Please post on the message board if you have questions or comments about these recipes.

Monday - Recipes

Cheddar Chicken Spaghetti
Bacon Ranch Green Beans
Italian Bread

Tuesday - Recipes

Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Sauteed Greens of your choice
Sliced Peaches

Wednesday - Recipes

Beef Vegetable Soup
Hard Rolls
Apples, Bananas and Strawberries

Thursday - Recipes

Taco Crescent Bake
Mexican Salad
Spanish Rice

Friday - Recipes

Basil Balsamic Fish
Winter Mixed Vegetables
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Vanilla Yogurt with Pineapple

 

Grocery List

This week's Grocery List can be downloaded here:

Grocery List for March 12-16, 2007 - PDF

Shopping List Software format (download shopping list free Windows software)

 

 

Monday Recipes

Notes for Monday:

1. Tonight we are using chicken from the freezer. If you don't have any chicken in your freezer, you will need to add it to your grocery list.
   
2. You can adjust the spiciness of this dish by either reducing or omitting the green chiles. I usually add them last and only put them on one side so it will not be too spicy for the children.
   
   

  Cheddar Chicken Spaghetti

• 1 package (8 oz) spaghetti, broken in half
• 2 cups cubed cooked chicken (from freezer)
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
• 1 cup milk
• 1 T diced pimientos (optional)
• 1 can green chiles (optional)
• 1 Tbsp. tarragon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the chicken, 1 cup cheese, soup, milk, pimientos, green chiles, tarragon, salt and pepper. Drain spaghetti, add to the chicken mixture and toss to coat.

Transfer to a greased 13 x 9 x 2 baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until heated through.

 

 

Bacon Ranch Green Beans

• 1 package (16 oz) frozen green beans
• 2 tbsp butter or margarine
• 1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
• 4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled or bacon bits* (I like Hormel Real Bacon Bits)

In a skillet, saute the green beans in butter. Add the salad dressing mix and toss to coat. Just before serving, sprinkle in the bacon and mix.

 

 

Italian Bread

 

 

 

Tuesday Recipes

Notes for Tuesday:

1. If you do not have any ham in the freezer, 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 Spanish Rice and Mexican Salad 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.

Sliced Peaches

 

 

Wednesday Recipes

Notes for Wednesday:

1. Today we are going to start some soup in the early afternoon in the slow cooker/crock pot.
   
2. Although they are not in the ingredients, if you have access to them chopped kohlrabi and turnips would make nice additions to this soup.
   

 Beef Vegetable Soup

• 1 lb. cooked ground or shredded beef (from freezer)
• 1 onion (from freezer)
• 1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 1 bag mixed or stew vegetables*, or chopped fresh vegetables
• 2 cans vegetable* or beef broth
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 2 tsp. dried parsley
• other spices, as desired

Combine all ingredients except rice in a slow cooker and simmer for 4-6 hours. Add rice for the last hour of cooking.

 

Hard Rolls

Apples, Bananas and Strawberries

 

 

 

Thursday Recipes

Notes for Thursday:

1. Tonight's taco dish will go together quickly using the taco seasoned ground beef from your freezer. Just thaw your taco meat in the microwave and follow the recipe below. If you did not cook extra taco seasoned ground beef two weeks ago when we had Taco Mac Salad, be sure to add ground beef and taco seasoning to your grocery list.
   
   

 Taco Crescent Bake

• 1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls
• 2 cups crushed tortilla chips, divided
• 1 lb. taco seasoned ground beef, browned (from freezer)
• 1 container sour cream (8oz.)
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (4 oz.)

Unroll crescent dough into a rectangle; press onto the bottom and 1 in. up
the sides of a greased 13 in x 9 in x 2 in baking dish. Seal seams and
perforations. Sprinkle with 1 cup of crushed chips; set aside. In the microwave, heat up your taco seasoned ground beef. Spoon over chips. Top with sour cream, cheese and remaining chips. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until crust is lightly browned.

 

 Spanish Rice

• 1 chopped onion, sauteed (from freezer)
• 1/2 chopped green pepper
• 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 green pepper in olive oil in a Dutch oven until tender; remove from pan. Add 2 T. olive oil to pan and when hot add the uncooked rice. Stirring constantly, cook the rice until slightly browned but not burned. 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, green pepper, and any other warmed items you may have on hand that would be good in rice (corn, salsa, Rotel, etc.). Stir gently and serve.

 

Mexican Salad

• variety of lettuces, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded & chopped
• Remaining green bell pepper, seeded & chopped
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 1 can black olives, drained
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 bottle ranch salad dressing (We like the Spicy Ranch Salad Dressing)

Combine all fresh ingredients and serve with ranch dressing.

 

 

 

Friday Recipes

Notes for Friday:

1. Some of you have been wondering what to do for dinner on the weekends. One idea would be to cook extra mashed potatoes tonight and make Mashed Potato Pancakes one night...just Google "Mashed Potato Pancake Recipe" and see what you can find. Then let us know on the discussion board how it turned out.
   

  Basil Balsamic Fish

• 1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• Few drops hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 c. minced fresh basil (or 1/8 c. dried)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 lbs. firm-fleshed fish (excellent with mahi-mahi, swordfish, salmon steaks)

Whisk together the vinegar, oil, and hot pepper sauce. Stir in the basil. Pour over the fish and marinate about 45 minutes, turning once. Broil or grill about 4 minutes on each side, depending on thickness of fish.

 

Winter Mixed Vegetables, steamed and lightly buttered


 Garlic Mashed Potatoes

• 5 lbs. potatoes, peeled & quartered
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 Tbsp. butter plus extra for garnish
• Garlic Salt or Adobo* to taste

Boil potatoes until they are soft when pierced with a fork. Drain and place in a large bowl. Beat with a mixer on medium speed while adding milk, butter, and garlic. Do not overbeat as you want them mashed but still a little lumpy. Serve with butter.

Vanilla Yogurt with Pineapple

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