Posted on 10/30/07 at 9:28 am to October, Make ahead Meals
I have joined a wonderful group called Friends Country Nook or FCN. It is run by a wonderful group of ladies. It was founded by Mary, and is maintained by Shannon, Laurie, and Lynn and Mary. It is a fun place to chat and meet new friends and learn from one another. I have enjoyed every day with them. They have games and contests each month, and I am excited to be a part of the games committee, where we post a new game 2-3 times a month. Mine will be December 15th. I wont tell you yet what it will be, so you will have to stay tuned…lol.
If you would like to join this group, click this link: Friends Country Nook
I came across a website that features a new menu each week for those of us who cant seem to figure out what to cook tonight, and I love it! It is filled with normal every day meals that are easy and fast to prepare and the family just love them! So, I thought I would post it for you along with my other meal ideas each week. So, now you can have a variety! Here is the first weeks menu:
Monday
- Kielbasa Skillet Stew
- Simple Salad
- Cornbread
Tuesday
- Swedish Meatballs
- Egg Noodles
- Buttered Lima Beans
- Sliced Peaches
Wednesday
- Chicken Taco Bake
- Corn
- Black Bean Salad
Thursday
- Baked Salmon
- Sauteed Greens
- Wild Rice
Friday
- Pea Soup
- Ham Slices
- Dinner Rolls
Monday Recipes
Notes for Monday:
Kielbasa Skillet Stew
- 5 bacon strips, cooked
- 1 onion, sauteed (from freezer)
- olive oil
- 1 to 1-1/2 lbs. smoked kielbasa (fully cooked), thinly sliced
- 2 - 15.5 oz. cans great northern beans, undrained
- 2 - 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
- 1 can chopped green chiles
- 2 medium carrots, thinly sliced
- 1/2 green pepper, chopped
- 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/8 tsp. pepper
In a large skillet, cook sausage in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Add remaining ingredients except bacon and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Crumble bacon. Serve hot with bacon on top.
Cornbread
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1 can corn, drained
Preheat oven to 425°F. Put half of the olive oil in a 9×9x2 cast iron skillet and preheat in oven without burning oil. Mix all remaining ingredients in a bowl. Pour batter into preheated cast iron skillet and bake for 20-25 minutes or until done.
Simple Salad
- 2 Cups Leaf Lettuce, Chopped
- 1/2 Cup Cheddar Cheese, Shredded
- 1 Cup Tomato, Chopped
- 1/2 Cup Croutons
- 5 Baby Carrots, Chopped
- Salad Dressing To Taste
Wash, chop and slice all vegetables. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Serve with your choice of salad dressing.
Tuesday Recipes
Notes for Tuesday:
- Tonight we are using the meatballs from the freezer. If you don’t have frozen meatballs, make some using this recipe. Be sure to add ground beef to your grocery list if you need to make the meatballs. Feel free to make extras to freeze.
Swedish Meatballs
- 1 (12 oz.) bag of egg noodles
- meatballs (from freezer)
- vegetable oil for frying
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2 tbsp. flour
- 1 c. beef broth
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- Dash cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 c. (1/2 pt.) dairy sour cream, room temperature
Start noodles cooking according to package directions. If using cooked meatballs, reheat in oil for a few minutes or fry uncooked meatballs until done. Drain on paper towels. Combine remaining ingredients for sour cream sauce. Fold meatballs into sour cream sauce. Drain noodles when cooked and serve meatballs on cooked noodles.
Buttered Lima Beans
- 1 (16 oz.) package frozen lima beans
- 1 tbsp butter
Cook Lima Beans according to package directions. Drain. Add butter to taste.
Sliced Peaches (3 fresh)
Wednesday Recipes
Notes for Wednesday: none
Chicken Taco Bake
- 4 - 8″ tortillas
- 1 pkg. taco seasoning
- 1 lb. cooked chicken, shredded (from freezer)
- 1 cup water
- 1 jar queso (cheese) dip
- salsa
- sour cream
In a skillet, cook together shredded chicken, seasoning packet, and water for 10 minutes or until meat is well-seasoned. Add 1/2 jar of queso dip and stir occasionally until melted. If mixture appears to be drying out, add more water. In a greased 9″ pie dish, layer tortilla and 1/4 of meat mixture, repeating 4 times, ending with meat mixture on top. Top with 1/4 jar of queso sauce and bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until heated through and queso is melted. Serve with sour cream and salsa.
Corn
- 1 16 oz. pkg. frozen corn
- 1 tbsp butter
Cook corn according to package directions. Drain and add butter, salt and pepper to taste.
Black Bean Salad
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 2 cups black beans (from freezer, thawed & rinsed, or 1 can*, rinsed)
- 1 cup cut corn, drained (from your frozen corn bag)
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 2 Tbsp. dried parsley
Combine vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and sugar. Mix well and combine with remaining ingredients. Toss before serving.
Thursday Recipes
Notes for Thursday: none
Baked Salmon
- 4-6 salmon fillets, boned
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) melted butter
- 1/8 cup chopped fresh basil* (or 1-1/2 tsp. dried)
- 1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
- 1/2 tsp. Adobo
- 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
- seasoned bread crumbs* or finely crumbled stuffing mix
Preheat oven to 450°F. Cover a baking pan with heavy duty foil to make cleanup easier. Spray with non-stick cooking spray.
Combine all ingredients except salmon and mix well. Dip each fillet into butter mixture and place skin-side down on foil-covered pan. Pour any extra butter mixture on top of fillets. Sprinkle 2 tsp. of bread crumbs on each fillet. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until fish is flaky and cooked through.
Wild Rice
Sautéed Greens of Your Choice
Wash 3 cups greens and sauté in butter with salt. You may add chopped onions for extra flavor.
Friday Recipes
Notes for Friday:
- My family finds this Pea Soup recipe to be filling all by itself, but if your family thinks a meal without meat isn’t complete, serve it with the ham slices listed. Sometimes I add shredded ham from the freezer to the soup for extra flavor.
Pea Soup
- 2 cans chicken broth
- 1 (12oz.) package frozen peas*, thawed (or one bag dried peas, cooked according to directions)
- 1 t. tarragon
- 1 t. salt
- 1 t. pepper
- 1 T. butter
- 1 T. flour
- 2 T. lemon juice
- 1/4 cup milk
Blend broth, peas, and spices in blender. In a large pan, melt butter and stir in flour to make a paste. Add blender contents and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add milk and lemon juice. Stir well and serve.
Adapted from Mom’s Best Pea Soup by Jonni McCoy in Miserly Moms.
Ham Slices
The easiest way to make ham slices is to buy either honey ham or country ham already sliced and fry it on the stovetop according to the directions. My very favorite is the thin-sliced country ham slices fried in butter.
Dinner Rolls
Written by Laurie Artcliff - Visit WebsiteGrammy Laurie
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Posted on 10/08/07 at 4:27 am to October, Make ahead Meals
Ok everyone, I start a new job this morning, so I don’t have alot of time today or for the next few days seeing as I have to work from 9-5 then come home and watch Jacob my grandson from 5-10. It is going to be a long few days, but unil Kroger decides that they have to give her the hours she wants because she has seniority for it(she has to go to her union stewart) we have to make this work.
I am going to be starting work at a local hotel doing front desk. I am looking forward to it right now….we shall see later…it looks like an easy job, but after interviewing and talking to the manager, he made it sound like a harrowing experience at times…especially if some silly kid thinks it would be funny to set off the fire alarms…ugh…please Lord, dont let anyone do that on my shift…lol. But I am hoping it will be a job that I enjoy for the most part. I did not want to go back to my last job doing collections for a major credit card company so when I applied at this hotel, it came at the perfect time for them as they had fired everyone there because the previous manager had hired people of questionable pasts and had major problems with them and herself later….hmmm…what part of criminal background did she not get….anywho….they were looking for good people with clean backgrounds and mature attitudes….enter Grammy Laurie…woohoo..I meet all those qualifications…and the new girl at the front desk during the day…well her and I just hit it off right away, so after applying, she ran to the new manager and said…hire her…hire her….I like her….she is nice….lol. So he called me right away and I got the job the next day…lol. So I pray and need the prayers of everyone that this will be a job that I can handle and enjoy. Well, I am off to get ready to work…have a blessed day all!
Grammy Laurie
OH sorry, forgot to post our monday meal of the week:
Easy Crock Pot Beef and Gravy Meal
1 beef roast (I like a round rump roast but I also use chuck roasts when available, anything is good as long as it isn’t too fatty)
1 onion, sliced in half
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup (store brand is fine)*
1 or 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
About 1/4th a soup can of water*
Salt and Pepper to taste (I use lots of pepper)
*Two cans of soup and 1/2 can of water can be used for with a large beef roast to serve more people.
Place the roast and onion halves in the Crock Pot. (The onion will break up as it slow cooks.) Pour the Worcestershire sauce over the roast. Using a knife or spoon, remove Cream of Mushroom soup and pour it into the Crock Pot. Salt and pepper the beef (you shouldn’t need much salt if you are using regular canned soup).
Swish out the soup can with just a little water, perhaps 1/4th of the can, add to Crock Pot. Cover and start on high. Check after about an hour and spoon some of the liquid over the roast.
I like to turn the roast over after a couple of hours and then turn the Crock Pot to medium for a few more hours.
About half an hour before serving, remove the roast to a plate and let sit at least twenty minutes before slicing the rump roast (a chuck roast may fall apart on its own). Scoop out most of the gravy, leaving most of the onion in the Crock Pot, and place the gravy in a saucepan to simmer until thickened (watch closely).
Pour about half a cup of water into the Crock Pot with the remaining soup mixture and onions, place sliced beef back into the Crock Pot and “stir” a bit until the beef is covered with the soup mixture.
The gravy made from this is just the BEST, wonderful over mashed potatoes.
Enjoy!
Grammy Laurie
Written by Laurie Artcliff - Visit WebsiteGrammy Laurie
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Posted on 10/03/07 at 8:28 am to October, Make ahead Meals
I thought I would post a make ahead meal menu once a week, to give you a warm, easy meal for these cool nights we should be getting soon. I hope you enjoy them! Grammy
It’s been one of those days, and it isn’t even 8 AM yet. You know it’s going to be crazy, so you’re not going to have any time to cook a meal for your family.
So you have a couple of choices: take out (again) or having some handy, family friendly meals you can whip up ahead of time.
If you are choosing the latter, then this recipe is for you.
Mother’s Fresh Broccoli and Ham Casserole
8 oz. macaroni (small elbows,
small shells or other), cooked
1/4 c. margarine
1/4 c. flour
2 1/2 c. milk
3/4 c. sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
1 tsp. grated onion (optional)
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. diced leftover ham
2 c. cooked, chopped broccoli
2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 c. corn flakes or bread crumbs, mixed in 2 tsp.
melted margarine
1. Cook macaroni. Rinse with boiling water.
2. Make white sauce of margarine, flour and milk. Add cheese, onion and
mustard. Fold in mayonnaise, ham, broccoli and seasonings.
3. Top with corn flakes or bread crumbs which have been mixed in melted margarine.
4. Bake in 2 quart casserole at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or bake in several smaller casseroles.
*Freezes well.
Written by Laurie Artcliff - Visit WebsiteGrammy Laurie
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