Menus for the Week

Menu 19 - The tamale menu

2009-11-07T17:30:00.000-08:00

If you are reading this, thinking it's the menu for the week of 11-9-09, you will be pleasantly surprised to know that I thought far enough ahead to realize you would probably kill me if I gave you a menu with so many steps and less than a day before the week started.... This is for NEXT week - so you have all week to slowly start to prepare the tamales...

What I didn't think about was what the rest of the menu for the week would be - so I think we will just focus on all the different types of tamales you can make with this:

Here is the basic recipe I use to make the masa.

Here is a recipe for fat-free masa.

Here is the recipe for the red chile sauce.

Here is the recipe for the salsa verde.

The types of tamales I am making this week are:

chicken (with red chile sauce)
chicken (with salsa verde)
chicken with no sauce
black bean and cheese (with salsa verde)
green chile and cheese (with red chile sauce)
corn and chile (with salsa verde)
jalapeno and cheese (with red chile sauce)
chicken and jalapenos (with salsa verde)

To assemble the tamales:

--you need dried corn husks--

Place dried corn husks in large pot. Add enough very hot water to cover. Let husks soak until soft and pliable, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.

Remove 1 husk from water; remove any corn silk. place husk on work surface. Spread 6 tbs of masa dough over bottom third (wide end) of husk, covering completed. Spoon 3 Tbs chicken filling in strip down center of masa. Fold 1 long side of husk over filling, then continue to roll up, forming log that is open at both ends (some husk will end up between masa layers). Fold up narrow end of husk over filled end to seal. Tear narrow strip from another soaked corn husk. Slide strip of husk under folded end and tie tamale to secure (wide end will be open). If husk strip is too short, tear 2 narrow strips off another husk and tie ends together to form long strip. Repeat to make about 18 tamales.

Stand tamales, open end up, in steamer basked insert of large pot. Pour water into pot to come to bottom of basket. Cover pot; bring water to boil over medium-high heat. Steam tamales until dough is cooked through and separates easily from husk, adding more water to pot occasionally, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Let tamales rest in steamer 15 minutes.

Menu 18 - To Life!

2009-11-07T17:14:00.001-08:00

Since there are really just two of you who read this - you can appreciate my joke above. (Yeah, you forgot to laugh until I told you to, didn't ya?) I'm doing something new and exciting this week - I'm going to post TWO weeks of menus. I know, crazy, right? Why, you ask?

Well, I'm very excited about making tamales, but I know how at least 50% of you feel about food that takes more than 2 steps. Unfortunately in order to get the deliciousness of tamales, you need to not only have multiple steps, but really be willing to set aside at least a few hours (not necessarily consecutively) to make them. So - I figure if both are posted this week you'll be able to decide when and how you want to make the tamales.

But first, the food for this week:

Monday

BBQ chicken
Steamed artichokes
Kluski Noodle Kugel

Tuesday

Chili (told you, you'd see some repeats -- Katie, get out that crock pot)

Wednesday

Hot dogs
Potato Chips
Onion dip (onion soup mix and sour cream (or yogurt) - mix together and devour)

Thursday

California Roll Salad (a'la Katie)

Friday

Rotisserie Chicken
Salad
Chumus
Challah

Menu 17 - Foods from around the world

2009-11-01T12:16:00.000-08:00

Did you have a nice Halloween? I hope so. I heard that if I dressed up as a burrito and went to Chipotle I could get a free burrito. That seemed like a pretty good deal - so I got my costume ready (put it in a bag) and drove over there. Once I arrived it seemed pretty empty for a place that we giving out free burritos. Thankfully I went in and asked before I showed up in my costume. The deal was only from 6pm - 10pm and I was there at noon.

No need to eat out this week - I have a bunch of delicious meals here!

Monday

Lettuce Wraps
Sweet & Sour Eggplant
Rice

Tuesday

Green Chicken Masala
Saag (with our without paneer, your choice)
Okra curry

Wednesday

Tuna salad and egg salad
** everyone has their own special take on tuna and egg salad. What's yours?**

Thursday

Taco salad

Friday

BBQ chicken
mashed potatoes

Menu 16 - Happy Halloween

2009-10-25T08:53:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that even though Halloween is the next holiday, stores are already filled with Thanksgiving and even Christmas items. Well, that's not true. I can believe it because it always happens like this, but I still think it is important to give Halloween the respect it deserves. So, for this week's menu we are Halloween inspired.

Monday
Smashed liver
Blood

Tuesday
Monster Mash
French Fried Fingers

Wednesday
Brains
Salad

Thursday
Cat whiskers
Bones

Friday
Chicken in dirt
Eyeballs

Menu 15 - dinners in 5 steps or less

2009-10-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello.

Now that I'm healed from surgery, I seem to have managed to catch a cold. So once again, this weekend, I am laying in bed trying to get better. Ugh. In addition to that, Ethan is leaving town this week for a big conference, so there aren't too many days we'll (he'll) be cooking. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't have a delicious menu to choose from.

This week I decided to (finally) follow up on Katie's request and create a menu with 5 or less steps. Some of these dinners are more true to the theme than others, but I chose them all with this idea in mind.

Enjoy!

Sarah

Monday

Crisp Salmon with Avocado Salad

Tuesday

Chilaquiles-Style Roasted Chicken Legs

Wednesday

Moroccan Spiced Lamb Patties with Halloumi

Thursday

Falafel Sandwiches

Friday

Make Your Own Pizza

Menu 14 - Long time no write

2009-10-11T17:47:00.000-07:00

Hi again -

It's been a while since I've written, but to be honest, I haven't eaten much worth blogging about lately. Ethan was an incredible nurse, but my appetite seemed to be for things that only required a spoon to eat, so mostly while I was healing, I ate ice cream (gelato to be exact), mashed potatoes, apple sauce, and when I was feeling frisky, tater tots. Now that I'm back and cooking - I have to make up for some lost time. Enjoy the menu!

Sarah

Monday -

Japanese Eggplant
Miso Soup
White Rice - try going to an Asian market to see if you can find Japanese sticky rice - it beats instant rice any day

Tuesday -

Veggie lasagna
Garlic bread - bread, butter, garlic salt -- or if you want, you can get the cheesy Texas toast at the store. It's pretty delicious
Salad - I have re-discovered Annie's Artichoke Parmesan salad dressing. (I first had it at my cousin Jodi's house and it's DELICIOUS)

Wednesday -

Chili
Corn Bread

Thursday -

BBQ Chicken
Baked sweet potatoes
Salad

Friday -

Eggplant Parmesan
Salad

Menu 13 - HAPPY NEW YEAR

2009-09-13T06:17:00.000-07:00

We are getting ready for Rosh Hashana in the Pew house but we still have to eat on other days this week, right? Besides, since we aren't going to get to see you for the holiday (yes, you should be honored that I basically write this blog for 3 of you) you can see what delicious food you are missing (and make it on your own).

I also need to note that we are going to be eating a WHOLE lot of peaches this week because at the Farmer's market yesterday Ethan decided to buy 18 lbs. (that's not a typo) of peaches. "Millions of peaches, peaches for me..."

Monday
Pad Thai -- this is a new recipe I found. Do you have a tried and true recipe that you love? Please share it!

Tuesday
Okra curry -- (Ethan also bought okra at the farmer's market - and though I LOVE fried okra, I can't bring myself to make it at home)
Saag Paneer
Rice -- I would just buy boxed rice - either white or saffron
Puffy bread -- (I should look up what this is really called, but you buy it at the Indian store and it's frozen and then you put it on a griddle and it puffs up - similar to naan - but not quite. Tammy and Jason are you reading this? What's it called?)

Wednesday
Pumpkin soup*
Tomato salad with cheese

Thursday
Burritos - if you need help making a burrito, e-mail me. :)

Friday
--SHANA TOVA--
Whole trout with apple cider butter*
Salad
Asparagus (not just the plain asparagus, but a fun new twist)*

---

* Starred items will be making their Pew debut on Saturday night for RH dinner. :) And just because I think these dishes are delicious, I'll share with you the rest of our RH meal.
- Apples (duh!)
- Honey (we bought flavored honey, but were disappointed to find out that cherry honey, blackberry honey, and blueberry honey all taste just like honey)
- Penne Pasta
- Potato kugel with carrots
- Apple crumble
- Fuji Apple Spice Cake
- Round Challot

Menu 12 - Week of the Iron Chef

2009-09-05T14:40:00.000-07:00

Hello, hello! So this has been a very hectic week - but next week should prove to be much more calm!! If Ethan goes shopping we will be eating this delicious menu - otherwise, we have corn dogs and pot stickers in the freezer. What will you be eating this week?

Monday
Poblano chile and corn chowder

Tuesday
Grilled Eggplant Parmesan
Salad

Wednesday
Chilled miso spinach
Grilled chicken breast with honey soy glaze

Thursday
Barramundi fillets with sweet potato & Brussels sprouts (you can use any white fish)
Asian salad

Friday
Fish Tacos

Menu 11 - In honor of Katie

2009-08-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

So, Katie was here this weekend and we did a WHOLE LOT of eating out. I'm really not sure how people do that on a regular basis - with the amount of food you get at a restaurant there really isn't enough room in my stomach to eat more than 2 meals a day -- this makes me sad because I like to eat at least three meals. I guess, it's just one more reason to have these weekly menus and to cook at home. :)

The other reason this menu is in honor of Katie is because many moons ago she asked for mom's stir fry recipe and this week I am posting it. Enjoy!

Sarah :)

Monday
Thai Chicken Pizza (yeah for Rachael Ray)

Tuesday
Stirfry with tofu

Wednesday
Artichokes - just steam the artichokes for an hour or so and serve with melted butter (Yum!)
BBQ chicken - slather some chicken with BBQ sauce and throw in the oven - EASY!
Salad

Thursday
Green chile burgers (click on "green chile" to see how to roast the chile and "burgers" for the burger)
Asparagus fries

Friday
Salmon with garlic butter
Salad

Menu 10

2009-08-23T20:38:00.000-07:00

So, to be completely honest there aren't a whole lot of days this week I'm going to be home for dinner. Monday I'm going to a baseball game, Tuesday I'm going to a BBQ for Ethan's PhD stuff, Wednesday I'll probably go out and get salads, I might scrounge up something here for Thursday and then Friday, Katie gets to town (WOO HOO!)

But, believe it or not, it's been over 2 months that I've done this blog, so I think now might be a good time to go back through some older recipes and revisit some of the tried but true. "What?!? Repeats?" You gasp? Well, if you can honestly tell me you remember each of the recipes I have posted, then I will apologize and never do it again (or at least not announce it at the beginning of the blog :P)

--And really, instead of complaining shouldn't you be grateful that even though I'm not going to be eating at home, I'm thinking of you and posting some suggestions for you to use?-- :)

Monday

Mandarin Orange salad (funny thing about this salad... I was talking to my mom on the phone telling her how much I love this salad, and she said, "Sounds good, can you send me the recipe," I responded "This is YOUR recipe mom")
Spicy Oven Fried Chicken

Tuesday

Lettuce wraps <-- so easy, yet they taste SO divine (I use turkey instead of beef) Sweet 'n Sour eggplant

Wednesday

This Middle Eastern dish is delicious with or without the french fries. If it's a light meal, then just the schwarma and the tomato-cucumber salad will do. If it's a bigger meal - then add the french fries (you can't go wrong with potatoes).

Chicken Schwarma (the veggies with this are DELICIOUS!)
Tomato-Cumber salad
Baked French Fries

Thursday

Quinoa with black beans and cilantro (I rarely add the cheese to this dish and it's just as delicious - so if you need a break from cheese - I'd take it here)

Friday

Grilled Portabello Parmesan --> This looks like it should be delicious. Doesn't seem to be any tomato sauce... my curiosity is piqued.

Salad --> I would make a nice green salad with Italian dressing - or if you are being really fancy, make an Antipasta.

Menu 9 - Food for Dummies

2009-08-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

So, I'm reading "Nutrition for Dummies" and what I'm learning is basically that all food is both good and bad for you. The best food for protein (complete, easy for your body to digest and use)? Meat. Food that's not so great for you ie cholesterol? Meat. Confusing I know. I was reading this book to try to get a better handle on what I could do to eat better - but I'm still pretty lost.

For now what I do know is that fresh foods is a good thing! And taking things in moderation is the best way to maintain both your weight and health. Oh yeah - and exercising doesn't hurt either - but this is a food blog, why talk about exercise?

So - with that said - I have no new wonderful insights on food (yet) but I do have a wonderful weekly menu.

Monday
Baked pretzel knots -- these take a while to make, but they are DELICIOUS and you can use your leftover buttermilk for them. (If your stores are like my stores then you had to buy waaaay too much buttermilk for the baked fried chicken).
Pickled Vegetable Salad with Soft-Boiled Eggs

Tuesday
Fish sticks -- to keep the sticks from sticking to your baking pan - put flour on the pan before baking - or spray with non-stick cooking spray
Corn on the cob

Wednesday
Lamb chops with fresh herbs and roasted figs
Melanie's potatoes (you too can have your recipe on here - just let me know your favorite dish)

Thursday
Warm Chicken Ranch Wraps (another way to use up the last of the buttermilk)

Friday
It's Friday, you should go out to eat!
But if you aren't -- Taco Salad

Menu 8 - Two late weeks in a row - I'm sorry!!

2009-08-11T11:16:00.000-07:00

Oh goodness! Two weeks in a row that I've been late -- and I have been informed that last week's sad attempt at a menu really wasn't acceptable. But if it makes anyone feel better, 4 of my meals last week consisted of hot dogs...

Besides, I was busy. Who could resist spending time with this cutie????

Anyway, thanks to your patience, we have a whole new set of food magazines and some delicious foods lined up for this week's menu (I promise).

Enjoy!

-Sarah :)

Monday -
Ooops, too late. I had pizza and birthday cake at 4:30pm - what did you have?

Tuesday -
Just because I'm all hot dogged out, doesn't mean you are.
Hot dogs (Chicago style or New York style - you choose!)
Baked french fries

Wednesday -
Baked fried chicken
Grilled Eggplant Involtini with Goat Cheese and Green Beans

Thursday -
Japanese-Cucumber Salad
Miso soup
Honey and Soy glazed carrots

Friday -
Oregon Tuna Melts
Asparagus fries (mmm, mmm, good!)

Menu 7 - Oh no, please don't go!

2009-08-03T19:17:00.000-07:00

So sorry for the late entry!!

90% of you, my readers, are either prepping for visitors (yeah Rachel), going to visit someone (lucky Rachel), preparing for minor surgery (poor Rachel) or traveling in El Salvador (not Rachel).

However, 50% of my readers have contacted me asking why I haven't posted my menu yet for this week. While I am terribly embarrassed that I dropped the ball, I have to say, I am quite flattered that people check this blog enough to miss out on the menus. :)

So - hopefully you all were able to salvage something from your refrigerator for leftovers tonight and were not left starving. As for the rest of the week - seeing as how so many of you aren't at home (or will be too busy hanging out with visitors) we'll make it easy.

And now, without further ado... (drum roll please)... the menu

Monday
Too late now - hope you went out and got something delicious to eat.

Tuesday
Tortilla soup (make this now and it will last you at least until Thursday)

Wednesday
Didn't you read what I said? Eat the Tortilla soup.

Thursday
Chili (this is another long lasting meal - it will take you through the rest of the week)
Corn Bread

Friday
Leftovers

I know, I know, not my best work - but if you do make these dishes you will realize that the laziness of the blogger does not in any way take away from the deliciousness of the meal.

I promise to bring more (and better) menus once I get back from Chicago -- Happy birthday Eli!!!

Bon Appetit!

Sarah :)

Poll Results - The Hardest Thing About Making Dinner Every Night

2009-07-26T12:33:00.001-07:00

Figuring out what to make.	4 (36%)
Making sure I have all the ingredients to cook.	4 (36%)
Deciding what to eat before it's too late.	3 (27%)

Hopefully these menus have helped eliminate these problems!

We have a new poll posted -- vote for your choice and be sure to get lots of people to come fill it out!

Menu 6 - Say Cheese!

2009-07-26T11:56:00.000-07:00

Not only are these dishes picture perfect, but every dish this week contains that incredible ingredient - cheese! Mmm!

Monday
Poached eggs with baked Feta and olives
Chumus
Carrot slices

Tuesday
Quinoa with black beans and cilantro (I rarely add the cheese to this dish and it's just as delicious - so if you need a break from cheese - I'd take it here)

Wednesday
Cheesy baked penne with cauliflower

I add broccoli AND okra to this dish which is delicious!!!
I also just use cream instead of cream and Creme Fraiche. No, it's not as fancy - but no one will notice the difference and if you don't tell, neither with I.

Salad (Thanks to Katie for this link)

Unfortunately it looks like you need to sign up for the NY Times for this link to work.
Fortunately it's free.

Thursday
Greek hand pies (this takes a while to make - I'd make it on Wednesday and then heat it up on Thursday)

At my fancy shmancy cooking class (which was awesome, by the way) I learned that you can cook something like this the day before - then when you are getting ready to eat - take it out of the fridge and let it warm up to room temperature. While it is warming up, heat the oven to 450 degrees F. Once the oven is HOT and the food is room temperature, put the food in the oven for 10-15 minutes until it is crisp again on the outside and hot and delicious on the inside.

Pickles
Olives

Friday
Eggplant Parmesan

Don't want to fry your eggplant? Try grilling it instead! Tastes just as good (if not better) and not nearly as greasy.

Salad
Garlic Bread

National Hot Dog Day!!

2009-07-23T06:57:00.000-07:00

I knew there were holidays for lots of strange thing - but a national day for the best food on earth is AMAZING!!! I hope you are all celebrating national hot dog day by eating one! I'm only sad that I didn't know about this holiday before I put together the menu for the week - otherwise, I certainly would have added it. Oh well.

Instead - check out this link and enjoy day-dreaming about all the wonderful hot dogs in your life. :)

http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/07/international_hot_dogs

Menu 5 - Mmm Mmm Good

2009-07-19T08:03:00.000-07:00

So, this week, I happen to find myself out quite a bit! Monday, I'm meeting a friend who's in town just for a few days (see Denise, if you were reading this blog you'd see the shout out) and Friday we are finally taking the cooking class that my Rachel, Jimmy and Eli bought for us LAST year. You are lucky 'cause next week you'll get to hear about the delicious recipes we learn how to cook! (Like the suspense I put in to make sure you keep checking back? :P)

Anyway - don't worry - just because I'm not cooking at home, doesn't mean I can't come up with ideas for you! :)

Monday
Chinese Egg Noodles
Cold silken tofu --> don't mock this 'till you try it. Buy silken tofu at the grocery store - then cut it up into quarters. Pour some soy sauce over it (I like a lot) and some chopped green onions. Delish!!!

Tuesday
Grilled Nicoise Tuna Steaks
Salad
Agua Frescas --> be very excited about this!!

Wednesday
Turkey burgers with spicy pickle sauce
Baked French Fries (remember these?)
Salad

Thursday
Roast chicken and mango salad

Friday
Falafel --> Buy a box and follow directions. Then put it and everything else in a pita and enjoy!
Baked French Fries (have any left overs from Wednesday? I recommend regular potatoes for this - cause you put the french fries IN the pita with the falafel - scandalous, I know)
Chumus --> I really like Sabra brand chumus - have I said that yet?
Tomato Cucumber Salad

Recipe for Katie - Salmon with Garlic Butter

2009-07-14T19:54:00.000-07:00

This was in a past week's blog, but as my lovely husband just pointed out - you can't (yet) search for past menu items without looking up every single blog. While I learn how to fix this (give me some time please) - just know that you can always let me know that you need a reminder of a specific recipe by posting it on the comment page. I will then be happy to re-post that recipe for your enjoyment.

And so, Katie, here is the delicious salmon recipe you requested:

Salmon with Garlic Herb Butter

Enjoy!!

Sarah :)

Menu 4 - Food magazines are great

2009-07-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hello all! I'm happy to say that all the recipes for this week are brand new! Well, maybe I shouldn't announce that off the bat - because I don't know how good they'll be, but I've got a good feeling about it. Bon Appetit and Food and Wine rarely let me down!

I've also noticed that I don't often include desserts in my menus. Well, consider this your lucky week. I found a few summer desserts that I just couldn't pass up!

Monday
Grilled Portabello Parmesan --> This looks like it should be delicious. Doesn't seem to be any tomato sauce... my curiosity is piqued.
Salad --> I would make a nice green salad with Italian dressing - or if you are being really fancy, make an Antipasta.

Tuesday
Grilled Lemon-Oregano Chicken Drumsticks --> Anything on a stick is delicious. End of story.
Campfire potatoes
Salad
Smore's --> C'mon how can you have campfire potatoes and not smore's?

Wednesday
Chicken & Green Bean Salad --> It's official, I've become a Boulderite, this salad also includes Farro which is a multigrain that is high in protein. Still looks delicious to me. What do you think?
Minted watermelon Popscicles

Thursday
Chipotle marinated steak with avocado-corn relish
Refried Black Beans --> I just like to heat up a can of these delicious beans

Friday
Cherry tomatoes stuffed with marinated feta
Salmon with snap peas
Salad
Melon granitas with whipped cream

Pretty delicious looking week, don't you think? Now I need to head out and buy my ingredients so I can actually make this food!

Have a wonderful week! Don't forget to become a foodie (it's on the right hand side of the page)

Menu 3 - Summer Lovin'

2009-07-03T15:26:00.000-07:00

I'm sure by the time you are reading this, you have over done it on hot dogs, hamburgers and other traditional 4th of July fare, I know I have. If you haven't please disregard the rest of this blog and just eat hot dogs and hamburgers all week. For the rest of us - here are some nice meals to cleanse your pallet.

*My disclaimer is that I am out of town this weekend and don't have my recipes with me *gasp*. This is good because I am going out to eat and not in the kitchen all weekend, but bad because you will need to wait until Monday for the full list of ingredients / recipes. I apologize for the delay, but on a weekend like this you should be out celebrating anyway (and not shopping!)

Monday
Grilled cheese
Tomato Soup <-- I've made the soup from scratch and bought it from a can... to me, the difference is minimal and the amount of work for "from scratch" is huge. Just buy it! (But if you have guests over, tell them you slaved over it for days!)

Tuesday
Egg salad & Tuna salad <-- I just use canned tuna and add some mayo and carrots (and pickles if I'm feeling daring) You can make this into sandwiches or serve with crackers and chips. It's also nice to have some sliced cheese to add to the sandwiches.

Wednesday
Lettuce wraps <-- so easy, yet they taste SO divine (I use turkey instead of beef) Sweet 'n Sour eggplant

Thursday
Salmon with garlic butter
Salad <-- choose a salad from last week, or make your own.

Friday
Tortilla Soup (this hearty dish can be a meal in itself, but if you want, spruce it up with some other Mexican favorites - chips and guacamole, quesadillas...)

Menu 2 - Summer time, summer time

2009-06-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

It is SO hot this week! I don't want to eat anything but salads... well that's not true, I'd also like to eat ice cream and popsicles, but for the purpose of this blog, we'll talk about salads.

Monday
Dessert salad (not really dessert, but could be! It's delicious)
Grilled steak

Tuesday
Taco salad

Wednesday
Mandarin Orange salad (funny thing about this salad... I was talking to my mom on the phone telling her how much I love this salad, and she said, "Sounds good, can you send me the recipe," I responded "This is YOUR recipe mom")
Spicy Oven Fried Chicken

Thursday
VIP salad with seared tuna (When I got married my parents' friends threw me (and my sister who got married 2 months before I did) a "recipe shower". There were some delicious recipes given to us at this shower - and this salad is one of them!)

Friday
Oriental Green Bean salad
Miso Soup

Saturday & Sunday
It's the 4th of July weekend. Get yourself invited to a BBQ!!! :)

Is there a salad you absolutely love that you want to share? Post it in the comments and it might end up on a future menu!

Menu for the week

2009-06-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

So - here goes! I guess a disclaimer should be that these menus don't always involve a whole lot of cooking. That should be good news for some of you - ease into the whole cooking thing.

I am still working on all the technical stuff - so for this week, I'll just list the menu (dishes with recipes available can be clicked on):

Monday:

Mmm, fish sticks -- but not the kind that comes straight from the freezer. These are home made healthier (more delicious) fish sticks. Don't mock it until you try it!

Tuesday:

It's summer time! Grill the burgers outside if you can. And add some grilled onions if you are feeling daring. To grill the onions - just brush them lightly with olive oil and sprinkle some kosher salt over them. Then put them on a heated grill until grill marks appear (turn and repeat).

Hamburgers
Sweet potato fries
Salad <-- any salad you'd like

Wednesday:

Easy day!!! These fast and EASY dishes will taste delicious. If you are serving them to unsuspecting guests - make sure they think you were in the kitchen slaving all day over this! :)

Roast chicken <--I recommend just buying one from your local grocery store
Squash casserole
Salad <-- use the left over salad from yesterday! :)

Thursday:

This Middle Eastern dish is delicious with or without the french fries. If it's a light meal, then just the schwarma and the tomato-cucumber salad will do. If it's a bigger meal - then add the french fries (you can't go wrong with potatoes).

Chicken Schwarma (the veggies with this are DELICIOUS!)
Tomato-Cumber salad
Baked French Fries

Friday:

This meal feels like a pinic meal to me. You can make it at home for dinner with family - or make it to go. I loved bringing it to an outdoor movie to share with friends. Everyone just put some of the pickles, chumus, and olives on their plate along with the schnitzel and dug in. Mmm!

Schnitzel (I did not make the capers and parsley with this)
Chumus (Hummus) <-- I really like Sabra brand with pine nuts
Pickles <-- you can get these is specialty Middle Eastern stores - they taste different than American pickles
Pickled ocra <-- you can find these in most grocery stores
Olives <-- Choose your favorite kind

Dinner at Home

2009-06-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

Ever since I can remember, I have spent at least part of my weekend looking through cook books and cooking magazines to find recipes I like and making menus for the week. I pick and choose different recipes that I think go well together and make my menu. I write down what I want each day, then make a grocery list and head shopping. I only have to go to the grocery store once a week (and recently, I've convinced my husband to do the shopping, which is even better!) and I am guaranteed wonderful food each night for dinner.

Better yet - I am never faced with the dilemma of staring at my refrigerator wondering what I am going to make for dinner. (When I do have to do that, I usually end up eating something like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or dry cereal and a carrot).

Over the past few years, friends who have learned about my menu "obsession" have commented:

"That's crazy!"
"You really do that?"
"Are you sure you're not OCD?"
"Can I have a copy of your menu?"

This led me to believe that many people who think they hate cooking - don't hate the act of making wonderful smelling and delicious tasting food. Rather, they don't have the time, energy or desire to put together a menu and therefore end up with the dry cereal dilemma I mentioned above.

I can help those people!!! I'm offering weekly menus to anyone who wants. Each week, I will post my weekly menu for free for you to peruse. It will have my menu and a link to the recipe for each dish. You can use the menu as is, or amend it to suit your needs.

If you want even more help (and who doesn't) - for just $1 per week, I will send you a grocery list that fulfills all the recipes in the menu. You can even let me know how many servings you need of each dish and I can customize the grocery list for you (or whoever you have conned into going grocery shopping).

And for those of you who love the idea of having help getting a weekly menu, but have special dietary needs - I can help with that too! Please contact me for information on customized menus.