Since I’m pregnant I’ve been thinking about lots of things; the decoration in the babyroom, breastfeeding, diapers… And things like; Is everything still going ok? Is she growing well? What will she look like? How will I be as a mom? Oh My… Before I can hold her in my arms, I have to give birth…! What will the pain be like, can I cope with that?

But I’ve also been thinking ahead. After giving birth to our baby I can stay home from work for 3 months before I have to start working again. My husband and I weren’t such great planners when it comes to our meals. We often came home from work and had to decide, last minute, what whe would have for dinner. Sometimes we were able to eat around 6 o’clock, other days it was more around 7 o’clock, sometimes even a bit later. Because it really started to annoy me that I had to shop grocery’s quite often (because of the last minute meal ideas) I started to plan ahead for a few days.

Since there is a small babygirl on her way, who needs regularity and routine, I thought it would be wise to start planning ahead again (because I always do it for a few weeks and then it slowly fades away…) .

So yesterday I sat down and started planning ahead for three days. I plan the dinners for my husband and myself. But I also plan breakfast, snacks and lunch for myself as well. And as I was planning I already noticed a big advantage; I can make a dinner  (breakfast, lunch..) and use it for two days, this means less waste and less time needed for cooking! Less cooking also means; less time cleaning the kitchen, I love that!

Today I had this couscous planned for dinner. It’s a recipe quick to prepare, so perfect for those days you don’t have much time to spent in the kitchen! A nice recipe for dinner, but great as a to-go lunch as well!

Couscous with Chicken, Figs and Almonds (4 persons, or 2 days for 2 persons!)

• 300 grams of chicken (chopped in pieces)
• 250 grams of couscous
• 50 grams of almonds (roughly chopped)
• 100 grams of dried figs (chopped in small strips)
• 3 stalks of springonion (chopped in bits)
• 250 grams of mushrooms (diced in quarters)
• Cinnamon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 dl of water

Heat a little oil or butter in a pan and fry the chicken until a little brown, add a little salt and pepper. Add the mushroom and springonion and fry for another minute. Add the chopped almonds, figs and cinnamon, as well as the couscous and the 2 dl of water. Boil softly with the lid on the pan until the couscous is ready. Taste; add some more salt, pepper or cinnamon to taste if needed.

Enjoy!