Monthly Menu September 2020

 

I noticed there is a large blemish on one of the apples. Oh well, this is real life! Wow, it has been four years since I have posted a monthly menu for September. I've probably been too depressed to bother since my kids have been out of high school! Wow, so much more has changed. My older son has moved to a new apartment in Connecticut and works full time and is rocking adult life. My daughter is MARRIED! and started TEACHING SCHOOL! in Utah. And my younger son (who will turn 22 at the end of this month!) is starting his junior year of college. In Utah. All are away from me. Sob! Ooh, it's been a tough adjustment, but it is getting easier. Man, I love my kids; they are the best people. So, now I will plan meals for me and my hubby, but it's still exciting to be September because I love autumn! Although it doesn't really become autumn in Georgia until November, lol. I'm not complaining, because I also love the extra long summer - leaves stay on the trees longer, fresh summer produce is available longer, and we don't really have winter, usually. Not complaining! Onto menu planning:

01 Tue Grilled kielbasa, corn on the cob, leftover potato salad, macaroni salad (store bought), leftover beans.

02 Wed Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts With Gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots, green beans

03 Thu Garden Harvest Minestrone, cornbread 

04 Fri Fried Rice, egg rolls

05 Sat Fasting

06 Sun Pizza

07 Mon Spaghetti with meat sauce, broccoli salad

08 Tue Garden Harvest Minestrone (add leftover kielbasa), bread and butter

09 Wed grilled burgers with sauteed mushrooms, potato salad, macaroni salad, beans, corn on the cob, watermelon

10 Thu Grilled Salmon & Veggies, brown rice

11 Fri Tangy Slow Cooker Pork Roast, baby potatoes, Brussell sprouts

12 Sat Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken, steamed sweet potatoes, peas, cornbread

13 Sun Kitchen Sink Quesadillas, Spanish rice, broccoli

14 Mon Leftovers or Take Out

15 Tue Barbecue beef from freezer, mashed potatoes, zucchini

16 Wed Bean Soup, cornbread 

17 Thu Chick Fil-A

18 Fri Pizza

19 Sat Tortellini with sausage and peppers, broccoli and olive salad

20 Sun Grilled chicken legs, coleslaw, baked beans, corn on the cob

21 Mon  Chicken Stir Fry, rice

22 Tue Pork Tenderloin from freezer, gravy, sweet potatoes, peas

23 Wed Beef Stew, rye bread

24 Thu Lemon Garlic Tilapia, Uncle Ben's wild rice, green beans

25 Fri Spaghetti with Vegetable Pasta Sauce, rye bread

26 Sat Creamy Chicken Soup, rye bread or biscuits

27 Sun Baked ham, mashed potatoes, steamed Brussel sprouts

28 Mon Leftover soups, cornbread

29 Tue Leftover vegetable pasta sauce, ziti

30 Wed Chili beans with rice, zucchini

Better Burgers

 When I've made someone's recipe enough times it is time to put it permanently here in it's own post. I haven't bought store made ground beef patties since I've been in Georgia. The first time I made burgers from store bought ground beef, they were not very tasty, so since then I've been doctoring it up using a recipe from KyleeCooks. I lessen the salt and pepper but other than that, it works well for us.

• Ground beef (the packages are usually about 1.3 pounds)
• about 1/2 t salt
• cracked black pepper to taste
• 1 T dijon mustard
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce

Mix it together well and form four beef patties, grill, and devour. Lately we have been eating them bunless with sauteed mushrooms and onions.

Monthly Menu August 2020

01 Sat Chicken legs, raman salad, beans

02 Sun Grilled kielbasa, broccoli salad, leftover beans, corn bread

03 Mon Leftover chicken, kielbasa, beans, broccoli salad

04 Tue Tortellini with sausage and peppers (use Rao sauce from freezer), tomato and cucumber salad, garlic bread from freezer

05 Wed Hot dogs, home fries, corn on the cob, coleslaw

06 Thu Chick Fil-A

07 Fri Take out pizza

08 Sat Fasting

09 Sun Easter ham from freezer, sweet potatoes, doctored frozen mixed veggies, Uncle Bens wild rice

10 Mon Salmon from freezer, vegetable confetti salad, melting potatoes

11 Tue Sausage tortellini with lentil sauce from freezer, salad

12 Wed Take out from Steak and Shake

13 Thu Take out from Chick Fil-A 

14 Fri Take Out from Bar-B-Cutie

15 Sat  Take Out from Fish Thyme

16 Sun Peach Barbecue chicken legs, doctored baked beans, macaroni salad

17 Mon Barbecue beef from freezer, mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli

18 Tue Burgers, leftover chicken, leftover macaroni salad, leftover beans, corn on the cob, corn bread

19 Wed Take out from O'Charley's

20 Thu Asian food take-out

21 Fri Zucchini hummus wraps, brown rice salad

22 Sat Grilled kielbasa, bean salad, coleslaw

23 Sun Leftover salads, steamed brussels sprouts

24 Mon Chick Fil=A grilled chicken sandwiches, leftover bean and brown rice salad

25 Tue Pork tenderloin, mashed sweet potatoes, collard greens

26 Wed Chicken tacos with peppers and onions, refried beans, corn

27 Thu Pasta with meat sauce, cucumber and tomato salad, garlic bread

28 Fri Chicken legs, brown rice pilaf, brussels sprouts

29 Sat Hot dogs, store made potato salad, baked beans

30 Sun Chicken soup, corn bread

31 Mon leftovers or take out

Broccoli Slaw

Again I have found the ultimate recipe for broccoli slaw and the key is the dressing. It's not sweet, although it does call for some sugar. I had to make four times the dressing that the recipe calls for. I started with two large bunches of broccoli crowns and I cannot deal with cutting it in julienne strips so I just chopped it all up in my Ninja. Then I shredded four large carrots and threw in what was left of the slivered almonds I bought for another salad (about 1/2 C?). It made SO MUCH. It filled my largest bowl and we will be eating this for a week. In the future I will just buy the bags of broccoli slaw mix because I cannot judge amounts and it makes such a mess to cut up broccoli.  But this is the recipe I will use. It comes from the website Add A Pinch.

2 12 ounce bags broccoli slaw

1/2 onion, chopped

1/4 C mayonnaise

1 T apple cider vinegar

1 tsp sugar

juice of 1 lime - I used a T of lime juice (x 4)

salt and pepper to taste (I used 1/2 t salt x 4)

(I will add some sunflower seeds if I have them)

I love this dressing! 

Mashed Potatoes

I have been converted to baby potatoes, and for a long time they were the only ones I bought. Super easy to prepare (no peeling) and taste the best to me (less starchy). If I wanted mashed I would simply mash them with a fork on my plate. But the other day I was in the mood for some creamy mashed potatoes and came across instructions on the All Recipes website. I use one more potato that the recipe calls for, but they are still creamy and delicious.

Four large russet potatoes, peeled and cut in half lengthwise

.25 C butter

.5 C whole milk

salt and black pepper to taste (I use about a teaspoon of salt and eyeball the pepper)

Cook potatoes in salted water for about 25 minutes

Drain and place back in pot on stove for 30 seconds to dry them a bit

Mash potatoes twice around the pan

Add butter and milk and continue to mash until smooth

Whisk in salt and pepper

Delicious!

Coleslaw

This is Hellman's mayonnaise's simple coleslaw recipe (and their picture).

My mother in-law's coleslaw is the best but this is so easy to make that it is my go-to. Plus the dressing amounts are catered to a bag of store bought slaw. I cut the amount of sugar in half.

1 lb package coleslaw mix

1 C mayonnaise

2 T lemon juice

1 T sugar

.5 t salt

Mix dressing ingredients and then mix with coleslaw mix.

The Best Bean Salad

I go on quests to find "the" recipe that I will always use. Sometimes I will try something different just for fun but will go back to my standard because it's the best. I shared a recipe for Cowboy Caviar which was pretty good but this is the recipe I will repeatedly use. The ingredients are pretty much the same (this one called for just black beans but the ingredients could be whatever I want) but the key is the dressing. Equal parts oil and vinegar and NO SUGAR. This recipe came from the website CookieandKate but I did not make it exactly like she did. I used canned beans and corn and bottled lime juice but it was still absolutely delicious. (I am still seeking THE go to baked bean recipe.)

VEGGIES

3 cans black beans, rinsed and drained (or 4.5 C cooked)

1 can corn, drained, or from 2 ears of corn, or 1 C frozen, thawed

chopped peppers (I used 1 orange, 1 yellow, and 1 red this time)

chopped onion

small tomatoes halved or quartered (she called for 1 cup but use as much as you like)

.5 C chopped parsley (or cilantro)

DRESSING

.25 C olive oil

.25 C white vinegar

2 T lime juice

.5 t chili powder

.5 t ground cumin

.5 t salt

Combine veggies, combine dressing ingredients, and mix the two together.