I thought I'd throw a twist into the Meal Plan Monday thing by telling you what we ate last week, along with some tips/critiques about the meals. Maybe it will be a little more useful to you that way. Or you can laugh at my folly. Which is likely. Just don't do it to my face.

So here we go ... last week's menu.

Saturday
breakfast - oatmeal
lunch - lunch at Dickey's BBQ; this is a recurring theme because KIDS EAT FREE!
potluck dinner with friends - I made tortilla casserole and this was a delicious and easy dish. I had never made it before, and the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce gave it a yummy flavor. The link is Cook's Illustrated, so if you want the recipe and you don't subscribe, let me know and I'll see what I can do. Plus, I'm getting all crazy and experimental with it and making soup this week instead of cooking it in a casserole.

I'm nutty like that.

Sunday
breakfast - toast and jelly
lunch - at Petra after church, our favorite interior Mexican food restaurant
dinner - Superbowl snacks at a friend's party

Monday
breakfast - french toast and sausage
lunch - leftover tortilla casserole
dinner - grilled sausage with caramelized onions and marinara sauce on big bread (that's what we call french bread around here)

Tuesday
breakfast - biscuits with honey
lunch - leftover sausage
dinner - takeout pizza (Bud was out of town and I don't cook so much when he's gone)

Wednesday
breakfast - cinnamon toast and bacon
lunch - buttered noodles with veggies
dinner - at Bud's mom's house

Hmmm. It doesn't seem like I actually cooked that much this week. How come I was ALWAYS in the kitchen?

Thursday
breakfast - cold cereal
lunch - ham sandwiches
dinner - baked ziti - this is a GREAT recipe, however, as I assembled it I began to realize just how large a portion of my grocery bill went to the ingredients for it. And doesn't it seem that one should be able to make a meatless dish of pasta, sauce and cheese with some seasonings without sacrificing a child's college education? I am going to try this again soon, substituting some of the more expensive ingredients and see what I can get.

Crappy pasta probably.

Friday
breakfast - cold cereal; there was quite an uproar that not only did my children have to eat cold cereal, they had to do it two days in a row. Poor things.
lunch - leftover ziti
dinner - chili and cornbread. Now this recipe turned out really well. And it prompts me to share an embarrassing story with you. I am occasionally a sucker for marketing. Actually, it's pretty rare, but sometimes I fall for a good marketing plan.

In the fall of 2007, when the air was just getting crisp...scratch that. We don't get crisp air in Texas. When Texans were imagining crisp air, I went to the grocery store. And there on display was a beverage that I was sure would transport me into a world of brightly colored trees, cozy sweaters, and crunching leaves under my feet.

Pumpkin Ale.

I excitedly brought it home and didn't even unload the groceries before I opened a bottle from my six pack.

In my life I'm not sure I've ever been so disappointed in a purchase. It was disgusting.

Which is why, up until last week, I still had 5 of the nasty brews in my refrigerator.

Then I made chili. And the chili turned out good!



I certainly wouldn't purchase this for making chili, but if you have it on hand, it turns out pretty good.

In my chili recipe I also used a 27 oz. can of pinto beans and 1 lb. of ground buffalo instead of 2 lbs of ground beef. Plus, I cut the chili powder by about half. One third cup of chili powder would scar my children for life. But I bet it would be good with it in there.

Enjoy the recipes. And, I'm always looking for good suggestions and recipes, so leave 'em if you got 'em.

Labels: Cooking