Menu Plan Monday 50

Despite getting up to a balmy 55 degrees one day last week, we are back into the cold and snowy winter. Lots of hearty, warm-you-up , meals ahead this week. Here's what we're eating:
Sunday--Chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, stuffing
Monday--Fish, rice, cole slaw
Tuesday--Roast, carrots and potatoes
Wednesday--Chicken patties, sides TBD
Thursday--Pork stir fry with brown rice
Friday--Homemade pizza
Saturday--TBD

Chicken Cacciatore

I had some fresh mushrooms to used, so I decided to try chicken cacciatore. I based my recipe off this one from allrecipes.com.

2 cups all-purpose flour for coating (I did not coat the chicken in flour, just browned the chicken in oil)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (4 pound) chicken, cut into pieces (I used chicken drumsticks)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped (I used different colored peppers)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup white wine (I used apple juice)
2 cups fresh mushrooms, quartered
salt and pepper to taste

Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Shake the chicken pieces in flour until coated. Heat the oil in a large skillet (one that has a cover/lid). Fry the chicken pieces until they are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet.

Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper to the skillet and saute until the onion is slightly browned.

Return the chicken to the skillet and add the tomatoes, oregano and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
Add the mushrooms and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 more minutes.

Braised Red Cabbage

This recipe came for DrWeil's website. I had a half of a head of red cabbage to use, so I halved the recipe.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 1 large yellow onion, chopped 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced 1 large head red cabbage, cored and sliced 1/4-inch thick 1 large green apple, peeled, cored, and diced 3 large cloves garlic, pressed 1 bay leaf (I did not use a bay leaf) 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (I did not use cloves) 1 1/2 cups dry red wine (I used apple juice instead of wine) 1/4 cup red wine vinegar (I used regular vinegar) 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar 1 cup peeled chestnuts (optional) (I did not use chestnuts) Salt to taste

Instructions

1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and carrots and sauté over medium heat until onion is translucent. 2. Add the cabbage and apple and mix well, then add salt to taste, the garlic, the bay leaf, cloves, wine, vinegar and sugar. 3. Bring to a low boil, cover, and cook for about 1 hour. 4. Remove bay leaf and correct seasoning to taste. You may also add the peeled chestnuts to cook in the braising liquid.

Kale Chips Fail

Fresh kale

I'm always looking for new ways to introduce healthy foods to my family. I've read in several places about baking kale to make kale chips, so I decided to give it a try. Raina and I rinsed the kale and broke it off the tough stems. I laid it out on a sheet pan, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt. The directions I read called for 20-30 minutes cook time, so I set the timer for 15 minutes. Unfortunately the kale was overcooked at this point, burnt on the edges. We tried a few that were the least burnt, but had to throw most of them out.
I read reviews that compared the kale chips to potato chips. Other than the crispiness, I didn't get the similarity. Maybe some day we'll try again, but not for awhile!

Burnt to a crisp

Menu Plan Monday 49

This week brings Valentine's Day, my son's birthday, and hubby coming back home after working in Florida for a couple weeks. Here's what we're eating this week:
Sunday--Cheddarwurst, kale chips (fail!) and canned tropical fruit
Monday--Turkey wraps on sun dried tomato and basil tortillas, Stonyfield vanilla yogurt with raspberries, raw sugar snap peas
Tuesday--Pizza hot dish, salad
Wednesday--Birthday supper! Sliders and curly fries, birthday cake
Thursday--Chicken, baked potatoes, veggie
Friday--Pizza

Saturday--TBD

Valentine's Day supper

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.