June 11-17

This week is VBS at my church, so I'll be spending a large portion of my day corralling seven 4 year olds. :) Thus, my meals need to be a bit simpler. Nothing new or super difficult (until the weekend at least).

Monday

• Salmon Burgers. I bought pre-made frozen salmon patties ages ago when they were on sale, so we had them tonight. I grilled them, topped them with melted mozzerella, and used a mayo-pesto blend along with tomato and spinach.
• Corn-on-the-cob

Tuesday

• Carnitas. These are made in the crockpot. I double the spices from this recipe. To eat, we'll use tortillas with salsa, avocado, sour cream, and cheese.
• Salad

Wednesday

•  Shish-Kebobs. I'll use chicken and stew meat, both marinated in Allegro, then skewer with cherry tomatoes, pearl onions, and chunks of mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, and yellow squash. Simple, healthy, one-dish meal. But even better because it doesn't even need the dish!

Thursday

• Chicken, Chorizo, Rice, and Beans. Rustic, simple, good hearty food. :)
• Salad

Friday

• Chicken Enchiladas. VBS gets done Thursday, so I'll have time Friday to make these. And they are so worth it. :)
• Steamed Green Beans

Saturday

• Omlettes
• Cilantro, Pear, and Turkey Sausage. Got this recipe at a wine festival a month ago, and John has been begging me to make it ever since. Hopefully it is as good as what we tasted! 

 Here's the recipe:

• Ingredients:
• 1 lb ground turkey breast
• 3/4 cup diced pears
• 3/4 cup finely chopped red bell peppers
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red onions
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp dried rubbed sage
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 Tbl canola oil, divided

• Directions
• combine all ingredients (except oil) in mixing bowl.
• shape into 1/2 inch thick patties
• heat half the oil in skillet over medium heat
• cook half the patties for 4 minutes; turn over, cook 3 minutes longer
• drain on paper towels, repeat with remaining oil and patties
• (my note: I will probably try these as sausage balls too, and bake in the oven)

Sunday

•  Leftovers

June 4-10

Monday

• Marinated Grilled Tilapia. I just marinated it in caesar dressing, and then drizzled butter and lemon juice on it.
• Roasted Red Potatoes
• Salad
• Kiwis. Just because I have them. :)

Tuesday

• Chicken Scallopini. I don't use a recipe for this, it's just another one of my go-to chicken recipes that I have many different variety of, but this is pretty similar to what I do.
• Steamed Green Beans
• Sautéed Apples w/ butter and brown sugar

Wednesday

• Hamburgers
• Grilled Corn-on-the-Cob

Thursday

• Asian Glazed Chicken Thighs
• Coconut Jasmine Rice
• Salad

Friday

• Pork Tenderloin, Pear, and Cranberry Salad
• Fresh Bread (from bread machine)

Saturday

• Oats Peaches and Cream Muffins (made earlier in the week). I'm SO psyched that peach season is starting and they are on sale! These muffins ar to die for. They are whole wheat with oats and peaches throughout, and then a peach-cream cheese filling....YUM!
• Omelettes

Sunday

• Homemade pizza

Extra:

• "City-Band" Popcicles! I grew up with these, and they get their name from the outdoor concerts my dad played clarinet in: as kids, we would make them and sell them. Now I make them multiple times each summer, each time a different variety. This time I'm making blackberry-raspberry-lemonade! Here's the recipe:
• 1 package Jello powder
• 1 package Crystal Light (or Koolaid, but you have to add 1 c. sugar if you use that
• 2 cups boiling water
• --mix packets into water, stir until fully dissolved
• 2 1/2 cups icy cold water, add to flavored water
• Makes 20 popsicles

May 28-June 3

I've neglected my menu planning during the past few weeks, and boy, my budget and stress levels have noticed. I'm $50 over my food budget, and we've eaten Papa Murphys' pizza twice in one week. So, back to consistancy!

Monday

• Honey Butter Pork Tenderloin. I did have a recipe for this, but it wasn't very good, and I can't find it now, so I'm not going to bother.
• Salad
• Sautéed Apples

Tuesday

• Marinated Grilled Tilapia
• Couscous
• Steamed Green Beans

Wednesday

•  Chicken Chorizo with Rice and Beans. I bought mild chorizo this time, so that I could add extra chorizo without ramping up the heat too much. I used 6 oz. instead of 2 oz.
• Salad

Thursday

• Crockpot Barbeque Ribs
• Fresh Bread (from bread machine)
• Salad

Friday

• Spaghetti w/ Turkey Meatballs
• Salad

Saturday

• Chicken Curry. Didn't use a recipe, used coconut milk, curry powder, garam masala, and salt, and added bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli
• Jasmine Rice
• Corn on the Cob

Sunday

• Left overs

May 7-May 13

Another reason why I'm loving keeping track of my menus like this: It helps me keep down my shopping list.

Today I started making my shopping list by looking at the weekly sale ads, and then making my menu. I quickly realized this week will be a short week, and I really will only be cooking 3 meals. I don't count Friday or Sunday, because both of those are things that I just keep on hand and whip up in a hurry. Honestly I probably shouldn't count Thursday either by that criteria, since it's just throwing something in a crockpot. Anyway though, that meant I didn't need several things on my list even though they are on sale.

I was happily surprised that I have most of my menu ingredients already, and just need the basic dairy and produce, along with sale items that I will be able to freeze or shelf (chicken thighs, cheese, apple sauce, popcorn etc). Menu saving saves money and wasted food--yippee!

Monday

• Cheesy Jalepeno Stuffed Baked Chicken. These look delicious. I'm very excited about trying these.
• Fiesta Lime Rice. This colorful mixture of rice, corn, tomatoes, black beans, and scallions, cilantro, and lime looks like a great pairing for this chicken, and completely differs from my standard side dish!
• Salad

Tuesday

• Subway

 Wednesday

• Curried Chicken Saute.  This is a quickie, and so yummy. I usually add some mushrooms to the peppers, and a dash of cumin, garlic, and salt to the curry powder for depth of flavor.
• Jasmine Rice
• Steamed Carrots

Thursday

• BBQ Ribs in the crockpot. It's really as easy as that. I have spare ribs in the freezer that I'll thaw on Wednesday, then I pour half a bottle of BBQ sauce on the bottom of the crockpot, and the other half on top of the ribs. Put in on low the whole day.....and, voilà!  Yumminess. :)
• Mashed Potatoes
• Salad

Friday

• Chicken Salad Sandwiches, on the road as we drive to Nashville. We are going to a wine festival on Saturday with some friends, to celebrate our 4th Anniversary! Our anniversary is actually next weekend, but this is when the festival was, so who's complaining? Not me...especially when I have a couple glasses of wine in me! ;-)

Saturday

• In Nashville, no cooking for me!

Sunday

• Spaghetti. John doesn't really like spaghetti because he doesn't like tomato based sauces, so I mix half alfredo sauce and half spaghetti sauces, along with some pesto and fresh garlic and mushrooms. I also will throw in whatever vegetables I have leftover from the week. It makes it quite tasty, and John doesn't feel like it's overly tomato-y. Win-Win.