Monday, May 16, 2011

Dinner this week

So, I skipped last week's menu.  It's a lot of pressure to put these things in writing, haha!  So, although I would love to try to post something about what I'm cooking each week, it may be sporadic for the time being.  At some point, I do hope to add a feature to my blog that includes links to my recipes.  Many of my favorites are those that I've accumulated over the years from friends, family members, favorite Food Network stars, etc., but others are my own.  I hope to be able to share them with you in the near future!

Okay, so back to my dinner plans for this week... I'm finding that if I start my week this way (by organizing ahead of time what I'm planning to cook), it seems that 1) I'm spending less at the grocery store because I'm really only buying what we need, and 2) I don't make frequent, random trips back and forth to the store to grab ingredients for dinner.  Milk, baby food/formula, and bread don't count in my world, either!  :)

Monday:  Pot roast.  I bought this a week or so ago when I had the Red River Angus beef coupons (coupon HERE).  It's plenty to feed at least 4 adults, so there will be plenty for us and even some leftover.  Serving with mashed potatoes, Rhodes buttery rolls, and green beans.  Yum!

Side note on how I make my roast:  Salt the meat the night before and refrigerate.  The salt will tenderize and season the meat.  Before baking, I then add dry onion soup mix, cream of mushroom soup, strong coffee, and pepper to season.  Cook on low heat (275 degrees or so) for several hours - or, crock pot works great too.  Add fresh mushrooms, if you like.  This is delicious, easy, and filling.

Tuesday:  Depending on the leftover situation, I will make this either Tuesday or Wednesday... but Crispy Chicken is on the agenda.  This is baked chicken, that is battered in a bread crumb-type crust.  To prepare, you will marinate the chicken breasts in buttermilk and hot sauce (Louisiana is our favorite).  I let mine soak overnight, but a few hours would probably work fine, too.  The bread crumb crust can be made using a variety of ingredients.  The original recipe I had was to buy plain salad croutons.  Crumble using a food processor, leaving in chunky pieces (not too fine).  Add a ranch seasoning packet, and batter the chicken in that mixture.  I don't always have croutons on hand, so I've adapted the recipe, slightly, depending on what I have in my pantry.  I've used Ritz crackers before, and it was delicious.  This week, I have corn flakes.  Sounds odd, but they are sweet and if I add the ranch seasoning, it will add a sweet/salty combination to the chicken.  I'll let you know how it turns out.  But, the buttermilk, along with the crust layer, makes for a very moist and tasty chicken dish.  Really easy, too.  Serve with some chicken flavored pasta, some broccoli, or some roasted red potatoes.  I might go with the pasta and broccoli - so I won't overdo the potatoes this week!  In case you haven't printed yours, Pilgrim's Pride chicken coupon can be found HERE.   Also, the coupon may still be available HERE, but if not, the Knorr pasta and rice sides are BOGO free at Homeland thru tomorrow.  You don't actually have to buy two.  They ring up 1/2 price, or $0.77 each, I think.

Wednesday - Leftovers - we should have plenty after our Monday and Tuesday dinners.

Thursday - Sandwiches, or something easy.  Maybe grilled cheese and soup?

Friday - Michael is out of town through the weekend, so it might be a pizza night for us.  An easy, and justifiable treat in my book!

Thinking ahead to next week.... I'm thinking about making beef enchiladas on Monday night.  Really easy, and really delicious.  I'll try to post the recipe in the coming days.

Also, I tried a new cake recipe over the weekend - it has only two ingredients and was surprising really good.  Devil's food cake mix, and - are you ready for this...  a can of Diet Coke.  I've heard of it before, but never thought it would actually work.  But, it totally does, and it was so good.  Just pour in the can of soda, mix well, and pour into a greased 9x13.  Bake as normal, maybe even a few minutes less than the box indicates for a 9x13 size - basically just watch it and you'll know.  Cool and spread on your icing.  Delicious, cheap, and crowd pleasing!

I hope everyone has a great week!

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