Menu 6/6/11

This week I am using up what I have leftover in the freezer. Also replenishing it.
More on these recipes during the week with pictures.


Monday: Root beer pulled pork sandwiches and baked potatoes.
Tuesday: Nick's special grilled chicken, fresh green beans, and watermelon.
Wednesday: Beef burritos and mexican rice.
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Pizza
Saturday: Riverbank Zoo
Sunday: Grilled flank steak with tomatoes, green beans, and rolls.

Almond Boneless Chicken

Want Chinese? Don't want to go out? Here is your answer. Almond boneless chicken. This is Nick's favorite and the only chinese dish he will eat. And guess what else? You can only get it in Michigan. Go figure!

Almond Boneless Chicken

4 Boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces or whole breasts

Batter

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

1 egg white

Sauce

4 Tbsp cornstarch

4 Tbsp water

3 cups chicken broth (low sodium)

1 1/2 cups chopped mushrooms (optional)

3 Tbsp butter

2 tsp soy sauce

3 Tbsp chicken bouillon granules

Sliced Almonds (optional-but this is called ALMOND after all)

Sliced green onion

To make batter:

In a medium bowl mix all batter ingredients together until smooth. Cover and let sit 30min. Add chicken either cut up or whole, toss to coat.

Heat oil in medium/large pan to 350 degrees. Add chicken and fry for approximately 3 min for bites and 6 min for whole breasts. As always test a piece first to make sure it is cooked to 165 degrees. Batter should be slightly golden.

While frying chicken, make almond sauce. 

To make sauce:

In a small sauce pan, mix cornstarch and water until smooth. Gradually add the chicken broth, mushrooms, butter, soy sauce, and bouillon granules. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Let boil 1 min and then keep warm.

Serve over rice and sprinkle almonds and green onions.

Fry some chicken to golden brown.

Make almond sauce.

Add some rice and there you go!

Buttermilk Banana Muffins

I was looking for something other then cereal for breakfast. I am tired of eating cardboard for my *most important meal of the day!* As a Mom, who has time to COOK breakfast, lunch, and dinner? Ummm... not I! Do you know how many dishes that is? I have a hard enough time just doing dinner dishes. Honestly, I need to know the secret to having more than one child. How do you split your time equally? I am hoping this helps a little.

Buttermilk Banana Muffins... or bread or however you like!
Makes 12 muffins or 1- 9x5in loaf

8 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup(3 medium)ripe smashed bananas
4 Tbsp buttermilk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (or 1 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp ground flax seed (optional-high in Omega 3,6,9, Fiber, Lignans)
2 Tbsp wheat germ (optional- high in Vitamin E and folic acid)
1 Tbsp cinnamon (optional)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350. Place muffin wrapers in muffin pan. Or grease and flour 9 1/4 x 5 1/4inch loaf pan.
2) In stand mixer bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add eggs, bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla. Mix well.
3) Add in the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and other optional items. Once combined divide batter into muffins or pour into bread pan.
4) Bake at 350 for 25-30 min for muffins or 50 min for bread. Always insert toothpick 10 min before time is up to make sure you don't over bake. If toothpick comes up clean then they are DONE!
*If making in loaf pan let cool in pan on wire cooking rack for 15 min. Then loosen sides with a knife and carefully remove from pan and let cool on rack. Slice and enjoy!
See below for step-by-step photos!

Smash those BANANAS 

Cream some pure goodness... oh I mean butter and sugar

Then add some eggs, monkey food,
 I mean bananas, buttermilk and  vanilla.

How about some flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder?
AND WHIP IT! WHIP IT REALLL GOOOD!!

shhhhhh... this is where you add the good for you stuff.

Pour into muffins or loaf pan... then bake.

... and then you have some
yummy buttermilk banana muffins

Menu 5/15/11

Sunday- Grilled filets with baked potatoes and steamed broccoli
Monday- Homemade pizza (dough from local bread bakery)
Tuesday- Bbq island tilapia from Sam's club
Wednesday- Chicken caccitore from last week
Thursday- Crispy Shrimp pasta from last week too!
Friday-Chicken rollatini with prosciutto
Saturday-Grilled flank steak with tomatoes red onion and balsamic and roasted veggies

Menu 5/8/11

Sunday: Natchitoches meat pies
Monday: French dip sandwiches
Tuesday: Tortellini spinach bake in creamy lemon
Wednesday: baked chipotle beef taquitos with mexican rice and flour tortillas
Thursday: Chicken cacciatore
Friday: crispy shrimp pasta
Saturday: cheesy chicken and wild rice casserole

So, this week I have decided to COOK! I don't know about you but if I don't plan out my meals I am VERY LAZY all week in the cooking department. Sundays meal I plan on making the meat a head of time. Also these are FREEZER or REUSE meals this week! Talk about fantastic huh? Okay here is the gist:
Sundays meat mixture will already be made so all I have to do is make the pie dough and bake! Easy.
Monday is cooked in a crock-pot so not much to do there. The left over meat will be used in Wednesdays taquitos.
Tuesday is pasta and it is already pre-made from the grocery store so big score there.
Wednesdays meals can be pre-made and just reheated straight from the freezer. Super nice when it comes to meals to take to friends who are having a baby (wink, wink) or someone is ill or you just feel like being nice!
Thursday you can make up the chicken at anytime and just freeze into cup serving bags and take out as much as you need. I tend to dice up some and have some as pulled chicken so I can have my choice.
Friday I have never cooked shrimp before so this will be a new experience for me. I did find a recipe for some chicken and veggie nuggets that I am hoping to make up this weekend and have on hand for dinners that just don't turn out or if someone is picky they get one of two options. The recipe calls for mixed veggies like broccoli, cauliflower,and carrots blended with ground chicken. Then dipped in panko breadcrumbs and cut into star shapes and baked. More about them next week when I get to play around with the recipe this weekend.
Saturday uses shredded cooked chicken and it is in a casserole dish so you just mix it all together after sauteing the veggies. YUMM.

So who is cooking with me this week?

Strawberry Martini's

Lets just say YUM!!! I got this recipe from Shanon's friend Emily.  She made these for Mike and Shanon when they were over for dinner a few weeks ago.  They sounded so good that I thought, heck, I'll make these for breakfast at grandma's in the morning since Kristin and Katie were going to be there with the kids.  It was my first time making them and they were so good.  They were even better the second time I made them.

I've made these with different kids of juice- cherry and white grape cherry. I prefer cranberry but everyone has their preference.

You will need to make simple syrup  for this drink.  To make simple syrup dissolve 1 cup of sugar in 1 cup of water in a pot.  Boil till the sugar is dissolved.  Chill to you are ready to make the drink.

You will also need to puree 2 strawberries.  I used my immersion blender and pureed the strawberries with the vodka.

I really like to soak the strawberries in the vodka and dip some in chocolate to eat thank to Danielle for introducing me to them. The rest of them I used to make this drink and the vodka they were soaking in.  So really it goes hand in hand in making vodka soaked strawberries with strawberry martinis.  YUM O!

STRAWBERRY MARTINI
Emily Heintz

1 glass
1 shot simple syrup
1 shot vodka2 strawberries pureed
1 slice of lime squeeze the juice and use the wedge as garnish
about 1/2 cup cranberry juice

serve over ice in a martini glass.

Pitcher
2/3 cup simple syrup
2/3 cup vodka
8 strawberries pureed
2 whole limes juiced
3 cups of cranberry juice

* You can also make this into SLUSH! VERY VERY VERYYYYYY GOOOD!!

Vodka soaked Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Danielle Heit

Vodka
Strawberries
chocolate bark

Wash the strawberries and put them in a shallow dish with a lid.  Pour enough vodka over the strawberries and they it soak overnight.  Put strawberries on paper towels to dry while you melt chocolate on low heat in the microwave.  Stir till melted.  Dip the strawberry in chocolate coating the entire strawberry but the green stem and leaves.  Let harden on parchment paper.

YUM!

Hillbilly Caviar

Tonight I am going out for a girls night and need to bring an appetizer,  Matt's dad is also coming over today and I think he would like this dish so I figured I'd make a batch so I'd have it for both events today.   I got this recipe from someone at work who got it from someone else at work so I don't know where it originally came from but it's delish!  It's quick and easy, not a lot of fuss which is my kind of dish.  Plus you make it a day ahead so it can marinate.  Okay, it might not look so yummy but just one bite and you will change your mind.

Hillbilly Caviar

3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon water
1 Teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup sugar

Mix and boil, then let cool.  Just as easy as that.

Rinse and drain:
1 can black-eyed peas
1 can pinto beans
1 can white corn
1 can black beans
1 cup chopped green onion  
1 cup chopped celery 



Fritos Scoops or Tortilla Scoops. 

Mix everything together, let set at least a few hours or overnight- then drain before serving. 

Serve with Fritos Scoops or Tortilla Scoops.