Feb 1-6

Monday-chicken alfredo with cheesy garlic biscuits
Tuesday-meatloaf, mashed potatoes and salad
Wednesday-stir fry and rice
Thursday-sandwiches and smoothies
Friday-chicken fajitas. I recently discovered Gourmet Garden herbs and I love them. They make cooking so much easier.
Saturday-pizza or something out
Sunday-crockpot chili and cornbread

Back to It

Now that the holidays are officially over it's time to get back to meal planning. Yay. No better time to start than the middle of the week, right?

Wednesday: Sesame noodles with chicken and broccoli
Thursday: Raviolis and salad
Friday: Chop chop chow mein. This recipe has become a favorite.
Saturday: Pasta primavera and garlic bread
Sunday: Chicken tacos

Chop Chop Chicken Chow Mein

I'm always looking for recipes that are fast and easy. After spending time in Stockton over the Christmas break and gorging on delicious Asian food, I searched the internet and found this easy recipe for Chicken Chow Mein. I made it for lunch today and it was really good. It will definitely be one of my go to lunch/dinner meals. What's great about this recipe is that you can use any kind of meat you like. You can even make it vegetarian.

"Chop Chop Chicken Chow Mein"

Ingredients:

Chow Mein Noodles-You can use fresh or dry. I used dry because they were cheaper.
2 Tbs ginger, minced
2 Tbs garlic, minced
chicken breast or tenderloins, sliced
scallions, sliced
carrot, shredded
snap peas
shittake mushrooms
(Of course you can use any veggies you want, these are just what is used in this particular recipe. I omitted the mushrooms and added bean sprouts.)

For the sauce:

1/4 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
2 Tbs sesame oil
2 Tbs rice vinegar
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs corn starch
1/4 water

Directions:

Cook noodles according to package. Drain and run under cold water. I also added a few drops of sesame oil to keep them from sticking. Set aside.

Add 2 Tbs oil into a hot pan. Cook ginger and garlic for a minute. Add chicken to brown. Add veggies. Stir fry for a minute or two. Mix together all 6 sauce ingredients. Add sauce to pan and stir to coat. Add noodles and toss. You're done!

Serves 4-6 people.

Already Thinking About Leftovers!

I know that Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet, but I'm already starting to think about the yummy ways we can eat our leftover turkey. I love the ideas on this website. Hopefully I'll be able to enjoy some of them!

Totally trying this

Spinoccoli Pizza, thanks to Annies eats. Yum!

Meals, Schmeals...

I'm so not into making a meal plan lately. I'm tired and there's just too much going on in life to care about cooking anymore. With picky eaters and a husband who rarely eats dinner at home, how could you blame me?

So here is my really lame and really late meal plan for the next few days. Thank goodness Thanksgiving is coming up. It means I don't have to worry about a meal plan for awhile!

Friday: Von's $5 meal- garlic herb shrimp with rice
Saturday: tortilla soup/chili with cornbread
Sunday: salmon cakes and rice pilaf
Monday: spaghetti and garlic bread
Tuesday: omelettes
Wednesday/Thursday/Friday:Thanksgiving fun!

Fun Shaped Eggs and '1 pot" Mess

Yasmeen has been a HUGE fan of a bacon and egg breakfast lately. I make the bacon on the griddle and wanted to make my egg on there too so I have a fast and easy clean up (mornings aren't my thing: the simpler the better!).

The following idea is likely not new news to any experienced mom, but it was a novel idea to me :) I decided to both spice up the interest of breakfast and save myself cleaning a cast iron by placing one of my handy dandy metal cookie cutters onto the griddle, breaking the egg first into a small container, and then pouring the egg into the cookie cutter mold. It works like a charm and makes some cute eggs! So far I've made a bunny (big hit) a chic (liked) and a butterfly (which would have been a big hit, but Yasmeen has been doing a lot of puzzles lately and the butterfly is on the insect board, which she has decided are "icky" so when I placed the egg butterfly on her plate this morning she said "no, bug!").

Anyway, thought I'd pass along the tip in case you haven't tried it. Tip: it does work best if you first make the bacon then turn down the heat on the griddle a little so a film doesn't develop on the exterior of the egg while it cooks.

California Eggs Florentine

Tonight we had Brinner-Eggs Florentine style. So good. So fast (literally, 20 min or under). So easy. And cheap--at least for us, as we seem to always have bacon, eggs, and English muffins on hand. In fact, we usually also have avocado and tomato around the house, so not too many ingredients need to be picked up at the store.

California Eggs Florentine

English Muffin (one per person)
Eggs (two per person)
Spinach-Fresh baby spinach best
Bacon (two slices per person)
Tomatoes (I used 1 small Roma per person)
Avocado (1 should be enough for 4 people)
1 clove garlic
1tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp vinegar
packet Hollindaise mix
1 c milk
1/4 c butter
salt/pepper to taste
Tabasco to taste


Step 1: In a large skillet fill 2/3 way with water. Bring to a boil. Add 1 tbsp vinegar. reduce to a simmer. Crack eggs first into a small cup or container. Gently place in water. Cook about 3 minutes or until desired doneness.

Step 2: Place your bacon on a griddle and cook. (As many pieces as needed/desired per person. I use one slice per side of toast, split in half.)

Step 3: saute spinach with garlic and olive oil (you'll be able to do this while waiting for the egg water to boil)
Spinach-I used about 4 cups for two servings
1 clove, garlic
1 tbsp olive oil

Heat Olive oil in a small sauce pan. Add minced garlic and saute until the smells release then add in spinach. Saute until the color looks right for your preference. Set aside.

Step 4: While your spinach sautes and your bacon cooks start your Hollindaise sauce. I cheat and use a prepackaged mix. All it takes is 1 cup milk, the packet, and 1/4 cup butter. Whisk, bring to boil ,then simmer for one minute while it thickens. Make this last bc it is best fresh. (After you get this going it will probably be time to place your eggs in the water.)

Step 5: Slice tomatoes (I use Roma) and Avocado and toast the English muffins. As many as you need for the number of people you are serving. I used two slices of each per side of English muffin.

Step 6: Begin assembling the Eggs Florentine.Place English muffins on plates. Top each side with tomato, avocado, spinach, bacon, egg, and Hollindaise sauce.

I top it all off with a splash of Tabasco and a dash of salt and pepper.

And voila: pure yumminess that is sinfully good...even the baby ate one whole side!

Mexican Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup
A few years ago I decided to give Mexican Tortilla Soup a try, but didn't find any recipes that fit the bill and tried my hand at my own invention...and it was YUMMY. Even better, it was CHEAP and EASY.I made a pot full, and soup doesn't exactly beg exactness, so here are the general measurements and ingredients:

3 cans reduced sodium chicken broth
1 container freshly made salsa (I like spicy)
1/2 container green salsa (I use Herdez)
15 oz pinto beans
15 oz black beans
15oz White Beans
15 oz canned diced tomatoes with green chilies
2-3 cups frozen corn (I used half golden and half sweet)
1/3-1/2 large yellow onion
2 tbsp minced garlic (fresh is best)
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 small avocados
handful of fresh cilantro, minced
dollop of sour cream (per serving)
handful of shredded cheese, preferably cheddar or jack-even better, a mix! (per serving)
Crispy tortilla strips (I used Wasabi Ranch flavored)

Directions:
Over medium heat, heat olive oil and place sliced onion and garlic until onion is soft ,season with salt and pepper to taste. Careful not to burn garlic. Add the chicken broth, bring to simmer. Add both salsas and bring to simmer again. Add in beans, canned tomato and corn, stirring occasionally, and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Add sliced avocado and cilantro, cook additional 1-2 minutes and remove from heat. Top with dollop of sour cream, shredded cheese, fresh cilantro sprigs and crispy tortilla strips and serve. For an extra treat, serve with freshly made corn bread to sop up the remaining broth. Yum!*Chicken chunks are optional for a non vegetarian version. Cook in advance and add in with beans.

Menu plan: Thurs-wed

I'm going to try to do my menus Thursday to Wednesday because new ads come out Wednesday and that way I can make the most of supermarket savings and freshness.

Thursday: Mongolian BBQ (treated the missionaries to dinner)

Friday: My awesome Lamb, Yam, Yummy salad trifecta

Saturday: It is wet and cold, so I'm stewing up some super duper easy Mexican tortilla soup (recipe to follow)

Sunday: Grilled Halibut fillets with this warm Brussels Sprout salad and rice

Monday: Hmmm, it's FHE, so something good. How about a family favorite? Brinner. And, to make it even more favored, we'll make that Eggs Benedict, thanks. I think I'll make mine with bacon and fresh tomato and avocado, but do the traditional for Jacob if he wants it. Served with Asparagus, of course.

I'm not entirely sure what I want to do yet for the remaining two days. Probably something with beef or pork, and maybe something Asian. Stay tuned.

Tuesday:

Wednesday: