Meal Plan for June 15th - June 21st

The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger:
but they that seek the LORD shall not want
any good thing.
Psalm 34:10

Monday - Three Cheese Chicken Penne Bake, simple green salad and garlic bread

Three Cheese Chicken Penne Bake

1 1/2 c. penne pasta, uncooked
2 c. fresh spinach (optional, but really good)
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
2 oz (1/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) Neufchatel Cheese, cubed
1 c. shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions; adding spinach to boiling water for last 1 minute. In a skillet, cook chicken with a bit of oil, butter or cooking spray on medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Add sauce; bring to a boil. Simmer 10 - 15 minutes or until chicken is done. Stir in cream cheese. Drain pasta mixture; return to pan. Stir in chicken mixture and 1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese. Pour into greased 2-quart baking dish. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake 3 minutes longer.

Tuesday - Caramelized Onion Pizza, mozzarella sticks

Caramelized Onion Pizza

1 refrigerated pizza dough
2 large white or purple onions
2 -3 cloves of garlic, minced, or a teaspoon or so of jarred
2 - 3 cups of grated Italian-blend cheese
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Slice onions in thin round slices. I use an attachment on my mandolin grater.
Add onions to a skillet with a bit of olive oil. Cook on low, stirring occasionally, until caramelized. This takes about 30 minutes or so. You can really cook them as long as you like. You might want to put a lid on the skillet for the first 20 minutes or so. This will help the onions wilt. Remove the lid for the last 10 to 15 minutes of cooking to allow onions to brown.
Once onions are ready, scoot them to the side and add minced garlic. Use as little or as much garlic as you like. Sauté garlic for a couple of minutes. Don’t brown garlic. Remove from heat.
Pat pizza dough into pan. Scatter the onion mixture evenly over the dough. Handle carefully if onions are still hot.
Top with cheese. Bake until crust is golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Wednesday - Cheesy chicken, Garlicky Cream Cheesy Potatoes, and Steamed Broccoli

You can also have a bread of choice tonight. We probably won’t add a bread, since the chicken is breaded and high in calories.

Cheesy Chicken

6 - 8 tablespoons butter
4 - 6 chicken breasts
½ cup plain flour
1 t. salt
1 ¼ cups evaporated milk
1 ½ cups grated cheddar cheese
1 can mushroom soup

Melt butter in a 9x13 dish.
Put flour and salt into a Ziploc bag. Add chicken a piece at a time. Shake to coat each breast. Place coated breasts into dish with melted butter, turning breasts to coat them with butter. Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, turn chicken and cook 15 minutes more. Reduce oven heat to 325 degrees. In a bowl, combine milk, cheese and soup. Pour over chicken. Cover and bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.

Garlicky Cream Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

6 medium to large potatoes
2 to 3 cloves of peeled garlic
1 t. salt
1/2 cup milk
3 t. butter
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 stick softened cream cheese (4oz.)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
Peel potatoes and cut into cubes. Place potatoes, salt and peeled garlic in a boiler. Cover with water. Boil potatoes 15 minutes, or until done. Drain and transfer potatoes into a large mixing bowl, add butter, salt, cream cheese, sour cream, milk.

Steamed Broccoli

1 bunch of fresh broccoli

Rinse well. Cut into large, bite-sized florets. Discard stems, if not using. If using, peel off the thick skin around the stem. Cut stem into bite-sized pieces.

Bring 3/4 to 1 inch of water to a boil in a saucepan with a steamer. If you do not have a steamer, you can simply put the broccoli directly into an inch of boiling water. Add the broccoli to the steamer and cover; reduce heat to medium and let cook for 6-7 minutes. The broccoli is done when you can pierce it with a fork. Be careful not to overcook the broccoli.

Toss with butter or olive oil. Sprinkle with salt.

Thursday - Mexican Dish and side salad

Mexican Dish

This recipe is from Baptist Memorial Hospital - Union County’s new cookbook, Temptations Tried and True. I will be giving one of these away!
Watch for details!!

1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can tomato sauce
1 packet taco seasoning
1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
1 can Mexicorn, drained

Brown ground beef and onion. Drain and rinse. Add tomatoes, corn, tomato sauce and seasoning packet. Mix well. Pour into sprayed 9x13 baking dish.
Mix corn muffin mix as directed on package. Stir in the Mexicorn. Spread over top of ground beef mixture Bake until cornbread is done, about 15 - 20 minutes.

Saturday - Quick and Easy Ham and Potato Casserole, Easy Slaw and Broccoli Cornbread

Quick and Easy Ham and Potato Casserole

1 32 ounce bag of hash browns, cubed or shredded
1 onion, chopped
2 c. chopped ham
1 can cheddar cheese soup
2 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Mix all ingredients, reserving 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Pour into a sprayed 9x13 baking dish. Cover tightly with foil. Bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven. Top with remaining cheese. Return to oven long enough to melt cheese.

Easy Slaw

One bag slaw mix
1/4 cup Kraft Cole Slaw Dressing
1/2 cup (or to taste) low-fat mayo

Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Broccoli Cornbread

2 boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix, or similar
4 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 sticks melted butter or margarine (6 ounces)
1 pkg. (10 oz) chopped broccoli, thawed and drained
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup cottage cheese

Combine all ingredients and pour into greased 9- X 13-inch baking dish. Bake at 375° for 35 to 40 minutes, or until lightly browned.

I usually half this recipe for the four of us. I used about ¾ cup of frozen chopped broccoli from a bag. I also cut the butter back to ½ a stick. It’s great the other way, but we just don’t need that much butter.