Menu Plan (a day late)

Here's this weeks menu plan....

Monday- chicken salad sandwiches, grapes and cut up veggies
Tuesday- quesadillas, cut up veggies
Wednesday- Lazy day Lasagna, garlic bread, salad*
Thursday- Southwest Chicken Roll-ups*
Friday- Homemade pizza
Saturday- Chicken noodle soup*
Sunday- Sandwiches/leftover soup

*Recipes will be posted later this week.

Homemade Hamburger or Hotdog buns

I found this recipe a while ago and have been wanting to try it. I finally tried it Wednesday and they were sooooo good!!!! So simply and yummy! Definitely much better than store bought buns. In fact, I don't think I'll be buying buns any more. These are just too good!

This recipe is for a bread machine.

1 1/4 cup milk
1 lg egg
6 Tbs oil
3 Tbs sugar or honey
4 cups bread flour
1 Tbs plus 1 tsp vital wheat gluten*
2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp yeast

Place ingredients in bread machine pan (in order listed). Program for dough setting. When done, roll out on a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal parts, I used a big plastic cup to cut them out. Form into a flat round for burger buns or a small loaf for hotdog buns. Cover loosely and let rise for 30 min. or until doubled in size.

Bake for 15 min. or until golden brown at 375 degrees.

*I didn't have any vital wheat gluten so I used 3.5 cups bread flour and 1/2 cup all purpose.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I love these sandwiches!! So quick and easy!

Leftover cooked pork (from the sweet & sour pork)
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 kaiser rolls (I used homemade buns this time, I'll be posting the recipe for those soon)

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients. Set pan over med. heat and bring to simmer. Cook 15 minutes, or until liquid reduces and sauce thickens. Serve on buns.

That's it! It's that easy and so yummy!

Sweet and Sour Pork

This is such a simple and yummy meal! What's easier than putting it in the crock pot and letting the crock pot do the rest?! Plus, you can use the leftover meat to make pulled pork sandwiches another night.

3 cups cubed peeled potatoes
1 cup chopped onion
3 lb pork roast (I like to use tenderloin)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
3 Tbs red wine vinegar
2 Tbs brown sugar
2 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp black pepper
Salt

Arrange potatoes and onion in the bottom of a crockpot. Place pork on top. Spread garlic all over pork.

In a med. bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients. Pour over pork.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4.

Reserve leftover meat for Pulled Pork Sandwiches, I'll post that recipe later this week!

Menu Plan Monday

Here's what this week dinner menu looks like.....

Monday- Sweet and sour pork tenderloin, veggies and rolls
Tuesday- Homemade chicken pot pie (this may change, Dante and I were talking about going out for Mexican instead)
Wednesday- Pulled Pork Sandwiches (recipe to come), veggies
Thursday- Breakfast- my boys LOVE to have breakfast for dinner. We'll probably do French toast and sausage.
Friday- Homemade pizza
Saturday- Chicken salad sandwiches, cut up raw veggies
Sunday- sandwiches/leftovers

Chili

Chili is one of my favorite meals, especially on a cold winter day. This is my favorite chili recipe, it's quick and easy and super yummy!!

1 lb ground turkey/beef
2 cans diced tomatoes with basil, oregano and garlic
2 cans Bush's chili beans
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small zucchini, shredded
Salt, pepper, oregano and basil to taste

Brown the meat with the onion and garlic until cooked through. Season with salt, pepper, basil and oregano. Once the meat is browned, add the shredded zucchini and let cook a few minutes. (You cannot taste the zucchini at all, I just add it to get in extra veggies!) Add tomatoes and beans. Add a dash of each seasoning. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

We eat this chili served over white rice and topped with shredded Mexican cheese. Yumm-O!

Banana Cake with cream cheese frosting

This year I really want to make more healthy, all natural meals. So for Caleb's birthday I didn't want a store bought, sugar filled cake. I found this recipe on another blog and decided to give it a try. My boys LOVED it!! It was actually pretty good.

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup honey
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 smashed over-ripe bananas
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
  
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 1 tsp. vanilla

In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Mash bananas in a separate bowl. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients. POur in mashed bananas and all other ingredients. Stir well.

Pour into a greased 9x9 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Cream cheese frosting

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
3 ounces cream cheese
1 tsp. vanilla
4 Tbs. agave nectar or honey

In a medium sized bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese, vanilla and sweetener until smooth. Fold into whipped cream. "Slather" it on your banana cake.

Chicken Potpie

• 2 cups cooked, chopped chicken
  
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup cooked, diced carrots
• 1/2 cup cooked, diced potatoes
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp thyme (I only used 1/2 tsp of thyme and I thought it was plenty)
• double pie crust

Combine chicken, peas, carrots and potatoes in a bowl; set aside. In a medium pan, melt butter. Saute onion. Whisk in flour and cook until bubbly. Whisk in broth and milk. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened. Stir in seasonings. Pour over chicken-veggie mix. Line pie plate with bottom crust. Pour in filling. Position top crust, crimp edges and bake at 375 for 1 hour.