Menu: Chicken casserole and Fried Rice

This week is all about reusing ingredients and STOCKING our FREEZERS! With the holiday season coming up, if you are like me, there are so many nights with events that it is hard to plan a cook once/eat twice weekly menu. So, use your trusty freezer to have dinner in a pinch!

Day One:

Chicken Artichoke Casserole

I love this casserole, it's always a hit. It freezes well, so while you are making it this week, make another one to freeze for later! When you double it, do not fully double the milk (it is a little too much). For this week's menu, make another cup of cooked rice to put in the fridge and use for your fried rice if you are cooking for two. If you are cooking for four, make two extra cups.

Ingredients :

1/2 cup chopped carrot (about 1)

1/2 cup chopped red pepper

1/4 cup sliced green onions (about 2)

1 T butter

1 10 3/4 ounce can low sodium (healthy option) condensed cream of chicken soup

1 9 ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and cut up

1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I always use a rotisserie)

1 cup hot cooked rice (white or brown)

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella (I always use a little more)

2/3 cup milk (1% works great)

1 tea garlic powder

1 tea poultry seasoning

1/2 tea salt (more to taste)

1/4 tea fresh cracked black pepper

4 slices crispy, cooked bacon, crumbled

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. In a large skillet (you can also use a wok or soup pot) melt butter over medium high heat. Cook carrot, pepper, and green onions in melted butter until the carrot is crisp-tender. Remove from heat. Stir in the chicken soup, artichoke hearts, chicken, rice, mozzarella cheese, milk, spices, and bacon.

2. Transfer the mixture to a 2 quart rectangular baking dish. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

3. Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Uncover, and bake about 20 minutes more or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Freezer directions: Place doubled casserole in a freezable container (I like foil pans). Let it cool down a little and then put it in the freezer. DO NOT top with parmesan until you thaw it and are ready to cook it.

Tossed Salad

Day Two:

Leftover casserole & tossed salad

Day Three:

Fried Rice w/ Hoisin marinated chicken

If you are cooking this recipe for two, halve it (then you will only use the 1 cup of rice you saved from the casserole) but make FOUR chicken breasts so you can have them for your salad tomorrow.

Recipe changes for the fried rice:

1. I use fish sauce instead of oyster sauce and use little (if any soy sauce) until I serve it at the table.

2. I cook mine in a wok and move the rice to the side and pour in a scrambled egg. Let it cook fully, then combine with the rice mixture.

Hints:

*For great fried rice always use old, cold rice!

*For quicker grilling, pound the chicken a little thinner to make it more even before putting it in the marinade.

Day Four:

Hoisin chicken tossed salad with Asian vinaigrette

Make your favorite salad meal! Suggestions: bib lettuce, bell peppers, mandarin oranges, red or green onions, and peanuts.

OR

A chicken/starch/vegetable meal if you don't want a salad meal (Ex: Leftover chicken, roasted asparagus, and sauteed zucchini/squash.)

Day Five:

Roasted Shrimp with bell peppers

Time to double up and stock the freezer again! Either make the recipe and freeze half of it for 2 two person servings, or double it and freeze an entire recipe for 2 four person servings. Follow the directions from the website about freezing.

Cous-Cous or Orzo

The recipe online says to serve with rice, but we have eaten so much rice this week, let's change it up!

Happy eating!

~Mamacita

Menu: Pork Tenderloin Tacos & Greek Shrimp Scampi

This week, we will be cooking three times, but if you are in a pinch, you could even get away with cooking twice. We will make four meals total, but soon I will begin offering menus for five meals.

Day One:

*Pork tenderloin w/dijon-apricot glaze

Ingredients:

1 pork tenderloin (about 2 lbs.- this will feed you twice)

4 T dijon mustard

4 T apricot jam (Don't like or have apricot jam? Try pineapple, blackberry, or raspberry)

2 T brown sugar

sea salt

fresh ground black pepper

*When cooking large pieces of meat in the oven, allow them to come to more room temperature before cooking. DO NOT go straight from the refrigerator or the meat will not cook well.

1. Preheat the oven to 425.

2. Place the pork in a foil-lined glass pan & season liberally with salt and pepper.

3. Stir half of the dijon, apricot jam, and brown sugar in one bowl. Stir the other half in another bowl. You will use one bowl for basting and the other for a dipping sauce.

4. Baste the pork liberally with the glaze and place in oven.

5. Bake for 20-30 minutes, basting with the glaze at least one more time during the cooking process. For pink pork, a meat thermometer should read 160, but I like mine at 170. The pork will still cook itself a little once removed. (Use a meat thermometer, so you don't have to cut into the pork and risk losing the juices.)

6. Allow pork to sit for 10 minutes before slicing. While pork sits, heat the other bowl of glaze in the microwave for a dipping sauce.

* Toasted Sesame Balsamic Asparagus

* Wild Rice/Any other grain (Feeling ambitious? Try Israeli cous-cous with pine nuts!)

Day Two:

* Pork Tacos w/ pineapple (serves 2)

Ingredients:

Leftover pork, cubed

1 small can of chopped pineapple

1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped

4 corn tortillas

chopped cilantro, for garnish

lime wedges, for garnish

1 T olive oil

1. Heat oil in nonstick skillet over med-high heat.

2. Add onion, sautéeing for about 1 minute.

3. Add pork and pineapple, sautée until heated through

4. Fill tortillas with pork mixture, top with cilantro, and squeeze lime juice over top

* Fiesta Rice

Halve the recipe (then it serves 4), leftovers make a great vegetarian lunch

Day Three:

* Greek-style shrimp scampi (Use the leftovers for day 4)

I LOVE this recipe. A few changes: either use more shrimp than called for, or a little less pasta, the ratio seemed off to me. Also, I love olives, so I add extra. Don't like olives? Use sun-dried tomatoes instead. You could also wilt in some fresh spinach for a punch of color and extra nutrients.

* Tossed Side Salad

* Crusty Bread w/roasted garlic

Have you ever roasted garlic? Oh, so yummy.

Roasted Garlic:

1. Preheat oven to 400

2. Cut the top off of a whole garlic bulb.

3. Liberally pour olive oil over the garlic.

4. Cover in foil. (It should look like a foil ball.)

5. Roast for about 25-30 minutes, or until you can squeeze the garlic with tongs and it has some give.

6. Scoop out the cloves and spread over the bread instead of butter.

Day Four:

* Repeat Day Three exactly. (Is that boring? Then, make two new sides, such as blanched green beans, steamed broccoli, or roasted brussel sprouts.)

PLEASE COMMENT if you have QUESTIONS or FEEDBACK.

Have a WEEK-LONG MENU of your own? Email it to me typed exactly how you want it posted at newmoms09@yahoo.com, and I might post it to share and try myself!

Happy Eating!

~Mamacita