Happy LOVE day!

*biscuits were made last Friday...and were super tasty!

Happy Valentine's Day! And the beginning of a great week...I can just feel it! Today will be filled with preschool Valentine's party, Doctor appointment, grocery shopping, decorating, and EATING! Here is our not too shabby menu for the week:

*Monday: All things heart/red. To continue our tradition, we'll have heart shaped pizzas. I think I'll shape the dough into individual hearts, and let everyone cover with their favorite toppings. Luckily, I have Trader Joe's to make my dough and delicious pizza sauce for me. We'll have things like pepperoni, tomatoes, peppers, ham, pineapple, onions, cheese, etc. to top.
For dessert we'll have molten chocolate cakes with Trader Joe's peppermint jojo's ice cream (any hopes of me losing this baby weight were ruined when I discovered this ice cream the other day...).

*Tuesday: Grilled Chicken Tostadas

*Wednesday: Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables

*Thursday: Leftovers

*Friday: Simple Carmelized Onion and Lentil Soup & homemade bread

*Saturday: Game Day. We've had fun watching BYU games on Saturdays...and making it a party with "game food". Today I'll make more guacamole (it's a favorite around here), and possibly a fruit pizza (I'll use this recipe for the cookie crust). Don't you always need an excuse to make a fruit pizza? I do.

*Sunday: Slow-Cooker Pot Roast & these potatoes

Easy Peasy--

This week I am SWAMPED with being the "ticket manager" for a production our Stake is putting on. It runs from Wed.-Sat. and I have been at the computer for a good 9 hours today taking phone calls/answering emails. That said, we are having the easiest week of dinners I can possibly think of. My family is lucky they will even be fed. The previous post will show the only thing I've eaten all day. ;)

*Monday: Leftovers (had the Noorda's over last night for our salmon/pesto with mashed potatoes and a few other yummies. We also still have some soup for last week--the perfect thing to reheat & eat!)

*Tuesday: Grilled Cheese (with veggies) on Pretzel Bread & T.J.'s tomato soup

*Wednesday: Pizza (thanks to Trader Joes for providing yummy whole wheat pizza dough. I'll probably be selfish and throw some tomatoes, basil and fresh mozzarella on top for an easy/fairly healthy pizza. With fresh Mozz. you don't even need sauce...it is SO GOOD!)

*Thursday: Breakfast dinner--eggs, Trader Joes Pumpkin Pancakes & fruit

*Friday: Black Bean Burgers (from Costco--my husband tells me these are way too high in sodium...but we're having them anyway;) with Sweet Potato fries

*Saturday: Out to eat! Burke and I are taking Ryder on a "date" to dinner and then to go watch The Savior of the World!

*Sunday: Missionaries coming for dinner--Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo (thanks to Hunter, Ryder is now HOOKED, and asks for this all the time! See recipe below...) with garlic bread and green salad. And this with vanilla ice cream for dessert.


CHICKEN & BROCCOLI ALFREDO

-4-5 c. broccoli florets
-2 TBSP olive oil
-4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch wide strips
-1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
-1 2/3 c. whipping cream (or 1 c. whipping cream + 2/3 c. skim milk)
-1 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
-1/2 c. grated monterey jack cheese
-3/4 pound penne or mostaccioli, freshly cooked

Steam broccoil florets until just tender, about 3 minutes, set aside.
Preheat broiler. Butter 13x9 inch broiler-proof baking dish. Heat 2 TBSP olive oil in heavy large dutch oven over medium-high. Working in batches, saute' chicken strips until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Transfer chicken strips to bowl. Add sliced red bell pepper to dutch oven and saute' until just tender, about 5 minutes. Add whipping cream, 1 cup grated parmesan cheese and all of the monterey jack cheese. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly (5 minutes). Add chicken strips and any juices in bowl to sauce. Add freshly cooked pasta and steamed broccoli and toss until sauce coats mixture. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Transfer pasta mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup grated cheese over top. Broil until just golden on top, about 3 minutes, and serve.

November menu!!!

I LOOOOOOOVE November!!! The Holidays are approaching, and this year is extra fun, since I have a little one on the way! I'm already getting my wheels rolling, thinking of a good Thanksgiving menu, but for now, here is this week's plan:

*Monday: Mummy Pizzas. These are 100% for the kids. I made some last night for Halloween and have leftover ingredients. Burke is in NH for an interview, so we'll be taking it easy tonight. I used mini bagels, Trader Joes Tuscano Marinara sauce, thickly shredded Mozzarella cheese, and mini Pepperonis. Place bagels on rimmed baking sheets, cover with sauce. Then layer cheese on top (making it look like a "mummy"), and place two pepperonis on top (or you could use sliced black olives) for the eyes. Bake at 375* for about 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted!

*Tuesday: We'll be in Peoria with Burke (and his "free" hotel room) for an interview! Not sure what kind of grub we'll find...

*Wednesday: Pasta with Bacon & Cauliflower

*Thursday: Steak Fajitas with Sweet Potato & Poblano

*Friday: Salmon (baked with salt & pepper) & Sweet Potato Hummus with Pita/Pretzel Chips

*Saturday: Leftovers

*Sunday: Baked Potato Soup (see recipe below) & Buttermilk Biscuits


BAKED POTATO SOUP

-4 slices Bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
-1 medium onion, chopped
-1/4 c. all purpose flour
-2 cans (14.5 oz. each) chicken broth
-1 large baking potato, peeled and diced
-1 head broccoli, cut into small pieces
-1 package frozen corn kernels
-1/2 tsp. dried Thyme
-1 c. whole milk

In a large pot, cook bacon over med./low heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp (8-10 mins.). Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Increase heat to medium. Cook onion, stirring, until it begins to soften (6-8 mins.). Add flour; cook stirring constantly for 30 seconds. Add broth and potato, bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Cook until potato is tender, about 10 minutes. Add broccoli, corn, Thyme, milk. Cook about 8-10 minutes until broccoli is crisp/tender. Season with salt and pepper. Top with bacon.

Halloween week!!!

Here's the plan for our eats this week:

*Monday: Trader Joe's Surprise! I'll let you know if it's good. And, caramel apples (we're having a pumpkin carving/caramel apple party! Yay!)

*Tuesday: Pizza Pockets--use your favorite dough & sauce, and any toppings you like. Wrap the sauce, cheese and toppings inside of the dough (making sure to seal the edges tightly), and bake on a rimmed baking sheet until cooked through.

*Wednesday: Black Beans & Rice

*Thursday: Leftovers

*Friday: White Chili & Cornbread Pudding (being taken to our church Halloween party!) + Caramel Pecan Pie & Pumpkin Cheesecake (see recipes below)

*Saturday: HALLOWEEN PARTY! Not exactly sure what I'm contributing, but I hear there is real Kahlua Pork involved...

*Sunday: Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables & apple-cider doughnuts

CARAMEL PECAN PIE

-1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust (this is my go-to pie crust recipe)
-36 individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped (or you can make your own)
-1/4 c. butter
-1/4 c. milk
-3/4 c. sugar
-3 eggs
-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
-1/4 tsp. salt
-1 c. pecan halves

Preheat oven to 350*. In saucepan over low heat, combine caramels, butter and milk. Cook, stirring frequently, until smooth. Remove from heat. Set aside.
In large bowl, combine sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Gradually mix in melted caramel mixture. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into unbaked pie crust.
Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Allow to cool until filling is firm.

DOUBLE LAYER PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

-2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
-1/2 c. white sugar
-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
-2 eggs
-1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
-1/2 c. pumpkin puree
-1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
-1 pinch ground cloves
-1 pinch ground nutmeg
-1/2 c. whipped topping/whipping cream

Preheat oven to 325*.
In large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Remove 1 c. of batter and spread into bottom of crust; set aside.
Add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to remaining batter an stir gently until well blended. Carefully spread over batter in the crust.
Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until center is almost set. Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Cover with whipped topping before serving.

birthday week!

My husband is turning 30 this week! Wow! I should make a list of his 30 favorite foods or something. I know the first one would be cheese. :) Here is what we'll be having this week for dinner...Thursday will be extra special...and will definitely include cheese!

*Monday: Margarita Pizza (we had lots of leftovers yesterday...including an AMAZING Boston Baked Beans recipe--see below--I made for a picnic Saturday. So we'll have our pizza tonight!) and watermelon.

*Tuesday: Salmon with Black Bean Couscous Salad

*Wednesday: In preparation for the big day today, I'm going to make both boys in my household happy with a good ole' grilled hamburger. I'll be using this recipe, and topping our burgers with onions, salsa, pepper jack cheese, guacamole and jalapenos.

*Thursday: Stuffed Poblanos, corn on the cob and fresh guacamole (avocados, red onion, garlic, lime juice, cilantro, salt, tomatoes--mix)
For dessert, Burke isn't a cake kind of guy. But he LOVES brownies and ice cream. So I'll be making brownies, with Mexican Ice Cream Sundaes on top!

*Friday: We're going camping!

*Saturday: Leftovers

*Sunday: Summer Panzanella & cherries


BOSTON BAKED BEANS

-1/2 c. molasses
-1/2 c. ketchup
-1/4 c. dijon mustard
-3 cans (15 1/2 oz. each) navy beans (I used Great Northern's), drained and rinsed
-coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
-1 large onion, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick
-4 slices bacon, halved crosswise

Preheat oven to 375*F. Combine molasses, ketchup, and mustard. Add beans, and season with salt and pepper; mix to combine.
Transfer to a 2- to 3- quart covered baking dish. Scatter sliced onion over beans; lay bacon slices on top, in a single layer.
Cover dish, and bake 30 minutes. Uncover; cook until bacon is crisp, 30 to 40 minutes more. Let cool 5 minutes, and stir well before serving.

fruit pizza

I made a festive fruit pizza for our July 4th celebration. I used this recipe for the crust (I'm really excited to try it again and actually make sugar cookies with it!), made up my cream cheese frosting (a little cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk & vanilla), and added "red, white & blue" fruits. Tasty, tasty!