June 11 - 17

Just when I was getting back into the groove of making and posting menus, summer hit! Without preschool I'm having to find different days and times to get to the store so this will probably be pretty hit-or-miss until the fall.

Before I get to this week's menu, just a couple of quick reviews. Only one of the 3 chicken recipes I posted previously worked out for us - the cordon bleu bundles. The other 2 were just ok. I've made the bundles twice now and they look so fancy and taste just as good! Also, the sesame cold noodles were very tasty and perfect for the hot summer weather we've been having. The only downside was it made way more than we could eat before it went bad. I need to remember that recipe for the next bbq we're invited to :)

Orange Marmalade Chicken

Chillie Lime Cobb Salad

Pizza

BBQ Beef Sandwiches and Cole Slaw

Turkey Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries

Lemon Linguine with French Bread

May 10 - 16

Once again I forgot to post my menu for last week. I don't remember trying any new meals, but I did try a new snack recipe - kale chips! They are so good and good for you! Here's what I do:

Wash and completely dry one bunch of kale. Tear the leaf part into chip-size pieces (do not use the thick stem part). Toss the pieces with about a tablespoon of olive oil (don't use too much oil) and some sea salt (or whatever seasoning your heart desires). Spread onto a cookie sheet spacing out the chips a bit and bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes or until crispy, but not burned. So far I've over-seasoned one batch and under-seasoned another. It's kind of a trial and error thing. To me they taste like roasted pumpkin seeds and are super addictive!

This is a short menu week for us and we still have one last game of t-ball so easy meals are on the list.

• Swedish Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes

• Fish Tacos

• Pizza

• Firecracker Enchiladas (left-overs in the freezer)

• Sub Sandwiches with Chips and Fruit

April 12 - 18

Well I did pretty well for my first full week of meals after a month off. Some friends invited us over for dinner one night and we ended up eating out another (nothing like remodeling the kitchen for a good eat out excuse!). Now I have one roll-over for this week! Here we go! Turkey Meatloaf Spaghetti Pizza Chicken Tacos Grilled Chicken & Orange Skewers with Zuccini Rice (from my latest Real Simple) Roast Sausage and Potatoes Special Treat: Orange Rolls

Feb 15 - 21

Review time! Our crockpot meals were great and just what I needed as I've hit the "I'm ready to have this baby" wall :) First we tried the Slow-Cooker Spinach and Ricotta Lasagna. While it lacked a little something (garlic maybe?), I think if I try a different sauce it has some potential. Much less work than regular lasagna and just as tasty! Next we had the Slow-Cooker Creamy Chicken and Biscuits. I used some of my Mural of Flavor spice from Penzkeys as the poultry seasoning and the whole dish was great! Of course, the best part was the homemade drop biscuits - perfection!

Keenan has a band commitment this week so he'll be gone 4 evenings this week. Bring on the easy, kid-friendly meals!

Falafel Sandwiches

Curried Tomato Bisque with Fresh Bread or Grilled Cheese

Pizza

Cauliflower Gratin

Chicken Nuggets with Mac 'n Cheese

Tacos

Nothing to review this week as I chose all tried and true recipes last week. I did, however, test out my new pressure cooker (thanks to my MIL both for getting it for me and showing me how to work it!) making some pinto beans to flesh out our Spanish Beef and Rice meal. Now that I'm over my intimidation, I definitely need to use it more often - what a time saver! I'm hoping to stock-pile some beans and chicken in the freezer for these first few months with a newborn in the house again :)

Another "easy" menu for this week. It's supposed to be pretty cold the next few days so I tried to pick some hearty/feel-good meals. I guess I'm on a roast turkey/chicken kick :)

Roast Chicken and Veggies with Breadmaker Rolls

Chicken Tacos (using leftover roast chicken)

Corn and Kielbasa Chowder

Cottage Cheese Blintzes with Strawberry Sauce

Turkey Breast, Mashed Potatoes and Veggies

Buffalo Chicken Meatballs with Carrots and Celery for Super Bowl Sunday!

Pizza (out)

Oct 5 - 11

We were so blessed last week! We were taken out to dinner twice and joined some friends for dinner another night :) So now I have some roll-overs for this week along with another dinner with friends planned. Somehow it was still a pain to make this menu. Just not feeling it tonight.

Pesto Chicken Wrap

Shepherd's Pie

Eggs and Potatoes

Homemade Pizza

Sept 21 - 27

Review time again! All of the new recipes we tried came out really well. Some were better than others (I think I left the veggies for the calzones in the food processor too long and it came out mushy. The flavor was good, though), but overall very good! Our French toast treat was a hit too. Somehow it was done in half the time, but luckily I caught it in time. Just a little overdone. I'm too tired to go through each recipe individually right now. Maybe another time :)

This will be a short menu. We're having a pot-luck meal at home group this week, we still plan to eat out for a little boy's birthday and then we're going camping this weekend! Next week should be back on track :)

Tacos

Cheese, Crackers and Fruit

Terayaki Chicken Packets (for camping)

Pizza

June 27 - July 3

I think I managed quite well with my "meals on the fly" week. I made one trip to Aldi and loaded up on whatever cought my eye that reminded me of something I've made before. Last week I made a short menu, but didn't get around to posting it. I'm going to do a separate post on our meal last night - it came out wonderfully!

Without anymore delay, here's my back-in-the-swing-of-things menu. Next week I'm going to attempt a 2 week menu to cut down on grocery trips.

Blackened Shrimp Po'Boys with Chips (had this tonight - delicious!)

Zesty Garlic Chicken Wraps with Bean Salad

Chicken Tenders with Cucumber Salad and Chickpea Couscous

Pesto and Tomato Pizza

BBQ Turkey Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes and Veggies (thanks Sarah!)

Tacos

Hot Dogs with Beans

Spaghetti

April 12 - 18

Our only review from last week is the Shrimp, Tortellini and Spinach - yummy! I didn't have the roasted red pepper dressing it called for so I used sun-dried tomato dressing instead. It came together quickly and was a perfect spring/summer Italian dish. I love that we're getting back to the time of year with more fresh veggies and fruit at reasonable prices. Everything just tastes better :)

Pineapple Jerk Chicken and Rice

Turkey Tacos (found some taco-seasoned ground turkey on super-sale last week!)

Baked Lemon Pasta

Make Your Own Pizza

Loaded Baked Potatoes

Tofu Stir Fry

Hamburgers & Pan-Fried Potatoes

March 22 - 28

Last week's menu had some big hits for us. Among them, the Cheesey Baked Pasta with Spinach and Artichokes (I now realize my typo last week - oops!), Mexican Meatball Soup and Hoisin Cashew Beef. The Ginger Noodles were ok, just nothing spectacular. I'll post the soup and pasta recipes next since they're not online yet. They're super easy and yummy!

This week has a rollover and a repeat because we liked it so much. We're also having guests one night so our chicken dinner will be featured once again.

Hamburgers with Carrot & Apple Slaw

Creamy Basil & Tomato Pasta

Spanish Tortilla with Red Pepper

Tacos

Roast Chicken and Veggies

Pizza (for Keenan and the kids - I'll be having a ladies night out at Pei Wei - woo hoo!)

Hoisin Cashew Beef

Feb 15 - 21

Well...we finally got around to having the Chicken and Cherries recipe - it was delicious! I used cranberries instead of cherries, but still yummy. It could stand to be "saucier" so I'll have to remember that for next time.

I pulled out my trusty recipe binder for this week and made a menu in record time! It also helps that we have a couple of group dinners this week along with a date night for my Valentine and me :)

Orange Beef with Cilantro Rice

Swedish Meatballs with Mashed Potatoes and Veggies

Shahi Korma Chicken with Rice

Mexican Lasagna

Pizza

Chili and Cornbread

Jan 18 - 24

I have to toot my own horn for a minute here. I'm really getting the hang of roasting chicken/turkey! My father-in-law came up with a method for his holiday turkeys that leaves the meat - both white and dark - melting in your mouth. I decided to apply a similar technique to our chicken this last week and it was perfect!

Low and slow is the key. I prepped 2 whole chickens by stuffing each with 1/2 a head of garlic (sliced in half horizontally), 1/2 a lemon and a couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary. The outsides were rubbed with olive oil and seasoned with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. I added about 1 can of chicken broth to the pan, but I later discovered this probably wasn't necessary. Cover the roaster and bake at 275 or 300 for about 4 or 5 hours. They're not "presentation worthy" (i.e. no dark crispy skin), but the flavor and juiciness more than make up for it. Making 2 at a time also allows for plenty of leftovers for another day - bonus! We love having roasted root veggies along side the chicken as well. With 2 chickens in the roaster and a small oven, I have to cook the veggies separately, but it's all worth the work and the wait.

On to this week...

Fish Tacos (see "C's" comment from last week for recipe)

Bacon and Kale Minestra

Uptown Down-Home Chili

Loaded Baked Potatoes

Chicken Pasta with Raisins, Pine Nuts and Rosemary (using leftover roast chicken)

Shrimp and Veggie Stir Fry

Pizza

Oct 19 - 25

We have a couple of roll-overs from last week after left-overs and a "find whatever you want to eat night" after getting home from our trip. One more "easy" week to get me through until my test is over then maybe I'll have motivation to cook again :)

Quesidilla Casserole

Tofu Stir Fry

BBQ Chicken & Pan Fried Potatoes (this was so yummy last week I had to have it again!)

Shepherd's Pie

Pizza

Chili

June 15 - 21

No reviews again this week, but I do have a handy dandy tip I tested out from Yia Yia. I typically buy ground beef in bulk, divide it into 1 pound portions and freeze it. YY mentioned that she cooks up the ground beef (lightly seasons it), then divides it and freezes it for quick and easy meals. I gave it a go since all we really use it for is spaghetti sauce and tacos. It's been great! Keenan wasn't home for dinner last night so I opened up a can of spaghetti sauce, tossed in some of the beef, cooked up some noodles and popped some frozen peas in the microwave. Dinner was ready in less than 15 minutes and both kids ate it up! I have to admit that I didn't divide up the ground beef - I just put it all in a 1 gallon zip lock bag - and that made for some trouble. Next time I'll definitely put it in sandwich size baggies then in the gallon one. Lesson learned :) Thanks Yia Yia! I still plan to freeze raw ground beef to have on hand for burgers or meatballs, but I suppose I could prep and freeze those as well!

Ok, here's this week's menu. I'll be on my own for a few days while Keenan's away on business so I have some quick meals planned and will probably eat with friends a couple nights as well.

Monday - French Dip Paninis

Tuesday - Frozen Pizza

Wednesday - Dinner with Friends

Thursday - Ham and Cheese Crepes (from Parents magazine)

Friday - Creamy Green Chilie Chicken Enchiladas with rice and beans

Saturday - Crunchy Chicken Pitas (from Parents magazine)

Sunday - Waldorf-style Pasta

May 25 - 31

As usual I'll kick-off this post with some quick reviews. The Chilie Lime dressing on our Cobb Salad was great! It was so light and refreshing with a kick of spicy. Ari and Keira both loved all the ingredients in the salad so it was a hit all around! The Honey Mustard Lime Chicken Legs were a bit disappointing. Not as much flavor as I'd hoped. Maybe if I double the sauce recipe. The leftovers were turned into our Firecracker Enchilads and were great in there, however. Our pesto came out fantastic and I was able to put the leftovers in the freezer for quick and easy dinners down the road. We still have plenty of basil in the garden so I think I'll get a pesto stock pile going!

Now for this week:

Monday - Tacos

Tuesday - Chicken Stir Fry with Brown Garlic Sauce

Wednesday - Turkey Kebabs

Thursday - Red Rice with Chorizo (actually Soy-rizo. I hope it's good!)

Friday - Ravioli with Tomato Sauce

Saturday - Pizza

Sunday - Hummus Sesame Noodles

April 27 - May 3

The Chicken Tikka Masala recipe from last week was just what we were looking for! I didn't notice the large amount of salt when I picked it, though. Luckily I caught it while cooking and adjusted it to 1 tsp in the maranade and 1/2 tsp in the sauce (down from 4 and 3 tsps!). It was still on the salty side so I'll probably cut it to 1/2 tsp in each next time. Oh and the 2 tsps of cayenne pepper makes it very spicy so beware if you can't handle much heat and adjust accordingly. Otherwise, the flavors were great and a close second to our favorite Indian restaurant :)

On to this week...

Monday - Chicken Teryaki

Tuesday - Tofu Stir Fry with Brown Garlic Sauce

Wednesday - Mexican style lasagna

Thursday - Tex-mex Cesar Salad

Friday - Frozen Pizza

Saturday - Couples Baby Shower Dinner

Sunday - Potato Gnocci with Sausage and Spinach

April 13 - 19

We had a great holiday week topped off with great food. The short ribs were amazing and the tzimmes was yummy (except for not cooking it long enough). At the last minute we were invited to join friends for Easter dinner so I now have a carry-over for this week.

Monday - Italian Sausage Rigatoni

Tuesday - Chicken Pad Thai

Wednesday - Bratwurst and Baked Beans

Thursday - Smothered Bean Burritos

Friday - Turkey Pepperoni Pizza

Saturday - Shake 'n Bake Chicken Nuggets with Sweet Potato Fries

Sunday - Mock Monte Cristos with carrot sticks