On a Mission: Meal Planning Day 4

Pasta pasta pasta! Per my hubby's request, I made a pasta dish last night. Pasta alla Norma is a spicy eggplant and tomato combination. I love anything with eggplant! I also love any pasta dish that involves veggies. I always decrease the amount of pasta and up my portion of veggies. Here are some of my pasta veggie secrets:

- In the last 2-3 minute of pasta cooking time, add in strands (made with a vegetable peeler) of zucchini and summer squash to your spaghetti.

- Make a sauce out of roasted, pureed butternut squash 

- Make a "no-cook" sauce out of tomatoes, roasted red peppers, garlic, basil, and olive oil. The warm pasta will heat the sauce and veggies, bringing out the flavors! Add in some shredded low-fat mozzarella for the ooey gooey factor.

Pasta alla Norma is a quick dish and can be made in ~30 minutes. You can double or triple everything and save the sauce in the freezer for a delicious lunch or light dinner anytime! It would be great with crumbled hot Italian turkey sausage. 

Pasta alla Norma

3/4lb rigatoni pasta 

1 medium eggplant sliced into rounds 

1 can plum tomatoes, crushed by hand or snipped with poultry shears 

3 cloves garlic, minced

1tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

2tbsp crumbles goat cheese

1/4 cup fresh basil, sliced in strips

Salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside.  Heat olive oil over medium heat in sauce pan. Add garlic and red pepper, stirring until fragrant. Add tomatoes, bring to a boil and continue to simmer ~20 minutes. Meanwhile, salt and pepper eggplant rounds. Heat a nonstick grill pan to medium high heat and grill eggplant rounds until soft and browned. Chop eggplant into bite size pieces and add to tomato sauce. Pour sauce over pasta and toss until well coated. Serve with fresh basil and goat cheese on top.

To freeze: 

Prepare sauce only with eggplant. Freeze in freezer safe plastic bags and lay flat to freeze. 

To eat:

Defrost sauce in refrigerator overnight. Reheat on stove top until boiling. Serve over rigatoni with basil and goat cheese. 

Enjoy!!

Stay tuned for my next meal planning in a mission recipe: chicken artichoke bake!

On a Mission: Meal Planning Day 2

Yesterday was a laid back kind of day.  My hubby and I had a birthday party at 7:30 so I knew I wanted to eat before we left.  If I don't feed my husband he has a tendency to get "hangry".  Unsure if there were going to be snacks at the party, I wanted to make something filling, but quick and easy.  Hearty Black Bean Soup was my plan!!

The star of this soup are the Kuner's canned beans.  They come seasoned with chili powder and cumin.  They make a great side dish on taco night too.  My secret (maybe its not that secret) is to puree 1 can of beans with a little bit of chicken broth and keep the other whole.  It makes the soup creamy and thick! This trick works in other soups like Tuscan White Bean soup and any chili recipe!

Hearty Black Bean Soup
2 cans Kuner's black beans with chili and cumin (or substitute canned black beans with the added spices)
2 cups cooked brown rice (I used a mixture of brown rice and quinoa)
1 small onion, chopped
1 can Rotel
1 cup plus 1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
the zest of 1 lime
Optional:
Fat free plain Greek yogurt
low fat shredded cheddar or Monteray Jack cheese

Combine 1 can black beans and 1/4 cup chicken broth in a blender and pulse until smooth and creamy, set aside.  In a medium size saucepan saute onion until soft.  Add the can of Rotel and let cook until the tomatoes start to bubble.  Add lime zest, pureed black beans, remaining broth, can of beans, and rice.  Bring everything to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.  Serve with a dollop of fat free Greek yogurt and shredded cheese!

To Make Freezer Friendly:
Follow recipe above and fill freezer safe bags with soup.  Lay flat in freezer for better storage (I lay them in a casserole dish in case there are any leaks).
To Reheat:
Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.  Microwave a bowl until bubbling and heated through, 165F or bring to a boil on the stove top. 

Enjoy!!

Stay tuned for my next meal planning on a mission recipe!

On a Mission: Meal Planning Day 3

Today we had friends over to visit lil Ben. I knew I wanted to cook dinner when they left because, frankly, I wouldn't feel like leaving the house! My RU girlie, Elaine, brought me a few beautiful heirloom tomatoes from her garden. So, I decided to make my Italian style bangers and beans!

In this pic I used grape tomatoes, but you can use whatever tomatoes you have on hand - I had gorgeous green zebra tomatoes!

Italian Bangers and Beans

4-5 sweet or hot chicken sausages

1 pint grape tomatoes or 3-4 diced tomatoes, pulp included

1 zucchini, diced (you can also use summer squash, eggplant or a mix of all three)

1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup fresh basil, torn into pieces 

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 

Sauté chicken sausages in a pan with 1 tbsp oil until browned, but not cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside. Add zucchini to pan and cook until slightly soft. Add tomatoes, red pepper, and garlic, sauté until fragrant. Add water and beans and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sausage is cooked through, ~20 minutes. Add fresh basil before serving with crusty bread and a salad. 

To make freezer friendly:

Follow recipe above (leave sausage whole or sliced into thick rounds). Once cooked, place sausages at the bottom of a freezer safe plastic container. Top with the bean and veggie sauce and secure with lid. 

To reheat: 

Defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Microwave contents until hot and bubbly, 165 degrees. 

Stay tuned for my next meal planning on a mission recipe! 

Meg Loc :)

On a Mission: Meal Planning!

Boy was I on a mission this week!  When I say our cupboard was bare, I mean we were out of even staples like olive oil, peanut butter, milk, etc.  Somehow my chores never really get done with a newborn around!

My hubby and I did two shopping trips to restock our empty shelves, fridge, and freezer (well, I had plenty of freezer meals).  We went to our local supermarket and wholesale club.  These are the meals I shopped for:

Pasta alla Norma - a tomato/eggplant pasta sauce
Italian Bangers and Beans - something I've adapted from Extra Virgin
Pork and Apples - one of my favorite combinations!
Hearty Black Bean Soup - we like to eat this for lunch!
Baked Chicken and Artichokes - my Aunt made this for me when Ben was born and I plan on making a lighter version

Up first, pork and apples!  I had a 2 1/2lb pork roast in the freezer that I've been dying to use.  I didn't want to use it for pulled pork so I remembered one of my favorite dinner combinations: pork chops and applesauce!  I also decided to plop everything in the slow cooker.  Yummo! 

Sweet and Smokey Pork and Apples
2lbs center cut pork chops or roast, trimmed of visible fat
3 gala apples, diced with skins on
2 tbsp brown sugar
3/4 cup water
2 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp chipotle seasoning
1/4 tsp cayenne
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Mix sugar, water, mustard, cinnamon, chipotle, cayenne, and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved.  Place fresh (or slightly frozen) pork roast or chops in slow cooker.  Pour mixture over the pork and top with 1/3 of diced apples.  Cook on low 6-8 hours (depending if you put pork in frozen or fresh).  In last 4 hours of cooking time add the remaining apples.  Serve pork with sauce and apples poured on top!
*I like to put some meats in the slow cooker frozen because they shred less and hold up their shape.

To make freezer friendly:
Place the pork in a freezer safe bag with sauce and diced apples.
To cook:
Follow directions above, but place all apples in slow cooker initially. 

Stay tuned for my next meal planning on a mission recipe!

Meal Planning & Shopping 101

Today’s topic: Menu/Meal Planning.  I am excited to write about this topic.  It’s one I've been thinking about and planning for a while now.  I wanted to find a way that worked for me each time I went shopping and I've finally found it!  I've been using this method and these printables that I've made since the spring, with a few tweaks here and there -- I've made some sections larger and some smaller.  I've also tried printing double sided, but I’m visual and like to see both sheets at once!  Here are the printables I use & how I use them:

(Click here for a PDF version of the printables!)

These work for me for a variety of reasons:

*I don’t like to spend time grocery shopping every week, so by meal planning and making my list accordingly, I can spread my shopping trips out to every 2-3 weeks.

*Not taking so many trips to the grocery store saves money!

*By knowing exactly what I’m going to cook, I can plan my list accordingly so there’s no playing the game: "what the heck am I going to make for dinner with these ingredients."  (Because sometimes it can be like an at home version of “Chopped” and that’s no good…you’ve seen what’s in those baskets!)

*Having my shopping list by section really helps me breeze in and out of the store and brings my “shoot-I-forgot-to-get-this" down to a minimum. 

*I also can see at a glance which of my meals (or parts of) I can prep for the freezer ahead of time and I usually can get most of that done during my daughter’s nap time.

*I ALWAYS keep my menu list easily accessible.  I know what meals I can make with what I have…and I can give my husband options on what he’d like for dinner so it’s a win win. 

*By using the shopping list in sections I can easily see at a glance what the bulk of my purchase is…am I buying too many canned goods? Not enough protein to get us through a few weeks? Have in included enough fresh produce? (I will make spot trips to the store for fresh produce!)

Let’s get started using these bad boys!

1.       First, I sit down with a cup of coffee (or wine…) and scour my pin boards with my sheets at my side.  Here are some screen shots and links to my boards…

                                 What's for dinner?                                        Freezer Friendly

                                     Lunch Time!                                                Sunday Funday

Breakfast in bed

2.       I’ll add recipes to my menu as I find meals that I know my family will enjoy.  I also enjoy finding a variety of meals so I’m not getting into a rut of making the same thing. 

3.       I also make note on my menu if a recipe will make two meals (x2) or if it’s freezer friendly (F) so I can check that at a glance.

4.       Once I have my meals planned out, it’s on to the shopping list.  I actually print the shopping list about a week before I go shopping so I can add extras to it as I run out (baking soda, toilet paper, etc.  Things that we need, but might not be specifically in my meals).  I sit down with each recipe (or think about it in my head if it’s one I’ve made over and over) and the ingredients I don’t have in the pantry or fridge get added to the list.

(Don’t mind my sloppy handwriting or atrocious spelling.)

On my list I’ll make myself notes like what I’m using the ingredient for or if it’s on sale at the store.  So once I have all of this, I’ll head out to the store and shop!  If I’m really feeling ambitious, I’ll print out a calendar and write down our dinners on it so I have a blueprint of the next few weeks.  But more than likely that changes anyway.  Like I said before, I do make spot trips to the store for things like produce and milk for Harp.  But this really cuts down on my trip totals and the money I’ve been spending on groceries.  I hope this helps make life a little easier for you!  I’d love to hear if you used it or how you did.  Would you make any changes to the printables? I’d love to hear your suggestions!

Stay full!