Menu: August 29-September 11

This will be a busy couple of weeks for me. This week I have a meeting for church tonight, a fitting, and we'll be spending some time with family Friday-Monday. Then I have wedding pickup next week. Because of this I won't be posting as many dishes for each week. If you need some more inspiration check out the master list.

August 29-September 4

• Monday - we have a calendar planning meeting at church and supper is provided
• Ricotta Eggplant Rolls, French bread, side salad, and sauteed green beans
• Chili and Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread (add 1 minced jalapeno pepper and 1/2 cup finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese to a standard corn bread recipe or box mix)
• Jambalaya
• Sloppy Joes, potato wedges, corn on the cob, and carrot sticks
• Saturday and Sunday will be spent with family so I'm not sure if and/or what I'll be cooking.

September 5-11

• Monday - we'll be driving so we'll probably just eat leftovers when we get home or we'll stop and get something on the road.
• Roast Chicken, glazed baby carrots, slow cooker red potatoes, and dinner rolls
• Red Beans and Rice
• Chicken Enchiladas and black beans with rice (I will be making up a double batch for the freezer)
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Saturday - there is a church activity going on so we'll just do leftovers.
• Chicken Tortellini Soup, side salad, and fresh bread or dinner rolls

Chipotle & Orange Grilled Chicken

Jared and I are big fans of Bobby Flay. We may even be slightly addicted to his shows. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact the both of us love southwestern flavors (our first "date" was even at a Tex-Mex restaurant called the Tumbleweed, but that's another story altogether). Anyway, Bobby uses chipotles in a lot of things and has "introduced" them to us.

If You Give 2 Preschoolers an Hour

Miss A's birthday was on Thursday, so I decided that we would walk to the park for a picnic lunch. I knew the kids would really enjoy it but when I took a look at their rooms I decided that it would be necessary to have them clean up before we left. I made this discovery at 10:45am, at which point I informed Mr. R. and Miss E. that they needed to clean up. This is what happened.

Menu: August 15-28

Trying to make up a 2 week menu again. How many weeks do you write up your menus for?

August 15-21

• Hamburgers (goat cheese, sauteed onions and mushrooms, and BBQ sauce) with homemade buns, potato wedges, and fresh veggie sticks
• Cuban Braised Beef and Avocado Onion Salad (made this last week instead of the Veggie Pizza)
• Steaks, sauteed summer squash, roasted baby reds, and a side salad (made this last week instead of the beef brisket grinders)
• Eggplant Parmesan/Chicken Parmesan, side salad, and French bread
• Grilled Chicken Salad
• grilled chicken strips
• romaine lettuce
• boiled eggs
• mushrooms
• black olives
• turkey bacon
• feta cheese
• fat free dressing

August 22-28

• Baked Eggplant and Tomato Pastry and side salad (I didn't get a chance to try this dish while on "maternity leave")
• Potato Gnocchi with roasted garlic cream sauce, sauteed green beans, and breadsticks
• Peppery Beef Sandwiches, slow cooker BBQ beans, and fresh veggie tray
• Chili and jalapeno cheddar corn bread (traditional corn bread with finely shredded sharp cheddar and minced jalapenos added) - I will be canning tomato sauce this week so I figured this would be the easiest.
• Chipotle Orange Grilled Chicken, rice, and grilled zucchini/summer squash

If you'd like more ideas, check out the "master" list.

Marshmallow Cola Brownies

We were having a get-together with Jared's family the other day and I was going to bring brownies. I was thinking about all the different "semi-homemade" brownies I've made but wanted to try something different. I had a bag of marshmallows, some mini chocolate chips, and a box of fudge brownie mix, so I went online to see what I could come up with. I saw a recipe for Cola Brownies on Betty Crocker's website and decided to try my own take on them. This recipe makes for a very moist, dense brownie with lots of ooey, gooey marshmallow on top.

Cuban Braised Beef with Avocado Onion Salad

We were recently given a Florida avocado, which is MUCH larger than a Hass avocado, by a Cuban woman at our church whose parents live in Florida and have a few avocado trees. Everyone except Mr. R. likes avocado we were excited about using it. When the hubby asked what all they use avocados for in Cuban cooking, she mentioned that they eat it like you would a salad - sliced with some onions then drizzle with an olive oil and lime dressing, and sprinkled with salt and pepper. I had some leftover venison steaks and wanted to make something "Cuban" in flavor to go along with the avocado salad.

Cantaloupe Bread / Muffins

Last summer I discovered that you can make bread using cantaloupe puree much like you can do with pumpkin. I had an overflow of cantaloupe left from the garden and decided to try it. The bread has a very mild flavor with hints of cinnamon and ginger and is a nice way to use up your fresh produce. You can even puree the melon ahead of time and freeze it in 2 cup increments for later use.

Menu: August 1-14

It's hard to believe that Miss S. is almost 1 month old and that I am back to writing menus. It was really nice having a month's worth of menus done up ahead of time so I'm thinking about attempting a few 2-week menus. What do you prefer? Do you like the 1-week, 2-week, or 4-week menu format?

Week 1: August 1-7

• Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
• Chicken Parmesan with spaghetti, side salad, fruit salad, and fresh bread (one of the ladies from my church brought this meal over for us shortly after Miss S. was born. It was delicious!)
• Spicy Chicken Sausage Penne, dinner rolls, and veggies
• Pasta Alla Romana, side salad, and French Bread
• Mac'n'Cheese, hot dogs (turkey or beef) with homemade buns, and a fresh veggie tray.

Week 2: August 8-14

• Potato Gnocchi with roasted garlic cream sauce, sauteed green beans, and breadsticks.
• Steak Fajitas and Mexican Rice
• Stuffed Peppers and side salad (or maybe even Stuffed Pepper Soup)
• Veggie Pizza
• Beef  Brisket Grinders and sauteed summer veggies

If you'd like more ideas, check out the "master" list.

Temperance: Getting Out of Debt

In September of 2008 we were at our whit's end with finances. We had a negative cash flow, 5-6 credit cards (a few of them were maxed out), 2 car payments, some medical bills (our oldest spent almost a week in NICU at birth), a couple of student loans, and our mortgage.

Maternity Leave Menus: July 4-31

I am due with Miss S. today (June 28th) but have gone 41 weeks with all 3 of my other children so I'm just planning on it this time around as well. I will meet with my doctor later this morning to schedule a date and time to induce. With that in mind, I have prepared 4 weeks of menus in case I don't have time after she arrives to put them together on a weekly basis.

Week 1 (July 4-10)

Being the hubby will be off of work for this week whether baby #4 has arrived or not, he will be cooking (or more likely grilling) dinner tonight. Also, if baby has arrived and I am home from the hospital we will probably end up with some family/friends over for dinner.

• Ahi Tuna Wraps with mango salsa, roasted red potatoes, sauted veggies (zucchini, summer squash, onions, peppers, etc. all tossed in herbs and olive oil then sauted or even grilled) and frozen juice pops for dessert.
• Sub Sandwiches (grilled chicken breast), pasta salad, and grilled peaches ala mode. I will also have the hubby grill up some chicken breast for use later this week.
• Chicken enchiladas (I made a double batch a month ago and froze it for easy use now), and black beans and rice
• Grilled Chicken Pizza
• Grilled Chicken Salad
• grilled chicken strips
• romaine lettuce
• boiled eggs
• mushrooms
• black olives
• turkey bacon
• feta cheese
• fat free dressing

Week 2 (July 11-17)

• Tacos
• Hamburgers with homemade buns, sweet potato fries, and fresh veggie sticks
• Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
• Stuffed Peppers and side salad
• Crockpot Venison Steaks, crockpot baby red potatoes, and glazed baby carrots.
• Chicken Salad Sandwiches, fresh veggie tray, and fruit salad

Week 3 (July 18-24)

• Veggie Pizza
• Eggplant Parmesan, side salad, and French bread
• Lime Cilantro Sweet Chili Shrimp, rice, stir-fried veggies (carrots, zucchini, onions, garlic, red peppers), and cold melon soup (for dessert)
• Chipotle Orange Grilled Chicken, slow cooker BBQ beans, and grilled zucchini/summer squash 
• Grilled Pork Loin, grilled potatoes (potato slices, chopped onion, garlic, butter, salt and pepper layered in a tin-foil packet then cooked on the grill), and baked zucchini boats (cut zucchini in half, clean out seeds and then fill with salsa and feta cheese; bake at 375 degrees till tender)
• Brats and hot dogs with homemade buns, 

Week 4 (July 25-31)

• BBQ Pork Sandwiches, potato salad, and fresh veggie tray
• Chicken Taco Soup
• Jambalaya
• Baked Eggplant and Tomato Pastry
• Steak Fajitas and Mexican Rice
• BLTA Sandwiches, fresh veggie tray, and fruit salad

If you'd like more ideas, check out the "master" list.