Weekly Menu 7/9+

Saturday		baked chicken potato medley green beans strawberry yogurt cake
Sunday		okra gumbo rice
Monday		pizza salad garlic bread watermelon
Tuesday		grilled chicken pasta with ez pesto squash
Wednesday		pancakes bacon/sausage scrambled eggs cantaloupe
Thursday		texas ribs mac & cheese broccoli
Friday		tacos mexicorn lettuce salad

Saturday

1.        I know we just had this potato medley, but it is SO good.  Thanks Jill for the idea/recipe.  Perhaps it’s the fresh potatoes that are making it so yummy.

2.       Cook extra chicken tonight for the gumbo tomorrow. 

Baked Ranch Chicken

                Sprinkle dry ranch dressing on chicken pieces.  Bake at 375 for ~45 minutes.

Roasted Potato Medley

Cube a combination of sweet, red and russet potato.  Mix with 1-2T olive oil, salt and pepper, onion wedges, garlic.  Place on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes at 375.

Green Beans

Strawberry Yogurt Cake (Betty Crocker)

·         1 box white cake mix

·         ¾ c water

·         1/3 c oil

·         3 eggs (or egg whites)

·         6 oz strawberry yogurt

·         Frosting

·         Fresh strawberries

Heat oven to 350, grease and flour round cake pans.  Mix up cake mix with water, oil, eggs and yogurt; pour into pans.  Bake according to cake box directions and remove from pans.  Spread frosting over one cake layer and then top with fresh strawberries sliced about ¼” thick.  Top with second layer, frost sides and top.  Cut remaining strawberries in half or slices and top cake.  Store in fridge.

Sunday

1.        The okra hasn’t really started to come in great guns yet, and J keeps taking whatever he picks to school/daycare for his teacher, but who am I to complain if he’s picking? 

Chicken & Okra Gumbo

·         2-3 c cooked chicken

·         ½ c butter (1 stick)

·         ½ c flour

·         ¾ c chopped onion

·         ¾ c chopped celery

·         ¾ c chopped pepper

·         1 ½ quarts chicken stock

·         1 bay leaf

·         2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

·         2 c chopped okra, fresh or frozen

Seasoning mix:

·         2 tsp black pepper

·         1 ½ tsp cayenne (ha, aint no WAY I put this much in)

·         1 ½ tsp paprika

·         1 tsp dry mustard

·         1 tsp garlic powder

·         1 tsp salt

In small bowl combine seasoning mix.  In large dutch oven make a roux of the butter and flour, let it cook until it turns nut brown.  Add onion, celery and pepper.  Slowly add the chicken stock and stir, removing any lumps.  Add chicken and seasoning mix.  Let simmer uncovered, 30-40 minutes.  Add okra and cook another 10 minutes or until thickened. 

Rice

Monday

1.        I made up a recipe for Pizza Grilled cheese sandwiches and Karen wrote to me and thought I had created a Pizza Salad.  So I wrote THAT idea down and am finally getting around to sharing the idea/creation.  This is totally made up, so feel free to add what seems right to you.  Then be sure and let me know what else you did. 

Pizza Salad

·         Lettuce

·         Tomatoes cut in healthy chunks

·         Parmesan/Provolone/mozzarella cheese; chunks or grated

·         Black olives, sliced mushrooms, green peppers

·         Pepperoni

·         Fresh basil, cut chiffonade style

·         Oregano

·         Italian dressing

Garlic Toast

Use Texas Toast bread and grill the bread like a grilled cheese sandwich except use a little chopped garlic or garlic powder instead of cheese. 

Watermelon

Tuesday

1.        Hopefully you have a basil plant or know where you can get some good fresh stuff. 

Grilled Chicken

EZ pesto & pasta

·         1 c basil leaves

·         3-4T olive oil

·         3-4T Parmesan cheese

·         1 tsp garlic

·         ½ tsp salt

·         Nuts (if you want them and aren’t allergic)

Process in your food processor.  Store any leftover pesto in an ice cube tray so you can enjoy it this winter!  After it’s frozen remove the pesto cube and put it in a plastic container or Ziploc bag. 

Squash

Wednesday

1.        Put your ribs on to marinate tonight so they are extra tender.  No ideas for marinade?  Look in the salad dressing aisle for some good ideas. 

Pancakes

Bacon/sausage

Eggs

Cantaloupe

Thursday

Texas Grilled Ribs (boneless)

Mac & Cheese

·         4T butter

·         ¼ c flour

·         Salt & pepper

·         1tsp ground mustard

·         2c milk 

·         6-8 slices American cheese

·         ½ c cottage cheese

·         2c macaroni

·         Cheddar cheese

Melt the butter and add flour to make a roux; allow to brown slightly.  Add milk and seasonings.  Bring to a boil and allow to thicken. Add American and cottage cheeses until melted.  Combine with cooked macaroni and pour into a 9x13 pan.  Top with slices of cheddar cheese and bake about 15 minutes at 350, until cheese is melted. 

Broccoli

Friday

1.        If you have any brisket leftover from the 4^th and need to get it used up.  You can chop up the last of it and make Pioneer Woman’s Cowboy Nachos instead of tacos. 

Tacos

Mexicorn

Lettuce salad