REVIEW: Albacore Enchiladas

Remember when Liz posted these?

Yeah---the leftovers are sitting in tupperwares in the fridge, and I'm doing everything in my power to resist eating all of them.

SO SO SO YUMMY.

Thanks for posting, Liz. My two year-old used the word "delicious" for the very first time tonight, and it was on YOUR food!

Scratch Brownies

I've FINALLY found a brownie recipe that's better than a box. (And I LOOOOOVE box brownies).

Ingredients:

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Stir together sugar, melted butter, vanilla, eggs, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and baking powder.
3. Combine wet and dry ingredients until smooth.
4. Spread evenly in a greased 9" square or round pan.
5. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. (My oven took about 22).

Applesauce Oatmeal Muffins

I made these the other day. They were pretty yummy. The recipe says not to use instant oatmeal. I did anyway, but I only soaked the oats for as long as it took to mix the dry ingredients. Also when I make these again I will mix the cinnamon and sugar into the dry ingredients instead of putting it on top. A yummy way to start the day with very little fat and lots of flavor! Yields: 12 Servings Ingredients 1 cup old fashion rolled oats (not instant) 1 cup non-fat milk 1 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 2 egg whites 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. sugar raisins or nuts

Instructions Soak the oats in milk for about one hour. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray muffin pan with cooking spray. Combine the oat mixture with the applesauce and egg whites, and mix until combined. In a separate bowl measure and whisk the dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until just combined. Add nuts or raisins if desired. Do not over mix the batter or the muffins will be tough. Spoon muffin mixture into muffin pan. Combine the cinnamon and sugar and top each muffin with some of the mixture. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until done. Remove from pan, cool and enjoy. These can be frozen and reheated in the microwave for a quick breakfast.

Ham Ricotta Rolls-ups

O.k. I made these up last night so I figured I needed to write the recipe down before I forgot it.
These all started because I had cresent roll dough, ham, and ricotta cheese I needed to use up, so I figured I would put them together. The filling is very similar to the filling in Lisa's spinach calzones. Oh and as a disclaimer, I didn't measure anything. Sorry.

Ingredients:

Ricotta Cheese (about half a container)
Mozzarella Cheese (to taste)
1 egg white
Frozen Spinach- a handful (Thawed)
Italian Seasoning-to taste
Garlic Powder-to taste
Ham-(chopped into small cubes)
2 cans refrigerator crescent roll dough
Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs

Mix the first seven ingredients. Unroll the crescent dough and lay out the triangles. Put the filling on the triangle and wrap them up. Take the wrapped up rolls and dip them into the bread crumbs. Cook at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy.

Spinach - Artichoke Soup 2

One more recipe for Spinach Artichoke soup. This saves me the search when I get home. I like that even though this recipe calls for 2 pounds of butter, it still claims to be 1 serving. Get hungry, people.

Title: Spinach - Artichoke Soup
Yield: 1 Servings

Ingredients

2 lb butter; unsalted
1 lb yellow onion; medium diced
4 c flour
1 ga half and half
2 ts white pepper
3 tb tabasco sauce
6 oz chicken base
3 c sour cream
2 c packed parmasean cheese
1 as needed vit.d milk;
-(approx 1 gallon)
1 lb spinach; cooked
14 c canned artichokes
2 tb balsamic vinegar
1 tb sherry

Instructions

1. In a large stock pot add butter & melt, then add onion and saute for 5
minutes.

2. add flour & stir well for 8 minutes. (this will be a thick paste) (roux)

3. You must cook this soup on a low-medium heat from this point on or you
will burn it, also make sure to stir very often.

4. add half n half, sour cream, salt, pepper, tabasco, & chicken base. Keep
stiring...

5. add milk as needed as it thickens (it should be same consistency of a
cream soup when finished)

6. Now add your parmasean cheese, keep cooking on low, when the "starchy"
taste from the flour is gone the soup is finished. This will take approx. 2
hours.

7. To finish soup add vinegar and sherry , adjust seasoning as necessary.

Spinach and Artichoke Soup

Liz and I had the best Spinach Artichoke soup in Chicago, so we looked up recipes online. Here is what we found. Haven't made it yet.

Spinach and Artichoke Soup
3 cups chopped onions
1 pound salted butter
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup chopped garlic
3 cups flour
1 quart water
1 gallon heavy cream
1 bag fresh baby spinach
1 can artichoke hearts
¼ cup lemon juice
4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
3 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chicken base (powdered bouillon)
3 cups grated mozzarella cheese (pre-grated cooks better)
2 tablespoons Tabasco®

1. Add olive oil to kettle and heat.
2. When heated, add onions, butter, and garlic. Sauté until onions are translucent. Then add flour and mix thoroughly.
3. Add water slowly and stir until smooth.
4. Add heavy cream, seasonings, sugar, salt, lemon juice, and chicken base; mix until smooth.
5. Once all is heated, add artichoke hearts and spinach; then add Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese. Simmer until all ingredients are mixed and hot.
6. Let simmer for 15 minutes. Then cool and store in 1-gallon chub bags.
7. Then place chub bags in ice bath until cool; store in cooler.
8. Always label, date, and rotate.

Easter Dinner a la Michael Chiarello

For our Easter dinner, I literally ripped off an entire episode of Michael Chiarello's Food Network show. It's a lot of recipes, so I'm not going to post them all... but I'll put up the links in case you're feeling adventurous. It took a long time to prepare everything, but it was all really delicious.

-White Bean Waffles with Asparagus-Leek Ragout (pictured above).

(On the show Michael made some individual baked egg dish, but we had a lot of people eating so I just made a big pan of scrambled eggs with thyme and we used that to top off the waffles instead.)

-Brunch Panzanella

(The thing that made the brunch panzanella especially delicious was the balsamic strawberries. Wow! I'd never had strawberries with balsamic vinegar before, but they were so delicious. They're easy to make: I sliced up two cartons of strawberries, then mixed them with 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, and a pinch of salt. That's it! YUM!)

Chocolate Cupcakes: Theme and Variation

I had to make a lot of cupcakes this weekend, for two different events. So I used two boxes of chocolate cake mix and made two different kinds of cupcakes.

To make the star-shaped chocolate-coconut cupcakes, I used these star-shaped foil baking cups that I found at the dollar store (they're made by Reynolds and they have stars, hearts and other shapes...one box of cake mix makes 24 star-shaped cupcakes, or you can use them to make brownies or cookies or whatever). I filled them with the chocolate cake batter then pressed a coconut-filled Hershey's Kiss down into the center of each one. When they were baked, I topped them with a dollop of chocolate frosting, another coconut Kiss, and a sprinkling of toasted coconut.

To make the chocolate-peanut cupcakes, I used foil baking cups. I filled each one with chocolate cake batter, then pressed a mini peanut butter cup into each. After baking them I topped them with homemade peanut butter icing (surprisingly easy and yummy) and half a peanut butter cup.

Peanut Butter Icing:

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Just beat the cream cheese and peanut butter with an electric mixer, then beat in the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

Lentil, Garbanzo Bean and Tomato Salad... and a Mistake

First I'll give you the original (very simple) recipe... then I'll tell you what I ended up making after I managed to mess everything up :)

2 1/2 cups water
1 cup lentils
2 large carrots, peeled, diced
1 bay leaf
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 basket cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup chopped fresh parsley (I used basil and thyme instead)
4 green onions, chopped (I only used 2)
4 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper

Combine water, lentils, carrots and bay leaf in saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are just tender, about 25 minutes. Drain; transfer to large bowl. Cool. Mix all remaining ingredients into lentils. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared four hours ahead; cover and refrigerate.)

* * *

Sounds simple enough, right? Well, this is what I did. For the first step, I substituted ingredients that I had on hand: red lentils (not realizing they are softer and smaller than regular lentils), red potatoes instead of carrots, and chopped fresh basil and thyme instead of the bay leaf. After 15 minutes I picked up the lid to check on the lentils and they were MUSH. Apparently the red lentils cook more quickly...

So instead of lentils, I popped some quinoa in the rice cooker (no risk of overcooking it that way), then mixed the cooked quinoa with all the other recipe ingredients. It came out DELICIOUS. Really, I can't imagine that the lentils would be as good as the quinoa because it was fantastic. I also thought that the basil and thyme made all the difference.

But I didn't want to waste the lentil-potato mush, so I added olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and mixed everything together well...and I had it for lunch. It was actually quite delicious--it tasted like a combination of mashed potatoes and hummus. Let's call it: Herbed Red Lentil-Potato Mash. You should try it :)

Mini Onion Quiches

A Paula Deen recipe...they were pretty yummy. I used mozzarella cheese instead of Swiss.

3/4 cup crushed saltine crackers
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, melted
Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup chopped green onion with tops
2 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup grated Swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Combine cracker crumbs and melted butter. Divide crumbs among mini muffin tins that have been sprayed with a nonstick cooking spray. Saute onion for 10 minutes in 2 tablespoons butter. Cool, then divide evenly on top of cracker crumbs. Beat eggs; add milk, salt, pepper, and Swiss cheese. Pour by spoonfuls on top of onions in tins. Do not fill to top, as they will run over. Bake until set, about 15 to 20 minutes. Do not over bake. May be stored in refrigerator or freezer. Warm in oven before serving.

Reccomendation

So I tried this Pioneer Woman Cooks recipe. It was yummy, of course. Every recipe she makes is delicious. I cut it in half and I still had enough food to feed at least 12 people. :)

Spicy Ginger Key Lime Ice Cream and Peppered Ginger Cookies

I got this recipe from off of KSL Studio 5 website. It was SO good.

By: Amy Richardson

Spicy Ginger Key Lime Ice Cream
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
6 large egg yolks
10 oz. white chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup key lime juice
1/2 cup crystallized ginger, chopped and divided in halves
Method:

Place 1/2 of the ginger in a small food processor, puree till smooth.
In a heavy saucepan, whisk together the milk, 1 1/2 cups of the cream and the pureed ginger
Cook over medium heat until mixture comes barely to a simmer.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar and the egg yolks.
Slowly pour about 1/2 of the warm milk mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Pour combined egg and milk mixture back into the warming milk, stirring continuously. On medium heat, cook, stirring constantly until it begins to thicken and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and add white chocolate. Stir until smooth. Stir in key lime juice and remaining cold cream. Cover and refrigerate until cold. Freeze in an ice cream maker, adding remaining ginger pieces in the last 5 minutes of freezing. Makes 1 quart


Peppered Ginger Cookies
Ingredients:
3/4 cup sugar, plus additional for coating
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. powdered ginger
1/2 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, chopped
Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar together, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and then add molasses. Combine flour and other dry ingredients. When combined, add to the creamed butter and sugar mixture.
Form into 2 inch balls and roll in sugar.
Place 2" apart on an ungreasaed cookie sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes.

Max Mac N' Cheese

This is my first post, I'm a terrible cook, but I like all of your ideas for good food. Talking about hiding veggies made me want to post one of our favorites.

Ingredients:

2 C. Macaroni (or one package)

1 C. Skim milk
1 C. Sliced, steamed carrots

1/4 C. grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 C. Shredded cheddar cheese (I just use the package mix)

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

black pepper to taste

*tube steaks (hot dogs), cooked

*Optional

Directions:

1. Cook macaroni (steam carrots) and drain.

2. Puree milk, carrots, cheeses, and seasonings together in blender.

3. Pour into microwaveable dish and add noodles and tube steaks. Stir well then microwave on full until bubbly and thick. Or about 3-4 min.

Each 1 Cup serving: 323 calories, 6 g. fat, 3.5 g. Sat. fat, 297 mg sodium, 16 mg. cholesterol, 49 g. carbohydrates, 2.5 g. fiber, 16 g protein.

Whole-Wheat Pasta With Green Beans and Ricotta

Mmm! Thank you for this recipe, Giada de Laurentiis! Way easier than making a full-blown cheese sauce. I used rotini pasta and sauteed broccoli along with the green beans to get a double-dose of veggies.

1 pound whole-wheat linguine
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound French green beans, trimmed and halved lengthwise
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 lemon, zested

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta reserving 1 cup of the cooking water. Transfer the hot pasta to a large bowl and add the ricotta cheese. Toss to combine.

Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet, warm the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the green beans, garlic, salt, and pepper and saute for 4 minutes. Add 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid and continue cooking until tender, about 4 more minutes. Add the pasta with ricotta to the pan with the green beans and toss to combine. Add the tomatoes and gently toss. Transfer to a serving plate and top with lemon zest. Serve.

Great ideas

Reporting back what we all had for dinner was such a fun idea. I hadn't thought about Hawaiian Haystacks for years and there they were just waiting to be made. So good. Thanks for sharing everybody. (I put cauliflower puree in the cream of chicken sauce)

Deceptively Delicious

Tori asked about this cookbook so here is my opinion. I really, really (see how much) like this cookbook. It has some great recipes in here, plus it made me get into the habit of throwing in some vegi purees into whatever I am making, whether I am using their recipes or my own. And if the idea of steaming, then blending/pureeing your own vegetables is holding you back––buy some baby food and you can throw that in instead. The steaming/blending thing is time consuming but really easy. I get a whole bunch of vegis to do at once and get the job done once my kiddo is sleeping. I have a tupperware container for them to store in my freezer and when I need one for a recipe I usually just throw it in a bag of warm water to defrost on the spot.
Here are some recipe titles (sorry, no time to type them all right now) we have tried and liked, just to give you an idea of what here; there have been none we have not liked.
*French Toast (w/ banana or pineapple or SWEET POTATO or PUMPKIN or carrot or butternut squash puree) plus flax seed
*Scrambled Eggs (w/ cauliflower puree)
*Pancakes (w/ sweet potato puree)
*Blueberry Lemon Muffins (w/ yellow squash)
*Chicken Nuggets (w/ BROCCOLI or spinach or sweet potato or beet puree)
*Mashed Potatoes (w/ cauliflower puree)
*Turkey Burgers (w/ CARROT or cauliflower puree)
*Quesadillas (w/ butternut squash puree)
*Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (w/ SWEET POTATO or BUTTERNUT SQUASH puree)
*Tacos (w/ sweet potato or CARROT or butternut squash puree)
*Chocolate Pudding (w/ avocado) ––let this one cool or else it does like avocado and not choc.
*Frozen Yogurt Pops (w/ berries)
*Chocolate Chip Cookies (w/ chickpeas) ––this has been posted previously

I think the book is totally worth it. Check it out.

Congo Bars

Totally a family fave.

Congo Bars
2/3 cup butter, melted
2 1/3 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
2 1/2 cup flour
1 (12 oz) bag chocolate chips
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1-2 Tbsp. water

Mix all ingredients and bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees in a greased 9x13 pan.

(I don't know if it's my oven or what, but I usually have to bake them 30-35 minutes)

Breakfast Casserole

1 loaf French bread
12 eggs
8-12 sausage patties/links (I use the pre-cooked TURKEY kind)
2 cups cheddar cheese
1 can cream or mushroom soup
1/4 cup milk
butter or cooking spray

Butter/spray 9x13 pan. Cut/Tear French bread into large bite-sized cubes and put into pan. Blend eggs and pour over bread (mix bread around trying to get the most bread possible soaked with egg). Add grated cheese. Add cooked and crumbled sausage. Refrigerate overnight. Next morning, mix cream of mushroom and milk. Pour over top of pan. Bake for 45 minutes at 350º.

I usually make this for dinner rather than breakfast. Enjoy.

Grandma's Banana Bread

5 large ripe bananas

4 eggs, well beaten

1 cup shortening

2 cups sugar

4 cups sifted flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix up banana, add shortening and sugar, mix.  Add eggs and flour.  Fold in nuts.

Grease bread pans well with shortening.  Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes (sometimes more than an hour), until toothpick comes out clean.

Fiesta Taco Pie

This came from a recipe card my mom got in the mail.  It is really easy, and really good.

4 cups white corn tortilla chips

1 egg white, beaten

1 pound lean ground beef

3/4 cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans, drained

1/2 cup tomato salsa

1-2 tsp chili powder

3/4 tsp salt

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 medium tomato, diced

sour cream (optional)

guacamole (optional)

Preheat oven to 400.  Coat a 10-inch glass pie plate with cooking spray.  Crush tortilla chips into small pieces.

Mix tortilla chips with egg white and press evenly into pie plate to form a crust.  Bake until crisp, about 15 min.

Brown the beef, onion and garlic in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Mix in the kidney beans, salsa, chili powder and salt.  Simmer 10 minutes.

Stir 1/2 cup shredded cheese into the beef mixture; pour the mixture into the baked crust.  Top with the remaining cheese, lettuce and tomato.  Serve with sour cream and guacamole, if desired.

"Calzone Rolls" with Tomato and Mozzarella

This is a Rachael Ray recipe. She calls them "calzone rolls" but I'm not sure why; they're not very calzone-like. But I made it last night (no salami on mine, just cheese and tomato) and they came out really yummy. If I make this again, I will chop the basil leaves and mix them in with the ricotta to spread their flavor all through the sandwich. (I LOVE basil.)

4 large, crusty Keiser rolls
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
Salt and pepper
1/4 pound salami, chopped
1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
8 slices fresh mozzarella
8 slices vine ripe tomato
8 fresh basil leaves, torn or sliced


Heat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Split the Keiser rolls favoring the bottom half a little. Scoop a little of the white soft insides out of the bottoms.

Season the ricotta with a little salt and pepper. Stir the salami and grated cheese into ricotta. Fill the rolls with the ricotta and salami. Cover the ricotta with mozzarella, tomato and basil. Set covers in place and bake to heat through 10 to 12 minutes. Cut and serve.

Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding

I got this recipe from Sandra Lee's show on the Food Network. I made a few changes, which I'll put in parentheses, in red. Seriously...this was SOOOOOOOOOOOO good.

2 packets apple cinnamon instant oatmeal
3 large eggs, beaten
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon rum extract (I didn't have any, so I used vanilla)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 1/2 cups raisin bread, cubed (I used 1 whole loaf cinnamon swirl bread sans raisins)
1/2 cup raisins (I left these out...I don't like raisins)
1 cup apple pie filling (pie filling here is too expensive, so I bought a bag of macintosh apples, peeled and sliced them, and just sprinkled them with cinnamon and sugar...worked just fine)
1 cup almonds (I rarely have nuts, and this time was no exception...no nuts...just me. HA)

Sauce (I chickened out when it came to the sauce...if someone tries it, let me know):
1/2 cup cream soda
1 package whipped topping mix
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
1/4 teaspoon saltIn a blender, grind instant oatmeal into a fine powder. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, rum extract, salt, and brown sugar. Fold in raisin bread, raisins, pie filling, almonds and oatmeal powder until bread cubes are moist. Set aside for 1 hour.

Spray slow cooker with cooking spray and add the bread mixture. Cook on high setting for 2 hours (I put mine in the crock pot too soon...it was on high for about 3 1/2 hours....I'll do it the same way next time, because the texture was perfect) or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.

To make the sauce, combine all ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together until thickened. Top bread pudding with a dollop of sauce.

Deceptively Delicious

So I checked out this cookbook from the library? Has anyone tried their recipes? I know at least one has been posted here. I've read that some of the recipes aren't that good. If you have tried them what are your opinions. I love this idea; not because my kids don't eat veggies, but because it is a great way to incorporate veggies into our diet. Thanks.

Homework Assignment

Sunday–Breakfast for Dinner (Deceptively Delicious french toast, turkey bacon, scrambled eggs, mixed fruit). 

Monday–Sunday leftovers.

Tuesday–Pizza Cups (refrig. biscuits, gd. turkey, tomato paste, cheese), mixed veggies.

Wednesday–Tacos (Deceptively Delicious style), cornbread

Thursday–Wednesday Leftovers

Friday–In-N-Out

Saturday–Subway

Homework Assignment

I didn't keep track very well, but here's what I remember eating for dinner:

M - Chicken w/ mushrooms and prosciutto (but I used bacon)
T - PDub Lasagna
W - Leftover Lasagna
Th - Italian Chicken Parmesan
F - Little Caesar's
Sa - I had Pasta Roni, Chris had leftover pizza (woohoo)
Su - Breakfast burritos

Homework Assignment

I must admit, I didn't keep track of what we ate last week and I can't for the life of me remember what we ate on Friday. Here's the rest of the list though. :) Breakfast and lunches are pretty typical, but our dinners are nothing as exciting as all the rest of yours.

M- Chicken Pot Pie
T- Little Caesar's Pizza
W-Tuna Casserole
Th-Meatloaf & Baked Potatoes
S-Alfredo Pasta with Shrimp and Tomatoes
Su-Meatball Subs

Homework

I was pretty lazy this last week in the dinner area. Recording it just made me realize it even more. :)
Breakfast: We usually eat cold cereal, oatmeal, yogurt with fruit and cereal, green smoothies, or hot cereal and fruit. Sometimes we have pancakes or eggs.

Lunch: Leftovers or PB sandwiches and various snack foods/ fruit or froz. mini pizza or froz. taquitos, or soup- anything easy. I just add fruit or carrot sticks/ peas to it to make it healthier.

Dinner:
M: Dinner over at in-laws
T: Pasta, veggies and Peanut Sauce, and orange slices
W: Frozen chicken pasta mix from Costco, canned peaches
Th: Chicken enchiladas and salad
F: Out to eat- Bombay House
S: Pasta and Pesto sauce
Su: Hawaiian Haystacks

My Homework

Here's what was on our menu last week!

M- Ham and cheese roll-ups (with crescent rolls) and homemade cole slaw
T- Beef Taco Salads
W- Shepherd's Pie
Th- Baked Ziti
F- Leftover Ziti

Your menus are so interesting! I feel rather blah this week!

Pear Bunnies

My mom used to make these for us. Kids think they are great. Not to mention they are pretty good for you. They would make a great Easter treat.

Ingredients:
1 Can Pear Halfs
Raisins
Cottage Cheese
Carrots (I used mini carrots)
Lettuce

Directions:
Take a leaf of lettuce and lay it nicely on the plate.
Place one pear half on top of the lettuce
Use the raisins to make eyes and a nose.
Put a dollop of cottage cheese at the large end of the pear half for a tail.
Take a vegetable peeler and "peel" the carrot (Not really peel it, but make strips of carrot). These are the ears.

Enjoy.

Paul's Baked Macaroni and Cheese

45 Minutes to Prepare and Cook Yields: 6 Servings Ingredients 8 ounces Elbow Macaroni 1 can campbell's cheddar cheese soup 1/2 cup non-fat milk 8 ounces 2% shredded colby jack cheese
Instructions 1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. 2) Place macaroni in a 2 quart casserole dish. Stir in cheese soup and milk until well combined. Sprinkle with shredded Colby. 3) Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until cheese is brown and bubbly. Makes 6 servings
Source: Sparkrecipes.com

My Homework

Well here is my list. For breakfasts we usually have cold cereal, oatmeal, french toast, or pancakes (from a mix). Once in a while I make muffins. For lunch we usually have leftovers, pb and honey sandwiches, ramen, lunch meat sandwiches, or the kids have chicken nuggets and I have something else. Here's my dinner list from last week:
M-Mom's Breakfast Dessert
T-Chicken and Cucumber Wraps (They were supposed to have cilantro, but I forgot to buy it)
W-Ham and Noodle Toss
Th-Pancakes
F-Little Ceasar's Pizza
S-Sour Cream Enchiladas (with chicken added)
S-Paul's Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Pear Bunnies (Easiest Homemade Mac and Cheese Ever).

ham and Swiss Honey Mustard Sandwiches

1 package of dinner rolls (the kind that are stuck together)
Swiss cheese (We use a lot)
Thinly sliced Ham (We have tried turkey too)
Honey mustard spread:
mix together,
1/2 cup honey
1 stick butter melted
1/2 cup mustard
1 TB poppy seeds
dash of worchestershire sauce

Grease a 9X13 pan. Spread 1/3 of the sauce on the bottom of the pan. Slice the rolls down the middle (So all the tops are together and all the bottoms are together, do not pull the rolls apart), place bottom half of the rolls in the pan. Layer ham, cheese, and 1/3 sauce. Put tops of rolls on and pour remainder of sauce over the top. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 35 min.

homework, and an excuse

I must admit that last week was one of the laziest weeks as far as food that we have had in a long time. And after reading the other post, I feel even lazier, and also really really hungry! Breakfasts at our house usually consist of a boiled egg, toast, cold cereal, fruit, or any combination. Lunch is ususally leftovers or skipped over. :) So here are the dinners for the week.
M-Beef enchiladas with green salad and corn
T-Baked Potatoes with broccoli cheese sauce
W- Breakfast for dinner. Egg and Cheese English muffin sandwiches and Bacon. We did have orange juice so I would feel like we had something healthy :)
T-Philly CheeseSteaks
F- Dinner was provided by Fiesta Ole' accompanied by our years supply of fried food!
S-South of the Border Meatballs with brown rice, beets and corn
Su-Ham and Swiss Honey Mustard Sandwiches

Homework for Katie

I feel like, in the interest of full disclosure, I should make a preliminary note that my week's eating was more vegetable-laden and Food Network-inspired than usual (partially because we had guests over three times this week--hence the presence of desserts). Also, I'm not including breakfasts, because for breakfast I always eat either GrapeNuts or leftovers.

SUNDAY
D- Tofu-broccoli lasagna (original recipe to come), garlic orzo, cucumber-cabbage-celery ranch coleslaw, coconut-chocolate pudding pie

MONDAY
L- Leftover lasagna
D- Haystacks, salad with green peppers, cracked wheat rolls, passionfruit mousse and coconut cookies

TUESDAY
L- Brown rice, sauteed beet greens and red potatoes
D- Chicken burritos (leftover haystacks sauce wrapped up in tortillas and topped with cheese), green salad

WEDNESDAY
L- "Pink stirfry" made of brown rice, roasted beets and red potatoes
D- Upside down vegetarian pizza, cucumbers

THURSDAY
L- Whole-grain pasta, tofu sauteed with asparagus and grape tomatoes
D- Ranch chicken straws, strawberries

FRIDAY
L- Whole-grain pasta, braised kale with garlic
D- Tofu cannolini (original recipe to come) with tomato sauce, barley with kidney beans and corn

SATURDAY
L- Whole-grain pasta, roasted beets and roasted sweet potato
D- Hominy-vegetable soup made with sweet potato puree and chicken broth, chocolate cupcakes (applesauce instead of oil)

SUNDAY
D- Mexican chicken lasagna with corn and tomatoes, barley and black beans, green salad with cucumbers, key lime bars