Menu Plan Monday 48

I made everything as scheduled last week; on Saturday we had hamburger soup. I've used up my January grocery budget, so everything on this week's menu is made from what I already have in the house. Here's what we're eating this week:
Sunday--Shrimp, noodles, peas
Monday--Chicken breasts, rice, salad or broccoli
Tuesday--Pork roast, potatoes, carrots
Wednesday--Spaghetti
Thursday--Something with leftover pork roast
Friday--Pizza
Saturday--TBD

Cooking Tip: Hard Boiled Eggs

There are probably as many ways to make hard boiled eggs as there are people cooking them. Here's how I do it:
Bring water to a boil--enough to cover eggs.
When water is boiling, add eggs and return to boil.
Cover and remove from heat.
Set timer 14 minutes.
Put eggs in ice water to stop the cooking process.
Refrigerate.
This gets me perfectly cooked boiled eggs--not too soft in the center, none of that ugly green around the yolk.

Menu Plan Monday

I stuck to last week's menu plan for the beginning of the week, then switched it up a little starting on Wednesday night, when we had leftovers that were starting to take over the fridge. It was a busy week, so by Thursday I didn't feel a whole lot like cooking; we had grilled cheese and tomato soup. Friday was very cold outside, so we warmed up with chili. Saturday we had the Parmesan drumsticks originally set for Wednesday. It's good to have a plan, but also to keep things flexible! Here's what we're eating this week:
Sunday--Frozen pizza
Monday--Pork loin, sweet potatoes, veggie
Tuesday--Brats, fried potatoes, veggies & dip
Wednesday--Fish tacos (something new for our family!)
Thursday--Chicken and rice
Friday--Homemade pizza
Saturday--Shrimp and sides? Spaghetti? Hamburger soup? Whatever we feel like at the end of the week.

Mexican Chicken Casserole

I got this recipe from All You magazine, the February 18, 2011 issue. I made 1 1/2 batches of the recipe to make enough for my family of 6.

12 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces (I used a 20 oz. package)
1 tsp. taco seasoning
1 red or green bell pepper, seeded and chopped (I used red and green from the freezer)
1 1/2 cups prepared salsa
2 oz. cream cheese
1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed (I left these out this time as I didn't have any on hand)
1 tomato, chopped (I also left this out)
2 6-inch whole-wheat tortillas
1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese (I used cheddar)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Warm a large nonstick skillet over medium heat; mist with cooking spray. Add chicken and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add bell peppers and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in salsa; cook for 2 minutes. Add cream cheese; cook, stirring constantly, until melted and blended, about 2 minutes. Stir in beans and tomato.

2. Spoon 1/3 of chicken mixture into an 8-inch square (I used 11 x 7 pan) baking dish. Cover with 1 tortilla, then spoon in 1/2 of the remaining chicken mixture and 1/2 of cheese. Top with remaining tortilla and chicken mixture. (I layered chicken/tortilla/cheese two times.)

3. Cover and bake until heated through, about 20 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, until cheese has melted, about 5 minutes longer. Serve hot. (I put cheese on right away and just took the foil off for the last 5 minutes.)

Menu Plan Monday

I made six out of seven meals on my plan last week. Instead of pineapple meatballs, we had spaghetti and meatballs. Then on Saturday we had this Mexican Chicken Casserole. I also made some Peanut Butter Fingers (recipe below) to snack on.

Here's what we're eating this week:
Sunday--Turkey/rice/broccoli hotdish
Monday--Fish, hash browns, mixed veggies
Tuesday--BBQ pork sandwiches (made with leftover pork roast from the freezer), home fries, raw veggies
Wednesday--Parmesan Drumsticks, mashed potatoes, veggie
Thursday--Some sort of pasta dish with hamburger in it
Friday--Pizza
Saturday--TBD

Peanut Butter Fingers

This is one of my favorite bar recipes.

Cream together:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

Blend in:

1 egg

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup peanut butter

Stir in 1 cup flour and 1 cup oatmeal.

Spread in 9 x 13 pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Sprinkle with 6 oz. chocolate chips. Let stand 5 minutes.

Combine 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/4 cup peanut butter and 2-4 tablespoons evaporated milk (I usually use regular milk). Spread melted chips evenly over bars and drizzle with peanut butter mixture. Cool and cut into bars.

Menu Plan Monday

I made everything from last week's menu except the pineapple meatballs, which we'll have this week. I took a turkey out of the freezer to make more room, and we also had a leftover night in the middle of the week. Here's what we're eating this week:

Sunday--Sausage and potatoes, veggie
Monday--Pork roast, baked beans, veggie
Tuesday--Homemade turkey soup
Wednesday--Pineapple meatballs, brown rice, veggie
Thursday--Lime chicken using this marinade, sides TBD
Friday--Pizza
Saturday--Spaghetti

Sausage and Potatoes

I got this idea from the Paint Chips and Frying Pans blog:

5 medium potatoes

1 kielbasa link (I used a smoked sausage link)

2 T. oil (I used olive oil)
Onion
Garlic/pepper seasoning

Spray 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Wash and cube potatoes; layer in bottom of pan. Slice up sausage on top of the potatoes. Sprinkle with onion. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with seasoning.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and stir. Put back in the oven for 20 more minutes, or until potatoes are tender and kielbasa are starting to brown.

This smelled so good when it was cooking!

Menu Plan Monday

I haven't put up a menu plan since Thanksgiving week--time to get back to it! I went grocery shopping yesterday, so we're fully stocked. Here's what we're eating this week:
Sunday--Sub sandwiches, chips, applesauce
Monday--Turkey burgers, sweet potato fries, salad
Tuesday--Creamy baked chicken breasts, rice, veggie
Wednesday--Tacos
Thursday--Pineapple meatballs, brown rice, veggie
Friday--Homemade pizza
Saturday--TBD