May 24-30, 2015

**  After a couple weeks' hiatus, we are back home and the menus are planned again!**

Sunday:  Pepperoni & Cheese Crescent Roll Ups with Fruit & Chips

We had arrived home late the night before and didn’t have many groceries on hand, so I made our dinner with what we had.  Pepperoni, mozzarella cheese sticks, and crescent rolls made a dinner everyone was happy with!  I brush the tops of the rolled up crescent rolls with garlic butter before baking them to make them extra tasty.

Monday:  Memorial Day:  Hot Dogs, Fruit, & Chips

Tuesday:  Steaks, Sautéed Mushrooms, Sliced Tomatoes with Balsamic Vinegar

Chad was wanting to grill, and I was also happy with that plan.  J 

Wednesday:  Chicken Parmesan Casserole with Roasted Broccoli

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

I’m not sure what made me remember this recipe from Emily Bites…I haven’t made it in a really long time!  But, I’m so happy I thought of it again!  Originally, my plan with the kids this day was to go buy a few groceries, but we ended up having fun instead, so I didn’t buy ingredients specifically for this dish.  But, I was able to make it happen thanks to some freezer help!  I had frozen chicken thighs that I thawed out.  I also had a frozen bag of homemade, crock pot marinara sauce from a month or two ago.  I broke the sauce in half because I didn’t need all of it.  So, half of the bag went right back into the freezer for another meal!

I also didn’t have any croutons on hand, but I did have some whole wheat mini hamburger buns in the freezer from a meal before our beach trip.  I pulled those out, went to the ever-reliable Pinterest, and made my own croutons using a combination of this recipe and this recipe!  

I baked mine at 300 degrees for 20 minutes, stirring them around half way through.  They were so, so delish!!  I could have only eaten croutons and been perfectly happy.  J  I will try to remember this when we have some bread that is a little older before I just throw it out.  These were so, so yummy!  And the dinner was also amazing (I only made a half recipe).  I forgot to take a picture before we ate, but you can see what it looked like after.  I’d call that a success.

Thursday:  Cheeseburger Quesadillas with Sweet Potato Fries & Fruit

Cheeseburger Quesadillas

This is basically a cute name for a quesadilla made with ground beef and cheddar cheese.  Ha!  I bought some half corn, half flour tortillas that our family really enjoys and then just made some ground beef.  I seasoned the beef with salt, pepper, garlic powder, minced onion, and a little season salt, and that’s all!  I only used half the ground beef for this meal, and I saved the other half for Friday’s meal.  I served our quesadillas with sweet potato fries (store-bought this time around) and fruit, and everyone made a happy plate!  I should have taken a picture of the kids’ plates, as each one likes to have a different dipping condiment.

Friday:  Pizza & Movie Night!

We were all really excited to be home and have our family pizza and movie night again.  I bought some yummy, preservative free pizza crusts from Sprouts (good for a day when I didn’t have time to make my own), and we topped them with all of our favorites.  For the kids, pizza sauce, pepperoni, ground beef (the other half I prepared the night before), and mozzarella cheese.  

For the adults, pizza sauce, pesto, pepperoni, ground beef, fresh tomatoes, fresh spinach, fresh basil, and mozzarella cheese.  

My mom came over also, and between the six of us, we finished off almost every bite! J

Saturday:  Grilled Sausage, Caesar Salad, Fruit, & Chips

This meal needs no explanation.  We had some family over, and this menu made everyone happy!

April 26 - May 2, 2015

** Due to crazy kid schedules and crazy husband travel schedule, there will not be a menu posted next week. **

Sunday:  Chicken Tenders with Sautéed Zucchini & Carrots

·          Chad took Ranger and Payton to our small group Bible study while I stayed home with Callen who had a little bit of a cold.  I made a quick dinner out of Purdue’s Simply Smart Chicken Tenders, which even Chad and I like to eat.  J  Callen helped me cube some zucchini and carrots, and I was able to sauté a little bit for him and me when we were ready for dinner, and then I made the rest right before Chad and the kids arrived home.  Easy, healthy dinner for everyone!

Monday:  Dinner Out

Tuesday:  Ziti Pasta with Homemade Crock Pot Marinara & Turkey Sausage, Caesar Salad, & Garlic Breadsticks

·          It was Payton’s family birthday dinner, so I needed a dinner that would feed several people but not be too time-consuming.  Since I’ve discovered Skinny Taste’s Crockpot Marinara sauce, I’ve made it 3-4 times.  It’s so easy, and you can easily change the spices and flavorings to suit your family’s tastes.  I made a double recipe in the crockpot this time, and I actually found crushed tomatoes with basil already added!  I also added in some fresh parsley and red pepper flakes.  I made the sauce as she suggests, except that instead of meatballs, I used some precooked and crumbled turkey sausage I discovered at the store.  I just tossed it in the sauce and had the crock pot on low for 3-4 hours.  Easy and delicious! 

Then all that was left to do was boil some pasta (gluten free this time for some of our family), open a big bag of Caesar salad (no…I did not make the dressing from scratch), and throw some bread in the oven.  It was perfect for a crowd!  Since it was Payton’s birthday, she and the boys ate macaroni and cheese…it’s her fave! 

Wednesday:  Baked Cheesy Chicken Flautas with 5-Minute Guacamole

Baked Cheese Chicken Flautas

·          This recipe from JoCooks is a perfect weeknight meal.  The boys had their final swim lesson late in the afternoon, so I was able to throw these together quickly before we left, and then when we arrived back home, I just put them in the oven to cook.  Since I was in a little bit of a time crunch before we left, I made the recipe even easier.  I used chicken that I had already taken from a rotisserie chicken earlier in the week.  Instead of sautéing the garlic and onion in olive oil, I just used minced onion and garlic powder, basically skipping that whole step.  Since mine were going into the fridge for a couple of hours before cooking, I didn’t really feel like heating everything up in the skillet was necessary.  J 

I used whole wheat tortillas.  I also just rubbed my dish with butter, rather than melting it.  Before I put them in the oven, I did brush on a little melted butter over the top.  These were really good!  I made ours a tad too spicy for the kids, but the boys still powered through.  I ended up giving Payton a little turkey.  The next time I make them, I will make a few with just chicken and cheese rolled up for the kids to avoid the spice for them.  Chad and I really liked them though!  (They also made an excellent leftover meal for me for a few days when Chad was gone.  I just reheated one in the oven for my meal, and the tortilla crisped right back up!)

I served ours with The Weary Chef’s 5-Minute Guacamole, which I could pretty much make a meal out of all on its own!  I’m a little obsessed with avocadoes right now and am finding excuses to have them with everything.

Thursday:  Grilled Cheeses with Fresh Fruit and Veggies for the Kids, Leftover for Me

·          Chad left for a guys’ golf weekend, so it was an easy dinner after baseball practice for us!

Friday:  Dinner Out with Friends

Saturday:  Chicken & Fries

·          Ranger was having dinner with friends, Callen was with my mom, and Chad was still golfing, so it was just Payton and me for dinner.  She requested chicken and fries, and I happily obliged!  I had some in the oven and on our table in no time.  Just a special girls’ dinner.  J