Friday
Short version: Meatloaf, baked potatoes, roasted asparagus, sauerkraut, raw cabbage, Mexican wedding cookies
Long version: Apparently, Mexican wedding cookies are my children's most favoritest cookies ever. I used the same recipe as last time (but with almonds instead of walnuts), but the dough was too dry, so I added a bit of milk.
Unfortunately, that made the texture of the baked cookies much less like shortbread. They tasted good, but the texture is definitely an important part of these cookies.
Not that anyone refused to eat them or anything, but still. Kind of disappointing.
Actually, as I was writing that out, it occurred to me maybe the problem was that almonds have less oil in them than walnuts. Perhaps I need to use a bit more butter if I use almonds. Next time . . .
Saturday
Short version: Hot dogs on homemade buns, green chile hamburger stew, gingersnaps
Long version: I found this stew very satisfying to make. The stock from roosters given to us, the green chiles Ms. Amelia gives me frequently, the tomato sauce, the potatoes, and the onions all came to us free from friends or commodities. From my garden last year I used frozen cubes of pureed green garlic, shredded calabacita, and some overly large green beans I had stashed away as "soup beans," and from the garden this year, parsley. The only things in it that I bought were the ground beef and carrots.
Oh, and I had to add some sour cream at the end, because I overdid the green chile a bit.
Everyone had the hot dogs, some had the stew. And everyone had gingersnaps, of course.
Sunday
Short version: Stir-fry, rice, strawberry-rhubarb pie with whipped cream
Long version: I used this recipe for the pie. It was pretty good, but I thought it had slightly too much vanilla and salt in the fruit filling. The only oranges I had were not very flavorful, so I didn't use their juice, instead using a bit of zest. I used equal parts rhubarb and strawberries, too, which was a good change. It made for a fuller pie, and it wasn't overflowing or anything.
The recipe quite clearly stated that it should be served with vanilla ice cream. I suspect this is why when I made just whipped cream for it, I thought it needed more sugar. A. always says I don't put enough sugar in whipped cream, and in this case, he was right.
Say what? Throw out a delicious mixture of fruit juices and sugar? That's crazy talk. Does the recipe author not know that that is beginning of a homemade soda? Just add seltzer. Yum.
Monday
Short version: Bunless cheeseburgers, bread and butter, green salad with ranch dressing, leftover pie
Long version: This time I had A. make the whipped cream to top the leftover pie. He added a lot more sugar, and it made the pie much better. Lesson learned.
Tuesday
Short version: Polish sausage and onions, baked beans, cornbread, carrot sticks, oatmeal/raisin/almond cookies
Long version: I built this entire meal around the baked beans. These were from the huge batch I made awhile ago with the last can of Sysco pinto beans. I had frozen them in quart-size containers. I had taken one of these out on Saturday to serve with the hot dogs and totally forgot. Forgot again when we had the cheeseburgers. So I was determined to finally remember to serve them, and came up with other things that would go with them.
The Polish sausage was the very last package of sausage from my Texas stock-up. I roasted it in the oven on a bed of sliced onions while the cornbread was baking.
The cookies were standard oatmeal-raisin, but I added some finely chopped almonds. Because given the amount of almonds I have in the freezer from excess commodities, no cookie can remain almond-less.
Wednesday
Short version: Chili, leftover cornbread
Long version: Still using up frozen pureed calabaza from last year. Chili is a good use for it, because no one knows it's in there. Sneaky.
Also, since I use beans, too, it's a good way to stretch one package of ground beef to feed us for a whole meal plus some for lunch the next day.
Thursday
Short version: Ribeye steaks with herb butter and caramelized onions, leftover rice, pureed calabaza, raw broccoli
Long version: Didn't I just make herb butter with green garlic and parsley for steak? Yes, and I will continue to do so until I run out of steak.
Okay, your turn! What'd you eat this week?
More butter is never a wrong answer- and I bet you're right about the fat content of almonds.
ReplyDeleteFri- grilled chicken, rice, Ramen, broccoli. I must be channeling my inner college student because Ramen noodles taste so good right now. I used the leftover chicken in more ramen at a few lunches this past week.
Sat- kids and I spent the afternoon at my daughter's house weeding and mulching. (She bought a house last year with a lot of landscaping , and she needed help - we wound up using 30+ bags of mulch. Very tiring.) So random things when we got home. Cookie bars and Brownies baked in the morning for the birthday boy. Brownies were Too gooey, but they were gone by the morning.
Sun- hamburgers, hot dogs , chicken patties, chips., applesauce.
(Weather definitely turned summery!)
Mon- salad, grilled cheese, chips, apple slices.
Tues- I had an IEP meeting for daughter in the afternoon, so I made stew.( really too hot, but it could be prepped and just warmed up when I got home.) Mashed potatoes, leftover broccoli, carrots.
Wed- chicken strips, fries, salad, applesauce, homeschool banana bread.
Thurs- I prepped hamburgers and made salad for husband, as I took kids to trampoline park (1 hour away) as present for boy. However, as daughter didn't get out an hour early, (apparently she has one more day of school- I didn't know they changed calendar.oops) we had to leave much later than I expected. So when we got back, kids scavenged for dinner. Cereal, eggs, chicken patty, tortilla chips and salsa. And everyone went to bed early, so a win!
Last day of school today, and HS graduation over the weekend, so I need to do something special! But it's really hot again, so time for take out?
Have a lovely weekend!
mbmom11: Sounds like a typical frenetic last week of school. Tiring. But HOORAY for the last day of school! And congratulations to your graduate, if it's yours you're going to graduation for.
ReplyDeleteYes, child #7 graduates Sunday! And she says she just wants to go out for ice cream after graduation, so I am off the hook! At night, they have a school sponsored after party, so she'll have fun with friends and I don't have to clean house. ;)
ReplyDeleteI hope everyone has a special holiday weekend!
Friday-second night of the camping trip. Hot dogs, potato chips, grapes, marshmallows, and premade coleslaw for the grownups
ReplyDeleteSaturday-home. Meat pies from the freezer, green beans likewise
Sunday-creamed chicken, fresh bread, salad with lettuce and radishes from our own garden (!)
Monday-curried lentils, cornbread
Tuesday-leftover chicken, baked potatoes, salad
Wednesday-tuna sandwiches, coleslaw
Thursday-enchiladas from the freezer, salad
mbmom11: congratulations to #7! Another milestone!
Monday: tried pozole for the first time. I think I'll make it again, it was a hit.
ReplyDeleteTuesday: I set out to make shepherd's pie, realized I had pork, not beef, realized the seasoning wouldn't work so I started going in an Italian kinda direction, realized that would taste weird topped with mashed potatoes, so I made quick gnocchi...and it turned into a pork Italian tomato veggie stew. Pretty good though.
Wednesday: went out with husband, kids went to grandma's.
Thursday: leftover soups of various types from last week and this week, chips.
Friday: homemade pizza with tomatoes from the garden, cooked zucchini.
I attempted an American style pie before. It was a disaster so I stay with sweet dumplings.
ReplyDeleteAh, rhubarb! I made a rhubarb ginger jelly that succeeded famously. It was a small batch, so I plan to make more.
ReplyDelete