Menu Plan Monday: May 16

I never got around to planning my menu for this week before I went to the grocery store last Friday, so I tried to wing it. I didn't do too badly, but we seem to be eating a lot of sausage this week...

Monday
Tuscan Sausage Pasta
Caesar salad

Tuesday
soft tacos
chips, salsa, & guacamole

Wednesday
breakfast burritos

Thursday
blackened tilapia
rice pilaf
broccoli

Friday
leftover buffet

Saturday
Peperoncini Roast
creamed corn
salad

Sunday
leftover Peperoncini Roast sandwiches (on toasted hamburger buns with some melted provolone...)

Now that AWANA is over for the summer, I have to start planning meals for one more night. We might just continue with sandwich night on Sundays. As much as I like to cook, I don't want to do it all the time.

So, there's Italian sausage Monday night and breakfast sausage in Wednesday's burritos. I'm also planning to have some Sausage with Fried Cabbage and Onions one night next week... Then I think we'll have some chicken.

For more menu plan ideas, check out I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Menu Plan Monday: January 31

Well, I changed up a few things from last week's original plan, but I still haven't made it to Wal-Mart to get a few of the things I need from there, including the Progress Chicken Enchilada soup I need for a new recipe I want to try. So that's carrying over to this week. Tonight, in fact. We've got some nasty weather forecast for tomorrow through Thursday, and if I don't want to have to get out in it - and if I don't want my elderly cat to die of starvation - I have to go today. :oP

Here's the plan for this week:

Monday
Cheesy Chicken & Rice Casserole
chips, guacamole, & salsa

In spite of all the not-so-rave reviews of this recipe, I plan to try this at least once. The picture looks too good not to! And who's to say their tastes are the same as mine?

Tuesday
hot dogs
chips
fruit
(regardless of whether we have basketball practice or not)

Wednesday
Chicken & Dumplings
green beans
salad

Thursday
leftovers

Friday
Lasagna
Caesar salad
garlic bread

My mother-in-law told me she wants me to make lasagna for them sometime, and since they're coming for Jacob's birthday weekend - and it's one of Jacob's favorites - I thought this would be the perfect time for it.

Saturday
Out for Jacob's birthday supper.

Super Bowl Sunday - and Jacob's birthday
Low-Cal/Low-Fat Mozzarella Sticks (from Rocco DiSpirito's new cookbook Now Eat This!)
Cocktail Sausages in BBQ sauce
chips & guacamole, maybe some queso
???

I need to decide what else will make fun party foods for us that night...

So that makes two new recipes this week! Woohoo! We'll see if they'll become new family favorites.

A Change of (Meal) Plans

Well, I finally found the recipe I was looking for: Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole. It looks delicious!

It didn't get rave reviews from people who commented on the website. Most of them say the cooking time needed to be longer and it needs more flavor. I'm willing to try it as is the first time around, then tweak it as my taste buds lead me. (That's the way I do with most recipes. Rarely do I make anything the "original" way.) Oh, and I read that the sodium content is really high. I have a feeling the Progresso soup is the culprit, so I'll see what other options I might have.

I'm going to put this off until the weekend because I'm lazy and I don't feel like going by the grocery store to get my soup. :oP We have other options to carry us through this week, so I'm going to ditch my plan and change things up a bit:

Wednesday
Chicken & Sausage Gumbo
Roasted Cauliflower
Caesar Salad

Thursday
breakfast burritos
fruit

Saturday
Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole
chips & guacamole

It's nothing drastic; just saving some time here and there. Still I can't wait to try it for myself. At least I'll be placated by getting to have my cauliflower tomorrow night!

Menu Plan Monday: January 24

I'm a little late with this week's menu. I forgot to check a recipe for Mexican Chicken Casserole before I went to the grocery store, so I'm missing some ingredients for that. Then there's the little conundrum where I saw a different recipe for it that looked great, only I can't seem to find it anywhere: magazines, internet, email, etc. I'll give it one more shot, then I'll have to decide if I want to go with the old favorite or try something new on my own.

Last week's two new recipes and one old one that I had forgotten about were hits all around. I might have put a bit much pepper in the pork chop casserole, because the leftover potatoes and carrots were SPICY! I like spicy, but these were really HOT! The carrot orzo was a hit with everyone except Jacob, who chose to eat raw carrots with Ranch dressing as one of his sides. The best of all was the roasted cauliflower. The boys raved about it at first, but the new wore off pretty quickly and the decided it was just okay. Billy and I absolutely loved it. I didn't get my fill of it, so I bought another head of cauliflower to fit in somewhere this week.

Monday
Baked Potato Soup

The boys decided they don't like this anymore. Caleb's not wild about potatoes, and Jacob decided he doesn't like chunks in his soup - unless it's broccoli cheese soup. Billy and I love it, though, especially after I started using full fat sour cream in it instead of low fat. The way it melts and blends into the soup makes such a world of difference! We were the only two who ate it last night, and there's only enough left for me to have for lunch today.

Tuesday
hot dogs
chips
fruit

It's basketball practice night. Just a few more weeks...

Wednesday
breakfast burritos
fruit
roasted cauliflower? (It doesn't really fit, but I WANT it!)

Thursday
Mexican Chicken Casserole
chips & guacamole

Friday
leftovers or sandwiches

Saturday
Chicken & Dumplings
Caesar salad
roasted cauliflower? (It would fit better here, but I have to wait so long...)

Sunday
leftovers or sandwiches (AWANA night)

For more menu plan ideas, check out I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Now to find that lost (or imagined?) recipe...

Menu Plan Monday - October 11

Last week was a little crazy and the few things I had planned got pushed over to this week, making this week very easy to get ready for.

Monday
Chicken Lo Mein
Mini Egg Rolls
Crab Rangoon
ALDI had several Asian food items on special the week before last. If these are good, I'll probably pick up some more for Sunday evening's International Missions Dinner. Our class was assigned Asia, and since I have AWANA that afternoon, I need something quick and easy!

Tuesday
Dirty Rice
Broccoli

Wednesday
Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

Thursday
leftovers

Friday
Biscuits & Gravy
Sausage
Scrambled Eggs
This was Caleb's breakfast supper request from two weeks ago that I never got around to cooking. I have since been to Wal-Mart, though, so I have frozen biscuits and a country gravy mix on hand and don't have to try making any of it from scratch.

Saturday
Tex-Mex
We're hosting a missionary family for our home team dinner that night. They requested Tex-Mex, so Paula and Deb are making enchiladas, and Deb is going to bring some bean dip and chips. I have a good recipe for Spanish Rice, so I'll make a double batch of that and provide some guacamole, salsa, and drinks. One other couple might be coming, in addition to our missionary family, so I guess they'll be responsible for dessert.

Sunday
International Missions Dinner Buffet, provided by the different adult Sunday school classes at church.

For more menu plan ideas, visit I'm an Organizing Junkie.

New Recipes

In case you've stopped checking my recipe blog because of a lack of updates since April, I've added two new recipes and have a few more to add soon.

My New Recipe Blog

I've recently started a new blog, Ashley's Cafe, where I'll post some of my favorite recipes. I really like seeing what food looks like, so I'm going to try to include pictures when I can. If I don't have a picture to post with a recipe, I'll add it as soon as I can take one and get it uploaded. Bon appetit!

Tuscan Soup

I took a recipe for Italian Chicken Noodle Soup that a friend gave me and tweaked it to make a delicious Tuscan soup. Billy said it reminds him a lot of Italian Wedding Soup. The first night it had a good flavor, but there wasn't much in it. Billy made some suggestions and I added to it the second night. It was so much better. We ended up getting about 4 meals out of it! Following is the recipe with mine and Billy's additions. (Changes from the original recipe are marked with an asterisk.)

Tuscan Soup

6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts*
1 lb. Italian sausage, browned, drained, and cut into large chunks*
2 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
2 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. black pepper
1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach
1 can diced tomatoes - garlic/oregano/basil blend
1 lb. ziti pasta*
grated Parmesan cheese

Boil chicken in large pot of water. (Cover chicken with water about two inches from top of pot.) Remove chicken and let cool, then tear into medium-sized portions and put back into the chicken stock.

Add sausage, seasonings, spinach, and tomatoes and simmer for an hour. Add more seasonings if necessary.

When ready to eat, add pasta and cook according to package directions.

Sprinkle top of each serving with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

This soup is amazingly easy to make and has a great flavor. It went really well with the Asiago Cheese Bread I got from Panera. It's definitely a keeper!

Menu Plan Monday #10

First, my menu for this week:

Monday: Chicken, Broccoli, & Rice Casserole; salad

Tuesday: leftovers

Wednesday: Vegetable Beef Soup (a repeat from our first soup night of the season)

Thursday: leftovers

Friday: Chicken Quesadillas

Saturday: Chicken Enchiladas (from the freezer)

Sunday: Gumbo? We'll be at Billy's parents' house that night, but I think we typically have gumbo on Christmas Eve eve.

For more menu inspiration, check out I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Now, a recap of last week:

I did make it to the grocery store last Tuesday, so I picked up a small package of frozen hashbrowns and made an omelet pizza instead of just omelets Tuesday night. It was really good, and Caleb loved it. (I knew Jacob wouldn't eat it, so I fixed him up a plate of scrambled eggs, ham, and cheese - all separate.) I've only made it once before, and it was a huge hit, but that was over a year ago. I don't know why it took me so long to make it again...

And since I made it to the grocery store, I was able to make Red Beans & Rice on Wednesday. It was soooo good! I think I need to share the recipe! It's my friend Allison's recipe, and I think she got it from Southern Living magazine.

Red Beans & Rice with commentary and a few changes

1 lb. dried red beans
1 lb. ham, cubed
1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced, quartered, and browned
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 1/2 c. yellow onion, chopped
3/4 c. green onion, thinly sliced (I omitted this.)
1 1/2 c. celery, chopped
2/3 c. bell pepper, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce (I used Louisiana Hot Sauce, and probably could have used a little more.)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. water (I added about 2 cups.)
rice

Rinse and soak beans overnight; drain and put in Crock Pot. Add all ingredients and cook all day on low (6-8 hours; if less time, then cook on high.) Serve over rice.

Since we like our Red Beans & Rice to be a little creamy, Billy took out about 1 cup of the bean mixture and pureed it with our hand mixer, then added it back in. It had the whole house smelling great - and it was delicious. Jacob loved it; Caleb ate leftover hashbrowns mixed with a little ham and cheese, leftover from the night before.

Friday night ended up being a freebie! Billy came home and offered to go pick up something for supper. I suggested BBQ from Baker's Ribs, and we enjoyed it immensely! The boys ate up on some smoked chicken and mac & cheese. (Baker's Ribs makes the best mac & cheese I've ever eaten!) Billy and I ate a little of everything: smoked chicken and smoked brisket with their thick, zesty BBQ sauce (not the watery, vinegary Carolina-style they serve at Soulman's BBQ, which we can't stand); cole slaw; dill potato salad (wonderful!); mac & cheese; corn & bean salsa; and rolls. Yum! Since I didn't cook any chicken enchiladas, I'll do them later this week.

Saturday night's Greek Potatoes with Feta and Olives turned out great, too! They were really easy to make, so I'm adding them to my recipe box. I will make a few minor changes to the recipe, though.

Potatoes with Feta and Olives

2 lbs. potatoes
2/3 c. EVOO (Next time I'll reduce this to 1/2 c.)
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
10 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (I think I only used 8 oz. I definitely recommend 10.)
1 c. pitted black and green olives (The picture in the cookbook showed the olives halved, but I quartered mine. I think I'd like to use a little more olives next time, maybe an extra half cup.)
1 1/4 c. hot vegetable stock (from boiling the potatoes)
salt and ground black pepper

Scrub potatoes well; cook in large pot of boiling water for 15-20 minutes. Remove and cool slightly, then peel and cut into very thin slices.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush bottom and sides of 9x13 baking dish with EVOO. Layer potato slices in dish with rosemary, cheese, and olives. (I made 3 layers.)

Drizzle with remaining EVOO and vegetable stock; season with salt and plenty of pepper.

Cook for 35 minutes. The recipe recommends covering the potatoes with foil to prevent overbrowning, but mine did just fine uncovered.

Caleb ate one serving; Jacob didn't like them. (Go figure!) Billy and I loved them, though. He said it's got an authentic Greek flavor, like something you'd order in a restaurant there. I'll have to find something else from that cookbook to try next month!

(I know my picture doesn't look that great. I need to brush up on photographing food. And I need to remember that my camera has a food function. I don't know what the difference is, but I need to try it out!)

Travel

Rough-riding, July 1, 2006

The boys love to ride in their Jeep at Billy's parents' house. Jacob is so strong-willed and independent, I was sure he'd have been fighting Caleb for driving rights. Instead, he'd rather ride shotgun all the time. I'm sure Caleb's too big for it now, so I guess Jacob will have to learn to drive if he wants to ride anymore.

I asked him the other day if he was going to play with the Jeep when we're there for Thanksgiving next week. He said no because there are probably spiders in it. I told him I bet Papaw would get them all out for him. (Hint, hint, Papaw. Please check the fort, too.) ;o)

Check out more "travel"-inspired photos at Photo Friday.

Creamy Mushroom & Barley Soup

I've been following along with my soup-night plan pretty well. For various reasons it doesn't always end up being Wednesday night, and I missed one week, but that's fine. Of the 13 Soups I want to make this fall/winter, I've made 6: Vegetable Beef Soup, Chicken & Dumplings, Baked Potato Soup, Taco Soup, Chicken & Sausage Gumbo, and Creamy Mushroom & Barley Soup (in that order).

The Creamy Mushroom & Barley Soup was a new recipe - a combination of one I found at All Recipes and some of my own tweaking. Click the recipe link for the original; here's my variation:

6 Tbsp. margarine
4 c. chopped Baby Bella mushrooms (One package of pre-sliced mushrooms will do.)
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, pressed
4 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 (14.5-oz.) cans chicken broth (or use your own if you have it)
1/2 c. quick-cooking barley (I added 3/4 c., which seemed a bit much.)
1 pint half-and-half
Tony's (to taste)

Melt margarine in 4-qt. soup pot over medium-high heat. Saute mushrooms, green onions, and garlic for about 5 minutes, or until soft. Mix in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in chicken broth. Bring just to a boil and add barley. Cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low. After boiling ceases, stir in half-and-half; season with Tony's. Continue stirring until soup is heated through, but do not boil.

This soup was really quick and easy - and it has a wonderful flavor! With the barley, it's very filling, too. I doubled the original recipe, and we had enough for Billy to take leftover soup for lunch today. Billy, Jacob, and I loved it; Caleb wasn't impressed and didn't eat much of it.

We paired it with some Sunflower Bread from Panera Bread. I really wanted Asiago Cheese Bread, but they were out by the time we got there. I didn't want Tomato Basil again (which we had with our Baked Potato Soup), so I asked the lady helping us if she had ever tried Sunflower. She hadn't, so she offered to let me sample it. She put the loaf in the slicer and gave Caleb, Jacob, and me each a thick slice. The crust was crispy and sweet; the middle was soft and nutty. Caleb and I loved it. Not surprisingly, Jacob didn't. He likes nuts, but not mixed in things. I told her I'd take the rest of the loaf, but she insisted on slicing the other remaining loaf for me instead. Then she loaded us down with 6 huge cookies - for FREE! She said they had baked a little too long and would only have been put out if all the other ones had sold. We ended up with 3 Chocolate Duet with Walnut cookies and 3 Chocolate Chippers. They were a little crunchy, but still really good.

Tonight we'll use the extra package of mushrooms I bought, along with black olives and mozzarella cheese, on some delicious homemade pizza. I can't wait!

Menu Plan Monday #5

It's that time again!

Last week's menu got changed up at the last minute. I had two cooked chicken breasts left over from the chicken enchiladas I made for church, so Thursday night we had BBQ Ranch chicken salad. Delicious, but two chicken breasts don't make nearly enough! I also knew I would need room in the refrigerator for Saturday night's dinner so I put off the Taco Soup for this week. Friday night we ate some of the chicken enchiladas from the freezer. And since I didn't make the soup, we picked up supper from Sonic on the way home from the Fall Festival at church. The boys weren't very hungry after eating popcorn and cotton candy. Oh, and add a pickle to Jacob's list.

This week is pretty busy, so the meal plan looks a little boring. Maybe next month I can get back to cooking some different things...

Monday: Taco Soup (I have a meeting tonight, but I figure I can get the soup going early enough and eat some before I leave.)

Tuesday: sandwiches (This is Billy's last night of class!)

Wednesday: left over soup

Thursday: left over soup (Yes, I'm planning on making a lot! Whoever is tired of soup can have a sandwich...)

Friday: pick up something on the way to see my parents for the weekend

Saturday: Out! (We'll be celebrating my mom's and my birthdays. I wonder where we'll go eat...)

Sunday: sandwiches (AWANA night)

For more inspiration, check out other meal plans at I'm an Organizing Junkie!.
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifle

Since my menu plan for this week isn't very inspiring, how about the dessert I came up with last week for Saturday night's missionary dinner? Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifle. Mmmmm...

I needed to make something quick and easy. The easiest thing I could think of was the Chocolate Trifle I make at several of my shows, but I wanted something more festive. I decided to go with pumpkin and some coordinating pudding flavor. I found cheesecake and knew it would be a hit.

Here's the recipe:

Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifle

1 box Pumpkin Quick Bread mix (+ ingredients listed on box to make bread)
1 pkg. fat-free, sugar-free cheesecake pudding
1 can sweetened condensed milk (You can use the low-fat kind; I probably should have.)
1/2 c. water
1 8-oz. container sugar-free Cool Whip
1 12-oz container sugar-free Cool Whip
pumpkin pie spice

Prepare quick bread as directed on package; cool completely and cut into cubes.

In Classic Batter Bowl, combine pudding mix, sweetened condensed milk, and water using Stainless Whisk. Fold in 8-oz. Cool Whip with Small Mix 'n Scraper until no streaks remain. Refrigerate while bread is baking and cooling.

In Trifle Bowl, layer 1/2 of the pumpkin bread cubes, 1/2 of the cheesecake pudding mixture, and 1/2 of the 12-oz. Cool Whip. Repeat once more; top with a sprinkling of pumpkin pie spice. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serves 15-18.

Everyone loved it! I forgot to take a picture of it when I finished making it, but since I'll be making it for a Holiday Open House this weekend, I'll be sure to do it then. I'll post it next week.