Colder Weather, Changing Menus

One of my husband's college roommates told us that his mother made meals according to a rigid schedule--if it's Tuesday it's meatloaf sort of idea. So there were only seven different meals in his house and no surprises or changes.  Now that would make for easy planning and shopping  but it isn't the way I want to cook or eat.

Even when my sons were little we planned together as a group. Every Tuesday we would make a menu for the week. Everyone got to request a favorite and as the boys got older they began to ask for meals they had heard or read about. So if one night one brother asked for the meatloaf that another brother really didn't like, on another night the disgruntled brother would get his meal. This also made planning and shopping much easier which naturally meant it was cheaper as well since there weren't any surprise trips to the store. My sons learned to take advantage of seasonal items and they all three turned out to be interested in good meals and family dining.

Well my husband and I still make the weekly menu and we still pay attention to the seasons. Four days ago, the daily high temperature was about 90 F. Today the high is about 50 F. It's also very grey and damp. Tonight we are having my version of Catalan chicken and the menu for this week has swiss steak and goulash on it.

Catalan Chicken My Way(For Two But Easily Multiplied)

Chicken parts cut up (I happened to have one very large chicken breast that I split in two but drumsticks, or thighs in sufficient quantity for two people is fine)
Fresh shallots sliced lengthwise into thin pieces (2)
Fresh thyme (small handful)
Dry white wine (1/2 cup)
Chicken broth (1 cup)
Raisins (1/2 cup)
Pine-nuts (1/2 cup)
Fresh tomatoes (2 chopped) or 14 ounce chopped tomatoes
Some flour, salt, and pepper to dredge the chicken
Salt and pepper to taste

Put a little olive oil in a saucepan. Dredge the chicken pieces in some seasoned flour and brown on all sides in the oil. That should take about four minutes on a side. Remove chicken from the pan and add the sliced shallots to the pan. Cook these until they are softened. Throw in a small handful, perhaps a tablespoon chopped, of fresh thyme. When you can smell that nicely as it heats up put in some raisins and some pine-nuts, stir briefly and then add two tomatoes cut in to pieces and stir around. Add about half a cup of white wine and cook until the wine is reduced a little. Stir in one cup of chicken broth and then add the chicken pieces back. Bring to a simmer and then cover and turn to low and cook for 30 to 45 minutes. Chicken thighs take longer than breasts. Toward the end of the cooking time check the seasoning and check to see if the resulting sauce is thick enough for your taste. The Catalan method of thickening is to add a combination of olive oil, breadcrumbs, and ground toasted pine-nuts but if it is thick enough for you just serve that on the side. We usually make a little couscous and a green salad or green vegetable to go with this. In Spain rabbit is more common in this dish and often prunes are used instead of raisins.