So yeah, sorry about no weekly meal plan last week! I did however learn a very valuable lesson... I need to PLAN my meals so I eat healthier! Even if I am busy with school, homework, socializing and house stuff, it's worth it so sacrifice the time needed to plan a menu NO MATTER WHAT! Sheesh, I am glad I know now though.
Now onto this weeks meal plan.
Sunday: Garlic Roasted Veggies with Hard Boiled Eggs and Toasted French Bread (sounds weird, but it was quite tasty!)
Monday: Spaghetti with Chicken Meatballs
Tuesday: Potato Casserole (some kind of cheesy saucy goodness will ensue!)
Wednesday: Chicken Enchiladas in Red Sauce
Thursday:Vegetable Curry and Rice
Friday: Chicken Fried Steak with Mashed Potatoes
Saturday: Hot Dogs with Sweet Potato Fries
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Roasted Cauliflower and Garlic Soup
This was super easy and super good!
2-3 Servings (if you serve a cup with a good size salad it'll feed 4 though)
Recipe:
1/2 Large Cauliflower (or 1 small one), florets cut up to a medium size (see picture below if you need to gauge size)
3-4 tsp Garlic, diced (3-4 cloves)
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Pepper
2 tbs Olive Oil
1 tbs Butter, melted
1 14.5oz can Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth, heated before adding to blender
1/4 cup Parmesan/Romano Cheeses shredded
Directions:
Turn oven to 400, in a bowl combine cauliflower, garlic, salt, pepper, oil, and butter. Mix until the cauliflower is well coated then place into a roasted pan or cookie sheet. Cook in the oven until you see nice browning (a dark caramel color) on most of the florets; which is about 20 minutes. Once cooked, get all of the garlic and cauliflower goodness from the pan, place in a blender (or use an immersion blender) with the can of chicken broth and shredded cheese. Here is your warning... anytime you are adding hot liquid to a blender, BE CAREFUL. The heat will want to be released and you might have a lid pop off. I am speaking from past experiences, believe me, clean up is not fun! :) Once it's all blended all together, there you have it, some tasty soup!
2-3 Servings (if you serve a cup with a good size salad it'll feed 4 though)
Recipe:
1/2 Large Cauliflower (or 1 small one), florets cut up to a medium size (see picture below if you need to gauge size)
3-4 tsp Garlic, diced (3-4 cloves)
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Pepper
2 tbs Olive Oil
1 tbs Butter, melted
1 14.5oz can Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth, heated before adding to blender
1/4 cup Parmesan/Romano Cheeses shredded
Directions:
Turn oven to 400, in a bowl combine cauliflower, garlic, salt, pepper, oil, and butter. Mix until the cauliflower is well coated then place into a roasted pan or cookie sheet. Cook in the oven until you see nice browning (a dark caramel color) on most of the florets; which is about 20 minutes. Once cooked, get all of the garlic and cauliflower goodness from the pan, place in a blender (or use an immersion blender) with the can of chicken broth and shredded cheese. Here is your warning... anytime you are adding hot liquid to a blender, BE CAREFUL. The heat will want to be released and you might have a lid pop off. I am speaking from past experiences, believe me, clean up is not fun! :) Once it's all blended all together, there you have it, some tasty soup!
Chicken with an Oyster Mushroom Cream Sauce
Yummy!!!!! I would have preferred using Fettuccine or Linguine, but I only had Spaghetti or Shells... so I went with Shells. It tasted freaking Ahhhhmazing *grin*
4 Servings
Recipe:
2-3 tbs Butter (if using salted, check the finished flavor before adding more salt)
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1 1/2 cups Oyster Mushrooms roughly chopped to about 1/4in thick pieces (It's hard for me to gauge quantity on mushrooms, it was about 2 1/2 large handfuls once it was roughly chopped; 4 clusters clusters of oyster mushrooms worth)
1/2 lb Chicken Breast cut into 2 in size pieces (this amount was 5 cuts of chicken tenders or 1 medium size breast)
3-4 tsp Garlic, minced (3-4 cloves)
Salt/Pepper to taste
Directions:
On medium/medium high heat in a large saute pan, melt 2tbs butter. Salt and Pepper the Chicken and add 2tbs of minced garlic. Let the chicken cook thoroughly before adding the other ingredients. Add the remaining butter and garlic and mushrooms. Once the mushrooms start to soften and have been coated in that buttery garlic goodness, add the cream. Heat it up and pour it over your cooked pasta. It would be pretty tasty over some mashed potatoes too! Mmmmm, mushroom, garlic, and cream oh you're good!
4 Servings
Recipe:
2-3 tbs Butter (if using salted, check the finished flavor before adding more salt)
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
1 1/2 cups Oyster Mushrooms roughly chopped to about 1/4in thick pieces (It's hard for me to gauge quantity on mushrooms, it was about 2 1/2 large handfuls once it was roughly chopped; 4 clusters clusters of oyster mushrooms worth)
1/2 lb Chicken Breast cut into 2 in size pieces (this amount was 5 cuts of chicken tenders or 1 medium size breast)
3-4 tsp Garlic, minced (3-4 cloves)
Salt/Pepper to taste
Directions:
On medium/medium high heat in a large saute pan, melt 2tbs butter. Salt and Pepper the Chicken and add 2tbs of minced garlic. Let the chicken cook thoroughly before adding the other ingredients. Add the remaining butter and garlic and mushrooms. Once the mushrooms start to soften and have been coated in that buttery garlic goodness, add the cream. Heat it up and pour it over your cooked pasta. It would be pretty tasty over some mashed potatoes too! Mmmmm, mushroom, garlic, and cream oh you're good!
*** A bit of lemon zest or a dash of fresh grated nutmeg would probably be tasty too!! ***
Monday, October 31, 2011
Dinner Meal Plan October 30- November 5
Sunday: Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, and Sauteed Veggies
Monday: Chicken with Oyster Mushroom Cream Sauce
Tuesday: Roasted Garlic and Cauliflower Soup with Salad
Wednesday: Shiitake and Sesame Noodles
Thursday: French Toast
Friday: Vegetable Curry with Spinach Couscous
Saturday: Vegetarian Fajitas
Monday: Chicken with Oyster Mushroom Cream Sauce
Tuesday: Roasted Garlic and Cauliflower Soup with Salad
Wednesday: Shiitake and Sesame Noodles
Thursday: French Toast
Friday: Vegetable Curry with Spinach Couscous
Saturday: Vegetarian Fajitas
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Dinner Meal Plan October 23- October 29
Sunday: Pork Chops and Potatoes with Apple Gravy
Monday: Restaurant Review! Fire and Spice!
Tuesday: Chicken Pot Pie
Wednesday: Tuna Wraps
Thursday: Spicy Baked Pasta
Friday: Maple Orange Chicken with Rice
Saturday: Roasted Pumpkin Soup
Monday: Restaurant Review! Fire and Spice!
Tuesday: Chicken Pot Pie
Wednesday: Tuna Wraps
Thursday: Spicy Baked Pasta
Friday: Maple Orange Chicken with Rice
Saturday: Roasted Pumpkin Soup
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Recipes coming for Italian Sausage and Pasta, Butternut Squash Lasagna and Southwest Quiche!
Italian Sausage and Pasta
Butternut Squash Lasagna with Sausage
Southwest Quiche
Butternut Squash and Carmalized Onion Ravioli with Lemon Butter!
Yummy! I mean YUUUUUUMMMMMMYYY!!! This was one of those "made-up" recipes that actually worked the first time! Thank goodness, because I was excited for some butternut squash ravioli! I will be usin' that fillin' again! (Check out my Butternut Squash Lasagna, I used the same filling, but also added cooked sausage *grin*)
Recipe:
Makes 4-6 Servings (I didn't use all the dough, I used 3/4 of the dough, so my dish fed 4, but if you made the whole batch, you could easily feed 6)
Dough:
I used Tyler Florence's Recipe from FoodNetwork.com. Follow the instructions given on the website and you'll get a fabulous, very versatile pasta dough! (I didn't have a pasta machine, I used a rolling pin and stretched it by hand. If using only a rolling pin, take it a lot thinner than you think it needs to go. Less than 1/8" thick, closer to 1/16")
Filling:
3 cups Butternut Squash, diced (which is about 1 1/2 lbs. It was half of my squash, so my other half is getting turned into soup this week :)
2 cups Beef Broth (Chicken or Veggie broth should work too, I just wanted the depth that comes with Beef), and if you are using canned broth, it's 1 can.
1 cup water
1 medium Yellow Onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 tbs Butter plus 2 tbs for the lemon butter ending
1/2 cup Cottage Cheese (I improvised, if I would have had Ricotta, I would have used it, but the C.C. works as a great alternative!)
1/2 cup-3/4 cup total of Italian Cheeses (Mozzarella, Romano, and Parmesan)
1/4 tsp ground Garlic
1/8 tsp ground/grated Nutmeg
1 tbs Brown Sugar (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Zest of 1 Lemon
Directions:
Cover the diced squash in the broth and water and cook in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat until the squash is tender, about 10 minutes (this is a good time to start carmalizin' your onions). Drain the squash (reserve the liquid and make some tasty butternut squash soup with it!) and use a food processor, blender, or hand masher to "puree" the squash.
I want to warn ya now, carmalizing onions takes some time. Once you have your onion halved and THINLY sliced, you'll want to melt the 2 tbs butter in a medium sauce pan (try to use a heavier pan, it retains the heat better) on medium high heat. Place the onions in the pan, with a little salt (about 1/4 tsp), stir them around so they are well coated in the butter. Cook on medium high heat until you can start to smell the onion cooking. This takes 1-2 minutes. Once you can smell the onion, turn the heat to medium low, then DO NOT STIR the onions! Let them brown and release their sugars, hence the name carmalized onion. This should take about 15 minutes, give or take a few depending on your pan and your stove.
Once the onions are done, chop them up to a small dice and place them in the pureed squash along with your cottage cheese, Italian cheeses, garlic, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Taste it. If it isn't to your sweetness liking, add the 1tbs brown sugar here. Now your filling is complete. Fill your dough and there you have it!
Cook them in a slow boiling pot of water for about 4 minutes. While they are cooking, in the pan you carmalized your onions in. Melt the additional 2 tbs of butter and add the lemon zest to it. When you are pulling the ravioli out of the water, place them in the lemon butter and coat them before plating.
I hope you enjoy!
Recipe:
Makes 4-6 Servings (I didn't use all the dough, I used 3/4 of the dough, so my dish fed 4, but if you made the whole batch, you could easily feed 6)
Dough:
I used Tyler Florence's Recipe from FoodNetwork.com. Follow the instructions given on the website and you'll get a fabulous, very versatile pasta dough! (I didn't have a pasta machine, I used a rolling pin and stretched it by hand. If using only a rolling pin, take it a lot thinner than you think it needs to go. Less than 1/8" thick, closer to 1/16")
Filling:
3 cups Butternut Squash, diced (which is about 1 1/2 lbs. It was half of my squash, so my other half is getting turned into soup this week :)
2 cups Beef Broth (Chicken or Veggie broth should work too, I just wanted the depth that comes with Beef), and if you are using canned broth, it's 1 can.
1 cup water
1 medium Yellow Onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 tbs Butter plus 2 tbs for the lemon butter ending
1/2 cup Cottage Cheese (I improvised, if I would have had Ricotta, I would have used it, but the C.C. works as a great alternative!)
1/2 cup-3/4 cup total of Italian Cheeses (Mozzarella, Romano, and Parmesan)
1/4 tsp ground Garlic
1/8 tsp ground/grated Nutmeg
1 tbs Brown Sugar (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Zest of 1 Lemon
Directions:
Cover the diced squash in the broth and water and cook in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat until the squash is tender, about 10 minutes (this is a good time to start carmalizin' your onions). Drain the squash (reserve the liquid and make some tasty butternut squash soup with it!) and use a food processor, blender, or hand masher to "puree" the squash.
I want to warn ya now, carmalizing onions takes some time. Once you have your onion halved and THINLY sliced, you'll want to melt the 2 tbs butter in a medium sauce pan (try to use a heavier pan, it retains the heat better) on medium high heat. Place the onions in the pan, with a little salt (about 1/4 tsp), stir them around so they are well coated in the butter. Cook on medium high heat until you can start to smell the onion cooking. This takes 1-2 minutes. Once you can smell the onion, turn the heat to medium low, then DO NOT STIR the onions! Let them brown and release their sugars, hence the name carmalized onion. This should take about 15 minutes, give or take a few depending on your pan and your stove.
Once the onions are done, chop them up to a small dice and place them in the pureed squash along with your cottage cheese, Italian cheeses, garlic, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Taste it. If it isn't to your sweetness liking, add the 1tbs brown sugar here. Now your filling is complete. Fill your dough and there you have it!
Cook them in a slow boiling pot of water for about 4 minutes. While they are cooking, in the pan you carmalized your onions in. Melt the additional 2 tbs of butter and add the lemon zest to it. When you are pulling the ravioli out of the water, place them in the lemon butter and coat them before plating.
I hope you enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)