Did you make any resolutions around cooking for 2018? Mine is to try some new recipes this month to get me out of a little cheese and wine rut the end of December brought along with its festivities.

This week's meal plan is full of new winter recipes that I've been wanting to try. Most of them are heavy on the vegetables and there isn't a ton of cheese, but there is still pizza. Here's what I'm cooking the first full week of January as we get back into our winter routine.

Welcome to This Week's Meal Plan

Planning my weekly meals is a habit I enjoy. Since I'm frequently asked by friends and family what I'm cooking for dinner each week, I thought it'd be useful to share my weekly meal plan here. Whether you're just learning to meal plan and looking for a real-life example of how this works or you're an old pro on the hunt for inspiration, here's a peek at how I'm feeding my family this week.

I love to start the week with pasta, and this week is no exception. This skillet gnocchi seems like the best use of some frozen gnocchi I've been meaning to use up. I'm switching up the tomatoes for shaved Brussels sprouts and cubed apples.

This casserole feels like a playful riff on my favorite sweet potato fajitas, without the tortillas. I'm serving this casserole with extra yogurt for me and my husband, but over tortillas for our two kiddos.

I have a beef stew recipe that I love, but I thought it'd be fun to try Giada de Laurentiis' lighter and sweeter slow cooker version. This gives me a chance to use kabocha squash, a winter squash I know and love but always forget about! I'm hoping this will make enough to freeze for later in the month.

Another slow cooker stew with the intention of leftovers, I'm hoping to stock my sister-in-law's freezer before her first baby comes in February. I adore Hugh Acheson's recipes, butter beans, and minestrone, and my kids love this style of soup too.

I'm switching up our usual pizza crust for this whole-wheat version and topping it as pictured with some Broccolini and prosciutto. This is a bit of a daring adventure, considering my kids are pretty loyal to classic cheese pizza, but they love both broccoli and prosciutto so it's an estimated gamble.