Meal Plan for July 20th - 26th

It’s Meal Planning Day!!!

Don’t forget to tidy your fridge and sort your coupons!!

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Meal Plan for July 20th - 26th


Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt...
Colossians 4:6a

Monday - Bowtie Alfredo Carbonara, Cheesy Broiled Tomatoes and Garlic Bread

Monday - Bowtie Alfredo Carbonara, Cheesy Broiled Tomatoes and Garlic Bread


Bowtie Alfredo Carbonara

2 cups fresh, sliced mushrooms
½ - 1 cup chopped onion
8 pieces bacon, chopped (Can substitute Canadian bacon, but you will need to add a bit of butter, olive oil, water or broth for sautéing Canadian bacon, mushrooms and onions.)

16 oz. bowtie pasta, prepared according to package directions

White sauce: (can use jarred Alfredo)

3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons Italian seasonings (optional)
3 c. milk, warmed for a few seconds in the microwave - Do not boil.
1 cup Parmesan cheese, divided

Melt butter in a sauce pan. Do not brown. Whisk in flour, salt and Italian seasonings. Add milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Add ¾ cup Parmesan cheese. Stir until cheese is melted.

Combine prepared bow tie pasta, bacon/veggie mixture and white sauce. Plate. Sprinkle each serving with a bit of Parmesan cheese.


Cheesy Broiled Tomatoes

This is a great way to use fresh garden tomatoes.

2 large tomatoes, thinly sliced - about 4 -5 slices per tomato
salt and pepper, to taste

For cheese topping, combine:

½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
¼ cup mozzarella cheese
Italian seasonings, to taste (optional)

Place tomato slices on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread each slice with cheese topping. Broil until tomatoes are heated through and cheese topping is golden brown.



Tuesday - Pizza Burgers and Baked Mozzarella Sticks


Pizza Burgers

1 lb. ground beef
1 egg
¾ cup Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 Tablespoon Italian seasonings

4 slices cheese - provolone or mozzarella

4 rolls or buns from grocery bakery

½ cup pizza sauce - (Make your own by combining a small can of tomato sauce, 1½ teaspoons of Italian seasons and ½ - 1 teaspoon sugar.)

Gently crumble ground beef into a large mixing bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together: egg, Parmesan cheese, onion powder, and Italian seasoning. Pour egg mixture over crumbled meat. Gently combine. Over-handling causes burgers to be tough.

Shape into patties. Grill, or cook in skillet, until done. Top burgers with cheese, allowing it to melt while still on the grill or in the pan.

Place burgers on bun bottoms. Spoon pizza sauce over melted cheese. Top with other half of bun.


Baked Mozzarella Sticks

My kids like the Farm Rich brand with “built-in marinara.”



Wednesday - Fried Chicken with Corn-and-Tomato Salsa served over Uncle Ben’s Original Wild Grain Rice

This is a another recipe that will help us use our fresh vegetables. This recipe inspired by one in Rachel Ray’s Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine, August 2009 issue.
Because the chicken is breaded, I won’t add a bread to our meal. The salsa is much like a salad.


Fried Chicken with Corn-and-Tomato Salsa served over Uncle Ben’s Original Wild Grain Rice

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast (pounded flat, if you like)
1 cup milk or buttermilk
½ cup flour, seasoned with a bit of salt and pepper
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil or butter
1 ½ cups fresh, canned or frozen (thawed) corn kernels
2 chopped tomatoes
½ cup chopped red onion
1 tablespoon Italian seasonings
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 box Uncle Ben’s Original Wild Rice, prepared according to package directions
(For a flavorful rice, use chicken broth in place of all or some of the water called for on the back of the box.)

Place three shallow dishes on counter. Pie plates work well! In dish, put seasoned flour. In second dish, put milk. In third dish, put bread crumbs. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, roll chicken in flour, dip in milk, and roll in bread crumbs, shaking to remove any excess coating. Place on chicken on a platter and continue this process until all chicken in coated.

In a skillet, heat ¼ cup olive oil or butter over medium heat. (Butter will burn, if you use too high of a heat setting.) Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until golden brown. When done, remove to paper-towel lined platter. Allow to drain.

If using fresh corn, remove corn kernels from cob by placing a husked and “silk-ed” ear into a large bowl. Using a fairly large knife, cut down toward the bowl, moving around the ear, until all kernels are removed. Repeat until you have 1 ½ cups of kernels.

Combine. corn, chopped tomatoes, chopped onions, a tablespoon of Italian seasonings, and a tablespoon of olive oil.

Place a serving of rice on each plate. Place chicken breast on top of rice. Spoon corn-and-tomato salsa over chicken.



Thursday - Shrimp Scampi, Peach Pecan Salad and Hush Puppies


Shrimp Scampi

This is Roan’s recipe I posted a few weeks back, while we were on vacation. I am really looking forward to trying this!! All of Roan’s recipes are great!!

1 lb. shrimp (I get a bag at Sam's that is already peeled and deveined ~ Roan)
16 oz. angel hair pasta
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp. jarred chopped garlic
garlic salt to taste

Cook pasta.
In large skillet, heat butter, olive oil, and garlic.
Add shrimp (thawed) and sauté until pink. If the shrimp is already cooked, just heat it through. Add garlic salt to taste. Pour shrimp and sauce over drained pasta. Serve.


Peach Pecan Salad

I hope to get to the Cherry Creek Orchard for some fresh peaches for this salad.

½ cup chopped pecans, toasted (To toast, place chopped pecans in 350 degree oven for 5 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.)

Enough torn lettuce for your family
1 - 2 peeled, sliced peaches
4 green onions, chopped
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (can use heated pre-cooked)
Balsamic vinaigrette (bottled or make your own - recipe below)

In a large salad bowl toss lettuce, peach slices, green onions and vinaigrette. Plate. Top with bacon and toasted pecans. Serve immediately.

Homemade Vinaigrette Dressing:

1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup wine vinegar(red)
3 tsp. soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Blend all ingredients.


Hush Puppies

I get these at Wal-mart. The bag just says Hush Puppies. On the back of the bag, it says they are distributed by Wal-mart. I just follow the directions on the bag for baking them. These are really good!


Friday - Eat out!!!


Saturday - BBQ Pork Ribs, Fries with BBQ Seasoning, Memphis-style Cole Slaw and Biscuit Rolls

Most of the recipes for this meal were inspired by recipes in Better Homes and Gardens Grilling magazine. It's no longer on the news stand, but we are giving one away this month!! Be sure to register by emailing me at:

mealplanwithconnie@att.net

BBQ Pork BBQ Ribs

2 pounds pork ribs
2 cups of Coca-Cola
¼ cup liquid smoke
Water

Place ribs, Coca-Cola, liquid smoke and enough water to fill a large pan for parboiling.

Parboil for 30-40 minutes.

Remove ribs from pan; drain in colander.

You can place in a baking dish and bake in the oven, or cook these on the grill.

To cook in the oven:

Cover ribs with BBQ sauce and bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or so.

To grill:

Preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Add ribs to the grill. Grill, covered, for 10 minutes, or until meat begins to brown. Turn. Brush with BBQ sauce. Cook a few minutes. Turn and brush with that side with the BBQ sauce. Cook a few more minutes and remove to warm platter.

Serve ribs with more sauce.

Homemade Sauce:

1 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup ketchup (I use Heinz.)
¼ cup molasses
¼ cup cider vinegar
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder, use more or less according to taste
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon salt

Sauté onion and garlic in butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.


French Fries with BBQ Seasoning

1 bag of frozen crispy fries

Seasoning: - Can use commercial BBQ seasoning - it’s found in the spice section

Homemade Seasoning:

½ teaspoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper

Combine all and shake over fried that have been prepared according to package directions.


Memphis-style Cole Slaw

Bagged slaw mix
½ mayo, or to taste
2 tablespoons sweet pickle juice
½ teaspoon lemon-pepper
¼ salt
½ cup chopped red onion

Toss all ingredients and chill.


“Biscuit” Rolls

I buy the cheap, store-brand butter-flavored canned biscuits. Depending on the size of your family, you can use the 5-count or 10-count rolls of biscuits.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter.

Spray muffin pan with cooking spray. Place a refrigerated biscuit into each muffin cup. Spoon melted butter over each biscuit. Bake for about 10 minutes.