Menu and Food Plans for Aug 29-Sept 4

Back to Pinterest this week!


I've made several chicken and dumplings over the years and they just aren't like the ones our mothers made.  My dh LOVES the way his mom made them and my mom made them similar to hers.
It's time to try THIS version!

**UPDATE** My chicken and dumplings came out terrible.  Edible, barely. I do not know what I did wrong.  I just have a hard time with dumplings! I might try these again far in the future. :/

• Beef Casserole

***UPDATE*** This casserole was pretty good actually but it was a lot of work (to me) I'm not sure I'll make it again when I have other recipes that are just as tasty, or better and less steps.

• Chicken Parmesan I plan on subbing Panko bread crumbs for the corn flakes because I already have some.

***UPDATE*** I really liked this one!  But I don't think my hubby did as much.  He did not want leftovers of it.  Usually a sign. :/

• Philly Style Sloppy Joes

***UPDATE*** I thought this was yummy! I made mine with colored peppers because the green ones make me sick.  But I don't think the hubby or son liked it that much. Again no seconds or left overs wanted.  What is it with them?  I thought it was very tasty!

Other meals are:

• Buffalo Quesadillas - using some of the buffalo chicken I made last week.

• Turkey Smoked Sausage and Beans

• Pizza from the Deli at Walmart. On Wednesdays I need a no-brainer meal and this is an alternative to take-out.

I'll be doing some food prep to get ahead by:

• cooking the ground beef ahead of time and separating it and freezing it.  
• cooking the chicken in the crock pot with the veggies for the chicken and dumplings then freezing
• making a "freezer pack" with the sausage, beans and other ingredients right in the bag
• chopping the veggies ahead of time and packaging them up to be ready to go

Menu Plans this Week August 22nd-28th

I follow a wonderful blog called Organize Yourself Skinny (OYS for short) and she inspired me to post my plan here.  I often make a menu and an eating/exercising plan but I don't post it here.

This week I really need to use the groceries I have on hand already.  I have a few packages of chicken in the freezer, and frozen fruits for smoothies and several veggies frozen and canned. Along with pasta and tomato products.  I also have several bags of dried beans.  I really need to get those crock pots going!  The problem is you have to be home to cook and I have somewhere to be all weekend.  I'm going to have to get creative if I'm going to continue to eat healthy and still live life!

Okay so here's my menu plan for the week -

Breakfast:
Egg/Sausage/Cheese sandwich (I already have these ingredients)
~or~
Smoothies
I simply use mixed frozen fruit, greek yogurt, spinach and a little flax to make my smoothies.  I add water to get the consistency I want.

Snack:
boiled egg or cheese stick

Lunch: Salad in a Jar or left-over chicken and crackers

Snack:
apples and PB2
or
Veggies and hummus or cottage cheese dip (I'll decide at the grocery store)

Suppers:
Back to Pinterest:
I never made this complete chicken dinner so I'm adding it to the list again~

I want to make this Stroganoff with non-spicy beef! So I'm adding it to the list again too.

Trying OYS Cheeseburger Stuffed Peppers

Also trying OYS Buffalo Chicken to use in wraps with cheese and veggies~

We will have a chopped chef's salad.  

I don't think I can go a week without TexMex sooo....

Added: Just found this recipe for grilled squash and I will be making it with this casserole.

I hope I can use up things in my freezer/pantry this week and stay on plan!

Recpies From Pinterest I'm trying this week

I've pinned these to my pinterest boards and am trying them this week.  I'll edit and update how they turned out.

Saturday: Cheddar Meatloaf - I had already made a double batch of this and it was in the freezer.  It was just as yummy the second time!

Sunday: Ultimate Beef Stroganoff - Update* I made this on Sunday and it is the best crock-pot stroganoff yet.  I used some steaks that were given to me and they were preseasoned.  I did not know they were HOT and SPICY so that was a little surprise.  I will make this again with plain beef. :)

Monday: There was no name for this. It was one of those "ghost" pinterest pins but I made it just from the description and I used my kitchenaid to "shred" it.  It was easy and good!  We have enough for freezing.  That's always a bonus. :)

Tuesday: Sloppy Joes (no recipe)

Wednesday: Complete Chicken BBQ Dinner in the crock-pot. (Never made this!  I was going to make it but the bag of potatoes was bad!!! Yuck! So I will try again another time.)

Thursday: Crock-pot Pizza Casserole (I didn't make this one either.  My daughter cooked one night and made something else instead.  I will be adding this one back in later to try.)

Side note: So far I have not been disappointed in any of the stockpilingmoms.com recipes.

Breakfast Pizza

1 multi-grain flatbread (toasted)
1 wedge cheese spread
1 egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute
2 slices bacon cooked in microwave - juices drained, crumbled
1-2 T salsa

Yum!  Only about 250 calories. 

8 crock pot freezer meals - DONE!

I found this link on pinterest and decided to try it.

Yesterday I did the shopping, made the soup for dinner, we're having the roast today.  It's in the crockpot as I type!  The only thing is I went to three stores and could not find beef consomme. So I used brown gravy mix. :/

I'm killing two, maybe three, birds with one stone by eating healthier, saving money and time.

It really took about an hour to get these ready.  My kids helped so of course it took longer.  Just kidding. :)  They actually helped organize it while my hands were all covered in chicken juice. Eww!

I don't know that we'll eat all of these in one week, but I love having options on days that are busy and MANY of our days are busy!

Success!!!!

I have never tried to cook Baby Back Ribs before.  I bought some a while back on sale at Brookshire's a local grocery store.  They sat in the freezer... did I mention they were LONG and I have a side by side refrigerator/freezer and they just kept getting in the way, sometimes even falling out - dangerous!  So yesterday I took my bi-weekly trip to Aldi a not so local grocery store and bought so much I had to take the ribs out, so I thawed them and cooked them today. The hubby LOVED them. Better than what he gets at Chili's he says.  And that's saying something because he loves Chili's Ribs ;)

Here's the recipe I used.  The only adjustment I made was after I coated and "rubbed" them I put them back in the fridge for a couple of hours. And he totally didn't want any sauce on it!  They were that good!!!

Trying New Things

I've voluntarily taken myself off of sugar. Meaning white sugar. I haven't been one single day completely without sugar yet (I keep forgetting about those peppermints lying around my house) but I have drastically reduced the intake.

I decided not to use artificial sweeteners or sugar substitutes. I really didn't want to deal with all the issues they bring and I wanted something natural. The only thing I really need a sweetener for is my cereals.

Today I tried something new called Agave Nectar. I have seen it around but I really didn't know what it was or why I should use it. I used it in my oatmeal this morning and I really liked how it tasted. I don't know what else I will use it in, maybe a smoothie now and then? I was using honey, but I heard that GI in Agave Nectar is lower than honey, so why not give it a try? So I did and I will use it again.

Thumbs up for Agave Nectar!

Birthday Cake!

My 19 yo dd made this cake for my grandson's birthday party tomorrow.

I can't wait to see how he likes it!

Cauliflower Fritters Recipe

I made a few new recipes this week and this one was a hit!

They tasted just like potato patties. Yummy comfort food!

Check it out and try it soon!

Gina's Recipes Cauliflower Fritters

Menu for Jan 8-14

Our Christmas Eve Menu

Appetizers:

Deviled eggs

Jalapeño Poppers*

Veggie tray (broccoli, celery, cauliflower, grape tomatoes, petite carrots)*

Pizza Dip*

Chips

Main Course:

Honey Baked Ham (yum!)

Broccoli-cheese-rice casserole*

Crescent rolls

Mashed Potatoes*

Baked Beans (my oldest dd is bringing this)

Corn Casserole (my mom is bringing this)

Desserts:

Pumpkin spice cheesecake*

Chess pie

Red Velvet Cake (my mom is bringing this)

Hello Dollies (dd is bringing this)

* Healthier versions. I specifically added these foods or re-vamped the recipes to reduce the empty calories.

Cooking ahead

Sometimes called freezer cooking or batch cooking, whatever it's called I enjoy doing it! If you are trying to eat healthy, save money by not buying convenience foods and stop eating out it's the only way to go.

These are all in my freezer ready to go:

• WW Friendly apple cinnamon Pancakes
• Healthier French toast(I used egg whites and some flax seed mixed with water, only a little yolk, cooked on the griddle with butter flavor cooking spray)
• Crispy chicken strips (I make strips instead of drumsticks)
• Grilled chicken
• Pigs in a blanket (diced up turkey smoked sausage and WW 2-point biscuit recipe)
• Breadcrumbs for recipes
• Chopped up onion, celery, red bell pepper, green bell pepper
• Vegetable Broth for using in recipes
• Black Beans (made in my crock pot)
• Chick Peas (made in my crock pot)
• Browned ground turkey w/onions

I may make some pinto beans and black-eyed peas in my crock pots today and add them to the freezer as well.

Actually as I was looking in my freezer just now, there really isn't anything in there that I didn't make, except for some purchased frozen vegetables. That's a good feeling!

Having these foods ready to go in case something comes up and I can't make dinner saves us from eating out, keeps us on budget and keeps us from making bad food choices.

Planning is the key!

Bulk Cooking

I don't like once a month cooking, but I kind of like once a week cooking. Who knew?

Tonight I made -

• Taco Salad (We ate that for supper)
• Sausage/Egg/Cheese Breakfast burritos
• Sausage/Egg/Cheese English Muffin Sandwiches (Last week I made bacon)
• Roasted Chicken Legs (I used "light" margarine instead of butter)
• Crispy Chicken Strips (I used chicken breasts instead of drums)
• Grilled Chicken Breasts to use in recipes later in the week
• I cooked up a pound of ground turkey to use in a casserole

Now we have some quick easy (healthy) breakfasts and suppers for next week.

No excuses for eating out!

If you're on a diet don't make this

Oh my! This Pioneer Woman recipe is so delicious and simple, but not something I could eat regularly. But if you feel like a treat - go ahead and try it. It is really yummy.

Apple Dumpling Recipe

Fruit Pizza

I made this for my dd's graduation party. It turned out so pretty!


I had my doubts. I'm not a foodie so I wondered if it could look as good as the pictures.

It was yummy too.