Current Fridge Protein & Leftover Inventory (Start of Day)
Cooked burger patties
Roasted chicken leftovers
Cooked meatloaf
Three homemade beef summer sausage logs (uncooked this morning)
Chicken thighs
Cooked breakfast sausage
Fresh focaccia ingredients
Homemade chicken broth components
Morning
This morning was another easy breakfast setup thanks to all the prep work already done.
The kids had:
- bacon
- bagels
- toast
My teen made her cherry almond smoothie again:
- frozen cherries
- Greek yogurt
- banana
- almond extract
And the three-year-old requested another Paw Patrol yogurt drink. She also wanted to wear a pair of swim goggles that we are trying to pack for the trip!
We also jumped into school pretty quickly this morning, so having breakfast mostly ready to go made the morning feel much smoother.
Morning Protein Prep
While we worked through school, I cooked the three logs of homemade beef summer sausage that I prepped yesterday.
At the same time, I pulled out all the chicken bones and skin from Saturday’s roasted chickens, covered everything with water, and got another stockpot of bone broth simmering on the stove for the day.
One thing I really love about roasting whole chickens is how many stages you can stretch them through:
- original dinner
- leftovers
- soups
- broth
It makes the kitchen feel very efficient without feeling restrictive.
Lunch — Leftover Burgers
Lunch today was built around the leftover burgers from Saturday night.
The kids all had burgers again, which they were very happy about.
I made myself a barbecue chicken salad using some of the rotisserie chicken from the weekend. I heated the chicken with barbecue sauce in a skillet first and then added it over salad greens.
Simple lunches like this are one reason I like cooking larger batches of protein when I already have the grill going.
Afternoon — Bounce House Day
This afternoon turned into the perfect bounce house day.
The kids asked if we could set it up, and the weather was basically ideal:
- dry ground
- mild temperatures
- not overly humid
If the ground is wet, the bounce house becomes such a pain to dry and pack away. And if it’s super hot outside, it basically turns into a giant plastic sauna.
But today was perfect.
So we dragged it out, staked it down, inflated it, and the kids bounced off and on all day long.
Definitely a project to set up and put away, but completely worth it on a day like this.
At one point everyone came in for ice cream before heading right back outside.
Afternoon Baking — Homemade Focaccia
Right after lunch, I started homemade focaccia.
And truly, homemade focaccia is one of the highest reward-to-effort breads I make.
The actual hands-on work is minimal (I like to make 1.5x the King Arthur Flour Big and Bubbly Focaccia recipe:
- flour
- sugar
- salt
- yeast
- olive oil
- hot water
Mix it together, then every 15 minutes you do a simple bowl fold with wet hands a few times before letting the dough rise.
Today I forgot parchment paper in the pan, which I definitely recommend using. I moved too quickly and only greased the pan with oil.
After the dough rested, I stretched it into the pan, let it rise again while I took my son to the orthodontist for a loose bracket repair, then came home and finished it.
To bake:
- oven at 475
- extra olive oil on top
- dimple with fingertips
- flaky salt
Then bake for about 15 minutes.
Some people prefer really thick focaccia, but for our family I like it thinner because it works beautifully for sandwiches.
I’ve also made focaccia pizza before by adding toppings before baking, and my kids absolutely love that version.
Dinner — Build-Your-Own BLT Boards
Tonight’s dinner ended up being one of those meals where everyone could customize things exactly how they wanted.
I made:
- more bacon
- reheated chicken in broth
- focaccia
- lettuce
- tomato
- onion
- cheese
And everyone built their own version of the “ultimate BLT.”
Some kids wanted:
- full sandwiches with mayonnaise and toppings
Others preferred:
- bread separate
- bacon separate
- cheese separate
- chicken on the side
I genuinely do not care how people assemble the meal as long as everyone eats well.
For myself, I did all the fillings without the bread.
And the focaccia completely made the meal.
Post-Dinner / Looking Ahead
What’s in the fridge/freezer now:
Cooked meatloaf (part frozen, part sliced in fridge)
Fresh homemade beef summer sausage in freezer
Cooked burger patties
Chicken thighs (probably cooking those tomorrow)
Fresh homemade focaccia
Bone broth
Cooked breakfast sausage
At this point, I feel really good about where the freezer is heading for our upcoming trip to Charleston.
The meatloaf is stocked.
The summer sausage is stocked.
The bacon stash is almost complete.
I probably have one more major prep item I’d like to finish this week, and then I think vacation food prep is officially in a very good place.