Menu 2013: June 3-30

With all this GREAT weather and our awesome new deck/backyard, I am looking for simple dishes so we can spend a lot of time outside. Here is the menu format for this month:

• Grilled
• Salad
• Sandwich/Wrap
• Spicy
• "Italian" (this includes anything pasta and pizza)
• Misc. Dish (anything that isn't one of the above meal types)

June 3-9

• Pepperoni rolls, veggie tray, and side salad
• Pulled pork/peppery beef sandwiches (I froze leftovers of each of these in the last month or so)
• Chicken enchiladas with a creamy green chili sauce and rice
• Tuna pasta salad (albacore tuna, peas, celery, onion, elbow macaroni, mixed with miracle whip, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder)
• Grilled one-pouch feast (smoked sausage and veggies in aluminum foil) over brown rice
• Ham and egg crepe squares and fruit salad

June 10-16 (we may end up working at the old house a couple of days so we're only planning 5 meals)

• Asian grilled chicken kabobs over rice with grilled stir-fry veggies
• Taco Salad
• Tuna salad wraps, fruit salad, and veggie tray
• Jambalaya
• Italian pasta salad with grilled chicken

June 17-23

• Grilled Caprese Chicken with balsamic reduction, asparagus, glazed carrots, parmesan herb pasta, and fresh bread
• Chef Salad
• Lettuce wraps, cauliflower poppers, and rice
• Chipotle honey BBQ chicken (going to attempt my own bbq sauce), corn on the cob, and stir-fry veggies
• Homemade pizza
• Carrot cake waffles and fresh fruit

June 24-30 (we have a wedding this week, so I'm only planning 5 meals)

• Grilled steaks, baked potatoes, grilled green beans and carrots, and dinner rolls
• Sante Fe salad
• Chicken Salad Pitas
• Stuffed peppers
• "Rotisserie" chicken, glazed carrots, mashed potatoes, and dinner rolls

Going "Green" for Supper: salad as a main dish

Our family enjoys salad as a main dish at least once a month (even more during the summer months). It is a

when making salad for dinner, sometimes I'll make bread
bowls (like the picture), breadsticks, or rolls as a side dish

healthy, filling meal and offers something for everyone. I like to use a variety of greens: baby spinach, romaine, iceberg, leaf lettuce, Boston/Bibb, etc. There's a really great visual to salad greens here.

Butter Braid: Savory or Sweet

Sweet - Strawberry Mango Braid

A few years back, my sister introduced me to butter braids. The school my nieces attend was selling them as a fundraiser and they were delicious! But...they made for an expensive breakfast. My sister decided there had to be an alternative and came up with her own recipe. I wanted to try her recipe but she was out of town so I just winged it. This recipe make 3 loaves (each loaf cuts nicely into 8-10 pieces) and my sister usually freezes 1 or 2 of them but I still need to get her freezer instructions...

Multi-Grain Pretzel Dogs

Mutli-grain Pretzel Dog

I LOVE soft pretzels (they are one of my favorite foods), so when the hubby told me that I should try to make "pig's in a blanket but with pretzel dough" he didn't need to ask twice. I looked at all my soft pretzel recipes and picked one that I thought would work. Then I just jumped in head first (I generally don't fight my creative urges when it comes to cooking). I was glad that I did because these were DELISH! The kids loved them and we did, too. They are better than hot dogs in a bun and you could do a lot of playing around with dipping sauces, such as cheese, queso, ketchup, mustard, or chili. They take less than an hour to make and I think I may attempt freezing them (like their store-bought cousins by Super Pretzel but cheaper and hopefully better).

Menu 2013: April 29-June 2

The last five weeks have been crazy busy and I am really looking forward to things settling down in the near future. We are still unpacking and organizing things in the new house as well as traveling back and forth to work on the old house. We are hoping that the house will be ready to list by the middle of May.

I am trying to settle into a routine again as far as meal planning goes so here is my new format:

• Quick and light 
• Spicy (Tex-Mex, Cajun, etc.)
• Grilled
• Pizza / Italian
• Sandwiches/Wraps
• Brinner
• Misc. Dish

April 29-May 5

• Hot dogs/brats, sweet corn, sauteed asparagus, and baked beans
• Pancakes, eggs, and unsweetened applesauce 
• Grilled pork chops, pasta salad, and fresh fruit
• Hot ham and cheese, fresh fruit, and corn on the cob (can you tell that I am super excited about fresh fruits and veggies coming back into season?)
• Loaded potato soup and multi-grain dinner rolls

May 6-12

• Chicken pasta prima vera and garlic bread 
• Tacos with black beans and rice
• Cheeseburgers, fruit salad, and veggie tray
• Ham and turkey sub sandwiches and fruit salad
• Happy Mother's Day - Grilled chicken/steak, mac'n'cheese, green beans, bean dip and chips

May 13-19

• Spaghetti, glazed carrots, side salad, and French bread
• Grilled Chicken Chef's Salad
• Steak fajitas and black beans
• Tuna salad sandwiches, fruit salad, and chips
• [Crockpot] Peppery beef sandwiches, glazed carrots, and side salad

May 20-26

• Ham and turkey sub sandwiches and fruit salad
• White chicken chili
• Homemade Pizza (probably sausage and black olive, caprese, and Canadian bacon and pineapple)
• Pretzel-wrapped hot dogs, mac'n'cheese, and fruit salad
• Pancakes and scrambled eggs

May 27-June 2

• Happy Memorial Day [Grilling] - Burgers, grilled veggies, grilled potatoes, and maybe some corn on the cob with a fruit and jello salad for dessert
• Chicken cordon bleu, garlic herb pasta, and green beans
• Jambalaya
• Grilled chicken salad
• Ham and cheese wraps, fresh veggies, and fruit salad
• Lasagna rollups, mixed veggies, and French bread