The ultimate in comfort foods...

Hello All,

I am so glad it’s almost fall break! My mom will come for the weekend which is always great. We’ve all had a bit of the crud. The girls and I have coughed for a full week. This week’s menu works well when you’re not feeling 100 percent.

Day 1 – Spaghetti Soup
This is a great compromise between really wanting soup and not wanting to do a long cooking meal. Its base is a jar of marinara which most of use keep in the pantry all the time.

2 T. Butter
2 T. Rosemary, chopped
1 jar pasta sauce
2 cups chicken stock
¾ cup cream or milk
1/3-1/2 box thin spaghetti, broken

Sauté the rosemary in butter in a medium sauce pan. Add pasta sauce, stock, and milk. Heat until lightly boiling. Add spaghetti and cook 8-10 minutes until pasta is cooked. Garnish with parmesan cheese.

Day 2 – Zin Zen Chicken
This is a great take-out like meal, especially if you are in the mood for Chinese. I used brown rice; I always do. It is really beautiful too.

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/zin-zen-chicken/

Day 3 – Penne, Peas, and ‘Pinach
I created this recipe for all of you who say your kids won’t eat veggies. The girls loved it and so will yours.

1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 box frozen peas
1 cup chicken stock, plus more for thinning out sauce if needed
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 onion, diced
2 T. butter
10 oz. penne pasta

Boil water and cook pasta to package directions and reserve one cup of pasta water. In a large skillet, heat butter and sauté onions until tender. Add spinach, peas and stock. Cook for 4-5 until spinach is heated through. Remove from heat and add ricotta and parmesan. Use a potato masher or wooden spoon to combine all ingredients. Add pasta water or chicken stock to thin. Toss with pasta. Top with more parmesan if desired.

Day 4 – Baked Potato Soup
This is a Pampered Chef recipe that I love. It is as good or better than restaurant soup. To make it even easier, I used the chive cream cheese and omitted the green onions.

http://www.recipezaar.com/pered-chef-loaded-baked-potato-chowder-388089

Day 5 – All Weekend 5-bean Chili
This is my go-to, game day chili. I make a huge pot and eat it all weekend. I hope you love it as much as I do.

1.5 lb. ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper
2 T. chili powder
3-4 T. ground cumin
1-2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 T. garlic powder or 3 minced cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
1 eggplant, peeled and diced
1 can black beans, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 can chili beans
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 can light red kidney beans
2 cans diced tomatoes

Brown beef, onion, and pepper in huge pot. Add spices and let cook until incorporated. Add the rest of ingredients and cook on high until all is heated through.

Day 6 – Chili Baked Potatoes
This is a great use of leftover chili. Bake potatoes in oven or in microwave. Top with chili, cheese, and sour cream.

Day 7 – Chili Mac
This is also great for cold nights. Cook one bow of macaroni noodles per directions. Drain and place in a casserole dish. Top with 3 cups of chili and a bag or shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and chili is hot.

Dessert of the week – Berry Cream Pie
I came across this recipe and thought it sounded weird but I had everything on hand so I tried it. It is delicious. Vasek liked to eat it for breakfast.

1 cup sour cream
2 T. flour
¾ cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten
2-2 ½ cups frozen berries (I used blueberries.)
1 unbaked pie crust

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine first six ingredients and beat until smooth. Put berries in pie crust and cover with sour cream mixture. Bake for 35 minutes. Allow to cool then chill until ready to eat.

Drink of the Week – Black Russian
This was my drink of choice in college. I still get a hankering for it every now and then.

1 shot Kahlua
2 shots vodka

Serve over ice. You can also make this in a tall glass with ice and fill to the top with diet cola. I don’t know if it has a name but it is so good.

I am perfecting a chicken sandwich recipe for next week. It is to die for!!!

With a cocktail in one hand,
Brooke

Week's Worth of Food for $30 or less.

Hello All,

I just got a call from a friend that had an unexpected car repair this week and was in need of a few ideas for a week's worth of food for $30. She did have one caveat; it had to have meat in every meal. I thought I'd share with you some of these ideas.


Here is what I would cook:
Day 1 - Chili – 1 lb. ground meat and lots of canned beans. I use cummin, chili powder, cayenne, and garlic powder to give it some spice but a 75 cent spice packet would work too. You can get block of store brand cheese and grate it on top or serve it over a baked potato.
Day 2 - Slow cooker Santa Fe Turkey breast. Find the recipe at http://www.bettycrocker.com/Recipes/PrintRecipe.aspx?recipeid=33441 Serve with rice and frozen veggie on side.
Day 3 -Use left over turkey breast from last night and shred with a fork or cut into small bites, put in a tortilla with sour cream.
Day 4 - I would make sausage balls. This sounds really weird but you can make them with the rest of the cheese from Monday, make them into patties. Place them on garlic biscuits and have a movie night in front of the TV.
Day 5 - Use the Pillsbury coupon for pizza dough, it’ll only cost about a dollar. Top with your favorite toppings, you probably have spaghetti sauce in your pantry, cheese, and I like to add one fancy ingredient so you don’t feel deprived, like fresh spinach and garlic, sun dried tomatoes, or feta cheese with the mozzarella. Let hubby pick up some beer and you are good to go. You can also invite friends over and ask them to bring snacks. It’ll really stretch your buck.

Day 6 - Don’t forget the leftovers. You can use the chili as your pizza topping. Freeze leftover sausage balls for a quick breakfast. Or combine them for a buffet night.

Brooke