Marti's Week of Meals

Crock Pot Monday-  Crock Pot Beef Sandwiches

2 and 1/2 lb Beef Roast, fat trimmed and discarded
2 dry Italian dressing packets, onion soup mix, or just a lot of onion powder, garlic powder, and seasoning salt
1 cup water

Onions, peppers, and mushrooms

Hoagie Rolls
Cheese (swiss, cheddar, or mozzarella)
Horse Radish (optional)


Place the roast in the crock pot.  Add the seasonings and then pour the water over all.  Cover crock pot and cook over night on low or for 6 hours on high until the meat shreds easily with a fork.  Serve the shredded meat on toasted hoagie rolls, melt cheese on top under the broiler, and serve with sauteed veggies (onions, peppers, and mushrooms.   Serve the beef broth on the side for dipping.

Taken from the "Freezer Cooking Manual" with revisions.
 

Budget Tuesday-  Hamburger Vegetable Soup

1 onion
chopped garlic
1 lb hamburger
1 can of diced tomatoes
beef broth (enough to cover or water and beef bouillon)
3 carrots peeled and sliced into rounds
3 stalks of celery peeled and sliced
3 potatoes peeled and chopped
1 cup frozen peas

Saute onion and garlic.  Add hamburger and brown.  Add tomatoes and broth.  Bring to a simmer and then add all vegetables except the peas.  Simmer until the veggies are tender.   Add the peas just a few minutes before serving.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

No-Knead Bread

2 cups water
2 tsp. yeast
4 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp. salt
4 tsp. vital wheat gluten

Preheat oven to the lowest possible temp.   Spray a bread pan.
Whisk yeast into warm water and set aside. 
Combine all dry ingredients.   Add the water and yeast mixture  to the dry mixture and combine.  If it is really dry add 1 tbsp. more water at a time.   Add dough to the bread pan and cover with a piece of sprayed plastic wrap.   Turn off the oven and let the dough rise for 1 hour or until it reaches the top of the pan.  Turn the oven temp. to 425 and bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and dump the bread onto a rack to cool.

(The idea for no-knead bread came from the "Make the Bread, Buy the Butter" cookbook.)


Fast Wednesday- Quesadillas (I feel silly including this one, but this is a go-to fast meal for us.)

Any leftover meat (chicken, beef, pork).  Also, if you cook chicken breasts in the crock pot with a jar of salsa all day, you will have great chicken for your quesadillas.  Freeze this chicken in quart size bags and you will always have one easy meal option. 

Tortillas
Cheese
Whatever toppings your family likes (lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, black beans, sour cream).

Place a buttered tortilla on a griddle or in a frying pan.  Add your meat and cheese to one side.  Fold it over and cook it just like grilled cheese.  Let each person add their toppings at the table.  

Serve with fresh fruit.


Comfort Thursday- Scalloped Potatoes with Ham  (repeat, but a different recipe that I really love)

2 tbsp flour
1  tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 1/2 lbs potatoes
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups diced ham 

Butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.  Preheat oven to 400.

Mix together the flour, salt, and pepper.  Layer one-third of the potatoes, one-third of the seasoned flour, and one half of the ham. Repeat.  Then finish with the remaining potatoes and seasoned flour.

Whisk together the stock and cream and pour the mixture evenly over the potatoes.  Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the potatoes are crusty and medium brown on top with a tender, creamy center.  The liquid should be mostly absorbed but the potatoes still moist.  Let set for a little while.  Serve warm.

Taken from the American Home Cooking cookbook (with revisions).

Glazed Carrots

1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into rouds.
1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 tbsp butter

Steam or boil the carrots until just done.  Drain.  In a saucepan melt butter, add brown sugar and cook until bubbly.  Add the carrots to the sugar mixture to coat.  If I have maple syrup, I substitute it for the brown sugar. I also add a little orange juice if I have it on hand.


No Meat Friday- Stuffed Shells

40 jumbo shells (12 oz. box)
32 oz. cottage cheese  (I blend this in my food processor, so it is nice and smooth)
16 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
3/4 cups parmesan cheese
3 eggs
3/4 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

3 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce

Cook shells 1/2  of recommended time until just limp.  Drain.  Cool in a single layer on pan or waxed paper.  Combine cheeses, eggs, oregano, salt and pepper. Fill each shell with 2 T. cheese mixture.   An icing bag with a wide tip works great or snip the corner of a freezer bag.   Spread 1/2 cup sauce in bottom of 9 x 13 baking dish.  Arrange stuffed shells in dish.  Pour remaining sauce over shells.  Heat at 350 for 30 minutes.

Taken from the "Freezer Cooking Manual."  It is wonderful to have a bag of these frozen shells on hand.

Roasted Cauliflower

Cut the cauliflower into small florets.  Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Spread on a baking sheet and roast at 400 until tender and the smaller pieces are starting to brown.  Sprinkle cheese (Parmesan or cheddar) on top and let melt. 


We would not normally have pasta two nights in a row, but I really had to stretch for the ethnic night. 

Ethnic Saturday- Pastitsio (Greek Lasagne)

1 stick butter
1 pound penne or macaroni pasta
4 tbsp. bread crumbs
3 cups milk
1/4 cup flour
1/8 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
4 eggs beaten
2 cups Parmesan
4 cups meat sauce or other tomato sauce

 Preheat the oven to 350.  Grease a large baking pan or casserole with 1 tbsp of the butter.

Cook pasta until just barely tender, not quite done enough to eat. Drain and place in a large bowl with 2 tbsps of  melted butter and 2 tbsps of the bread crumbs.  Set aside.

Heat the milk until small bubbles form.  Melt the remaining butter in a medium saucepan.  Add the flour and stir almost constantly with a wire whisk until the mixture turns golden, about 5 minutes.  Slowly add the milk, whisking until it thickens.  Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

Stir a little of the hot mixture into the beaten eggs, and then a little more.  Pour this all back into the sauce.   Add most of the Parmesan and stir again.

Put half of the pasta in the baking dish, cover with half the tomato sauce. Cover with remaining pasta, then the remaining tomato sauce and then all of the cheese sauce.  Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and bread crumbs. Bake about 45 minutes or until golden.  Let rest before cutting and serving.

Taken from "How to Cook Everything."

Serve with a tossed salad.  A Greek salad with feta and black olives would be great.


Family Favorite Sunday- Chicken Pot Pie

• CHICKEN POTPIE
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
• 2 cups carrots, sliced into half-moons
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 cups chopped, cooked chicken
• Salt and pepper to taste
• DILL BISCUIT TOPPING
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 tablespoon dried dill
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

1. Combine the broth, celery,and  carrots in a large pot. Bring to a simmer over high heat, reduce heat, and simmer until vegetables are just barely tender. Add the peas.
2. Stir together the flour and water in a small bowl until smooth. Stir into the pot and simmer until thickened, stirring frequently. Add chicken and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the chicken mixture into a 9- by 13-inch baking dish.
3. For the topping, in a big bowl, mix together the flour, salt, dill, and baking powder. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Add the milk. Stir the dough just until it's mixed. Roll out the dough to a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut 12 circles with a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter. Remove the baking dish from the oven and stir the chicken mix. Place the biscuits on top of the hot chicken mix and bake for an additional 20 minutes, until the biscuits are golden.
   
   Serve with fresh fruit.