Menu May 23 to May 29

I just want to say that any recipe that calls for ground beef, you can totally substitute ground turkey or even ground chicken.  I usually use 93/7 lean ground beef, but I have switched between the beef and turkey with out anyone really noticing, or without much resistance of my family.  Also if a recipe calls for 2 pounds of ground beef, sometimes I will use one beef and one turkey.

Saturday: Salmon, veggies, and coleslaw.  Usually what I do is I buy the 2 lb bag of frozen salmon fillets and then just take out how ever many I need.  I have to buy the frozen ones because living in West Texas we don't really have any fresh salmon.






Baked Herb Crusted Salmon

1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. dried dill
1 lb. salmon
Pam

Preheat oven to 450.  In a small bowl mix spices.  Spray a baking dish with Pam.  Place the fish in pan and spray the tops of the salmon with Pam as well.  Then sprinkle herbs evenly over fish.  Bake 10-12 minutes.  You can also place the fish close to the broiler after baking for a minute or two to crisp up the herbs a little more.

I was shopping the other day and in the freezer section I saw cauliflower with buffalo sauce.  I was immediately intrigued.  I love buffalo sauce and so naturally I bought a bag.  All you have to do is pop it in the microwave and nuke it according to package directions.  And it was good.  I figure you can make your own if you steam some cauliflower and then toss it in buffalo sauce.  I might have to try it that way so that I can control the spiciness.

And the recipe for coleslaw is 1 1/2 cups of tricolor coleslaw mix, with 1 tbsp. Kraft Creamy Poppy Seed dressing and the juice of one lemon or lime wedge.  I always keep salad ingredients prepped in the fridge that way I can make a side salad quickly.  http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/03/menu-planning-and-meal-prep.html


Sunday:  Out of town.  Today we took my mom to Odessa. I took the advice from http://www.skinnymom.com/ and tried the Firehouse Sub place in Odessa.  I looked at the link that the website provides for fast food meals under 500 calories:  http://www.skinnymom.com/?s=fast+food+under+500  Then I looked up Firehouse Subs: http://www.skinnymom.com/fast-food-under-500-firehouse-subs/ and ended up trying the Captain Sorensen's Datil Pepper Grilled Chicken.  That one was advertised to be spicy.  According to http://www.skinnymom.com/  This sub takes after Firehouse’s namesake; the pepper sauce gives it the perfect zing you’ve been craving! With grilled chicken, Monterey Jack cheese, Capt. Sorensen’s Datil Pepper Sauce, lettuce, tomato, onion and light mayo on a light wheat roll, 430 calories doesn’t seem so bad now. Not a fan of the fiery spice, but everything else sounds good? Ditch the pepper sauce as well as its 56 calories! But I didn't ditch the fiery spice, instead I'll asked for no mayo.  It was really good.  I added some Baked Lays and a huge glass of water.

Monday: Carne Molida, black beans, and veggies.  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 tbsp 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 also take a day to prep black beans.  I buy a can of No Salt Added whole black beans, not the refried ones.  Rinse them in a colander.  I take a medium size skillet add about 1/4 cup of water.  Heat over medium, and once the water is hot I add the beans.  Then I season them with garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, pepper, crushed red pepper, cumin, hot sauce, and 25% less sodium seasoned salt.  Stir it all up and then mash them.  You can add more water if you want them to be bit more runny.  And all the seasonings are to taste.  Just depends on your taste buds.  I cook them for about 5-7 minutes on low.  This is actually one of the foods that I prep on Sundays.  And then after they have cooled down I keep them in the fridge for tostadas, burritos, or just as a side.

The broccoli are the frozen ones.  You just steam them right in the bag.  Once they are done I pour them into a mixing bowl, add the juice of 2 lemon wedges, pepper, Mrs. Dash, crushed red pepper, and 1 tsp. of light canola butter.

Tuesday:  Pork Moo Shu, brown rice, and spring rolls.Pork Moo shu, brown rice, and spring rolls.  This is one of my favorite ways to make stir fry!  I actually found this recipe in my daughter's Disney Princess Cook book.  I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and delicious it was. And seeing as how it was in her cook book it's also a recipe you can do with your kids.  That way you get them into the kitchen and helping to make dinner.

Pork Moo Shu

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp ground ginger

5 cups broccoli slaw

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

1/2 tbsp less sodium soy sauce

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups baked tenderloin pork, diced

1/2 cup cashew halves & pieces

Heat oil in a large, nonstick frying pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add ginger powder and stir for 1 minute.  Add the broccoli slaw to the pan, and turn up the heat a little. Stir-fry the vegetables for 4 to 5 minutes. Cook them long enough to darken in color without losing their crunchiness.  Turn the heat down to medium, and stir in the pork, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red pepper flakes and cashews. Continue cooking moo shu for another 2 minutes to heat through. Serve over rice.

Brown rice is a boil in the bag kind.  Just make it according to package directions.  I like to toss a cube of chicken broth into the water to flavor the rice.  When it's done, I season the rice with Mrs. Dash, a splash of less sodium soy sauce, and 1/2 tsp. Land O'Lakes Light Butter with Canola.

The spring rolls, were mini vegetable spring rolls, that I baked in my toaster oven.  Once again just follow the package directions.

   

Wednesday: Leftovers.  Chicken tostadas.  Oh yeah.  So you can have chicken tacos if you want but it's so much better in tostadas.  And your filling won't fall out the back when you are eating them.  For this dinner I also use my toaster oven.  Preheat it to 375.  Line the baking pan with foil, and spray it with Pam.  Warm up two 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.  Keep on eye on them because they will go from being perfect to burnt in a blink of an eye.  I know, it's happened to me.  Once they are done.  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.

Thursday: Cheeseburger and fries.  My mom had been craving a Mexican Burger from a local restaurant called Pacheco's.  The Mexican Burger is a cheeseburger with a roasted long green chili.  Not only did she get her Mexican Burger but she added guacamole to it.  She was disappointed with the guacamole.  It was just kinda smeared on the bun and she and my husband couldn't really taste it.  I opted for a regular cheeseburger.

Friday:  Cheddar Burger Mashed Potato Bake, black beans, veggies.  The cheddar burger mashed potato bake is pretty much a rift on Shepard's Pie.  A cheesy rift.  And this one doesn't have any vegetables added.  Also you don't have to make your own mashed potatoes, you can use the powdered stuff, but nothing beats homemade.

Cheddar Burger Mashed Potato Bake

2 lbs lean ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cups mashed potatoes

2 tsp dry mustard

16 oz double cheddar sauce

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 425. In a skillet, brown ground beef over medium-high heat. Drain.  Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes.  Stir in cheese sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and if desired salt and pepper to taste. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes or until heated through.  Pour meat mixture into a 2-quart casserole and evenly top with mashed potatoes.  Bake 25 minutes or until potatoes are lightly golden.

If you want to make your own mashed potatoes here is my recipe:

Garlic Ranch Mashed Potatoes

2 lbs white potatoes

3 cloves garlic

1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth

2 tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp Mrs Dash

1 tsp ranch dry dips mix

1/2 tsp salt

1 light Laughing Cow Swiss cheese wedge

Cut peeled potatoes into large chunks. Add potatoes and garlic to a large pot filled with water. Boil 18-20 minutes or until tender. Drain. Place the potatoes and garlic back into the empty pot. Add milk, butter, cheese, salt, pepper, dry ranch mix and seasoning to the pot. Mash until desired consistency. Serve.  Note: if you want your potatoes to be creamier then add a few more tablespoons of milk until desired creaminess is achieved.

The green beans are the frozen ones.  You just steam them right in the bag.  Once they are done I pour them into a mixing bowl, add the juice of 2 lemon wedges, pepper, Mrs. Dash, crushed red pepper, and 1 tsp. of light canola butter.  

I also take a day to prep black beans.  I buy a can of No Salt Added whole black beans, not the refried ones.  Rinse them in a colander.  I take a medium size skillet add about 1/4 cup of water.  Heat over medium, and once the water is hot I add the beans.  Then I season them with garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, pepper, crushed red pepper, cumin, hot sauce, and 25% less sodium seasoned salt.  Stir it all up and then mash them.  You can add more water if you want them to be bit more runny.  And all the seasonings are to taste.  Just depends on your taste buds.  I cook them for about 5-7 minutes on low.  This is actually one of the foods that I prep on Sundays.  And then after they have cooled down I keep them in the fridge for tostadas, burritos, or just as a side.