Menu for April 4 to April 10

Normally my dinner planning spiral doesn't look like this.  Usually the menu is set in stone.  My weekly menu starts on Saturday and ends on Friday. On Thursday I decide what I'm going to make the following week. And Friday is grocery shopping day.  The night before I set out all the non perishables that I need for the next day.  And everyday by 4:30, after picking up my daughter and walking my dogs, I get started on dinner.  That way it's on the table by 6pm.  This week was different because it was Easter weekend.  And we got together at my mom's house for hot dogs on Saturday night.  And a lot of other things happened that made this week a bit hectic so thus the changes.  I try not to have the same kind of protein two days in a row.  So if we have ground beef one night then I try to have turkey or pork or chicken the next night.  And Wednesday usually is leftover day.  Once again because of the holiday things got jumbled.  I'm still learning to try to be flexible.  But it really irks me to change things around.

Saturday:  Hot dogs, potato salad, coleslaw and hummus.  I was in charge of making hummus.  I decided to go with a ranch hummus that I found a recipe for on Pinterest.  http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/healthy-recipes/13-different-ways-make-hummus

Ranch Hummus:

1 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp dried dill

16 oz chick peas

1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt

Rinse and drain the chick peas.  Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.  Note: for a thinner consistency add 1 tablespoon of water at a time.  

I do add 2 tbsp. of water just to make it thinner and more of a dip consistency.  If you follow the link there are 13 different recipes of hummus.  I have tried the Italian and Southwestern flavors and both are delicious.

Sunday:  Bahn Mi Sandwiches.  A Bahn Mi is a Vietnamese meatball sandwich.  And they are so good.  I have changed a few things in the original recipe.  http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/beer-mi-asian-meatball-subs/d205c506-3018-4e38-abac-55b6c7295d17?nicam2=Email

There are three components to Bahn Mis.  The first is the pickled topping.  Don't be intimidated it's really not all that hard.  And the dish comes together pretty quickly.

Banh Mi Pickled Topping:

4 tbsps rice vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup carrot, grated

1 cup cucumber slices

1 tsp salt

In a medium bowl, mix vinegar, sugar and salt. Add carrots and cucumber.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

After you get the pickled topping in the fridge you can move on to the meatballs.  

Banh Mi Meatballs:

1 lb ground pork (the leanest you can find)

1/3 cup panko crispy plain bread crumbs

1 tbsp low sodium beef broth

1 tbsp sriracha chili sauce

1 tbsp less sodium soy sauce

1/2 tsp salt

1 large egg, slightly beaten

Preheat oven to 375 °F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with Pam. In a large bowl, stir ingredients until well mixed.  Shape into 30 (1 inch) balls and place in pan.  Bake 25-30 minutes or until meatballs are no longer pink in center.

While the meatballs are baking, I make the sauce.

Banh Mi Sauce:

3/4 cup ketchup

1/2 cup low sodium beef broth

1/4 cup honey

2 tbsp less sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp sriracha chili sauce

In a 3 quart saucepan, stir ingredients until well blended.  Heat to boiling over medium heat.  Reduce heat to low, simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  When the meatballs are done then place them into the sauce and stir them around so that each one of them is coated.  Serve.

I eat mine in a pita bread.  But it seems like I always have such a hard time keeping the bread from tearing.  After I carefully get the pita open, I take a serving of meatballs which is 5 meatballs, and 1/4 cup of pickled topping and a little spoonful of sauce.  I think it's the extra sauce that causes the pita bread to tear, oh well.   

Monday:  Burrito Night.  But burrito night ended up being chicken tostada night instead.  I just forgot to change it.  I have posted how I make these chicken tostadas in one of my previous post: http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/04/recipes-for-prepped-chicken.html

If I'm making them for myself I use my toaster oven.  If I am making more than two I have to use the big oven.  No matter which one you use the method is the same.  Preheat to 375.  Line a baking pan with foil, and spray it with Pam.  Warm up corn tortillas in the microwave.  Place them flat on the baking sheet and then spray the tops with Pam.  Bake for about 10 minutes turning once until light brown and toasty.  For myself, I split one wedge of Laughing Cow cheese between the two corn tostadas.  Then spread black beans, divide 6 ounces of diced warmed chicken and pile it on top, add salsa, sour cream, and devour.  You can add any kind of salsa and guacamole as well.

Tuesday: Tofu and Broccoli Stir Fry, brown rice, and spring rolls.  I used to make this as a beef and broccoli.  But my husband doesn't like Beef and Broccoli.  Actually he just doesn't like the beef part.  So I decided to give this recipe a try with tofu.  Here is the original recipe in case you don't like tofu. http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/stir-fry-beef-and-broccoli/0ec54243-0d08-4201-aadd-b66c5164f477  And I add a lot of fresh broccoli and carrots.  I suppose you could use frozen stir fry mix, but nothing beats fresh.  Oh and try not to use baby carrots.  Eating them raw is good, but something weird happens to them when they get cooked.

Tofu and Broccoli:

1 (14 oz) pkg. extra firm tofu, cubed

2 tbsp. less sodium soy sauce

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 tsps ginger, grated

1/3 cup. roland hoisin sauce

1/3 cup water

1 tbsp. cornstarch

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1 tbsp. coconut oil (or canola oil)

8 cups chopped broccoli

2 cups strips or slices carrots

In a medium bowl mix, tofu, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger; set aside (be very careful with the tofu it breaks easily). In a small bowl, mix hoisin, water, cornstarch, and crushed red pepper.  In a wok, heat half oil on high for 1 minute. Add tofu mixture; cook 2 minutes without stirring. Stir fry 4 to 5 minutes or until tofu is browned around edges. Transfer to a clean bowl.  To the empty wok, add remaining oil; heat over high heat about 1 minute. Add broccoli and carrots; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add 2 tbsp. water; cover and cook 2 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broccoli and carrots are crisp-tender.  Return tofu to work. Mix sauce mixture again to recombine; pour into woke. Stir to coat mixture with sauce. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened. Serve. If desired sprinkle each serving with cashews.

The brown rice is just a boil in a bag rice.  Follow the directions, although I toss in a cube of chicken broth to the boiling water just to add flavor.  When then rice is done I'll drain it.  Sprinkle in some Mrs. Dash, 1/2 tsp. of less sodium soy sauce, and 1/2 tsp. of butter.  Yes I said butter.  Butter is better for you than margarine, and besides it's only 1/2 tsp.  And the spring rolls I just bake in my toaster oven, according to the package directions.  I remember when I bought it my husband said I would NEVER use it.  HA!  I showed him, I use it a lot.  When I get ready to serve, it's 1 1/3 cup of stir fry, 1/2 cup of brown rice, and two spring rolls.  Sprinkle some cashews on the stir fry.  Maybe add some more crushed red pepper, and even some sriracha.  I like it spicy!

Wednesday:  Spaghetti Squash with a turkey meat sauce or chicken and vegetables, and a side salad.  I know the menu says that today we are having carne molida con papas and a quesadilla, but I switched it again!  I gotta stop doing that.  To make the spaghetti squash: Preheat oven to 375.  Then I cut it in half.  Sprinkle 1/2 tsp. olive oil on each half.  Season with salt and pepper.  Roast for 45 minutes.  Then take it out of the oven and let cool 10 minutes.  Take a fork or a spoon and scrap out the strands.  While the spaghetti squash is roasting, I'll make a meat sauce (for my husband).  I'll brown some lean turkey.  Season the meat with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and chili powder.  Once it's browned I'll will drain off any fat.  But it being lean ground turkey there usually isn't that much.  Then I add a marinara.  I do make my own.  This time though I didn't have time so I just used a good quality jarred one.  If I use my own I don't add any extra seasonings.  But if I use a jarred one, I'll add dried parsley, dried Italian seasoning, dried basil, and dried oregano.  For my husband I'll serve him some spaghetti squash and top it with the meat sauce.  I like to have mine with vegetables and chicken. The side salad is just a smaller version of the salads I make for lunch.

Thursday:  Carne Molida con Papas aka Ground Beef with Potatoes.  I remember this dish from my childhood. My grandma, who we all called Mother, would make this and it was one of my favorite things to eat.  After she passed away I regretted never getting the recipe from her.  One day I was shopping and I really wanted to make carne molida con papas.  One of my friends said to google the recipe.  I told him that I didn't need Google, I would ask my mom.  And she gave me the recipe.  The original recipe calls for homemade salsa but I substituted Rotel, and it's just as good.

Carne Molida con Papas (Gound Beef with Potatoes):

1 lb lean ground beef

1 can Rotel

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 cups low sodium beef broth

3 medium potatoes, peeled, cut into strips

2 tbsps all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder

In a large skillet over medium-high heat brown the ground beef, drain. To the meat in the skillet, sprinkle flour, add the potatoes and seasonings. Cook for 8-10 minutes. Add the beef broth and tomatoes and green chilies. Bring to boil, and then lower heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through. 

I like to serve it topped with extra hot sauce and sour cream.  For the quesadilla, I'll take a Flatout flatbread, spread Laughing Cow cheese on one half and black beans on the other side.  Toast it on a comal, a flat griddle, and there you go.

Friday:  Baked Herb Crusted Cod, lemony green beans, and coleslaw.  Even though this recipe calls for cod, it works just as well with salmon.  

Baked Herb Crusted Cod:

1 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

1/2 tsp. dill

1 pound cod

Pam

Preheat oven to 450.  In a small bowl mix spices.  Spray cod with Pam and then sprinkle the herbs evenly over the fish.  Place fish in a baking pan sprayed with Pam.  And bake 10-12 minutes.  You can also place the fish close to the broiler for a minute or two to crisp up the herbs a bit more.

For the green beans, I buy the Marketside French Green Beans.  You can steam them right in the bag.  Just follow the directions on the package.  Once they are done, I'll pour them into a mixing bowl.  Add 1/2 tsp. butter, Mrs. Dash, pepper, crushed red pepper, and the juice from 1 wedge of lemon.  Then toss to coat and pour them onto the plate next to the fish. The coleslaw is super simple.  I usually make this first to give the flavors time to meld together.  To make one serving:  Take 1 1/2 cups of the Marketside Tri-Color Coleslaw mix and place in a small bowl.  Add 1 tbsp. Kraft Cream Poppy Seed Dressing and the juice of 1 lemon wedge (sometimes I'll add some a sprinkle of crushed red pepper, and a little bit of Italian dressing).  Mix and refrigerate until ready to serve.  The reason I make 1 serving is because my husband likes his a little different.  He likes a bit more dressing in his.  So I'll make his in a separate container. 

All of these dishes are not that hard to make.  And most of them take under an hour.  You don't have to rely on fast food places or frozen dinners.  You really can have a healthy home cooked meal in basically the amount of time it would take get in your car, drive to Mcdonald's, order, get your food, go home and eat it.  And it's cheaper too.