There are two major places where I find my recipes. The first one is Pinterest. There are oodles and oodles of recipes there. But you have to keep focused or else before you know it you'll be pinning stuff that has nothing to do with food. And what I like about Pinterest is that you can narrow down your search. And there are pictures of the food. I'm very visual so pictures are a good thing. The second place I find recipes is in my cook books. And I have a bunch. If I'm stuck at a long checkout line at the store then I have a tendency to look at the recipe magazines. If there are a few recipes I like, I'll go ahead and buy the magazine. I also have kept this dinner spiral for about a year now. So if I am having trouble deciding what to make, I can flip back through it and find something that was a hit.
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/asian-burgers/
I didn't change too much in this recipe. But here's how I made them.
Asian Burgers
1 tbsp onion, chopped
1 tsp Chinese five spice blend
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 lbs 93/7 lean ground beef
3 tbsps hoisin sauce
In a very large bowl combine hoisin sauce, onion, Chinese
five spice, and crushed red pepper. Add beef, mix well. Shape into five 1/2"
thick patties. Preheat grill to medium. Place
patties on grill and grill for 10-13 minutes turning once. Serve.
I use sandwich thins instead of hamburger buns, I added a spicy mustard, some spinach and a thin slice of onion. Also the directions say to make these on a grill, but I prefer to them in my frying pan. I spray the pan with Pam heat to medium and follow the directions for grilling. One more thing after the patties are done I will place them on a baking sheet, cover them with foil, and let them rest for 7-10 minutes. Letting the patties rest redistributes the juices.
Sunday: Spinach Artichoke Spaghetti Squash, lemony green beans, and a side salad. This is a recipe that I found on pinterest. I wanted to try something different with my spaghetti squash. And my husband likes artichokes so I figured we could give it a try.http://www.tasteandtellblog.com/spinach-artichoke-spaghetti-squash-recipe/
Here is my version:
Spinach Artichoke Spaghetti Squash
2 tsps olive oil
3/4 cup onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup light sour cream
3 cups packed spinach
3/4 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
1 cup artichoke hearts, chopped
4 Laughing Cow light creamy Swiss cheese wedges
4 cups of cooked spaghetti squash
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
In a pan heat oil
over medium heat. Add onion and cook until tender, 5-8 minutes. Season with
salt and pepper, then add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 60 seconds. Add
in the sour cream, Swiss cheese, and half of the Parmesan cheese and stir until
the cheese has melted and the mixture is smooth. Stir in the spinach and artichoke hearts and
cook until the spinach has wilted. Stir in the cooked spaghetti squash. Transfer to a 9x13" baking dish and top
with mozzarella and remaining Parmesan. Place under broiler for 2-3 minutes, or until
cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve hot.
Note: if you save the spaghetti squash halves, instead of using a baking dish, you can add half the mixture to each half of the squash then top with cheese and broil.
Note: if you save the spaghetti squash halves, instead of using a baking dish, you can add half the mixture to each half of the squash then top with cheese and broil.
http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/04/recipes-for-prepped-chicken.html
For added flavor I like to use a lemon pepper marinade. First I trim all the fat off of boneless skinless chicken breasts. Then I cut them in half, and with a meat mallet, I pound them all to an equal thickness. Put them in a ziplock baggy and refrigerate about 6 hours. When I get ready to cook the chicken. I spray a frying pan with Pam, and heat on medium. Then I take the chicken sprinkle it with lemon pepper seasoning and place them in the pan. Cook for about 6 or 7 minutes. Flip them over and continue to cook for 6 to 7 minutes. Take them out of the pan and place in a baking dish to cool down. Cover with foil and refrigerate until ready to use.
The green beans were from a frozen package. I just cooked them according to the directions, seasoned with Mrs. Dash, pepper, crushed red pepper, the juice of one lemon wedge, and 1/2 tsp. butter.
http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/03/menu-planning-and-meal-prep.html
Monday: Leftovers which meant it was chicken burrito night, and ranch veggie straws. Once again this is another recipe from one of my previous posts.
http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/04/recipes-for-prepped-chicken.html
http://harddoesnotequalimpossible.blogspot.com/2015/04/recipes-for-prepped-chicken.html
If you take one day to prep chicken, and really it only takes about 15 minutes to get the chicken ready and to cook the chicken, then you will have a quick and easy way to pull a healthy and delicious dinner together in no time. This is just a Flatout flatbread, with laughing cow cheese, black beans, chopped chicken, salsa, and sour cream.
Wednesday: One Pan Enchilada Pasta, black beans, and broccoli and cauliflower mix. And here is another one from pinterest.http://www.number-2-pencil.com/2013/12/09/one-pan-enchilada-pasta/
This is my version:
One Pan Enchilada Pasta
1 lb. 93/7 lean ground beef or lean ground turkey
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 (1 oz) package old el paso
25% less sodium taco seasoning mix
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 (15 oz.) can enchilada sauce
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. water
8 oz, dry, yields or about 2 1/2 cups rotini
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
In a large skillet over medium heat cook the ground beef, garlic, and onions until browned.
Add the taco mix and follow directions on the package. Add the dry pasta,
chicken broth, water, and enchilada sauce to pan. Bring to boil, the reduce heat to
low and cover. Cook on low, with pan covered for about 15 minutes. Remove lid
and let simmer for additional 5 minutes until pasta is tender and sauce has
reduced. Stir in cheese until melted. Serve.
For the 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.
My version:
Chicken Bacon Pizza
1 wedge Laughing Cow cheese
2 tsp. light sour cream
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. Italian seasoning
crushed red pepper, to taste
1 pita bread
3 to 4 ounces of cooked chopped chicken
1 tbsp. mozzarella cheese
2 cherry tomatoes, sliced
1-2 pieces of fully cooked bacon
Preheat toaster oven to 375. In a small bowl, mix Laughing Cow cheese, 2 tsp. light sour cream, 1/4 tsp. garlic powder, and 1/8 tsp. Italian seasoning until smooth. Spread it on top of a pita bread. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper. Add 3 to 4 ounces of chopped chicken. Sprinkle 1 tbsp. of mozzarella cheese, top with sliced cherry tomatoes and 2 slices of fully cooked bacon. Bake in toaster oven for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is nice a bubbly.
Friday: Beef Stroganoff, garlic ranch mashed potatoes and lemony green beans. I used to make stroganoff with bottom round steak cut into small pieces, but my husband prefers ground beef. So that's what I use now.
Beef Stroganoff
1 package stroganoff mix
8 oz light sour cream
1 cup water
1 lb 93/7 lean ground beef
1/2 tsp parsley flakes (optional)
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef and
cook stirring until browned and no longer pink.
Stir in sauce mix and water.
Bring to boil, cover and reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring
occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in
sour cream. Sprinkle parsley flakes, if desired and serve.
You'll notice that my recipe for mashed potatoes calls for chicken broth instead of milk. The reason I make
these with chicken broth is because ever since I switched us to almond
milk I never have regular ol' cow milk. And I didn't see the point in
buying some just for mashed potatoes. So I figured that all I needed
was some kind of liquid and I substituted chicken broth for the milk and
they come out just as yummy.Garlic Ranch Mashed Potatoes
2 lbs white potatoes, peeled
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 tbsps Land O'Lakes light butter with canola
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp Mrs. Dash
1/2 tsp ranch dry dips mix
1/2 tsp salt
1 Laughing Cow Light 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 chicken broth, butter,
cheese, salt, pepper, dry ranch mix and seasoning to the pot. Mash until
desired consistency. Serve.
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 serve.
And that's it. It really isn't that hard to plan out your menus. And then you won't be tempted to opt for something fast that isn't very healthy!
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