Weekly Meal Plan: Foolproof Grilled Chicken, Steak Nachos, and the Easiest Crepes Ever

In June's first weekly meal plan, a few minutes of prep over the weekend puts you on the path to five nights of fuss-free dinners. Kick things off Sunday morning by whipping up a versatile pancake mix. It'll give you breakfast there and then, plus the makings of a savory crepe dinner later in the week.

Monday night, fire up the grill for a bunch of juicy chicken and vegetables. You'll be making extras, so you'll have plenty available to nextover into the rest of the week's meals. An extra steak cooked on Tuesday provides the centerpiece for a Thursday crowd-pleaser, nachos; you'll also make quinoa to repurpose on Friday into a simple, fresh, falafel-ish dinner.

All the details are below. But first, the grocery list:

Pantry

• Kosher salt

• Red pepper flakes

• Smoked paprika

• Ground cumin

• Cayenne pepper (optional)

• Ground cinnamon

• Vegetable oil

• Extra-virgin olive oil

• Red wine vinegar

• All-purpose flour

• Sugar

• Baking powder

• Baking soda

• Asian fish sauce

• Quinoa

• Salsa

• Scoop-style or thick-cut tortilla chips

• 1 (14.5-oz.) can chickpeas

• Smooth almond butter or sunflower seed butter

Produce

• 2 large zucchini

• 3 bell peppers, assorted colors

• 1 large eggplant

• 2 red onions

• 1 head garlic

• 1 large shallot

• 1 bunch mint

• 1 bunch cilantro

• 1 bunch basil

• 1 1/2 lb. runner beans, green beans, and/or haricots verts

• 2 pints Sun Gold tomatoes or cherry tomatoes

• 5 oz. container baby kale

• 5 oz. container baby spinach

• 1 Fresno chile

• 1 firm avocado

• 10 medium limes

• 1 lemon

Dairy

• Unsalted butter

• Eggs

• Milk

• Prepared pesto

• 4 oz. shredded mozzarella

• 8 oz. shredded cheddar

• 8 oz. sour cream

Butcher’s Counter

• 11 to 12 lb. chicken parts with skin and bone

• 4 (1"-1 1/2"-thick) strip steaks (about 3 lb.)

Bakery

• 4 pitas or flatbreads

SUNDAY: Big-Batch Pancake and Waffle Mix

On Sunday morning—or even the night before—invest a whopping 20 minutes into whipping together this mix for pancakes, waffles, and crepes, which keeps for up to a month in the refrigerator. Use some for breakfast on Sunday or Monday—or both!—and you'll still have enough for dinner Wednesday night. Get ahead today, too, by preparing the brine for Monday night's Foolproof Grilled Chicken, which should chill before you submerge the meat in it. Store it in the fridge overnight.

MONDAY: Foolproof Grilled Chicken

Get out your largest container to hold the double recipe of chicken, which soaks in a brine to ensure that it stays juicy on the grill. Skip the six-hour brine called for in the recipe if you haven't got time; instead, just let the chicken soak while you prepare the rest of the meal. Double the vinaigrette to use on salads later in the week (leave out or tone down the red pepper flakes if your kids balk at spicy food), and use the grill for the veggies before putting the chicken on. Slice the zucchini, bell peppers, eggplant, and red onion, toss with a bit of oil, salt, and pepper, and cook over a medium-high flame until tender. This’ll give you enough to serve tonight plus more for later in the week. After you've grilled (and then eaten) the chicken, pull the meat from the bones of whatever's left over. Refrigerate it, the vinaigrette, and the vegetables separately.

TUESDAY: Grilled Strip Steak with Blistered Tomatoes and Green Beans

Cook a double batch of quinoa according to package directions, and serve some tonight to soak up these incredible tomato-steak juices; the rest will come in handy Friday. If you’re grilling skinny beans like haricots verts, either use a grill basket or take an extra five minutes to stack them onto skewers. Add an extra steak for Thursday; refrigerate it and the quinoa.

WEDNESDAY: Pesto Chicken Crepes with a baby kale salad

That pancake mix comes into play tonight, when you’ll use some of it to make a batch of crepes (follow the instructions for crepes near the bottom of the page here). For the filling, toss Monday’s shredded leftover chicken with pesto. Spoon some of the chicken onto each crepe and sprinkle mozz on top. Run the crepes briefly under the broiler to melt the cheese, then fold and serve. For a salad, toss the baby kale and the remaining cherry tomatoes with extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper.

THURSDAY: Steak-and-Veg Nachos

Tuesday’s steak and Monday’s grilled vegetables make a hearty topping for a big tray of kid-friendly nachos. Got picky eaters? Follow the instructions here and make everyone happy. Serve the nachos with sour cream, diced avocado, cilantro leaves, and salsa.

FRIDAY: Spiced Quinoa and Chickpea Bites with pita and salad

Turn Tuesday’s quinoa nextovers into crunchy patties that’ll remind your kids of falafel. Serve with warm pita and a simple salad of baby spinach tossed with Monday’s vinaigrette. (If you’ve still got leftover grilled vegetables, they’d be great in the salad, too.)

Originally Appeared on Epicurious