Menu Plan 11/3 - 11/9, 2014

We didn't have three-envelope pot roast as planned tonight because it turned out that I didn't have a roast in the freezer! Instead, we had my favorite beef stew. We doubled the recipe in order to have LOTS for dinner for us three who actually live here, Niece, and GolfDad PLUS have leftovers for lunches. SOOOOOOOO GOOD on a wet and chilly day! Niece and Mr. Mamie did all the work of peeling carrots and potatoes, and Niece chopped it all, which was really nice.

Also, I didn't make the beef enchiladas as planned on Saturday because (1) we had enchiladas when we went out on Friday night, and (2) we were just too busy to make them. Instead we had Italian shredded beef sandwiches using leftovers from the freezer (from the last time we made them - I froze half the beef/pepperoncini mixture).

It's another busy week ahead. Not sure if GolfDad will be having one IV therapy treatment a day or two, which impacts dinner time if there IS an evening appointment for him. I have Association meetings/activities on two nights. AND we're getting a shipment of meat from Omaha Beef (a present from ArizonaDad and Mom [I just re-named my father and stepmother - their old pseudonyms weren't that great, hahahaha]. I'm thinking we'll cook something from that on both weekend days. Or, we may need to eat up stuff from the freezer to make room... so things may change!

Monday: Grilled chicken (doing extra to use on Wednesday), Near East brand rice pilaf with almonds (from a box), and frozen veggies.

Tuesday: Fold-over cheese enchiladas, Mexican rice. I use homemade enchilada sauce that I have frozen in jars in the freezer.

Wednesday: Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta, green salad.

Thursday: Kielbasa/potatoes/carrots with onions and garlic roasted in the oven with a little olive oil and a sprinkle of italian seasoning.

Friday: Grilled things (beef/turkey burgers or sausages), sweet potato fries (frozen from Costco).

Saturday/Sunday: Up for grabs - we'll see what needs to be cleaned out of the freezer OR do something from our Omaha Beef box.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 10/27 - 11/2, 2014

This week is interesting. GolfDad has cellulitis (a staph infection of the skin) and has to spend 2+ hours every early morning and another 2+ hours every late afternoon getting IV antibiotics at the IV therapy lab at the hospital.  This has been going on for three - four weeks, but recently he's been having some extreme light sensitivity/blurry vision issues (probably a side effect of all the antibiotics), so one or both of us has been driving him back and forth to the hospital, which is a 30 mile round-trip.  The evening infusion really interferes with a "normal" dinner time. Also, he's pretty worn out from all the treatment, the pain from the infection, the travel to and from, etc., so I have also been basically performing a "meals-on-wheels" service for him and delivering a meal each day that he can heat up.

SO, I had to get creative for this week. I made the tortellini soup that was on last week's menu today, as planned, but we ate it for "linner" as about 2:30 in the afternoon. That soup makes a LOT, by the way! Mr. Mamie, GrandmaT, our friend PhotoKay (who was over for a couple of hours today) and I all had big helpings; I took enough for two meals over to GolfDad's house; and the three people who live here all have lunch for tomorrow!

Also today I made two other meals that we ALL (including GolfDad) can eat for the next couple days: White Chicken Taco Chili and Honey Sesame Chicken (along with a big pot of white rice) - both of those made enough for lunch/dinner for all four of use for Monday and Tuesday.

Wednesday will be another CrockPot meal that can be delivered to GolfDad and which should provide dinner and then lunch the next day for everyone: CrockPot Cheesy Pasta and Beef (I'll brown the ground beef the night before, and then put it together Wednesday morning).

Thursday I have a teeth-cleaning appointment, so after that I'm planning to make turkey tacos because they got bumped last week (we had Costco pizza one night).  See last week's menu for details on those.

Friday is Halloween. Mr. Mamie and I traditionally have a "date night" on Halloween - I live within the attendance boundaries of my school, and in order to keep the number of kids who know exactly where my house is from growing exponentially, I prefer NOT to be home handing out candy!

Saturday I'm planning to make Three-Cheese Beef Enchiladas during the day. It will probably be a "linner" situation again. We really like homemade enchilada sauce from the same site that the enchilada recipe is from. It's soooooo easy to make and yummier than canned sauce. I have cream cheese to use up, which is one reason I'm going with this particular enchilada recipe.

Sunday it's going to be pot roast with carrots and potatoes in the CrockPot. I usually do the "three envelope roast" approach - it's kinda weird-seeming but it turns out great!

Have a good week... hopefully things are going to calm down around here!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Meal Plan October 20 - 26, 2014

Another week, back to the routine! My two-day (plus the weekend) "fall break" was nice, though.

Monday: Cowboy Spaghetti.

Tuesday: Chicken Enchilada Soup, which is already made and in the freezer. I have an Association meeting, so something easy is ideal.

Wednesday: Loaded baked potatoes, which for us means whatever toppings might be lurking around in the fridge (shredded cheese, maybe sour cream, frozen veggies). Sometimes we open a can of chili beans to go on top as well.

Thursday: Turkey tacos, using homemade seasoning, homemade taco sauce, and oven-baked tortilla shells.

Friday: Grilled sausages and oven fries.

Saturday: Chicken and Wild Rice Soup.

Sunday: Tortellini Soup.

Yes, soup is on there three times - we happen to really like soup for a meal, and it makes great school lunches!

Also, I plan to bake some Chewy Oatmeal M&M Cookies - thanks to my cousin Tasha for the recipe!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 10/11 - 10/19

Sunday 10/12: Stuffing Meatloaf... because I am lazy but I crave meatloaf! Adding a glaze of 1 cup ketchup + 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce + 1/4 cup brown sugar.

Monday 10/13: Ranch Chicken, Bacon, and Potatoes Casserole.

Tuesday 10/14: I get a yummy Durango's salad at an Association Executive Board meeting, Mr. Mamie gets Wendy's, and GrandmaT gets to fend for herself.

Wednesday 10/15: One Pot Chili Pasta. I'm think that this will make plenty of extra for lunches while I am off for Fall Break!

Thursday 10/16: Creamy Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas with Mexican Rice.

Friday 10/17: Grilled burgers or sausages with sweet potato fries (frozen ones from Costco, sooooooo good!).

Saturday 10/18: Copycat Panera Baked Potato Soup.

Sunday 10/19: CrockPot Italian Beef Sandwiches.

And during Fall break I cannot WAIT to make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins!!!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Meal Plan 8/4/14 - 8/10/14

It's a rainy Sunday in Southern Utah, and we're enjoying it!  We still went to the local dog park this morning, as is our routine.  Peanut chased the ball relentlessly, regardless of raindrops falling on her head.

Going home we took the "back," long way around Sand Hollow Reservoir.  Didn't see any boats out on the water yet, but I am sure that there will be some by this afternoon.

School starts in just a WEEK! Truly, this summer has flown by faster than ever.  This week I have Association "stuff" going on, we start contract time at school on Wednesday, and we have our back-to-school night on Thursday. SO MUCH still to do before the first day on the 11th!

But, we still have to eat dinner, so here's the plan:

Monday: Grilled London Broil, marinated [in 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 TBL ketchup]; baked potatoes; green salad. 

Tuesday: Very busy with Association stuff - contract ratification meeting and training event for our building reps, which will include dinner. Mr. Mamie will help me tote n' carry and then will probably go off and eat at Wendy's. Grandma will be on her own with leftovers or something from the freezer.

Wednesday: Grilled honey mustard oregano pork chops, never-mushy rice, green salad.

Thursday: Taco soup in the CrockPot, green salad.  I will freeze a bunch of portions of taco soup for school lunches. This is back-to-school night so it will be perfect to walk in the door and have dinner be  READY.

Friday: Grilled burgers (we got some pre-made patties for a good price at our local grocery store) and either frozen sweet potato fries OR ideally fresh corn on the cob if I can find some good ones.

Saturday: Grandma leaves for a week's trip to see her OTHER grandchildren in Kansas; Mr. Mamie is (re)scheduled for a sleep study at the pulmonary doctor's office. So I have no idea what dinner will be... maybe we'll go out before he has to be at the doctor's. Let's hope THIS time the technician doesn't fail to show up!

Sunday: TBA... this is the night before school starts! We'll have to see what kind of energy and enthusiasm I can muster up. Probably either breakfast for dinner or pizza from Costco, hahahaha!

Have a great week!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Slow Cooker Taco Soup

Slow Cooker Taco Soup 

I modified this slightly from a recipe I found years ago somewhere on the Interwebz. Unfortunately I don't have the original source, but I thank whomever it was... we make this soup OFTEN! It freezes really well in either Ziploc bags or plastic bowls. It is a GREAT make-ahead meal for camping as well!

    * 1 lb ground beef 

    * 1 onion, roughly chopped  

    * 1 pkg ranch-style dressing mix  (or equivalent amount of homemade mix)

    * 1 pkg taco seasoning mix  (or equivalent amount of homemade mix)

    * 2 cans diced tomatoes w/ green chilies (undrained)

    * 1 can pinto beans 

    * 1 can black beans 

    * 1 can kidney beans - or another can of either pinto or black beans (I don't like kidney beans!)

    * 1 can corn (regular or cream style) OR 2 cups frozen corn 

    * 2 cans of water (use the bean cans; equal to 4 cups)

    * grated cheese, sour cream, and/or cilantro for garnish 

    * tortilla chips 

Brown the ground beef and drain as much fat as possible. Return it to the pan with the chopped onion over medium low heat. Stir in the two seasoning packets. Cook just a little longer until the onion is softened.

Transfer the beef mixture to a slow cooker and add the beans, corn, tomatoes/green chilies, and water. Cook on LOW for 4 - 6 hours (depending on your slow cooker).

Garnish as desired when serving.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Meal Plan 7/21 - 7/27, 2014

More than one person has asked if I would ever blog again, especially meal plans.  I'll try to get back in the habit!

Here was last week's plan:

Monday: Refrigerated cheese tortellini and marinara sauce from Costco. Their jarred marinara sauce is GOOD! Green salad on the side.

Tuesday: Tacos using a "soft taco kit" I got as a present from a kid during Teacher Appreciation Week in May (my love of tacos is well-known in my classroom).

Wednesday: Frozen chicken patties (from Costco) as sandwiches on Kaiser rolls with Annie's Organic Shells and Cheese and green salad on the side.

Thursday: Spicy garlic lime chicken on the grill, lime rice, corn/black bean/Ro-tel [drain/rinse one can black beans, drain one can corn, dump into pan with one can Ro-tel tomatoes and heat], green salad. We used Costco frozen boneless/skinless chicken breasts. Mr. Mamie and I ate ours with the chicken chopped up and combined with the other stuff in corn tortillas as tacos.  I put several small containers of chopped chicken/rice/beans-corn-toms in the freezer to use on big green salads as school lunches.

Friday: Haunani's French bread pizza, green salad. I've known Haunani since I was 12 years old... I love that we can trade blog recipes in our 40s! ;)

Saturday: Swedish meatballs using frozen Costco meatballs and a sauce I have modified from a few different recipes, served over egg noodles; green salad on the side.

Sunday: Sausage biscuits and Mamie's skillet potatoes.  The leftover sausage biscuits are being put in the freezer for school day breakfasts.  We are out of both lettuce and most fruit, so there wasn't much of a "healthy" element to this dinner! Time to go grocery chopping, clearly.

 ~Mamie
"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Swedish Meatballs

I hate the process of making meatballs - it's so gross, and then I never want to eat the meatballs after going through the ickiness of making them. So I buy the big bag of Italian seasoned frozen meatballs at Costco and use them for anything meatball-related. This seems to work fine, so I see no reason to change! ;)

I've tried a few different recipes for Swedish meatballs, and finally came up with this:

Meatballs: Just use the Costco ones! About 20 - 24 oz of meatballs by weight. Bake them in the oven as directed while you're making the sauce.

Noodles: 8 oz of dry egg noodles, cooked. Boil noodles once you have added the meatballs to the sauce. The meatball and sauce  flavors will "marry" while the noodles are cooking.

Sauce:

• 2 cups beef broth
• 1-1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 Tbl soy sauce
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground dried rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1-1/2 tsp basil

1. Whisk flour into milk, creating a slurry
2. Combine flour/milk mixture, soy sauce, and beef broth in a large saucepan, whisk together.
3. Add the sour cream to saucepan, whisk and cook on medium for a couple of minutes.
4. Add all spices to saucepan, whisk to combine.
5. Cook sauce on low-medium until thickened, whack/stir occasionally.
6. Add meatballs to sauce and let them simmer while noodles are boiling.
7. Drain noodles and return to pot; poor sauce/meatballs on noodles and stir gently to combine.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Mamie's Skillet Potatoes

Back in about 1991 I lived in an apartment located on the corner of Genesee Avenue and Fez Street in the "Golden Triangle" area near UC San Diego. My roommate was a delightful young man from my social group with whom I am still in touch with via Facebook. Since his ascension to membership in the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles he is now referred to jokingly as "Local Celebrity ___________ ___________ " which cracks me up every time.

ANYWAY, Local Celebrity as we'll call him, made delicious breakfast potatoes.  I have continued making the same basic style of potatoes for the last 20+ years. This is how I do it:

Scrub several potatoes russet potatoes and pierce with a fork a couple of times. bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or so. Remove from oven and cut in half length-wise to cool.

Once cool, cut potatoes into largish chunks. Finely dice a small onion and a couple of cloves of garlic.

I use a large cast iron skillet (yes, on my glass cook top!) and some bacon grease (which I save in the fridge); you can use whatever skillet and oil you have/prefer. Sauté the onion and garlic lightly in the hot grease/oil.

Add potatoes; stir by "flipping" so you don't mash up the potatoes a whole bunch. Get the onion/garlic distributed through the potatoes.  Season with fresh-ground salt and pepper, then sprinkle  some ground cumin on the potatoes to taste.  Flip the potatoes around and season again.

Let cook on low for 10 minutes or so, then sprinkle with grated sharp cheddar cheese.  Let the cheese just melt down into the potatoes for a few minutes, and then devour the deliciousness!


~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

3.14159265359

Happy Pi Day! I spent it moping around with a head like a lead balloon - truly the worst sinus pressure/headache I think I've had since moving here from California. The Wombat and I both used to suffer terribly during "Santa Ana season" in Southern California.  I thought I had mostly rid myself of that business, but apparently not. UGH.

So, no hiking or geocaching or adventuring for us today. :(  Instead I stayed home and read, dozed, and puttered in the kitchen.  In celebration of "Pi Day" I baked an apple pie - recipe straight out of the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, including crust. I did modify it by using two Granny Smith and two Gala apples, and did a crumb topping instead of a top crust.

Our yummy, if not beautiful, apple pie.

With St. Patrick's Day coming up it was also time to think about Irish Soda Bread. We combined the two holidays and had our soda bread today, using this recipe. I skipped the caraway seeds and raisins and subbed one cup of dried cranberries. Also, I made my own sour milk as we didn't have buttermilk and there was no way I was going out of the house to buy any. The recipe called for sour cream, which I have never used in soda bread... but I will henceforth, as this is my new go-to recipe. It is WONDERFUL! We ate wedges sliced off while the bread was still warm from the oven, just plain, and mmmmmm! I think it will also be delicious for breakfast tomorrow toasted with butter and jam.

Fantastic Irish Soda Bread!

Dinner itself was this beef stew, made with two good-sized leeks instead of the onion, no rutabaga (!), and no green beans, but EXTRA carrots. YUM! 

The stew beef I took out of the freezer was in a two-pound package, so since I only used one pound for the stew I'm going to turn the rest of it into Szechaun Beef tomorrow and add it to our left-over sesame noodles from last night (to which we added steamed carrots and toasted sesame seeds). I'm already looking forward to it....

Here's hoping that everyone's Pi Day was pie-tastic!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 1/13/13 - 1/19/13

Mr. Mamie will be out of town Monday - Wednesday, accompanying GolfDad to the University of Utah where he (GolfDad) will have some surgery on his elbow. That certainly affected this week's plan!

Sunday 1/13: Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake, green salad. Making this whith whole whet penne.

Monday 1/14: CrockPot Cube Steaks and Gravy, green salad (No Mr. Mamie; I have class).

Tuesday 1/15: Leftovers (No Mr. Mamie; I have an Association obligation).

Wednesday 1/16: Marie Callendar chicken pot pies from the freezer (Mr. Mamie should be back if everything goes well, although at an indeterminate time; I have class).

Thursday 1/17: Oven Tacos and toppings.

Friday 1/18: Grilled cheddarwurst dogs (if it's not too windy!) and oven fries (I will be getting a tooth prepped for a crown after school).

Saturday 1/19: CrockPot Bolognese sauce with whole wheat spaghetti, Italian cheese bread, green salad.

Yes, those are Keebler fudge-stripe cookies... we all have our weaknesses! There're sections of Clementines, blackberries, and raspberries in the main compartment and lemon yogurt in the third compartment.

I'll be feeding GolfDad's cats while he's gone, and driving Niece to school with me on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday so she can do a before-school computer lab thing, AND Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I won't be home 'til later in the evening, so I made sure to get lunch stuff ALL READY for the week! We usually each have one of these Ziploc bento-style boxes (or another similar container, we have several to choose from) with salad, fruit, yogurt, nuts, etc. in it, along with a hot entree - typically leftovers from the night before. I have access to microwaves at school to heat my food, but Mr. Mamie takes his hot food in a hot food thermos. He's been working IN the office almost daily for the last couple months, so he's needed a packed lunch every day as well.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 1/6/13 - 1/12/13

This is for the almost-two people who complained about my lack of menu plan posts!

Sunday 1/6: Breakfast for dinner - sour cream blueberry waffles, bacon, scrambled eggs.

Monday 1/7 (I have class): Crockpot teriyaki pork chops, Rice-a-Roni, green beans, green salad.

Tuesday 1/8 (I have an association [union] meeting): Tuna casserole from the freezer, green salad.

Wednesday 1/9 (I have class): Marie Calendar chicken pot pies from the freezer, green salad.

Thursday 1/10: CrockPot salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, green salad.

Friday 1/11: I will be traveling to Salt Lake for an association event and GrandmaT will be dog-sitting over at the Igor family's house while they travel for Nephew's all-star football. Mr. Mamie will be foraging the left-overs in the fridge, exploring the frozen options, or possibly going to Wendy's!

Saturday 1/12: Same as Friday.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 10/7/12

 Dinner last Saturday night was at my favorite restaurant in Salt Lake City... SOOOOOO good! 

We were with Mr. and Mrs. SuperGeek and their cute baby and had a lovely time!

Nope, no plan for last week... we were out of town the weekend prior, with no time to plan or shop. THAT is why having a little stockpile of stuff in the freezer comes in so handy! We did get In 'N Out one night, which I picked up on my way home from class.

Back to routine - here's the plan for this week:

Sunday 10/7/12: Slow Cooker Beef Stew with fresh rosemary from the backyard, green salad, Cheddar Biscuits.

Monday 10/8 (I have class): CrockPot Pork Chops and Gravy, mashed potatoes (the scary kind from a box), green salad.

Tuesday 10/9 (I have association board meeting): Honey Hoisin Chicken (from the freezer) with egg noodles or rice, green salad, green beans.

Wednesday 10/10 (I have class): Easy Oven Pork Chops, green salad, Rice-a-Roni.

Thursday 10/11: Tostadas with chicken and black beans (from the freezer) topped with lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, and sour cream (for Mr. Mamie).

Friday 10/12: Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches (from the freezer), green salad.

Saturday 10/13: Chicken Tetrazini (this keeps getting bumped!).

And yes, you do see Rice-a-Roni and boxed mashed potatoes... it's survival when I have so many nights of class and meetings this year!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 9/16/12

Another busy week!

Sunday 9/16: Chicken Tinga Tostadas with refried beans, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, etc. We have a peach-blueberry pie that we picked up at Veyo Pies on our way back from hiking with the doggies on Pine Valley Mountain today. These tostadas got bumped from another night last week when schedules changed. I went ahead and prepped everything and just put it in a Ziploc bag in the freezer, which made it handy this morning when we were headed out to the mountain!

Monday 9/17: Slow Cooker Taco Soup, green salad, tortilla chips (I have class).

Tuesday 9/18: Grilled Basil-Balsamic Pork Chops, some sort of rice, green salad (I have an association meeting).

Wednesday 9/19: Slow Cooker Garlic Honey Chicken (from the freezer), egg noodles, green salad (I have class).

Thursday 9/19: Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches on French rolls with Provolone cheese, green salad.

Friday 9/20: Best Burgers with Secret Sauce, Oven Fries using a mix of russet and sweet potatoes.

Saturday 9/21: Zesty BBQ Chicken Sandwiches (from the freezer), green beans, green salad. Bunco night for me! We eat like maniacs while we play, so just Mr. Mamie, GrandmaT and anyone who happens to be at our house will have the sandwiches.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 9/9/12

This last week was more "normal" in terms of schedule, but I still had class on two nights - which IS the normal for this school year!

Saturday we didn't up going to the Preparedness Expo and then having a fun mountain adventure with the doggies, as we intended. Instead, five school colleagues who are also in my technology endorsement program came over for the afternoon so that Mr. Mamie could teach us how to use Google SketchUp for a class assignment. Let's just say we didn't receive adequate (or any!) instruction in the actual class, so we needed tutoring! That meant Saturday morning was spent cleaning, making food, arranging the dining room to accommodate six people with laptops, setting up wireless access for guests, and moving our flat screen TV and setting it up so that Mr. Mamie could use it as a giant display monitor. A fun time was had by all, everyone got a good start on their projects, and the food was yummy! We had tortilla chips and Blender Salsa, Zesty BBQ Chicken  served as sliders on awesome pretzel rolls from Costco, and brownies. Being a nerd is so much easier when there's excellent noshables! Here's the only photographic evidence of our hard work:

Yes, this is what teachers do on a Saturday afternoon!

This coming week has the usual classes and homework, on top of teaching the 24 mini-peeps all day long.  Here's the menu:

Sunday 9/9: Navajo Tacos  with lettuce, cheese, tomato, sour cream, etc. I make them with 1 pound of browned ground beef combined with one can of Bush's chili beans.The beef/beans combo yields plenty to freeze for another meal. I had planned something else but had a craving for Navajo Tacos, so....

Monday 9/10 (class night): Teriyaki Pork Chops on the grill, Rice-a-Roni "fried rice," green salad (yes, I'll be stooping to Rice-a-Roni more often than usual over the next few months!).

Tuesday 9/11: Chicken Tinga Tostadas with with lettuce, cheese, tomato, sour cream, etc., Mom's Arroz Mexicano.

Wednesday 9/12 (class night): CrockPot Chicken and White Bean Chili, corn bread, green salad.

Thursday 9/13: Cheeseburger Pie (nostalgia meal for me!), green beans, green salad.

Friday 9/14: Cheddarwurst turned into pigs-in-a-blanket (Mr. Mamie's nostalgia meal request), Bush's baked beans, green salad. I'm going to try the Neely's recipe - it actually sounds really yummy!

Saturday 9/15: Leaving it open until we see what we're doing!

Sunday 9/16: Planning to have the Chicken Tetrazini that we didn't have last week with green salad.

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 8/26- 9/9, 2012

Well, school has started and I've made it though the first three weeks - which has included the first head/chest cold of the year and the first parent-teacher conferences of the year! I'm taking both math AND technology endorsement classes this year, so I have class two nights a week. And finally, as an elected Executive Board member of our local "education association" (because we theoretically don't have UNIONS in this state) I have meetings two or three times monthly. It's been busy!

Here's what we ate LAST week:

Sunday 8/26: Zesty Roasted Chicken, Ranch Potatoes (toss cut potatoes in olive oil and then sprinkle ranch dressing mix over them - we use this homemade version, roast in the oven until golden), green salad.

Monday 8/27: Spaghetti (whole wheat) with Slow Cooker Bolognese Sauce, green salad, garlic bread sticks (from the grocery store bakery). [I had class]

Tuesday 8/28: Garlic Honey Chicken, egg noodles, green salad. [I had an association meeting.]

Wednesday 8/29: Ranch Pork Chops, egg noodles, green salad. [I had parent-teacher conferences after school until 8:00.]

Thursday 8/30: Baked Chicken and Bean Taquitos (from the freezer). [I had parent-teacher conferences after school until 8:00.]

Friday 8/31: Mr. Mamie and I ate out at our favorite Mexican restaurant.

Saturday 9/1: Mr. Mamie and I snacked at a local harvest fair and again later at the movies.

And here's what's going on this week:

Sunday 9/2: Orange Chicken (frozen, from Costco) and Yellow Rice.

Monday 9/3: Sausage Tortellini Soup, green salad, French bread.

Tuesday 9/4: Grilled "flat" Italian chicken (pound chicken breasts with a mallet and marinate in Italian salad dressing), rice or couscous, green salad.

Wednesday 9/5: BBQ Turkey Meatloaf, green salad, maybe some rolls or extra veggies. [I have class.]

Thursday 9/6: Spaghetti (whole wheat) with Bolognese sauce from the freezer (see link above), garlic toast, green salad. [I have class].

Friday 9/7: Grilled chedderwurst dogs, oven fries.

Saturday 9/8: Up in the air, depending our our activities - we're planning to attend a Preparedness Expo at the convention center, and then may take the dogs up to the mountains for an afternoon of frolicking.


~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu - August and into September

Long time, no posts - I know. REALLY busy getting ready for school to start and tending to GolfDad following knee replacement surgery.

I did finally sit down today and figure out some dinner options for the next few weeks.  We have chicken, pork, and ground beef in the freezer after a summer of eating mostly vegetarian. Vegetarian is good, but we're ready to add some heavier proteins back in the mix.  I made a list of meals I could do a lot of advance prep for, as the coming weeks are EXTREMELY busy.  All the links are below. We'll be supplementing with several "big salad" nights, and sides will be light and easy - green salad, rice, fresh fruits and vegetables.

Chicken:
Easy Garlic Chicken
Garlic Honey Chicken
Zesty BBQ Chicken
Lime and Coconut Chicken
Baked Chicken with Dijon and Lime
Chicken Fajitas
Zesty CrockPot Whole Chicken
Asian Grilled Chicken

Pork:
Ranch Pork Chops
Teriyaki Pork Chops
Basil-Balsamic Pork Cops


Ground Beef:
Best BBQ Burgers
Beef and Barley Skillet
Goulash
Easy Cheeseburger Casserole

Vegetarian:
Black Bean and Rice Bowls
Lentil Tacos
Bean and Cheese Tostadas
Slow Cooker Marinara with Spaghetti
Zucchini Tots
Vegetable Tamale Pie
Breakfast for dinner with Sour Cream Blueberry waffles and eggs
Breakfast for dinner with Kris Kringle (oatmeal) pancakes and eggs

I'll be making a bunch of "freezer bags" in the next few days, and hopefully that'll carry us for awhile!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Things We're Eating

What a cute summer friend!

The nearly-meatless summer plan has started... we'll see how it goes! We're all feeling positive, though. :)  I have to add the caveat that this is NOT a foray in veganism. Mr. Mamie and GrandmaT both eat hard-boiled eggs on a regular basis, and cooked eggs (as in, scrambled or similar) about once a week. We are also NOT giving up cheese, at least not yet, though I know we should.  We have a little bit of meat in the freezer still that I am sure we will use, and once in a while I know I'll be craving Five Guys! Baby steps, right?

Here's a little round-up of recipes we'll be having in the near future:

Southwest taco salad with taco-ranch dressing

Bean and cheese enchiladas (an already-favorite)

Kale and romaine Cesar salad

Yogurt-dill potato salad

Mac and cheese bites

Mediterranean black bean salad


Sesame and cilantro vermicelli salad (had this before and loved it)

Broccoli cheese bites

Black bean quesadillas (another favorite of the house)

Oven-baked garlic Parmesan fries

Ranch roasted red potatoes (I use this homemade ranch seasoning mix - soooooo good!) 

Three-bean chili

Slow cooker marinara (over whole wheat speghetti) 

Lentil tacos (we have two dinner-size portions of the filling already in the freezer)

White bean enchiladas (love these; this time I am going to mix some spinach into the filling and see what happens!)

Fresh veggie quinoa skillet (I am TRYING to learn to love quinoa)

Quinoa with pine nuts, green onions, and cilantro (see comment re: quinoa above!)

A couple of treats I have planned are:

Watermelon hedgehog (sooooooo cute!)

Pineapple sorbet

Pina Colada pops

Our favorite crunchy snack is Archer Farms Organic Blue Corn with Flaxseed tortilla chips (from Target) dipped in this fabulous blender salsa - this is snack we can feel not-too-guilty about!

Image credit

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)

Bread

Lately we have been going through bread like crazy - a loaf is definitely not lasting even for a week! It may be because there are open jars of BOTH plum jelly (canned by Mr. Mamie's mom) AND peach jam (canned by his sister) in the fridge... both SOOOOO yummy!  However, running out of bread in the middle of the week is NOT COOL, so last weekend I made FOUR loaves in one day and froze three of them. We'll see how long it lasts!

THIS is my favorite recipe, hands-down. Sometimes I add some ground flax seed and/or wheat germ to the dough, sometimes not - it's good as written as well as with additions.  I let the bread machine mix the dough and do the first rise (using the DOUGH cycle, which on my machine takes 90 minutes). The I take the dough out, put it in a pan, and let it rise again for 30 minutes. THEN I put it in a cold oven, turn the oven on to 350, and bake for 30 minutes. The bread comes out perfect, EVERY time. So good!

~Mamie"When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!"(Hunter S. Thompson)

Menu Plan 3/18/12 - 3/24/12

Back to the routine this week - spring break is over!

Sunday 3/18/12: Lentil Tacos with leftover Baked Salsa Rice; lettuce/tomatoes/cheese/sour cream/green onions for toppings [meatless].

Monday 3/19/12: Fettuccine Alfredo using whole-wheat linguini, Classico Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo sauce that I got on a good sale, and cooked chicken from the freezer; green salad; Garlic Muffins.

Tuesday 3/20/12: Mr. Mamie has class; I get in my magazine reading time at Barnsie. We'll probably eat at Pollo Loco - inexpensive and mostly "real" foods.

Wednesday 3/21/12: Easy Potato Soup (I made the mix last weekend) with corn, shredded cheddar, and green onions added; green salad; French bread [meatless].

Thursday 3/22/12: Easy Bean Tostadas with lettuce/tomatoes/cheese/sour cream/green onions for toppings; possibly rice on the side [meatless].

Friday 3/23/12: Burgers on the grill (using Costco organic beef patties); Oven Fries.

Saturday 3/24/12: Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches; Baked Beans (bumped from last week because I had a craving for Sesame Chicken and Yellow Rice, so we had that on the day when these Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches were planned.

Three meatless meals this week - yay!

~Mamie "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro!" (Hunter S. Thompson)