American and Asian plates around a blackberry provolone stuffed chicken, with plain kids’ portions

The kids get a deliberately plain half of this menu: popcorn chicken breast bites, steamed peas, sliced carrots and fettuccine with nothing on it at all. The ketchup is sugar free. Those bites are breaded and baked on a rack instead of fried, then drained on paper before the lids go on so the coating does not steam itself soft. If there is an allergy to work around in a given week, that plate is the easiest one on this list to change.

Eye of round is the cut people ruin. It is lean enough that anything past medium turns to leather, so this one gets the classic slow treatment: seasoned, held low until the middle reads 130°F, rested, then sliced thin against the grain. Thin is not a suggestion with this cut. It slices better cold than hot.

The apple and dates in the chopped kale salad are doing the work a dressing usually does, so the balsamic is packed apart and half of it will not get used. Cherry tomatoes came off one market run and were split between the asparagus and the fettuccine. Reheating: the asian thai basil ground turkey wants 4 minutes covered at 350°F, the mozzarella asparagus 8 minutes uncovered, and the popcorn chicken bites 6 minutes in an air fryer.