Weekly Menu 6/2+

Saturday		guisada enchiladas salsa salad cantaloupe
Sunday		bbq chicken baked potato salad cucumbers in sour cream
Monday		stuffed shells crusty bread
Tuesday		grilled chicken salad
Wednesday		pork chops rice a roni green beans
Thursday		blueberry waffles eggs sausage
Friday		sausage wraps mac and cheese brocoli watermelon

 Saturday

Carne Guisada Enchiladas

1-2c. leftover carne guisada

Easy enchilada sauce (recipe follows) or canned sauce

Corn tortillas

Grated cheese

Minced onion

Spoon a few tablespoons of leftover guisada into warm corn tortillas.  Roll up and place seam side down into a 9x13 pan.  Pour enchilada sauce over all enchiladas, top with cheese and bake until hot and bubbly at 350; maybe 20 minutes, but if your guisada is cold to start out, it will probably be more like 25 or 30 minutes.  Top with diced onions. 

Easy Enchilada Sauce (In A Shoe)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup flour

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. black pepper

4 cups broth or bouillon

1 tsp. salt (omit if using bouillon or well-salted broth)

8 oz. tomato sauce

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Stir in flour to make a smooth paste.  Add spices and continue to stir until bubbly.

Whisk in broth and bring to a boil.  Cook and stir 1 minute, until thickened.  Stir in tomato sauce. Makes 5-6 cups, enough for (2) 9×13 pans of enchiladas.

Super-flavor tips:

For extra flavor, skim and save fat when making chicken broth and use a little [fat] in place of part of the butter.

Try sauteing 1/2 diced fresh onion and 4 cloves minced garlic in the butter instead of using the onion and garlic powder.

Nana’s Salsa Salad (Pace Picante Sauce ???) 

2 cups tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1 cup diced zucchini

1 cup frozen corn kernels

1/3 cup chopped green onions

1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced

1/3 cup picante sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, zucchini, corn, green onions, and avocado.

Whisk together the picante sauce, oil, lemon juice, garlic salt, and cumin. toss gently with the vegetables. Chill 3-4 hours, and toss before serving.

Cantaloupe

Sunday

BBQ chicken

            Be sure to cook extra chicken tonight for Tuesday’s salad.

Baked Potato Salad

4-5 potatoes peeled (unless using red potatoes) and cubed

½ c sour cream

½ c mayo

½ c cheddar cheese

¼ c bacon bits

¼ c chopped green onion

Salt & pepper to taste

Boil potatoes until cooked, but not too squishy.  You want them to maintain their shape once you start mixing around the salad. While potatoes are cooking mix remaining ingredients together.  Allow potatoes to cool for 15-20 minutes so it doesn’t melt the cheese when you mix them with the ‘dressing’.  Combine and enjoy. 

Cukes in Vinegar or Grilled Okra

2-3 Thin sliced and peeled cucumbers (peel first, it’s easier J)

4T apple cider vinegar

4T sugar

1t salt

Combine vinegar, sugar and salt over sliced cucumbers.  These are better if they have a chance to sit for a few hours before eating.  You can also add half a cup of mayo or sour cream if you’d like. 

Monday

You could also sneak in a shredded zucchini into the sauce if you wanted to up the veggies for this meal. 

Stuffed Pasta Shells (Pioneer Woman)

8 ounces, weight Jumbo Pasta Shells

30 ounces, weight Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese

8 ounces, weight Parmesan Cheese, Grated, Divided

½ cups Grated Romano Cheese

1 whole Egg

12 leaves Basil, Chiffonade

2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

Salt And Pepper, to taste

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

½ whole Medium Onion, Chopped

5 cloves Garlic, Minced

½ pounds Italian Sausage

½ cups Red Wine

1 whole 28 Ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes

1 whole 15-ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes

2 Tablespoons Sugar

½ teaspoons Salt

2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

Cook pasta shells for half the cooking time; make sure not to overcook.  Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.  Heat olive oil in large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Add onions and garlic and saute for a minute or two.  Add Italian sausage and brown, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks.  Pour in red wine and let it cook for a minute or two.  Pour in cans of crushed tomatoes and stir.  Add sugar and salt.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.  Cover and cook 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Check for seasonings; can add crushed red peppers if you like a little heat. In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, half the Parmesan, Romano, egg, salt and pepper, basil, and 2 tablespoons parsley.  Stir until combined.  To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with sauce.  Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture.  Place face down on the sauce.  Repeat with shells until cheese mixture is gone.  Top shells with remaining sauce.  Sprinkle on extra Parmesan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.  Serve with crusty French bread.

Crusty bread

Tuesday

Grilled Chicken Salad

2-3 c cubed cooked chicken

3-4 c well chopped romaine

½ c cut red grapes (if you don’t mind fruited/sweetened meat)

¼ c mayo mixed with ¼ c bottled Italian dressing

Bacon bits

1-2 chopped boiled eggs

2-3 T sunflower seeds

Diced tomatoes

Mix your dressing separately, but toss with salad just before serving so that the dressing coats each piece of salad-like particles. 

Wednesday

Saucy Pork Chops (Quick Cooking)

Pork chops (salted and peppered)

2T olive oil

1T butter

¼ c onion chopped

2t minced garlic

8 oz fresh mushrooms

¼ fresh rosemary or ½ t dried

1 can cream of mushroom soup + 2T water

In large skillet brown pork chops in oil and butter on each side; remove to plate and keep warm.  Saute the mushrooms, onions, garlic and rosemary for 2-3 minutes.  Stir in the soup and water; bring to a boil.  Top with pork chops.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10-15 minutes until pork juices run clear; stirring occasionally. 

Rice a roni

2T onion

4T butter

1c rice

¼ c vermicelli broken up in your hand

2 ½ c chicken or beef broth or use bullion

Sauté onion, rice and vermicelli in butter until pasta starts to brown; don’t let it burn.  Add broth and simmer for 15 minutes.  Allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving. 

Green beans

Thursday

Blueberry Waffles

Eggs

Sausage

Friday

Sausage or Brat Wraps

Mac & Cheese

4T butter

¼ c flour

Salt & pepper

1t 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

Watermelon