Friday, February 7, 2014

What's For Dinner?


Before you know it, it's Sunday afternoon, and those three dreaded words are lingering in the air. "What's for dinner?" I always have great intentions of cooking on Sunday night, but by the time i've made a list, gone to the grocery store, and actually prepared the dinner, it just makes more sense to order take out. So, I've decided to prepare my menu by the Friday before so I'm ready to take on the grocery store on Sunday. 

I usually end up going to the grocery store multiple times during the week because I haven't thought far enough in advance about what I want to cook later in the week so I've really put some thought into this list to create some variety in our meals and also to make sure the meals we make later in the week involve meats that can be frozen and prepared the following week in case different dinner plans pop up and one of the meals gets bumped to the following day. 

Sunday: Maple-Mustard Glaze Chicken with Rosemary Potatoes and Spinach Salad

Maple-Mustard Glaze Chicken:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper
Fresh rosemary (fresh always tastes better but I'm not opposed to using dry rosemary)


Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, syrup, vinegar, and rosemary. Spray the inside of a casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Arrange the chicken breasts so they are close but not overlapping. Coat the chicken breasts with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper. Pour the marinade over top of chicken breasts and cook for 30-40min.

Rosemary Potatoes:
4 new potatoes
EVOO
rosemary
salt
pepper
minced garlic (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut up the new potatoes into small size pieces. Put into a mixing bowl and coat with olive oil (about 2 Tbsp). Sprinkle salt, pepper, and rosemary to taste. Brian and I also like to put some minced garlic in the potatoes. I used to actually hand mince the garlic cloves but now we buy the already minced garlic to make it easier. Spread the potatoes out on a cookie sheet that is lined with foil.  Cook the potatoes for about 40 min. Every 15 min. use a spatula to stir them around so they don't get stuck on the foil. 

Spinach Salad: 
spinach
red onion
turkey bacon
grated parmesan cheese
italian dressing

I buy the already washed spinach in the bag. Cook two pieces of turkey bacon in the microwave. Cut about two slices of red onion into small pieces. Crumble the bacon on the lettuce and sprinkle both the red onions and parmesan cheese all the lettuce. Use italian dressing. 

Monday: Sour Cream Salmon with Wild Rice and Squash

Salmon
2 salmon filets
sour cream
lemon pepper seasoning

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cover a cookie sheet with foil. Place the two filets on top and coat both with a generous amount of sour cream. Sprinkle lemon Pepper Seasoning on top 

Uncle Ben's Wild Rice: Prepare according to the back of the box. 

Squash: 
Slice squash and in a mixing bowl and coat with olive oil (about 2 Tbsp) and salt and pepper to taste. Spread out on cookie sheet and cook about 30 min. at 350. Place in the oven about 10 minutes before the fish so they are ready at the same time. 

Tuesday: White Chili

1 lb. chicken tenders
1/4 cup onion
1 can navy beans
4oz. can green chiles
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. oregano 
1/2 tsp. cilantro
1/8 tsp. red pepper
2 cups chicken broth (1 can)
shredded monterey jack cheese
sour cream
tortilla chips


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat chicken tenders with EVOO and salt and pepper. Cook for 18 min. Let cool and cut into small pieces. 

Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a 3 quart saucepan. Saute onions for 2 min. Add chicken broth, green chiles, and spices. Simmer for 30 min. Stir in cooked chicken and navy beans. Simmer for 10 min. 

Optional: add cheese, a dollop of sour cream and serve with tortilla chips. 


Wednesday: Turkey Meatballs with Spinach Salad

Turkey Meatballs: 
Ground Turkey (1 lb)
1 egg
1 cup bread crumbs
2 minced garlic cloves
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2  tsp. pepper
1 tsp. worcestershire sauce
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Mix it all together in a mixing bowl and make meatballs. Place them on a cookie sheet to bake. Bake for 15 minutes

Pasta: 
Cook any type of Pasta according to the box. I like rigatoni. 
Mix with store bought sauce. I like one of the creamy sauces with Vodka. Add your meatballs and voila!

Spinach Salad: Same as Sunday Night

Thursday: Ground Turkey Stuffed Bell Peppers

Stuffed Bell Peppers:
Ground Turkey (1 lb.)
6 green bell peppers
1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
1 large family size tomato soup 
1/2 cup white onion
1 10oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup of cooked rice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the tops off the bell peppers and remove seeds. Cook bell peppers in boiling water for 5 min. Sprinkle salt in each pepper and set to the side. 

Saute turkey and chopped onion until it has browned. Drain the fat and season with salt and pepper. Stir in tomatoes, rice, and cheese. Fill each bell pepper with mixture. 

Mix soup with half the amount of water the can calls for to make the soup. Pour the mixture on top of each bell pepper. Use a spoon to mash the soup into each bell pepper and pour the extra soup mixture around the bell peppers. Top each stuffed pepper with shredded cheese. 

Bake for 30 min. 


Friday: Valentine's Day. Brian, what's for dinner?

Sunday's Grocery List: 
(I have crossed through the items I already have at home)
1 package Chicken Breasts
1 package Chicken Tenders
2 packages Ground Turkey
2 Salmon Filets
6 bell peppers
2 squash
new potatoes
1 bag spinach
1 white onion
1 red onion
1 family size tomato soup
1 10oz. can diced tomatoes
1 can navy beans (or any white bean)
diced green chiles
bread crumbs
dijon mustard
maple syrup
italian dressing
pasta-rigatoni
rice-Uncle Ben's Wild Rice
white rice
tortilla chips
worcestershire sauce
red wine vinegar
eggs
sour cream
turkey bacon
shredded mild cheddar cheese
shredded monterey jack cheese
parmesan cheese
garlic
rosemary
cumin
garlic powder
cilantro
red pepper
lemon pepper

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