Sunday, November 18th, 2012     

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

 

Appetizer

Cheese Platter

Soup

Smoked Fish Chowder

Salad Course

Strawberry Jell-O with diced Peaches

Main Entree

Garlic Chicken, Brown Rice Pilaf, Buttered Peas, Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Desert

Chocolate Cake with Ice Cream

The kids LOVED the fish chowder SO much that they want it for dinner tomorrow night! Who would've thought!?! That really came as a surprise to me!

(PS I had more pictures, just can't get the things to be on the same row!! grrr, so frustrating!

Sunday, Nov 11, 2012

Sunday Dinner, eaten around 3:00 ish in our house (on a good day!) I had gotten away from it during the summer - too hot to cook all that food, let alone eat it all! But with the arrival of cooler weather, it seems nice to cook again. To bake again. To sit around the table leisurely and talk about the past week, the week coming up. To have a nice tablecloth and pretty candles on the table (ok, didn't get to change the table cloth!!)

Appetizer

Cheese Platter

Salad Course

Simple salad with lettuce, cucumbers, and shredded cheese

Main Entree

BBQ Chicken, Potato Salad, Brown Sugar and Bacon Baked Beans, Parmesan Corn on the Cob, Cheesy Garlic Bread

Desert

Strawberry Swirled Cheesecake

It was nice to sit and really talk with my kids. Sadly, my kids STILL won't eat chicken with their hands, it has to be off the bone! (sensory issues!!) Which reminded me of why I usually don't buy chicken legs! But that was the only "hitch" in the dinner. Then my sister-in-law came over with a drawing book for the kids, so they were occupied while I cleared the table. All in all, a very relaxing Sunday!

Sunday, Jan 16th, 2011

Sunday
Breakfast: Muffins
Lunch: leftover buffet
Dinner: Cheese Straws, Black Eyed Pea Soup, Simple Salad, BBQ Chicken Legs, Parmesen Potato Wedges, Cornbread Muffins, Chocolate Cake with pudding filling
Groceries:
SHARE: Chicken thighs, carrots, potatoes
Angel Food: Black eyed peas, celery

Nothing planned today besides church. Before church, I threw all the ingredients for the soup in one slow cooker, in another slow cooker, I tossed in BBQ sauce and chicken thighs. I know I said chicken legs, but the more I thought about it - chicken legs dripping with sticky BBQ sauce, I just knew my kids weren't going to eat it because of the icky, sticky, mess on their hands (yes, my kids are weird, but you know that, lol). And because of that, I'd have to take the chicken off of the bone anyway, so I decided to save myself the grief and to shred the chicken after they were done cooking. Since I didn't need the oven for this, in the slow cooker they went. After church, I reheated some leftovers for the family and now I had plenty of time to make a cake. But not just any cake! I came across my Culinque Cake Pan and thought "Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Pudding filling - yummmmm" But I lost the recipe booklet that came with it, so I searched the internet for some recipes. I found a recipe for Mocha Magic Cake and made it, leaving out the coffee. I used already made whipped chocolate frosting. I just didn't think the pudding was going to be thick enough, and I was right. As long as the cake was cold, the pudding didn't ooze too much. But once the cake started to get warmer, the pudding oozed more and became difficult to cut (and that was after cutting 6 pieces!!) Going to have to work on that recipe, lol.
And I have to share with you the recipe for the corn bread. Now my husband and I have been together for over 20 years, and NEVER once did I hear him say that he didn't like corn bread, until tonight when he says, "I don't usually like corn bread, but this recipe is a keeper" Huh? Wait? You don't like corn bread? Since WHEN!?! Ok, whatever, I'll only make this recipe from now on, lol. (Corn bread printable)
A word about the soup. I received with my Angel Food order two bags of black eyed peas. I have never eaten these and had NO ideas what to do with them. While I was on Facebook, there was an ad on the side for Publix and their Sunday Dinner menus. Always searching for ideas forSunday menus, so I checked out the site and saw the recipe for Black Eyed Pea Soup and since it was similar to the recipe I use for split pea soup, I decided to make it. It tasted a lot like my split pea soup recipe, just not "pureed" like split peas get.
Parmasean Potato Wedges - About an hour and a half before I wanted to eat, I cleaned up 8 potatoes, then cut them into wedges (half, half again, half again). Coated them with olive oil and then put them into the oven to bake.
So for dinner, we first had the Cheese Straws, which half the kids liked and the other half didn't (I didn't like the recipe I used, so I'll be searching for a new one). Then we had a simple salad of chopped romaine with some shredded parmesean cheese. I then served some cut up Cutie oranges (the triplets HAD to have those when I was in the grocery store with them. Miss Picky doesn't like oranges) Then we had our main meal of shredded BBQ Chicken, Sour Cream Cornbread, and Parmesan Potato Wedges. For desert, we had the Chocolate "Magic" Cake.

Suncay, Nov 21st, 2010

Sunday
Breakfast: Easy Applesauce Muffins
Lunch: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with carrot sticks

A Return to Sunday Dinner:
Creamy Cauliflower Soup
simple dinner salad (Salad Blend, grated carrots, sliced mushrooms, fresh mozzarella slices)
Italian Chicken Legs with Spinach Fettuccine
whole wheat dinner rolls
mini chocolate eclairs

Today was a tough day as I'm starting to feel sick. Thankfully, the soup and the chicken was SUPER easy to make! I had dinner rolls in the freezer, just for moments like this! I used my white ramekins for the kids soup and some bigger clear glass ones for the kids salad. Only Joey ate the soup, which hubby and I thought was very yummy. And hubby got me a new digital probe thermometer/timer from Kohl's super sale. I put all the chicken in my 12" frypan, added the rest of the ingredients, then stuck the probe in one of the legs, put the cover on it, set the probe to 165 degrees and sat down. About 35 minutes later, the probe beeped and VOILA!! chicken was done! I had cooked the fettuccine right after church, threw it in a gallon baggie with some olive oil and put it in the fridge. When the chicken was done, I put the fettuccine in the microwave for a few minutes and it was hot and ready! I couldn't find spinach fettuccine in the grocery store until I went to the gourmet section, where I spent $2.25/bag and had to get 2 bags to feed my family. Well, I could've saved the money and gotten regular fettuccine as I only had two kids, my husband, and myself eat it. Or buy just one bag and make up a regular flavor for the other two (Miss Picky and Ella). I was not feeling up to making anything, so I went to the store and bought mini eclairs. These had chocolate filling instead of vanilla and the kids gobbled them up. They were very good and I hope I can eat more tomorrow (I only ate one to try it, just afraid of my stomach, lol)

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Time: 1 hour. Yield: Serves 4 or 5 (makes 7 1/2 cups)
This soup is a real trickster onions and cauliflower blend into a purée so smooth, you'd swear it
included cream. It's also a good introduction to this vegetable for those who think they can't stand cauliflower, since its sulfurous flavor is very mild here and no cauliflower is actually visible. But if you do love it, keep the soup a little chunky so you'll have some florets in your bowl.


1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium onions, halved and thinly sliced
About 1/2 tsp. salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 large head cauliflower (2 lbs.), chopped (or 1lb bags of frozen cauliflower)
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
Freshly ground white pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons minced chives
1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1. Heat vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and salt, cover, reduce
heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally , until onions are very soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Add
garlic and wine. Cook, stirring, until liquid is almost completely evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Stir in cauliflower and broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook
until cauliflower is very soft, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. In 3 batches, whirl soup in a blender until very smooth, at least 3 minutes per batch (or, if
you'd like a few florets in y our soup, blend 2 batches and leave the last chunky ). Stir together
and season to taste with white pepper and salt.
4. In a small bowl, combine olive oil, chives, and parsley . Ladle soup into bowls and
decoratively drizzle herb oil on top.



Italian Chicken Legs with Spinach Fettuccine
A hearty tomato sauce and spinach fettuccine make this a colorful and tasty Italian dish.

Cooking Method: Stove-top Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 25 minutes Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 package (1 pound, 8 ounces ) A ll Natural™ Chicken Drumsticks
1 /2 teaspoon salt
1 /2 teaspoon pepper
1 can (14 1/2 ounces ) Italian- style stewed tomatoes
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, minced or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
8 ounces spinach fettuccine

Directions
1 . Bring large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
2 . Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, turning occasionally, for about 4 to 5 minutes or until chicken is lightly browned but not thoroughly cooked.
3 . Stir together tomatoes , basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes in small bowl; pour over chicken. When liquid comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 20 to 25 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened and chicken is thoroughly cooked.
4 . Meanwhile, cook fettuccine in pot of water according to package instructions
5 . Serve drumsticks and tomato sauce over fettuccine.

For the week of Nov 15th, 2010
Here is my meal plan for the week:

Monday
Breakfast: Peanut Butter Baked Oatmeal, Peaches
Lunch: lemon chicken and salad
Dinner: Spanish Tapas; Spanish Tortilla, Patatas Alioli & Bravas, Olives a la Madrilene, Garlic Mushrooms, White Bean dip with pita chips, olive and sun dried tomato tapenade, baguettes, cheeses, carrot sticks

Tuesday
Breakfast: Breakfast Biscuit Quiches
Lunch: Creamy Ranch Chicken
Dinner: Italian Green Bean Chicken and noodles

Wednesday
Breakfast: Cheerios with bananas
Lunch: mac & cheese with hot dogs
Dinner: Tuna Rice Casserole

Thursday
Breakfast: Applesauce Pancakes
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: Spaghetti and meatballs, Italian Bread

Friday
Breakfast: Cheesy Scrambled eggs and hash browns
Lunch: leftovers
Dinner: Harvest Glazed Pork Chops, buttered peas

Saturday
Breakfast: Breakfast Waffle Sandwhiches
Lunch: chicken nuggets and french fries
Dinner: Home made cheese pizza

Sunday
Breakfast: Easy Applesauce Muffins
Lunch: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with carrot sticks
Dinner: Creamy Cauliflower Soup, dinner salad, cheese and crackers, Italian Chicken Legs with Spinach Fettuccine, whole wheat dinner rolls, chocolate cream pie

Sunday, Oct 10th, 2010

Hey! It's 10/10/10, whoo hoo!! No big plans today, just laying around the house, watching tv.

Breakfast: Oatmeal Apple Muffins
Lunch:  Mac & cheese, leftover pizza

Sunday Dinner:

Raw Veggie Platter, Butternut squash soup, 

Oven fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, buttermilk biscuits

Sweet Potato Pie

Butternut squash soup (for two)

1 celery, cut up

1/2 onion, diced

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

1/2 cooked butternut squash

2 cups chicken broth

1 rosemary sprig

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup heavy cream

The day before, roast the butternut squash. Split in half, scoop out the seeds. Drizzle with olive oil and cook in a 425 oven for 50 to 60 mins or until soft.

Drizzle some olive oil in the pan.  Then throw in the celery and the onion; cook until soft, about 10 mins. Toss in the minced garlic, cook for about 1 min. Then add the butternut squash and the broth. Cook for around 20 mins on med heat. 

Using an immersion blender, puree the soup. Then add the rosemary sprig and cream. Cook on low for another 15 mins or so.

Serves 2

For the oven fried chicken, I thawed it out then tossed it in some panko crumbs mixed with Mrs Dash's Tomato, basil and garlic seasoning. I put them in the Nesco on 425 for an hour and a half.

Buttermilk Biscuits

4 cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shortening/butter, chilled
1 1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425

1. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a food processor. Slice the chilled shortening/butter into pieces and add to the dry ingredients.  Pulse for several seconds in a food processor, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbly meal.  Add the buttermilk and stir until the dough just holds together.
2. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead gently for 1 minute, adding a little extra flour as neccessary to incoporate all the ingredients and ensure that the biscuits will rise evenly. Pat into a 1/2” thick circle and let the dough rest, covered with a clean tea towel for about 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Cut the biscuits with a 2” round cutter dipped in flour.  Arrange them about 3/4” apart on an ungreased baking sheet and brush the tops with a little buttermilk. Bake in the center of the oven until golden, 10 to 12 minutes.  Cool the biscuits on wire racks and brush them with melted butter.
Makes 18 biscuits

Sundays I like to make a big dinner.  So, after I made pancakes for breakfast, I started on dinner. I had bought a 5lb roast (so I could have leftovers) on sale at Pick n Save for $1.98/lb.  Love it when I get deals!  I bought a 5lb bag of carrots at Woodman's and I wanted these because they were skinny carrots, about the width of my finger. This makes them easier to cook with the roast and the rest of the carrots will be easy to cut into sticks for the kids.
     I peeled and cut the carrots into roughly 6" lengths and placed them in my nesco.  I then got out my cast iron skillet, put a little EVOO in the bottom and let the oil heat up.  I sprinkled my roast with Bavarian Spice mix from Penzy's and seared the roast on all sides before I put it into the nesco next to the carrots.  I then pourred into the nesco, 2 cups of beef broth and one bottle of beer. I placed the cover on, turned the heat to 250 degrees and walked away.  (It cooks for about 2 hours).
     I grabbed out some leftover mashed potatoes to make Potato Dinner Rolls.
     About an hour and a half before I wanted to serve dinner, I peeled and chopped the poatoes for mashed potatoes (1 potato/person + 1).  Once the pototes could be pierced easily with a fork, I drained the potatoes and put them back into the pot.  I turned the heat back on, about med-high, so the pototoes could dry out.  Then I placed 1 stick of butter, sliced into pats, into the pan and gently folded the potatoes until the butter was melted and coating the potatoes. Then I added 2/3 rds of a cup milk, put it into the pan, and continued to stir until the milk was almost to a boil (little bubbles).  I then used my potato masher to mash them (or, if you like smooth potatoes, use a mixer).  Then mix in 1cup sour cream, mix thoroughly.  Yumm!!
     I had made a chocolate cake for desert.