dish at my house and gets made year round. The most tedious part of making these is roasting the peppers and removing their skin. Since you already did that on Day #1, you’re already ahead of the game.
If you didn’t make a batch of slow cooker black beans on Day #1, get those going at least 4 hours before you want to make the stuffed peppers. You can also just use 2 cups of canned black beans, drained and rinsed.
If you’ve never made homemade flour tortillas, this meal is the perfect excuse to give them a try. They are much easier than you might think and so much better than store bought you’ll probably never purchase them again. I suggest making the dough before starting on the stuffed peppers. The dough need a few minutes to rest, giving you time to make the stuffed peppers. Then, roll out and cook the tortillas while the stuffed peppers bake.
If you’ve never had a savory melon salad, you might think that watermelon salad with chili, salt and cilantro is not the kind of thing you want to eat. Trust me – this will change with the very first bite. The flavors go together beautifully and are positively addicting.

Day #4

What’s for Dinner Tonight: Paprika Chicken with Bell Peppers and Herbed Yogurt Sauce and Smashed Potatoes

Don’t be deceived by the length of the recipe instructions for Paprika Chicken. This dish is super simple and requires only about 20 minutes of hands on time.The recipe includes instructions for grilling or roasting the chicken. Both methods are delicious so do whichever works for you.
If you’d like to top your black bean tostadas on Day #5 with a few pieces of chicken, make sure to cook enough so that you’re certain you’ll have 2 or 3 pieces left over. Remove the meat from the bone and cut into small pieces. Reserve in the refrigerator until Day #5.
Because you already boiled the potatoes on Day #1 for Smashed Potatoes, this side dish will take a fraction of the time. Simply begin the recipe at step # 2.

Day #5

What’s for Dinner Tonight: Black Bean Tostadas with Corn Salsa and Enchilada Cream

Because of all the meal prepping you’ve done throughout the week, half of tonight’s meal is already cooked, prepped and ready. In your refrigerator, you should already have a few cups of slow simmered black beans, a bowl of homemade enchilada sauce, a few cups of blackened corn, and some roasted and diced poblano peppers. Get them out – tonight’s dinner will be on the table in no time.
Tostadas are a great way to use up all sorts of leftovers. You might have some leftover Paprika Chicken in your refrigerator reserved just for the purpose of topping your tostada. You might also have some leftover corn relish, smashed potatoes, or bacon and tomato salad. All of it will make delicious toppings for your tostadas.

This Week’s Featured Cocktail: Watermelon Tequila Spritzer

Suggested Recipes for the Baker:

Useful Equipment:

Shopping List, Weekly Summer Meal Plan #3

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*Does not include ingredients for suggested baked goods.

12 poblano peppers
12 ears of sweet corn (or – 7 cups of frozen corn)
1 large tomato (enough for 1 cup diced)
1 large yellow onion
2 red onions
2 shallots
9 cloves of garlic
6 red bell peppers (or any color bell pepper)
4 large tomatoes
16 oz diced fresh or canned tomatoes (for Stuffed Poblano Peppers)
4 cups of summer greens – Preferably spinach, frisée, or endive
3 cups of arugula or other tender greens for serving with paprika chicken
4 cups fresh cilantro
2 tbsp fresh parsley
3/4 cup fresh oregano
48 oz (approximately 3 pounds) small new potatoes – any variety or mix of varieties
8 limes
2 large lemons
1 six pound watermelon (3 lbs for Watermelon salad and 3 lbs for Watermelon cocktails)
16 oz (approximately 1 & 1/2 pounds) thick cut bacon
2 pounds of cod fillets (fresh or frozen cod)
3-6 lbs chicken pieces, bone-in, skin-on (Use a whole cut-up chicken, or any combination of pieces. You’ll want 3-4 lbs for Paprika Chicken. Purchase another pound or two if you want to top Black Bean Tostadas on Day #5 with leftover chicken.)
1 cup cream
1/2 cup sour cream (to serve with Stuffed Poblano Peppers)
3/4 cup Crema Mexicana (Mexican Sour Cream)
1 cup plain, unsweetened greek yogurt
1-2 cups of Cotija cheese, crumbled (or Monterey Jack, shredded)
1 tsp dried oregano
4 tbsp smoked paprika
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp Tajin Seasoning (Or any Mexican chili seasoning blend)
Dash of ground cayenne pepper (optional for paprika chicken)
5 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup rice
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp honey
8 fresh corn tortillas – OR – prepared tostada shells
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper
1 or 2 tsp of flaky sea salt (for watermelon salad)
2 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp dark brown sugar
1 & 1/4 cups extra virgin olive oil
2 cups of corn oil (For frying the fresh corn tortillas. If using prepared tostada shells, disregard.)
1 tbsp butter

You’ll need a total of 2 cups of enchilada sauce for this week’s meal plan. Homemade enchilada sauce is super easy and delicious. To make it from scratch, you’ll need the following ingredients. If you’d rather not make it from scratch, purchase 2 cups of canned enchilada sauce.

2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp onion powder
3 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbs butter
3 tbsp unbleached, all-purpose flour
24 oz red chili paste (I use one 24 oz bag mild and one 24 oz bag hot)
1 1/2 cups chicken broth or water
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

You’ll need a total of 6 cups black beans for this week’s meal plan. Either use the ingredients list below for slow cooker black beans (which only takes about 5 minutes of hands on time) OR – purchase 6 cups of canned black beans.

16 oz. (1 lb) dried black beans
8 cups water – or chicken or vegetable broth
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 or 2 limes
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
2 tbsp chopped green onions (optional)

For Homemade Croutons (optional topping for Southwest Corn Chowder):

A loaf of day old French, Italian or Sourdough bread
About 1/2 cup of olive oil
Salt, pepper, and about 1 tsp of red pepper flakes

For Homemade Flour Tortillas (Optional, to serve with Stuffed Poblano Peppers):

4½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
1½ tsp baking powder
1¼ cup water
⅔ cup corn oil

For Watermelon Tequila Spritzers (recipe makes 8 drinks):

16 oz tequila
16 oz Sanpellegrino (Use any flavor, but I prefer the Pomegranate and Orange variety.)