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Grocery List

This week's Grocery List can be downloaded here:

Grocery List for October 8 - 12, 2007 - PDF

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Monday Recipes

Notes for Monday:

1. If you do not have any ham in the freezer from last week, be sure to add ham to your grocery list. The Scalloped Potatoes and Ham dish is from Kim Tilley's Bulk Cooking: Ham Plan.
   
   
2. Save the rest of your green pepper for your Fajitas and Spanish Rice on Thursday.
   
   

    Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
• 4 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 cups chopped cooked ham
• 2 small onions, thinly sliced and separated into rings
• 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 2 cloves minced garlic

Melt butter in heavy saucepan over low heat, add flour, stirring until smooth. Cook one minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add half and half, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Stir in salt and white pepper.

Spoon 1/4 cup sauce mixture into greased 10 inch oven proof skillet. Combine potato and remaining ingredients in a large bowl, stir well. Layer half of potato mixture over sauce, top with half of remaining sauce. Repeat layers. Cover and bake at 350° for one hour or until potatoes are tender.

Sautéed Greens of Your Choice

Wash 3 cups greens and sauté in butter with salt. You may add chopped onions for extra flavor.

Apple Crumble

• 1 cup baking mix (I use Bisquick)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 cup margarine
• 1 can pie-sliced apples, drained or 2 cups thinly sliced apples*
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Grease the bottom and sides of an 8x8 or 6x10 inch baking dish. Blend first three ingredients in a bowl. Cut margarine into bits and add to mix. Spread 1/3 of oat mixture in bottom of pan. Place apple slices over mixture. Sprinkle with remaining oat mixture and cinnamon. Bake 30-35 minutes at 350°F. Serve warm with ice cream.

 

Tuesday Recipes

Notes for Tuesday:

1. Take advantage of your freezer chicken tonight to make this quick meal. If you don't have cooked chicken in your freezer, be sure to add chicken to your grocery list.
   
   
2. The pesto sauce mix I use is Knorr Pesto. To make this you would stir the dry mix into oil and water and heat. A jar of prepared pesto sauce or frozen pesto sauce would also work well in this recipe. I actually use double the amount of pasta listed here for the same amount of pesto sauce due to my kids' taste buds. We also like to sprinkle pecan pieces or pine nuts over the dish for added flavor, which I didn't add to the shopping list. Just add if you so choose.
   
   
3. Make a large salad tonight and save half for Friday night. Add croutons, bacon bits, sunflower seeds, and any other "crunchies" just before serving each night.
   
   

  Chicken Pesto

• 1 pkg. (8 oz.) Angel Hair Pasta
• 1 pkg. Pesto Sauce mix* or 1 jar prepared pesto sauce
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• cooked, cubed chicken from freezer
• 1 tbsp. basil
• grated parmesan cheese
  
  Prepare pasta according to directions. Prepare pesto sauce mix according to directions. In frying pan, place thawed chicken in heated oil and sprinkle basil over chicken until reheated. Mix pasta, chicken and pesto together. Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese over mixture and serve.
  
  
  

Salad

Crusty Bread

 

 

Wednesday Recipes

Notes for Wednesday:

1. The roast we are going to make today is not the most common cut, but it makes the best gravy you have ever tasted. This cut of beef does not have a lot of fat, so do not overcook it or it will get dried out. The leftovers are wonderful as a hot roast beef sandwich with gravy. If you have extra meat after sandwiches, freeze it for use in soups or casseroles later. You can use shredded roast in almost all recipes that call for cooked ground beef. If you would like, plan on using some of the leftovers for Thursday night's Shredded Beef Fajitas.
   
   

 Eye of Round Roast

• 3-4 lb. eye of round roast
• salt
• pepper
• oil

Preheat oven to 325°. Salt and pepper the outside of the roast on all sides. If you have a dutch oven that can be used on the stovetop and in the oven that would be best. If you don't you will need to transfer the roast to an oven-safe pan before baking. Heat enough oil to barely cover the bottom of a dutch oven large enough to hold roast. Brown roast on all sides in oil. Cover pan and place in preheated oven for 1-1/2 hours. Check for tenderness after about an hour and continue cooking until roast is done all the way through and tender. Add a little water if the juices dry out.  

Remove roast from oven and place on stovetop. Carefully add 1/2-3/4 cup hot water to pan (water hitting hot drippings may splatter). Remove roast from pan and place on a platter for slicing. Mix about 2 Tbsp. flour with 3 Tbsp. hot water in a jar with a lid, shaking until flour is dissolved. Add this to the juices in the pan to create gravy. Slice roast and serve with mashed potatoes and gravy.

 

Mashed Potatoes

• 6 potatoes
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 oz. cream cheese
• milk
• Adobo seasoning to taste

Peel potatoes and quarter. Boil in enough water to cover potatoes until potatoes are tender. Drain. Mix all ingredients except milk and mash with a potato masher or large fork. Add enough milk to make potatoes creamy. If you like very creamy mashed potatoes you can use a mixer to get a good whipped consistency. If you like lumpy potatoes, I recommend using a fork or potato masher to maintain a more solid consistency. If you want a healthier version, omit sour cream and cheese, mix with skim milk and add butter buds for flavor.

Steamed Broccoli

 

 

 

Thursday Recipes

Notes for Thursday:

1. Fajitas are easy to make and can be done on the grill (preferable) or in a large fry pan. Start marinating the meat and vegetables in the morning.
   
   
2. The grocery list includes flour tortillas, but I am including a recipe if you would like to make your own. They are easy and if you own a grain mill they are good made with whole wheat flour.
   
   
3. I've added a whole bag of onions to the grocery list this week for restocking your freezer and to have extra for the fajitas.
   

 

  Shredded Beef Fajitas

• 1 lb. of shredded beef *(from last night) or chicken breast (raw, sliced), shrimp, or a combination of the three
• 1 jar Teriyaki sauce
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 green pepper, sliced
• shredded lettuce
• grated cheddar cheese
• Guacamole (opt.)
• Sour Cream (opt.)
• Salsa
• Flour Tortillas, from the store* or homemade

Mix onion, pepper, and meat in a shallow dish and cover with teriyaki sauce. Marinate for several hours. Grill or pan fry. Serve with tortillas, guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. Each person assembles their own fajitas by putting meat/vegetable mixture and topping with their choice of condiments, rolling up the tortilla and eating by hand. Be careful not to overload the tortilla.

 

Homemade Tortillas

• 4 cups flour
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups water

Mix all ingredients. Form into golf ball size balls. Roll out flat into a circle. Cook on each side in a dry non-stick pan until starting to brown. DO NOT OVERCOOK. The tortillas cook quickly and it is easy to burn them if you turn away.

  Refried Beans

• Black turtle beans from freezer* or 1 can of black beans, drained
• cumin
• Adobo* or garlic salt
• olive oil
• 1 can red enchilada sauce
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Mash 4 cups of beans, adding enough liquid to make beans mushy and soft. Heat 2 T. olive oil in a fry pan and add mashed beans and spices to taste. Stir until hot and bubbly. Heat enchilada sauce in a sauce pan and serve beans topped with enchilada sauce and shredded cheddar cheese.

 Spanish Rice

• 1 chopped onion, sauted (from freezer)
• black pepper
• chili powder
• cumin
• Adobo seasoning
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked rice
• Olive oil
• 1 can (15 oz.) chicken broth
• 1 cup water

Saute onion in olive oil in a Dutch oven until tender; remove from pan. Add 2 T. olive oil to pan and brown the uncooked rice. Do not burn! Add chicken broth and water (this will sizzle loudly when the liquid meets the hot oil), add seasonings to taste, and bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low for 20 minutes; do not open. When cooked, add onions and any other warmed items you may have on hand that would be good in rice (corn, salsa, Rotel, etc.). Stir gently and serve.

 

 

Friday Recipes

Notes for Friday:

1. Tonight's soup can be prepared on the stovetop or in a slow cooker. Try placing your slow cooker outside if it is still too hot to use it in the kitchen where you live.
   
   
2. For your fruit salad, use up any fruit you may have from last week and this week such as apples or peaches. For the grocery list, I've put fruit of your choice for this salad. Try pineapple chunks and bananas if you're not sure or don't have any leftovers.
   
   

  Hash Brown Soup

• 1 sauteed Onion (from freezer)
• 3 cans chicken broth
• 1 Large bag Frozen Hash browns
• 1 Can cream of Celery Soup (substitutions)
• 1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup (substitutions)
• 12 oz can of Evaporated Milk (I use regular milk instead of evaporated milk)
• 1 pound Velveeta Cheese

Combine onion and broth, bring to boil. Add hash browns, bring to boil. Add soups (don't dilute) and evaporated milk, bring to boil. Add Cheese. Heat until cheese melts. Optional, serve with bacon bits on top.

 

Salad

Sourdough Bread


 Fruit Salad

* Indicates that of the options listed, this item is the one on the grocery list.

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