Menu Plan Monday

 

Mexican Chicken Bake and green salad
Shrimp Scampi over angel hair and zucchini fries
Red Beans & rice with cornbread & fruit
Maple Apple Pork Tenderloin, steamed broccoli, and brown rice
Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole and warm cinnamon apples

Shrimp Scampi & Pasta
1 T minced garlic
2 t olive oil
1 t oregano
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 ½ lbs fresh shrimp, peeled
1/3 c white cooking wine
1 T corn starch
6 c cooked pasta
Sauté garlic in olive oil for 1 min over med heat. Add shrimp, oregano, salt & pepper and sauté 4 min. Reduce heat to simmer. Combine wine, cornstarch and add to shrimp. Simmer until sauce thickens. Divide shrimp and sauce into 6 portions and serve each over 1 c pasta.

Maple Apple Pork Tenderloin
1.7 lb pork tenderloin
1 green apple, diced
¼ c chopped walnuts
1/3 c maple syrup
Bake tenderloin as directed. In a small sprayed skillet sauté diced apple for 5 - 6 min on medium temp. Add walnuts & syrup and heat 3 min more. Slice pork into 6 servings and pour
sauce evenly over pork.

Red Beans & Rice
2 c dried red beans, soak over night
¾ c uncooked brown rice
4 c water
2 t salt
1 T ground cumin
1 large onion, cut into chunks
Place all ingredients in crock pot. Cook 6 –8 hours on low or until onions are tender. *Note: red beans need to be brought to a boil before being cooked in a crock pot. Research red bean toxin if you want to know more about this.

Mexican Chicken Bake
1 ½ lbs boneless/skinless chicken breast
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 ½ c Lowfat sour cream
1 t cumin
¼ t pepper
4 oz can chopped green chilies
6 small corn tortillas – cut into 2 inch strips
1 c shredded 2 % Mexican blend cheese
Boil chicken for 10 min. Chop chicken and combine w/beans, sour cream, cumin, pepper, and chilies. Place ½ of tortilla strips into the bottom of dish and cover with ½ chicken mixture. Top with remaining tortillas and remaining chicken mixture; sprinkle 1 c cheese on top and bake 30 min @ 350.

Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
6 servings @ 7 pts each
4 c Shredded Hash Browns
8 oz lean diced ham
½ c diced onions
1 c shredded 2 % cheddar cheese
1 c RF Bisquick
2 c FF milk
1 c FF egg sub
Spread hash browns into the bottom of a sprayed 9 x 13 baking dish. Sprinkle ham, onions, and cheese on top. Combine Bisquick, milk, & egg sub; slowly pour over potato mixture. Bake uncovered for 45 min @ 375.

Menu Plan…Thursday?

My friend Jenn just wrote about menu planning, which made me realize I have severely fallen off the menu planning wagon. I hate cooking in the summer…especially when the temps reach the 100’s like they have this past week. Summer is time for salads, sandwiches and lots and lots of grilling at our house. Ok, and eating out.

Part of the reason I used to post my menus here was if I wrote it out, somehow, it helped to hold me accountable. I really need to get back into that, if only for myself. It might give other people some recipe ideas as well in the process, but this is almost entirely for me!

Tuesday night we had grilled pork chops, grilled corn on the cob & salads. For this, we simply put salt, pepper & Emeril’s essence on pork cutlets and grilled them. I wanted something sweet & savory, so I mixed spicy ground mustard and brown sugar as a glaze for mine.

Also planned this week:

Great Aunt Mary’s Casserole – corn tortillas, chili, tomato sauce & cheese. This is a very simple & tasty dish. While the chili is heating up on the stove, I stick the corn tortillas in the oven to get warm & hopefully a slight crisp to them. When the chili is warm throughout, I layer 6 corn tortillas, half of the chili, drizzle half of the tomato sauce (I use a small 8 oz. can) and sprinkle a handful of cheese, continue with one more layer ending with the cheese. Serve with a salad! In the fall and winter, I use leftover chili if we have it on hand. If we don’t have leftover chili, I use canned.

Foil packet chicken – This can be a mixture of many things! This week my plan is 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, taco seasoning, 3 small red potatoes, 1 onion sliced, 6 tablespoons of salsa, 3/4 cup shredded mexican style cheese, 3 tablespoons of sour cream for topping. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay out 3 large sheets of foil. Slice each potato & onion thinly, and lay out one potato and some onion slices on each sheet of foil. Shake chicken in a bag with taco seasoning, and place on top of potato & onion slices. Top each piece of chicken with 2 tablespoons of salsa then 1/4 cup cheese. Bring up foil sides and double fold and roll down, do the same to the ends. Place in a baking dish large enough to fit them all. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Let stand 5 minutes, then vent foil packet before opening. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Hamburgers – I think we all have our preferred method for these! However, before the end of summer, I do want to try several of these recipes.

Jalapeno Popper Burger

Mozzarella-Stuffed Bruschetta Turkey Burgers with Balsamic Glaze

Apricot Glazed Turkey Burgers Stuffed with Goat Cheese

Seriously, you NEED to go check those links out. Kristin makes those burgers look and sound sooooo very yummy!

Wordless Wednesday