Menu Planning Monday (On Saturday)

So, I just spent the last 2 hours planning our meals. We have 12 dinners before we get paid. Since money is a little tight, I decided to try to get all 12 dinners (plus lunches and breakfast stuff) out of our normal amount of money for one week of groceries. My plan is to make 6 meals that can all be eaten twice or that I can used to make another meal. So, for all of the meals that are casseroles, I will make the whole recipe and separate it into 2 or 3 8x8 pans depending on how much it makes. We will eat one that night and save the other for the next week. Hopefully, we will like these recipes enough to eat them twice so close together : ). My estimated cost of all of these meals plus lunch and breakfast stuff for my boys is going to be $100. I will let you know what happens!

Sunday - Pizza (I am trying a new technique this week and new dough recipe that is supposed to make the pizza thin and crispy. It uses semolina flour and slow rising overnight. I will let you know how it turns out and pass on the recipe.)
Monday - Sunny Anderson's Chicken Broccoli Casserole
Tuesday - Chicken Parmigiano
Wednesday - Chicken Parm Subs (made from leftover chicken parm)
Thursday - Giada's Ragu with Mint (It is made with ground lamb but I will more than likely use ground beef unless there is an awesome sale on ground lamb...which I doubt.)
Friday - My mac-n-cheese topped with bacon and onions
Saturday - Pizza
Sunday - Sunny Anderson's Chicken Broccoli Casserole
Monday - Giada's Ragu with Mint
Tuesday - My mac-n-cheese topped with bacon and onions
Wednesday - Pan fried Chicken with gravy and rice (Chicken breasts are on sale at Lowe's foods for $1.99 a pound)

Baked Ravioli

3 packages of frozen cheese ravioli
1 pound ground sirloin or ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
5 cups of Basic Tomato Sauce
1 cup stock (whatever kind you have on hand)
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 cup red wine (if you don't want to use wine, you can just add another cup of whatever stock you have)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp. allspice
salt and pepper to taste
1 onion, finely chopped
3 cups shredded cheese (you could do a mixture of mozzarella and Parmesan or provolone and Parmesan)
EVOO

Preheat oven to 375. Cook ravioli according to package but take a few minutes off of the cooking time as they will continue to cook in the oven. Lay flat after draining to keep them from sticking together. Set aside.

Brown meat in large (high sided) skillet with a few swirls of EVOO. Brown until the meat has some crispy parts to it. Move the meat over in the pan and add onion and garlic to the pan. Cook until tender...about 6 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the cup of wine or stock making sure to scrape up any bits on the bottom. Cook for 5 minutes. Add allspice, salt, pepper, Worcestershire and stock. Bring to a bubble and then add the tomato sauce. Cook until it thickens a bit (about 15 minutes).

Place a cup of tomato sauce in a greased 9x13 pan. Place a single layer of ravioli on top of sauce making sure to get ravioli into the corners of the pan. Repeat until all the ravioli is used (3-4 layers). The top layer should be sauce. Then top with your cheese. Bake for 10 minutes. Let sit for about 5-10 minutes after it has baked.

Freezer Meal Friday

Cherry Pork Chops Freezer Recipe
6 boneless pork chops
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup beef broth
3 tbsp apple juice
1 can pitted cherries, drained but save juice
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp dried crushed rosemary

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Brown pork chops with a small amount of salt and pepper (to taste), about six minutes each side. Pour apple juice and broth into skillet, stir. Simmer covered for 20 minutes.

In a bowl, combine cherry juice and cornstarch. Add to skillet and stir. Add cherries and rosemary. Bring up the heat slightly and cook until sauce has thickened, about 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly.

Allow to cool then freeze in freezer container or large Ziploc bag.

On cooking day: Defrost overnight in refrigerator. Empty container into a skillet and cook on low heat until the pork chops and sauce are thoroughly heated. Serve over bed of Cherry Rice Pilaf.


Cherry Rice Pilaf
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup dried tart cherries
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon margarine
3 cups cooked rice

Directions:
Heat margarine in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook onion, celery, cherries, walnuts, and spices over medium heat for about ten minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add rice and cook three to four minutes or until heated through. Freeze in Ziploc bag.

On cooking day: Open the Ziploc bag and place (no need to thaw) in the microwave for about 3 minutes or until heated through.

Whatever Wednesday

Today you are going to get two recipes for breakfast. One that is healthy and one that is not but is oh so good. The southwestern breakfast casserole recipe was given to me by my friend's dad and it is SO incredible. If you need a meal for guests during the holidays, this should definitely be on the list. It is, seriously, the best breakfast casserole that I have ever tasted.

Southwestern Breakfast Casserole
6 10" flour tortillas, cut into 1/2" strips
4 (4 oz) cans green chiles, drained
1 lb. sausage, cooked & drained
2 cups (8 oz) shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
10 eggs
1/2 cups milk
1/2 tsp each: salt, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, cumin, paprika
2 med tomatoes, sliced
sour cream, guacamole, salsa
In greased 9x13 dish, layer half of tortilla strips, chiles, sausage, cheese; repeat. In a bowl beat eggs, milk seasonings & pour over casserole. Cover & refrigerate overnight. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake uncovered 50minutes at 350 degrees. Arrange tomato slices on top & bake 10-15 min longer. Let stand 10 min before cutting. Serve w/ sour cream, guacamole, salsa.



Connie's Peanut Butter Muffins
As long as I can remember, my mom's peanut butter muffins, have been my favorite muffins hands down. My mom would make them for me every time I came home from college on the weekends. A few years back, she changed the recipe to make it more healthy for her and my dad (he is diabetic). So, here is my mom's peanut butter muffins. Don't let the healthiness run you off because these muffins (with a little melted butter) are AMAZING!

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unprocessed bran
1/2 cup ground flaxseed meal
2 tbsp brown sugar splenda or 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup buttermilk (We use the powdered buttermilk...follow directions on container. You will put the powdered buttermilk in with the dry ingredients and 1 cup of water in with the wet ingredients.)
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp canola oil (or any other oil you have)
Mix together first 7 ingredients. Cut in peanut butter until crumbly. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the remaining ingredients. Stir until just moist. You do not want to over mix or the muffins will be dry. Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes until they spring back when touched.

The Best Baked Ziti

Here is the amazing baked ziti I keep raving about! This is Giada de Laurentiis' (from Food Network) recipe. I add some garlic and use crushed tomatoes if they are on sale. Also, she has you completely cook the meatballs in a saucepan on the stove. I finish them off in the oven so I can begin preparing the other stuff for the ziti. I made this the other night and doubled the recipe. I was sending some to our college student's dinner for our church. It made one 9x13 and 3 8x8 pans. That is a lot! So, if you are looking for a freezer meal, you can double this and get five meals out of it by putting it in 5 8x8 pans. I hope you enjoy!


Giada's Baked Ziti with Meatballs1/4 cup plain dried bread crumbs
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons milk
3/4 cup grated Romano
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound ground beef
All-purpose flour, for dredging
1 pound ziti
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
5 cups tomato sauce (I have also used crushed tomatoes if they are on sale. I like the texture that they give the dish.)
2 cloves garlic (grated or very finely minced...you don't want to bite into a huge chunk since you aren't cooking it first.)
3 cups whole milk ricotta
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, eggs, milk, 1/2 cup of the Romano and the parsley, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Add beef and gently combine, being careful not to overwork the meat. Shape into bite-size meatballs. Roll each meatball in flour to coat, shaking off excess.

In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. You definitely do NOT want to overcook the pasta as it will continue to cook in the sauce when you put it in the oven. Drain pasta in a colander and set aside. If not using immediately, cover top with plastic wrap so that pasta does not dry out. Do not rinse pasta with water since you want to retain the pasta's natural starches so that the sauce will cling to the ziti.

In a large skillet heat the oil over medium-high heat. When almost smoking, add meatballs in batches and without moving or turning the meat, allow it to brown for about 3 minutes on each side. Transfer meatballs to a cookie sheet and allow them to finish cooking in the oven for about 10-15 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the tomato sauce, garlic and ricotta and mix well. Add the cooked ziti and meatballs and toss gently.

In a large greased baking dish, pour in pasta mixture. Sprinkle the mozzarella, Parmesan, and remaining Romano all over the top. Dot with the butter. Place baking dish on top of baking sheet covered with aluminum foil to collect any drippings from the dish. Bake until top is golden brown and bubbly, about 30 to 40 minutes