Menu Plan Monday 7-12-10

Just to let you know, we did go to Chick-Fil-A on Friday dressed partly like cows (ears and a sign on the front of our shirts downloaded from their site).  We were expecting to get just our entree free, but they gave all three of us complete meals for free.  I must admit that it was fun watching all the other people (adults, several college students – one of them was our son, as well as little kids) dressed up as cows to some extent.  Some were very creative.   And I must admit, too, that we didn’t put on our ears and signs until we peeked inside to make sure other people were dressed like cows!

OK, enough of cow attire.  On to our menu for this week:

MONDAY:   Chicken Pasta with Ragu Sauce (I found it on sale for 99 cents a jar and bought several), fried zucchini, and homemade garlic bread

TUESDAY:  Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli and salad  (simple recipe but a favorite of my husband and our son)

WEDNESDAY:  Chicken Tortilla Soup (we didn’t have it last week after all)

THURSDAY:   Salmon Patties (a favorite of my husband) and frozen veggies (that sounds funny…I should say “frozen veggies that have been cooked”)

FRIDAY:   Use this really great coupon I have and eat out somewhere!!

Note:  Please bear with “Link Within” below.  I just installed it, and the posts suggested below aren’t necessarily corresponding with the main post.  Some of them seem really random!

Menu Plan Monday 7-5-10

Hope everyone had a good weekend and was able to spend time with family.  We saw great fireworks last night and the grand finale was awesome.  I remember watching fireworks as a child and being thrilled by the different bursts of color in the sky.  Now, fireworks are more intricate but not any more thrilling than the ones from childhood!

OK, now for the question of what to cook.  Our son is going to be gone with friends all day today, so it will be easy.

MONDAY:  Free Arby’s Jr. Deluxe sandwiches (good only today)

TUESDAY:  Chicken, Stove-Top Dressing and gravy, veggies

WEDNESDAY:  Christi’s recipe for Buffalo Chicken Pizza (we fixed it before and really liked it) & Salad

THURSDAY: Chicken Tortilla Soup

FRIDAY:  Free Chick-Fil-A entree (good Friday only by wearing some cow attire…really!  Those who dress completely like a cow get a whole meal free.)


Menu Plan Monday & Recipe for “Food for Life/Ezekiel 4:9 Tortilla Pizzas”


Now that our son is home from his freshman year of college, I’m cooking more.  He’s taking a couple of college courses this summer, and so I try to have lunch ready when he gets home.  When it’s just me and my husband, most of the time we get our own lunch, pack something for lunch at work or eat left-overs.  Sometimes I’ll cook frozen baby lima beans or black-eyed peas and have those with something.  But now, I’m fixing regular lunches which is great because we’re enjoying having our son home for the summer!  This is what I have on the menu so far.

MONDAY:

Lunch – “Food for Life Tortilla Pizzas”  (This is a simple recipe I made up because I wanted a healthier, yet simple, pizza crust.  And it’s perfect for hot days here in Texas when I don’t want to heat up the oven to bake a pizza!)  Here’s how to get COUPONS for Food for Life products.

INGREDIENTS:

  • Food for Life/Ezekiel 4:9 Organic Tortillas (You can buy these at Central Market or a health food store with grocery section.)
  • Pizza sauce
  • Reduced-fat mozzarella cheese
  • Olive oil
  • Simple toppings

DIRECTIONS: Preheat your griddle with a little oil.  Fold or cut the tortillas in half.  Then fold or cut each half into thirds.  (I found it’s much easier to have the pieces already cut beforehand than to wait until after cooking the whole tortilla.)  Then top with pizza sauce, cheese and simple toppings that don’t need to bake in the oven.  Cook on medium to medium high heat just until the tortilla crust is a little crispy and the cheese is melted.  Be sure and watch so it doesn’t burn.

We each take a couple of pieces and then I put more on the griddle.

Supper – Chicken tenders, cauliflower, green peas, and left-over banana pudding from yesterday

TUESDAY:

Lunch – Hot dogs, carrot sticks

Supper – Salmon patties, corn, green beans

WEDNESDAY:

Lunch – Turkey sandwiches, Veggie chips

SupperChicken Alfredo with Broccoli and salad

THURSDAY:

Lunch – Black bean & cheese nachos, salsa & chips

Supper – Chicken pasta, salad and garlic bread (made with hot dog buns)

FRIDAY:

Lunch – (don’t know yet)

SupperGreen Enchilada Casserole, guacamole & chips

READ MORE RECIPES

Menu Plan Monday 6-14-10 & Recipe for Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli

We’ve been in the mood for a lot of spicy foods recently because of allergies.  There’s just something about the warmth of the spice that is soothing to a scratchy or sore throat.  So you will notice a couple of Mexican dishes.

By the way, I want to mention two great giveaways that are going on for gift cards.   My daughter, Christi, from Frugal Novice has a $25 gift card for groceries at your favorite grocery store, and Healthy Home Blog (that’s me) has a giveaway for a $50 gift card to Family Dollar which can be used on anything in the store.  (ideas: children’s clothes, groceries, gift for a recent graduate, etc.)

OK, now on with this week’s menu:

Monday Chicken Tortilla Soup

Tuesday Easy Cheesy Beef Enchilada, black beans, guacamole

Wednesday Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli (This is a favorite of my husband’s and our son’s.  It’s quick & easy and also inexpensive to make!  It’s also lower cholesterol than the made from scratch version which is good for my husband.  Note the ratio of butter to olive oil.)

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 box Chicken Helper  Fettuccine Alfredo  (on sale for $1)
  • 1 large 12 ounce can chicken breast  ($1.58 for Walmart’s brand)
  • 3 tablespoons butter (I only use 2)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 14 ounce package of frozen broccoli florets  (around $1 for Walmart’s brand)
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
  • 1 teaspoon parsley
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1/2 cup hot water

Melt butter.  Add olive oil and chicken in a skillet, cutting up the chicken into smaller pieces.  Add the water, milk and chicken helper.  Mix according to directions on the box, adding in the Parmesan Cheese and parsley.   Bring to a boil. Top with the frozen broccoli.  Reduce heat, cover and cook for 12 minutes, stirring every 3 or 4 minutes, until the broccoli is tender.

Here it is before I cover with the lid to cook:

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Thursday Homemade Pizza & salad

Friday Leftovers

Menu Plan Monday 5-17-10 & Recipe for Rotisserie Chicken Tacos

Well, my menu planning has changed from planning for two people to planning for three now that our son is home from his freshman year in college.  No longer will a rotisserie chicken last for three meals, but now it will be for two meals which is still great.   I will also be incorporating some of our son’s favorite dishes from time to time.  Plus he may cook every now and then.  Here’s our menu:

Monday Crock pot creamy chicken breasts with veggies

Tuesday Left-overs from Monday

Wednesday Rotisserie chicken with salad and veggies

Thursday Rotisserie Chicken Tacos  (using left-over rotisserie chicken)

INGREDIENTS:

  • Rotisserie chicken (take chicken off the bones and cut in bite-sized pieces)
  • EVOO
  • Fajita Seasoning
  • Taco shells
  • Black beans, drained
  • Romaine lettuce torn in small pieces
  • Tomato, chopped
  • Avocado, chopped
  • Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
  • Salsa

Heat chicken in EVOO and sprinkle with Fajita Seasoning.  Heat black beans and taco shells.   Fill shells with chicken, black beans, avocado, tomato, lettuce, and shredded cheese.   Add salsa if desired.

Friday Home-made Pizza




Menu Plan Monday: 5-3-10

I am really getting in a rut.   Didn’t feel good over the weekend and was dragging at work this morning.  Felt better after lunch, but energy level has been low all day.  So…I stopped and picked up a rotisserie chicken at the grocery deli.   We really like them a lot, as you can tell since we’ve had them now for three weeks in a row.  It’s a great deal for $5 since we can make three meals out of it.  And it’s already cooked!!   So here goes our menu:

Monday Rotisserie chicken with left-over spinach casserole from yesterday, steamed broccoli (I know it’s lots of green veggies but I wanted to use the broccoli before it started turning light green)

Tuesday Left-over rotisserie chicken with corn and lima beans (frozen veggies)

Wednesday Homemade soup using the rest of the chicken.  It will be a spur-of-the-moment recipe.

Thursday Homemade Chef Salad

Friday Not cooking tonight!

Saturday I’m thinking maybe Easy Cheesy Beef Enchiladas and refried beans.

Menu Plan Monday & Recipe for Reduced-Fat Pizza

When the week is so busy from substitute teaching, tutoring at my home, and working on posts, etc, then I tend to revert to the easy route which involves buying a rotisserie chicken.  They’re really good, and it’s so easy to add our favorite frozen veggies and/or a salad.  And…when it’s just me and my husband, it will last for three meals!

Monday Rotisserie chicken with salad and a veggie

Tuesday Left-over rotisserie chicken with two frozen veggies

Wednesday Finish rotisserie chicken by making Rotisserie Chicken Soup out of it.

Thursday Reduced-Fat Pizza

INGREDIENTS:

  • Pillsbury Thin Crust Pizza Dough
  • Ragu Traditional Pizza Sauce
  • Sargento Reduced Fat 4 Cheese Italian
  • Pepperoni (used sparingly)
  • Sliced Mushrooms
  • Green Olives, cut in half
  • Chopped Onion

DIRECTIONS:

Oil cookie sheet with olive oil and sprinkle with corn meal.  Preheat cookie sheet while preheating oven to temperature in pizza dough directions.  (I think it’s 400 degrees).   Take cookie sheet out of oven and carefully spread dough on hot cookie sheet, top with sauce, cheese and favorite toppings.  Bake according to directions.

Friday Left-over pizza with a salad


Menu Plan Monday: 4-12-10 & Recipe for Chicken Rotisserie Soup


This is actually our menu for last week that I never finished.  It was a crazy week, so I wanted to go the easy route for this menu.  My menus are for two people right now, but when our son comes home from college in May, they will be for three people or more if he has friends over.    Last time, he had six friends over making nine of us at the table.  It was fun!

Monday: Savory Rotisserie Chicken from Krogers with corn (organic, frozen) and baby lima beans (frozen)

Tuesday: Leftover Rotisserie Chicken with peas & carrots (frozen) and salad made with Romaine lettuce & tomatoes

Wednesday: “Almost Homemade Rotisserie Chicken Soup”   This spur-of-the-moment recipe was a hit with my husband who commented several times saying, “SOUPerb,” etc.  It just happened to be the right blend of spices, chicken and veggies, that tasted good to us and was very satisfying.  I’m guessing at some of the amounts because I didn’t measure anything.  I think most of us do that!

INGREDIENTS FOR SOUP:

  • 1 can chicken broth
  • 1/2 medium sized onion, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups bite size pieces of chicken from Krogers’ Savory Rotisserie Chicken (Remember that whatever seasonings are on the chicken will affect the taste of the soup.   “Savory” seasonings work well with soup.)
  • 1 can Progresso Light “Roasted Chicken & Vegetables” soup  (or left-over pasta and extra broth)
  • 2 cups of favorite frozen veggies – I used left-over corn, lima beans, peas & carrots from Monday and Tuesday nights (plus I used 1/2 cup canned french-style green beans, cut into 1-inch strips,  which my husband really liked)
  • 4 teaspoons parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon thyme
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 2 tablespoons EVOO
  • 1/4 -1/2 cup salsa, depending on how spicy you like it

DIRECTIONS:

Cook the onion in the chicken broth for 10 minutes.  Add the remaining ingredients, bring just to a boil and then simmer for 10 more minutes.  Quick and “easy as pie.”

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(I wonder how that saying originated, “easy as pie.”  I’ve heard it all my life.   OK, I just googled it, and the earliest reference to it was in a Rhode Island newspaper in 1887.  I read in another article what it probably means is “easy as eating pie.”  Big difference!  I think a lot of cooks would agree that making a pie is not always easy and simple.  Except for my mom, cousin Sherry, and a friend of ours, Jackie K, who could probably make pies in their sleep.  Actually, those of you who make pies a lot probably think it’s pretty easy.  Hmmm…I need to put making more pies on my list of things to improve on.)

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Thursday:

Homemade Salmon Patties,  black-eyed peas (frozen) & fresh tomato salad

Friday:

Tired on Fridays!  Bring something in!

Menu Plan Monday 3-29-10


I’m totally new to doing Organizing Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday, but I’m determined to start today.  I actually know what we’re having today and tomorrow so that will be easy.  We were in Walmart yesterday and I noticed this cute pasta.  Yes, pasta can be cute!  I have grown to love using Farfalle Pasta in soups because if I let it cook longer in the soup, it enlarges and is kinda like dumplings.  Well, I saw MINI Farfalle in Walmart and thought they were adorable.  My husband picked out a new pasta sauce that sounds very yummy.  And I stopped at Albertson’s to get chicken tenders on sale in the meat market section.   So…here’s my first “Menu Monday”:

Monday:  Barilla’s MINI Farfalle (bowtie) Pasta with Bertolli’s Portobello Mushroom Sauce, bite-sized chicken breast tenders cooked in EVOO to top the pasta & sauce, &  salad

Tuesday:  Left-overs from last night

Wednesday:  Mediterranean Tuna and Spinach with Green Olives :

INGREDIENTS:

  • 16 ounces frozen chopped spinach
  • 1-2 cans Albacore Tuna
  • 1 cup cooked pasta  (Barilla Plus Multigrain Pasta is great)
  • 1 tablespoon Evoo
  • 1-2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
  • Green olives
  • Dill weed
  • Fresh ground pepper
  • Salt

Cook the spinach according to directions.  Add the remaining ingredients.  Add dill weed, peppper and salt to taste.

Thursday:  I just realized I can’t complete the rest of this because our son is coming home from college for a long weekend, and I want to ask him what he has a taste for.