Menu #5

Our school life is in full swing and there are lots of activities going on both in school and out. Once again this menu is a little short because of ball games, church activities, and a theater activity. I’m sure you are busy as well, so hopefully these meals will be helpful for you. Some of these should yield some leftovers, so hopefully you can stretch them to cover what you need or you can supplement with your own ideas!

Grilled leg quarters, baked potato, green beans

Leg quarters are a great way to have a fairly cheap protein. These are especially good if you brine for about 24 hours prior to grilling them. A brine is a great way to get flavor and moisture into the meat. This simple brine recipe from recipe-diaries.com calls for a whole chicken, but I will just use the leg quarters. The recipe suggests eight hours, but I like to let it brine for almost 24 hours. Once I remove it from the brine, I season it and my husband grills it. For four servings use ¼ cup of melted butter, 1 Tbs. of lemon juice, ½ tsp  dried oregano, ½ tsp dried rosemary, ½ tsp dried sage, ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper. Mix it all up, brush it on the chicken , and grill it. You can also bake these in a 450 degree F oven for amount 20 minutes. I plan to pair this with some baked potatoes – I usually cook mine for about three hours in a 350 degree F oven -, and canned green beans that I season with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.

Chicken Drumsticks in Oven, The Best Mashed Potatoes and country gravy, broccoli

This recipe is actually from an old recipe card that I have from a company called Great American Home Baking. It is no longer! However, the linked recipe from lilluna.com is very similar. It uses Bisquick or any other all-purpose baking mix plus a few seasonings. While the chicken is cooking, you can work on the potatoes. I make homemade mashed potatoes, but you can use instant as well. I recommend Bob Evans mashed potatoes for that. The linked recipe from kristineskitchenblog.com is very similar to what I do. I will be honest. I don’t measure anything for my potatoes. I just cook the amount that I want and then add the butter, milk, and seasonings until it is the consistency I want and the taste I want. Here’s a little trick: Use a hand-held mixer to mash the potatoes instead of a potato masher. They are creamy every time!  I also use a white country gravy mix from Pioneer. I will add some frozen broccoli that you steam in the bag in the microwave. Season as you wish. I like lemon pepper.

Southwest Chicken Wraps, Mexican Rice

This is another recipe that I have on an old recipe card. This is a super-easy and quick meal. I make it even faster and easier by using some rotisserie chicken that I shredded and froze. All I have to do is pull the freezer bag out and let it thaw overnight in the fridge. 

The ingredients are as follows: 

3 cups of shredded, cooked chicken

8 ounces picante sauce

1 ½ tsp chili powder

¼ tsp garlic powder

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 can black beans

flour tortillas

toppings of your choice

Combine the chicken, picante sauce, chili powder, and garlic powder in a large skillet and mix well. Cook over medium heat until heated through. Add about half the cheese and the beans to the mixture and mix well. Warm the tortillas. Spoon equal portions of the chicken mixture into the tortillas and top with your choice of toppings. That’s it! We are fortunate to live where we can purchase homemade tortillas, so that is what we do. For the rice, I use Rice-a-Roni Mexican Rice. 

Creamy Turkey Soup, biscuits

This is one of my favorite uses for my homemade turkey or chicken stock and leftover turkey or chicken. It is so good, especially right after Thanksgiving or on a cold day. You don’t have to use either of those, but that is one of my little tips of how I use up things and don’t let food go to waste. I have all of that frozen and I just pull out what I need. I do have to put the stock in the fridge for a couple of days ahead of time to let it thaw. Also, when you look at the recipe (from food.com), it calls for just frozen carrots. I actually use the frozen peas and carrots mixture. I think it works better in the recipe. You can serve some warm rolls and a salad with this or whatever you choose. I actually have some frozen biscuits in the freezer, so that is what we are having with this. 

Wings, fries, raw veggies

This is for a Friday night meal before a ballgame. I plan to use a package of wing seasoning (Great Value brand – they have several but we like Sweet Chili), cook some frozen french fries in the air fryer, and cut up some raw veggies and serve them with dressing. Super easy and super delicious.

Gumbo with rice, salad

There is actually way more to this particular menu choice, but that is because we are having friends over from our small group at church and we are having a big Louisiana meal for them. Not sure anyone wants to know about or tackle all that right now! I will share all of that in a future menu. I actually make a semi-homemade gumbo. I learned how to make this from my mother-in-law. I start with two different gumbo mixes. I measure out half of each one and mix them together and then I save the other half of each for the next time. I use Louisiana Fish Fry Products gumbo base and Oak Grove Smokehouse gumbo mix. We don’t follow the directions on the package! In a large oven-safe dutch oven – I use a cast iron pot –  place 2 quarts of cold water with the base mixture. Mix it up and then add your veggies. We use a diced yellow onion, 2 stalks of diced celery, a diced bell pepper, and a package of frozen okra. Then you add in your meat. We use diced boneless, skinless chicken breasts (usually a couple) and sliced andouille sausage (usually two to three links). Here is the crazy part. We don’t cook it on the stove! Heat your oven to 350 degrees F, put a lid on the pot, and place it in the oven. It needs to cook for 2 ½  to 3 ½  hours. I stir it every 30 minutes or so just so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. You know it is ready when the veggies are soft and cooked way down. It comes out just right every time! I love semi-homemade cooking!! Just cook up some rice and prepare a salad and you have a terrific meal.

Spaghetti with meat sauce, green beans

This is another one of those semi-homemade recipes. I start with a pound of ground beef and a chopped onion. I cook those together until the meat is browned and crumbled. Drain completely. I usually even rinse mine with hot water to make sure I get most of the fat off. I put the meat back in the pot and  add some seasonings to it. We like ours spicy, so I add salt, pepper, chili powder, dried oregano, dried parsley, dried basil, and a little cayenne pepper. I don’t have any measurements. I just eyeball the amount I like. Then I add a jar of spaghetti sauce. I just use the store brand. You use whatever you like. Then I add more of the same spices. I have no measurements. I just add them until it is the flavor that I like. I let it simmer for a bit while I cook the spaghetti. Once the spaghetti is cooked, I drain it well and mix it with the sauce in one big pot. I just heat up some green beans to go with it. I season those with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder, but you do them however you like them. A salad and garlic bread are always good sides as well. 

Easy Asian Noodles, Egg Drop Soup

This is a recipe I found in a magazine. It is basically chicken lo mein. It is another great semi-homemade recipe because you use bagged coleslaw mix and rotisserie chicken.  I could not find it digitally, so here is the recipe:

Recipe for Sauce

3 tsp sesame oil

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup honey

2 tsp grated ginger or ginger paste

1 tsp garlic, minced

½ tsp curry powder

3 Tbs butter, melted

Recipe for Noodles

3 eggs

2 Tbs canola oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 green onions, chopped

1 cup carrots, shredded

4 cups tri-colored coleslaw mix

Salt and pepper to taste

8 oz angel hair pasta or spaghetti

2 cups rotisserie chicken, chopped, optional

¼ cup chopped cilantro, optional

Put water on to boil for pasta.

In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients for sauce.

Scramble three eggs and set aside.

In a wok or nonstick skillet, heat canola oil, and stir-fry onion, green onions, carrots, and coleslaw until desired tenderness. Add salt and pepper to taste, and remove from heat. 

Cook pasta according to al dente directions.

Drain pasta, and add it to vegetables. Pour sauce over noodles; add in scrambled eggs and chicken. Over medium-high heat, cook quickly and toss until heated through and evening coated. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

I have made egg-drop soup, but we generally just buy it from a local Chinese restaurant. I can buy it on my way home from work and it is still hot at dinner time!