Grocery Bag Series

I'm a big fan of Martha Stewart and have been wanting to challenge myself to complete one month's Grocery Bag section of Everyday Food Magazine. The idea of having a set list of groceries and meals plotted out for every night of the week is a perfect idea. For those of you who aren't family with Grocery Bag, every issue of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food Magazine contains a section called Grocery Bag, designed to show you 5 weeknight dinners with one simple grocery list needed. The list is even printed on a tare-off sheet so you can bring the list to the store.

For months now, I've been checking out the recipes in this section and never find more than one or two recipes that I'd actually enjoy eating...until now! The April issue had 5 great recipes that I challenged myself to make.

Here is a breakdown of April's dishes:

Monday: Roasted Chicken with Cauliflower and Chickpeas
Tuesday: Lamb, Potato, and Leek Stew
Wednesday: Buttery Shrimp and Radish Pasta
Thursday: Steak with Swiss Chard and Garlic Bread
Friday: Spring Vegetable Pizzas

Everything sounds great, right? I was really excited about this list. I've never had lamb, potato and leek stew, nor have I ever had swiss chard so I couldn't wait to roll up my sleeves and get to work!

The next few posts will be each of the nights recipes. But I have to admit, I actually tweaked the list a bit and skipped out on making Wednesday's meal. My boyfriend really wasn't interested in trying shrimp and radish pasta and since I do cook for the both of us, I agreed to pass on this dish. But don't you worry, I tweaked the pizza recipe a bit and whipped up my own version later in the week.

I hope you enjoy checking out these recipes as much as I did cooking them... and shopping for all the ingredients for that matter. I went to the grocery store with a friend, who had no idea what I was getting myself into! :)