What's for Dinner?

This week I looked through the freezer to plan around the Freezer-Only Challenge. What's in your freezer to help you stick to the challenge this week?

 

Monday

 Sweet and sour chicken with rice and Asian mix veggies

Tuesday

Bun-less turkey cheeseburgers with French fries and corn

Wednesday

Rosemary and onion sirloin pork chops with baked potato and green beans

Thursday

Beef and pepper fajitas with refried beans

Friday

Baked tilapia with green salad

Saturday

Spaghetti with meat sauce and green salad

Sunday 

Leftovers from the week

Dressed Up Black Beans and Rice

Black beans and rice is an incredibly easy staple meal. It's healthy and fairly cheap to boot, making it great for an end-of-month recipe when the grocery budget is almost maxed out. My way of making it adds a bit more flavor and makes it a one-pot meal, veggies included. The recipe leaves you enough for leftovers for lunches or dinners for a few days. Buying a big bag of black beans, instead of canned gives the meal a better texture and saves you some cash. It's also healthier as canned beans can have added salt. The same goes for bag rice vs. instant.

Dressed Up Black Beans and Rice

• 1 lb. black beans, from bag not can
• 1/2 lb. sweet Italian sausage, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 lb. frozen green pepper and onion mix
• 8 servings long grain enriched white rice

Soak the black beans in a pot over night then cook beans per instructions on bag.
Rinse then prepare rice per instructions on bag.
Brown sausage in a skillet.  
Heat green peppers and onions in microwave, 5 minutes.
Combine all ingredients in a large pot.
Serve and enjoy!

Dressed Up Black Beans and Rice

Black beans and rice is an incredibly easy staple meal. It's healthy and fairly cheap to boot, making it great for an end-of-month recipe when the grocery budget is almost maxed out. My way of making it adds a bit more flavor and makes it a one-pot meal, veggies included. The recipe leaves you enough for leftovers for lunches or dinners for a few days. Buying a big bag of black beans, instead of canned gives the meal a better texture and saves you some cash. It's also healthier as canned beans can have added salt. The same goes for bag rice vs. instant.

Dressed Up Black Beans and Rice

• 1 lb. black beans, from bag not can
• 1/2 lb. sweet Italian sausage, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 lb. frozen green pepper and onion mix
• 8 servings long grain enriched white rice

Soak the black beans in a pot over night then cook beans per instructions on bag.
Rinse then prepare rice per instructions on bag.
Brown sausage in a skillet.  
Heat green peppers and onions in microwave, 5 minutes.
Combine all ingredients in a large pot.
Serve and enjoy!

What's for Dinner?

Mmm mmm mmm look what's for dinner! You may have noticed that I'm sticking to simple, filling, easy-to-make recipes. Doing that is much easier with a newborn right now. The fancier dinners, including things I've never made before, are coming once life settles down more.

Monday

Bar-b-cue chicken thighs and baked potatoes

Tuesday

Baked tilapia with broccoli and rice

Wednesday

Steaks with corn and mashed potatoes

Thursday

Waffles with mixed fruit salad

Friday

Green salad with shredded chicken on top

Saturday

Dressed-up black beans and rice

Sunday

Jamaican Allspice pork chops with peas, carrots and baked potatoes

What's for Dinner?

Here are dinner ideas for your menu, based on what we're eating this week.

 

Monday

 Leftover shredded whole roast chicken on mixed greens salad

Tuesday

Leftovers 

Wednesday

Baked tilapia with brown rice and mixed veggies

Thursday

Pork chops smother in apple sauce with baked potato and green breans

Friday

Spaghetti with side salad

Saturday

Turkey and three bean chili with French bread

Sunday

Orange chicken with fried rice

Cooking with M: What's for Dinner?

It's cooling down which means it's time for more hearty dinners. It's no longer a huge deal if the oven is on a while, yay!

Sunday

American sausage pierogi with green beans

Monday

Slow cooker pulled BBQ chicken, corn bread and leftover green beans

Tuesday

Steak, baked potato and veggies

Wednesday

Leftovers

Thursday

Pork stirfry

Friday

Mushroom and broccoli chicken over rice

Saturday

Beef roast, parsley buttered potatoes and mixed veggies

What's for Dinner?

This week I've got a nice, big case of cook's block. I seriously can't think of what to make for one night, let alone a week! Luckily, I've got a handy list of go-to foods I can make. Writing out the menu also helps kickstart my cooking juices. Let's see what I can come up with.

Monday
Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and veggies

Tuesday
Pork chops, couscous and veggies

Wednesday
Green salad

Thursday
Black beans, rice and ground beef with cheese

Friday
Sausages and veggies

Saturday
Herb chicken, baked potatoes and veggies

Back on the Meal Planning Wagon

Since I've had horrible morning sickness, I've slipped on planning our weekly dinners ahead of time. There just didn't seem to be a point when I was too sick to cook or too disgusted by food to even follow through. The last few weeks I've been doing better so am back in the swing of things. Yesterday, I started putting together a list of our go-to recipes. This list will have a companion "to try" version as I find new recipes to try from the internet and magazines. I have a folder with recipes to try that are torn from magazines. Today, I planned out our weekly menu to share with you.

Saturday
Pork stir fry over rice
Sunday
Chicken salad
Monday
Herb chicken with veggies
Tuesday
Green salad
Wednesday
Grilled steak with baked potato and veggies
Thursday
Leftovers or fettuccini
Friday
Mandarin orange chicken with fried rice

Simple, Quick Memorial Day Menu

For Memorial Day, I'm taking things easy and going for a simple, quick menu rather than my usual holiday fare. Not that I get too fancy with the summer holidays to begin with, but this one is going to be even more simple than usual. We're not even having the prerequisite macaroni salad! An easy menu allows for more relaxing and less stressing to get all the food prepared. I count that a win for sure.

How simple are we talking?

1. Bubba burgers (on sale half price this week at Martin's) with cheese, lettuce, buns, pickles, ketchup and mustard
2. Fresh Corn-on-the-cob, cut in half (M2's first time having it, also on sale this week)
3. French fries, frozen not fresh (a bulk bag so we'll make a bit then save the rest for other meals)
4. Yellow cupcakes with Reddi Whip on top to make them lighter

I might attempt corn bread from scratch, if I have all the ingredients and the mood strikes me tomorrow.