Meal Plan for July 13th - 19th

It's Thursday!!
Meal planning day!!
I've posted our menu plan for next week below. I hope it will inspire a meal or two for your table! I've also added the new cooking quotes and kitchen, baking and recycling tips of the week in the left sidebar. In case you haven't noticed, I move all the previous quotes and tips further down the sidebar into their respective categories, so they are all still viewable.

Don't forget to tidy your fridge and sort your coupon binder before putting together your meal plan for the week!

Please don't forget to register for our July Giveaways.
Details and photos are in the sidebar, as well.

Many Blessing and Happy Cookin' ~ Connie


Christ is the head of this House, The unseen host at every meal, The silent listener to every conversation.

A plaque with this inscription hung above my childhood kitchen table for years.

Monday - Creamy Italian Chicken, Easy Ranch Caesar and Garlic Bread

Creamy Italian Chicken

This recipe was inspired by one I found on my friend Roan’s blog, Joyful Always. Roan gives the instructions for using the crock pot for this recipe. I’ve added notes on how I will prepare this, using my pre-cooked, shredded chicken from the freezer.

4-6 frozen chicken breasts
1 package dry Italian salad dressing mix
1 can chicken broth
8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
12-16 oz. pasta (I use angel hair because it cooks quickly. ~ Roan)

Place chicken in crock pot* and sprinkle dry mix on top. Add the can of broth and cook on high for 4 hours.
Add the cubed cream cheese, shred the chicken a little with two forks or some scissors, and stir well. Continue to cook for 30 minutes or until cream cheese is melted. Stir. While the cream cheese is melting, cook the pasta. You can either spoon the chicken and sauce on each plate of pasta, or mix the whole thing together in a big bowl (or the pot you cooked the pasta in). Enjoy!

*Since my chicken is already cooked, I will put my packet of frozen shredded chicken in a sauce pan, sprinkle it with seasoning packet and add broth. I will allow this to come to a boil. I will reduce the temp and allow this to simmer a bit. I will then add cubed cream cheese and allow it to melt and serve mixture over pasta.


Easy Ranch Caesar Salad

Mix well:

1 pint Hellmann's Mayonnaise
1 package dry Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup milk*
Fresh ground pepper, to taste
a bit of anchovy paste, optional

If possible, refrigerate dressing for an hour or so before using.

Shred 1 head of lettuce into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle with crushed croutons. Pour on dressing. Toss salad and serve immediately.

*If you like a thinner dressing, add a bit more milk.



Tuesday - Sausage Pizza with Pizza Hut Copy-Cat Sauce

Sausage Pizza with Pizza Hut Copy-Cat Sauce

1 refrigerated pizza crust - I use Pillsbury (I always use a coupon!)
1 lb. browned, drained sausage
2 cups pizza cheese blend.

For Pizza Hut Copy-Cat Sauce, combine the following and allow to sit for one hour, if possible:

2 - 8 ounce cans tomato sauce
1 tablespoon dried Italian seasonings
1/2 tsp Garlic salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Pat dough onto baking sheet. Spread with sauce. Top with sausage. Bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with cheese. Return to oven until crust is golden brown, 5 minutes or so.



Wednesday - Sloppy Joes and Baked Crispy French Fries (frozen)

Sloppy Joes

1 -1 ½ pounds ground beef
½ c. catsup
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Liquid smoke

Brown ground beef in a skillet and drain. Return to skillet and add all other ingredients and simmer a few minutes. Serve on hamburger buns.


Baked Crispy French Fries

I have a couple of bags of frozen crispy French fries that I got for $0.99 at Kroger. We’ll be having these.

Thursday - Janet’s Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Casserole, Easy Avocado Salad and corn-on-the cob



Janet’s Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Casserole

I got this recipe from Katie C.'s blog. It is a recipe of her mother-in-law's, Janet. Janet is one of the most precious people I know.

3-4 boneless chicken breasts
16 oz of shredded Monterrey Jack and Cheddar Cheese
1 medium white onion chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I did use the low-sodium/low-fat kind)
1 can cream of chicken soup (ditto on the low-sodium/low-fat)
1 cup of milk
1 can of Rotel tomatoes
8-10 flour tortillas

Boil the chicken, cool and shred. Keep the broth from the chicken. Sauté onion and margarine. Combine soups, milk, Rotel tomatoes and onion in a bowl and stir well. Pour a very small amount of broth (just enough to coat the bottom) into a well greased casserole dish or glass baking pan. Place the bottom layer of tortillas in the dish. Then layer chicken, sauce and cheese. Repeat the layering process, starting with tortillas and ending with cheese, of course. (You can soak the middle layer of tortillas in the broth if you want them to be very soft in the casserole.)


Easy Avocado Salad

½ head lettuce, torn in pieces

Dressing:

1/4 c. mayonnaise
1/4 c. sour cream
2 tablespoons salsa
1 tablespoon olive oil

Combine all ingredients.

Salad Toppings:

½ - 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 chopped tomato
1 avocado, sliced (optional: toss with a bit of lemon or lime juice to prevent browning)

Place lettuce in bowl and toss with dressing. Place salad toppings on top of lettuce.



Friday Night - Eat Out!!!



Saturday - Amandine Fillets with Steamed Veggie Medley and Hush Puppies

Amandine Fillets

4 - 6 fish fillets
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ cup butter, divided
½ cup sliced or slivered almonds
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Place oven-safe serving platter in oven.

Sift together flour, salt, and pepper. Dip fillets into milk. Roll fish in flour to coat completely. Melt ¼ cup butter in electric skillet. Add fillets, browning evenly on both sides. Cook until fish flakes easily. Remove cooked fillets to warm platter. (Be sure to handle warm platter carefully.) Turn oven off. Place platter with fillets back into warm oven.

Add remain ¼ cup butter to skillet. Add almonds. Allow butter and almonds to cook on medium-low heat until browned. Stir in lemon juice. Spoon butter sauce over fish fillets.


Steamed Veggie Medley

4 med. Carrots, peeled and cut into ½ inch diagonal slices
3 med. zucchini OR yellow squash Or a combination, cut into ½ inch slices
1 lg. Vidalia onion, cut into 8 sections
12 oz. fresh, sliced mushrooms
2 tbsp. butter

Place prepared carrots and onions in steamer basket*. Steam about 10 minutes. Add zucchini. Salt lightly and steam 8 minutes more.

In skillet sauté mushrooms in butter 4 to 5 minutes.

Combine with other vegetables. Veggies can be cooked ahead and heated for a minute or so in the microwave to warm.

If you don’t have a steamer basket, just add a small amount of water to the bottom of your boiler and cook on low heat with lid on pan. Watch water level carefully, so it doesn’t boil dry.


Hush Puppies

I use frozen hush puppies that I get at Wal-mart. The bag just says - Hush Puppies. It does say distributed by Wal-mart on the back of the bag.