Meal plan for April 23, 2008

SATURDAY
B: 1/3c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2c skim milk, 1c fruit salad
L: No-sugar bagel, light cream cheese, 1/2 a diet snapple
D: Out with a friend.
SUNDAY
B: Egg sandwich on an english muffin with sausage, lettuce & cheese
L: Soup, small roll, diet coke, small fruit
D: Steak sandwiches on good bread, cheese. Fruit salad
MONDAY
B: 2/3 cup cereal, 1/2 cup skim milk, strawberries
L: Pasta marinara, diet coke, small fruit
D: Lemon Trout, wild rice, steamed mixed beans
TUESDAY
B: 1/3 c pre-cooked oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Soup & small roll, medium fruit
D: Soft-shelled tacos with salad and salsa
WEDNESDAY
B: 2/3 cup cereal, 1/2 cup skim milk, strawberries
L: Wraps or leftovers
D: Ravioli & marinara sauce, salad with soy nuts & lemon poppyseed dressing
THURSDAY
B: 1/3 pre-cooked oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Wraps
D: BBQ chicken in mustard sauce, mashed potatoes, large green salad with soy nuts. Lemon-poppyseed dressing
FRIDAY
B: 2/3 cup cereal, 1/2 cup skim milk, strawberries
L: Wrap or leftovers
D: Sheppard's pie (Pax Tharda)

Vegetable basket

A friend delivered my first "Medium" vegetable basket. It's got a lot of goodies in it.

• 1 head celery (now I've got three in the fridge. I'll have to figure out something other than celery sticks for snacks to do with it).
• 1 head lettuce (looks like a curly leaf variety).
• 4 heads of garlic (yay! I love garlic.)
• 4 oranges
• 4 potatoes
• 1 pound of carrots (I've already got 2 pounds in the fridge. So now I'll have lots of carrot sticks to go with my celery)
• 1 pound of onions (I was out of onions).
• 1 honey dew melon (With the oranges and the pineapple I have at home - I'm thinking fruit salad)
• 1 pound of beets (what do I do with this?)
• 1 seedless cucumber (salads)
• 1 zucchini (salads, snacks ... guess I'd best get to making hummus).

So this definitely will define what I'm eating next week. Anyone have some good beet recipes? I've found two so far: Roasted Beets and Balsamic marinated beets. I'll probably be trying both next week.

Menu plan for April 18th, 2008

Saturday
B: 1 egg, 1 egg white, 2 potato hashbrowns
L: 1 cup tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwhich
D: Whole-wheat Ravioli and tomato sauce with Parmesan and salad for 5

Sunday
B: Cinnamon and strawberry pancakes, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Tuna wrap with lettuce, radish, and greens.
D: Curried Potato and vegetable soup for 5

Monday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Soup, small roll, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ chicken in mustard sauce, large green salad with soy nuts. Lemon-poppyseed dressing

Tuesday
B: 2/3 cup cereal, 1/2 cup skim milk, strawberries
L: Pasta marinara, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ Trout, wild rice, steamed mixed beans

Wednesday
B: 1/2 c light yogurt+flax seed, 1 small fruit, 1/2 c skim milk
L: Wrap (Tuna or leftover meat) with vegetables, yogurt + flax
D: Crockpot pea soup or Chicken parts (for Easy Asian chicken)

Thursday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Pasta maranara, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ Hamburgers with light cheese on whole wheat, with lettuce, tomatoes and mustard

Friday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Wrap (Tuna or leftover meat) with lots of vegetables, yogurt + flax
D: Dinner out

Snacks:
Goldfish & small fruit
150 ml light yogurt + flax seed
Protein bar
Large fruit
Baked tortilla bits & salsa

Minor edits to what I ate and removed the overly-squashed and ugly table.

Menu Plan April 12, 2008

Saturday
B: 1 egg, 1 egg white, 2 potato
L: 1 cup tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwhich
D: Whole-wheat Ravioli and tomato sauce with Parmesan and salad for 5

Sunday
B: Cinnamon and strawberry pancakes, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Tuna wrap with lettuce, radish, and greens.
D: Curried Potato and vegetable soup for 5

Monday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Soup, small roll, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ chicken in mustard sauce, large green salad with soy nuts. Lemon-poppyseed dressing

Tuesday
B: 2/3 cup cereal, 1/2 cup skim milk, strawberries
L: Pasta marinara, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ Trout, wild rice, steamed mixed beans

Wednesday
B: 1/2 c light yogurt+flax seed, 1 small fruit, 1/2 c skim milk
L: Wrap (Tuna or leftover meat) with vegetables, yogurt + flax
D: Crockpot pea soup or Chicken parts (for Easy Asian chicken)

Thursday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Pasta maranara, diet coke, small fruit
D: BBQ Hamburgers with light cheese on whole wheat, with lettuce, tomatoes and mustard

Friday
B: 1/3 c raw oatmeal, bananas, cinnamon, 1/2 cup skim milk
L: Wrap (Tuna or leftover meat) with lots of vegetables, yogurt + flax
D: Dinner out

Snacks:
Goldfish & small fruit
150 ml light yogurt + flax seed
Protein bar
Large fruit
Baked tortilla bits & salsa

Minor edits to what I ate and removed the overly-squashed and ugly table.

Mexican Pie

Taken from a Live Journal’s Recipe Maven post. Posted by neokibo on the 6th of December, 2005. This is a variation on shepherd’s pie. It’s far more flavorful and downright messy to cook.

Serves: 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Modification/Notes
Cilantro is optional, as to some it has an unpleasant taste. Remember to put a baking sheet beneath your casserole dish as Mexican Pie tends to overflow the container. The batter bakes best if the casserole dish remains uncovered.

Mexican cheese is just a pre-shredded mix of cheddar, Monterey jack, bits of jalapeño and often a mild cheese (like Emmentaler). Feel free to make your own. I recommend equal portions of jalapeño-flavored cheese (Havarti, Gouda or even Monterey jack), cheddar and Colby.

Equipment

• Measuring spoons & cups
• Paring knife & cutting board
• Non-stick skillet
• Baking sheet
• Casserole dish

Ingredients
Corn bread batter

1 cup	flour
1 cup	cornmeal
1/4 cup	sugar
3/4 teaspoon	salt
3 teaspoons	baking powder
1/4 cup	oil
2	eggslightly beaten
1 cup	milk
1	jalapeños, minced (optional)
1/2 cup	"Mexican mix" cheeses, shredded (optional)
1 1/2 tablespoons	lemon juice

For the meat mixture:

1 to 1.5 pounds	hamburger
2 tablespoons	oil
1 medium	onion, roughly chopped
2-3	garlic cloves, minced
1 can	whole tomatoes, crushed
1 cup	frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 tablespoon	chili powder
1 teaspoon	oregano
1 teaspoon	cumin
½ teaspoon	ground black pepper
	cilantro, roughly chopped
2-3 cups	"Mexican mix" cheese, shredded

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F (176° C) degrees. In a medium-hot skillet sauté the onion in oil for 5-7 minutes
2. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute.
3. Add hamburger, chili powder, oregano, cumin, and fresh cracked pepper and saute until hamburger is browned through.
4. Add corn and crushed tomatoes with juice and cook until warmed.
5. Add cilantro and cheese (as well as optional ingredients as you desire) and mix until incorporated.
6. Pour a thin layer of batter on the bottom of a 2-quart oven-proof casserole dish.
7. Add the meat mixture.
8. Top with corn bread batter.
9. Bake for 30-45 minutes

Crockpot Hamburger Soup

Taken from: Recipe*Zaar. Recipe #133649. Posted by Kittencal; and Shirley Downey. Both recipes had good points to them, so I’ve combined them.

Equipment

• Measuring spoons and cups.
• Paring knife and cutting board.
• Can opener.
• Skillet (to brown the meat).
• Plate with paper towel (to drain the meat).

Modification/Notes
I keep consomme in my freezer whenever I can, store-brought broth can be used instead. Fresh tomatoes can be used, but you’ll have to dip them in boiling water to remove their skins before adding them to the recipe. I prefer to cut up my tomatoes before adding them.

Ingredients

2 lbs	hamburger
2 tablespoons	garlic, minced
1 large	onion, chopped finely
1 (28 ounce) can	tomatoes (undrained)
1 ¾ cups	water
30 ounces	beef consomme, undiluted
1-2 tablespoons	worcestershire sauce
10 ounces	salsa
5-6	carrots, chopped
5-6 stalks	celery, chopped
1-2	bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon	Each: thyme, oregano, rosemary, and basil
	black pepper, to taste
	grated Parmesan cheese, optional, to taste

Instructions

1. Brown the hamburger with the onion and garlic. Drain well.
2. Add in all remaining ingredients except the Parmesan cheese, and turn the crockpot on low for 6 hours (or high for 3).
3. Ladle into serving bowls and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh ground black pepper just before serving.

1960's cookbooks & potato chips

The Irresistible Recipes with Wise potato chips is a tiny cookbook (the images are actual size) that I found at the bottom of a bag of old clippings and cutouts, cookbooks and recipe cards in my closet. I've always meant to put them on the web somewhere.

I always figured I should try to make some of these recipes; but if I did - could I resist not trying to reduce the fat, or change the ingredients? I remember dishes with crumbled chip toppings, but I don't remember my Mother ever putting chips in brownies.