Meet the San Diego Mama Behind....

This Week for Dinner is one of the coolest foodie blogs around, and the blogger is a San Diego resident...and my neighbor!

Meal planning can get so monotonous for us Mamas...and Jane has helped solve this problem!

Every week Jane shares her recipes, food facts, San Diego "Fab Fav's," music and much, much more. She also shares her weekly menu, and readers can post their own menus, which gives everyone a collection of ideas to pull from each week.

Meet Jane!

How long have you lived here?
6 great years. We love San Diego!

Why did you start your blog?
I’m no chef and I don’t even get food magazines (although I do love eating and CAN cook – I promise)! I always had trouble thinking of what to make for dinner every night…in fact it made me kind of crazy. I started the blog mostly to get ideas from my friends and family, ideas for REAL meals I would actually cook. I also felt the accountability to post a menu each week would keep me planning (which it has!). It just grew from there! I do love photography and writing, so it’s a great outlet for that as well.

What is your favorite thing about writing a blog?
I love taking the pictures of food…and I feel like the blog makes me continually improve on that front. I also can’t believe that I’ve essentially created a whole new ‘community’ of people. Whenever there is dialogue among readers or I get a letter from someone saying how much they love and use the blog, it makes me realize that people really are reading and benefiting from it. That feels great!

What is your favorite recipe from your blog?
That’s tough since I just post my favorites up there. But I guess if I HAVE to choose, I’d say the Fruit Dip. I just love that stuff. (It’s sooooo easy too.)

What is your all-time favorite thing about living in San Diego?
This is going to sound SO clichéd, but it’s the weather. Until you live here you don’t realize how good weather all the time makes life so NICE. I’m really going to miss the weather when we have to move away one day. I also never get mosquito bites here!

Where is your favorite place to eat in San Diego?
For nicer restaurants, I love the Ocean Terrace at George’s at the Cove in La Jolla and Jake’s Del Mar. They both overlook the ocean (Jake’s is right on the beach) but they also have GREAT food. In fact, the best fish tacos I’ve ever had were at George’s. I thought Rubio’s couldn’t be beat, but I was wrong! For more casual dining, we go to Islands a lot…kid-friendly and I love the cheese fries with ranch sauce more than anything. One more dinner spot…Phil’s BBQ (used to be in Hillcrest, now on Sports Arena) is SO DANG GOOD. Their BBQ sauce is to die for.

That said, Extraordinary Desserts is hands-down my favorite food spot! The Hillcrest location is quaint, small, cute. Very nice ambience. The downtown location is very modern and hip feeling – fun in a totally different way. ‘The Viking’ is my favorite cake, which Nate gets me for my birthday every year. I also had an amazing Choclate Croissant Bread Pudding there once when it was on special. Yum, yum, yum.

Where is your favorite place to go with your child in San Diego?
Probably the San Diego Zoo. I need to get there more often! Of course the beach is a great spot, but I definitely don’t get there enough considering how close we are. I have to admit I also love going to our local YMCA…Cate loves the playcare and I get to work out! It’s also a great community to be a part of, and Cate has participated in several of their programs. Balboa Park is an amazing place to walk around, especially on the Free Museum Tuesdays!

Where is your favorite place to go without your child (with your husband or girlfriends)?
Well, with Nate I just love going out to dinner at the aforementioned restaurants – or anywhere for that matter. With girlfriends, I think it would be going for a pedicure, which I hardly ever do! Color Me Nails & Spa on Mira Mesa Blvd. is the best pedicure I’ve ever had. It was about $20, super clean shop, super thorough pedicure.

Any insider San Diego secrets to share?
Photography tip: The best beach spot for family/couple pictures is Wind ‘N’ Sea beach in La Jolla. High tide or low tide, there are so many amazing spots for beautiful pictures. That’s where I always take clients for beach photo shoots .

Shopping tip: ‘The Pink Zone’ and ‘Closet’ in Pacific Beach (both on Garnet Ave.) are little cheap clothing stores that are awesome. You can get t-shirts and camisoles for $2-$5, which is so nice. They also have fun, super trendy clothes for very inexpensive prices – a nice way to stay a little hip without the guilt of spending money!

Check out this San Diego Mama favorite!