I'm sitting here with a cool breeze blowing through the windows, planning my meals and work week. The autumn air is intoxicating, prone to make me over plan my work but that's okay because heartier meals can also be eaten and they give the energy to get lots of work done! The weather reports for the coming week promise plenty of cool mornings, though the afternoons will be warmer. I don't care anymore...I'm going to plan seasonal eats! John is working two days this week. I'll be out with Mama one day and have plans to run errands one day, so only five main meals are planned.
Breakfasts: Butterscotch and Apple Oatmeal, Peanut Butter Toast
Fried eggs and Toast (x2)
Breakfast Casserole with hash browns (didn't make it last week)
Apple Pancakes, Sausage, egg (for John, I'll skip the egg)
Sausage Cheese Toast
Cheese Grits, Toast
Suppers: Roast Beef and Gravy Sandwiches
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Soup and Crackers
Nachos with beans
Beef and Rice Burritos
Bagel Pizzas
Baked Potatoes
Beef Stroganoff, Noodles, Haricots Vert, Russian Salad, Rolls
It all sounds so elegant doesn't it? Years ago I started making Beef Stroganoff using a popular inexpensive meat cut, round steak. The recipe called for sirloin, but the round steak was far more affordable. Nowadays you'd be hard pressed to find round steak anywhere at all. In fact, when I ask butchers about it, they shake their heads. None to be had. So I now use sirloin. You can use London broil sliced thin (partially freeze then cut into long thin strips across the grain) or you can substitute hamburger meat as well, but I like to use the steak. There's a beefier sort of flavor to steak than to hamburger. I made sure last week to pick up baby portabella mushrooms and sour cream. With green beans (haricot verts are nothing more than tender whole green beans, mine are frozen) and a salad topped with shredded beets (also from the freezer) and hard boiled egg the meal comes together nicely. See? Elegant sounding but really just plain old good food! If this is your Sunday dinner meal you might add Apple Strudel.
Arroz Con Pollo, Black Beans, Mexican Corn Muffins, Green Salad
Chicken with Yellow rice. I will use chicken, green peas and pimentos from the freezer to make the main dish, leftover frozen black beans, leftover frozen corn and frozen jalapeno peppers to make the muffins.
Smoked Beef Sausage, Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Waldorf Salad, Leftover Muffins
Only the sausage from the freezer today. I bought Brussels Sprouts and really need to use them. We should have leftover muffins from the chicken dinner which we can reheat in the microwave.
Cauliflower au gratin, Black Eyed Peas, Potatoes O'Brien, Corn on the Cob, Broccoli Apple Salad
I'm hoping I can pull this menu off without adding any meat to the mix. If I fail, I'll see about adding a small amount of warm sliced turkey (from the freezer) to the plates I've got a package of frozen cauliflower that I'll thaw and dice and drain well then mix up with cheese and ranch dressing and a bit of onion and maybe a sprinkling of turkey bacon that I've crisped in the fying pan. The peas and corn, the peppers in the potatoes will also be from the freezer.
Baked Chicken and Dumplings, Garden Peas, Cranberry Sauce, Waldorf Salad
The chicken here is a whole canned chicken that needs to be used. I'll will use thawed chicken broth (freezer) cranberry sauce (freezer) and green peas (freezer) so something will come from those overfilled things...
And I've barely made a dint in freezer content...
Job Plans
last week:
2. Start work on the next flower bed. it rained
6. Work on cleaning hope chest and dresser with Liquid Gold
1. Start work on next flower bed.
2. Straighten out my house clothes drawer.
4. Start straightening up shed.
5. Paint lamp
6. Hang guest room items on wall.
7. Clean the hope chest and dresser with Liquid Gold
8. Prep the few plants meant to come indoors to make them pest free.
3 comments:
I know what you mean about hardly making a dint in the freezer. With just the 2 of us and our appetites are not big it takes a long time to cut down the amount in the freezer. :-) I just got out a small rack of ribs and some chicken parts and some lunch meat from our freezer just a few minutes ago. Checked around for what needs used next and planning menus around it. I believe e aroun here you can still find round steak. I know I have some in the freezer...I don't think it is That old! I"ll check. Maybe it is still in some parts of the country. I know many of the cuts are new to me. The stores have changed things around some with so many of Mexican decent liking other cuts more. Thongs change. It challenges our old brains! :) Call it brain teasers and we are building up good brains so we can remember even more useless information!! :-) We had open face sandwiches for lunch. Brush just a bit olive oil on both sides of a crusty bread. Top with a bit of cheese and fresh basil cut up, thin slices of fresh tomato and a bit more cheese then fresh mushrooms on top and a bit more chess and put in the cast iron skillet to brown the bottom and melt the cheese. Ymmm We found mushrooms marked down the other day and so used what we needed now and will dry the rest for later. Basil was from the garden. It is 100 again today so no oven cooking here yet!! Sarah
I love the day out with Momma! Sounds like a wonderful fall menu. It's really getting fall here in Michigan -cold mornings and afternoons! Have a great week.
Ha! I make a dent everytime I go to the freezer! With eight people in our family, it takes four packages of pork chops of steaks! That goes fast! That is why I usually have to put it in soup or a casserole.
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