Menu Planning Monday: My menu plan for the week of 7/1

My in-laws will be in town this week and I’m all about tried and true favorites that are quick and easy to throw together!  Most of the recipes these week are slow cooker meals and they are super easy to make!  Plus they are kid tested and family friendly!

If you’re new to menu planning, grab a FREE membership to Food on the Table!  Searchtheir database of recipes and choose your favorites.  They’ll generate your grocery list based on the best deals in your area.  You can print it or send it to your Smartphone!  It’s awesome!  Click here to grab your membership–>Food on the Table subscription FREE for life (use the code SUMMERFREE to get your free membership) 

I have calculated someWeight Watchers points values using the e-tools Recipe Builder, and points values this week are based on the new Points Plus program! (I will update with points values on the others as we have the meals)

If you’re new to menu planning or would like tips for getting started, check out this post here.  You can also view hundreds of meal plans each week at Orgjunkie.com

SUNDAY: Chicken Tortilla Bake (slow cooker> – I modified a recipe I found on Homemaking Challenged so that it could be used in the slow cooker and I also added enchilada sauce to give it an extra “kick” My entire family (including my kids) loved this one, so we will definitely be making it again! Watch for my recipe review later this week!

Ingredients:
2 cans cream of chicken soup (I used the 98% fat free version)
1 can green enchilada sauce (small can)
1 can Ro-Tel (small can)
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used frozen ones)
corn tortillas (approximately 12)
shredded cheese (I used 1 8 oz bag)
Tortilla chips (10-13), crushed

Directions:
Place chicken breasts, Ro-Tel, enchilada sauce and cream of chicken soup in slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours (or high for 3-4 hours). Shred chicken when cooked and mix it back into the mixture. Chop up tortillas into bite-size pieces (I used a pizza cutter to do this – it was so easy!). Place a layer of tortillas along the bottom of a square casserole dish. Add a layer of the chicken and sauce mixture. Top with cheese. Repeat this step for 3 layers. I added crushed tortilla chips to the top to give it a crunch. Cook in the oven on 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes until cheese is melted and it is warmed through. You may want to serve your kids with some sour cream if they don’t do well with “hot” stuff.

MONDAY: Cream Cheese Chicken (slow cooker) – This is one of my family’s favorite meals. We RARELY have any leftovers, and if I would let my kids, they would be licking their plates clean!


TUESDAY: Creamy Tortilla soup (slow cooker) – My in-laws are coming into town today and I know I’ll be busy with last minute cleaning and errands, so I picked this recipe because it’s a family favorite, you can throw it all together (literally) in five minutes or less, and everyone loves it!

WEDNESDAY:  BBQ hamburgers and hot dogs plus fruit salad and pasta salad! 

Pizza pasta salad – I found this recipe on Favorite Family Recipes.  We made it for Memorial Day and it was a hit and so we made it again!

Ingredients:
1 bag colored spiral noodles
¾ c. pepperoni cut into wedges
¾ c. mozzarella cut into small cubes
¾ c. fresh tomatoes, diced
½ c. olives, sliced
¼ c. parmesan cheese
1 bottle Bernstein’s Restaurant Recipe Italian Dressing (I’m using Kraft low fat Zesty Italian dressing)

Mix together all ingredients and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours before serving.

THURSDAY:  Steak stroganoff (slow cooker)  – This is another family favorite!

Ingredients:
2T flour
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1 3/4 lb. boneless round steak
2 cans 10 3/4 oz cream of mushroom soup (I use 98% FF)
2 c. water (or 1 can 100% FF beef broth for more flavor)
1 envelope beef stew mix
4 oz can mushrooms, sliced and drained
1/2 c. sour cream
1 T minced parsley

Combine flour, garlic powder, pepper, and paprika in slow cooker. Cut meat into 1 1/2 inch strips. Place in flour mixture and toss until meat is well coated. Add soup, water, and stew mix. Stir until well blended. Cover and cook on low 6-7 hours. Stir in mushrooms, sour cream, and parsley and then cook on high 10-15 minutes until heated through. Serve over egg noodles. (Depending on the consistency of the sauce, you may need to add cornstarch to thicken or add more water/broth to thin)

To freeze: Pour into gallon freezer bags (I used Ziploc containers for this one). Allow to cool before freezing.

To reheat: Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Warm on stove and serve over rice or egg noodles. (Add sour cream when warming if you left it out of the initial recipe)

WW points = 7 points/serving, 6-8 servings (add 3 points for 1/2 c. cooked pasta or 5 points for 1 cup)

FRIDAY:  Chicken ranch tacos (slow cooker) – I made this recipe last week and we loved it so much that I decided to make it again this week!  It’s a totally easy “dump and go” recipe, too!  I’m all about simplifying things this week!

SATURDAY:  Eat out 

*This post may contain affiliate links. Please refer to my disclosure policy for more information

Cooking With Kids Thursday: Rice Krispie Treat Sparklers!

This is such a fun way for the kids to get in on the holiday festivities and the perfect addition to any 4th of July cookout!  Kids will love building their own sparklers out of rice krispies treats, strawberries and blueberries.  Thanks for the cute idea 5 minutes for Mom!

Here’s what you need to make these:

  • 3 tablespoons of butter
  • 1 10-ounce bag of mini-marshmallows
  • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract (optional)
  • 6 cups of puffed rice (“Rice Krispies”) cereal
  • Strawberries (one per sparkler)
  • Blueberries (3-4 per sparkler)
  • Star shaped cookie cutter
  • Food skewers or lollipop sticks
  • Ribbon (optional)

Here’s how to make it -> Rice Krispies Treats Sparklers Tutorial  

 

Recipe Review: Chicken Ranch Tacos (Slow Cooker)

One of my favorite things to eat at Chili’s is the Chicken Club Tacos.  I found the inspiration for this recipe on Pinterest and figured I could change it up to make it similar to the Chicken Club Tacos at Chili’s.  This was a HUGE hit with my family.  Both of my kids, who are incredibly picky eaters at times, raved about how much they loved it. There were no leftovers and the kids were fighting over who would get seconds!  The best part?  It’s SUPER easy to make!

Ingredients:

Chicken breasts (2-3, I used frozen)
Taco seasoning packet (I used half)
Ranch dip packet (I used half)
1 can chicken broth
Flour tortillas (you could also use hard taco shells)
Toppings of choice: lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, etc.
Ranch dressing

Directions:

Place chicken breasts, taco seasoning, ranch dip mix, and chicken broth in a slow cooker on low for 6-8 hours. Shred meat before serving and fill taco shells with toppings of choice.

I also made guacamole to go with ours. I used 2 small avocadoes, half of a tomato, 1 T lemon juice, 1 T lime juice, garlic powder (to taste), dash of pepper, onion salt (to taste), and 1 T sour cream.

Next time, I’m going to use the recipe for Chipotle dressing from Our Best Bites because I think it will be similar to the ancho-chili ranch dressing at Chili’s which is AMAZING.

Here are the ingredients needed if you want to make that:

1/3 c. chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 c. light sour cream
1 1/2 + tsp. adobo sauce from canned chipotle chilies
1 tsp. chili powder
4 tsp. fresh lime juice
¼ tsp. salt

You can find the directions here–> Our Best Bites Chipotle dressing (I think this chicken would go awesome with their Chipotle Chicken Taco salad, too!)

If you make this recipe, let me know what you think!

Original Recipe Inspiration:  Do You Smell That?

*This post may contain affiliate links!  Please refer to my disclosure policy for additional information!

Menu Planning Monday: My Menu Plan for the week of 6/25

I’m just getting back from vacation and trying to get back into a routine, including meal planning, which is easier said than done!!

If you’re new to menu planning, grab a FREE membership to Food on the Table!  Search their database of recipes and choose your favorites.  They’ll generate your grocery list based on the best deals in your area.  You can print it or send it to your Smartphone!  It’s awesome!  Click here to grab your membership–>Food on the Table subscription FREE for life (use the code SUMMERFREE to get your free membership) 

I have calculated someWeight Watchers points values using the e-tools Recipe Builder, and points values this week are based on the new Points Plus program! (I will update with points values on the others as we have the meals)

If you’re new to menu planning or would like tips for getting started, check out this post here.  You can also view hundreds of meal plans each week at Orgjunkie.com

MONDAY:

Breakfast – Cold cereal (I’m crazy and made dentist appointments for the kids at at 7 am!)

Lunch – Pizza Pita pockets – We made these a few weeks ago and they were a hit with the kids, so I’m making them again!

Dinner – Chicken ranch tacos (slow cooker) – The “inspiration” for this recipe comes from Do You Smell That?  That recipe calls for cooking it on the stove, but I’m going to cook mine in the slow cooker using a taco seasoning packet, a ranch dip seasoning packet, and a can of chicken broth.  I can’t wait to see how it turns out!  I’m hungry already!

TUESDAY: 

Breakfast – Pancakes

Lunch – Peanut butter and jelly sushi rolls  

Dinner – BBQ chicken with pasta salad 

WEDNESDAY: 

Breakfast – Cold cereal

Lunch – Out (it’s our Cinemark Summer movie day!)

Dinner – Cream cheese chicken (slow cooker)  

THURSDAY:

Breakfast – Peanut butter and bananas on a whole wheat English muffin

Lunch – Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup 

Dinner – Steak stroganoff (slow cooker)  – This is another family favorite!

Ingredients:
2T flour
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1 3/4 lb. boneless round steak
2 cans 10 3/4 oz cream of mushroom soup (I use 98% FF)
2 c. water (or 1 can 100% FF beef broth for more flavor)
1 envelope beef stew mix
4 oz can mushrooms, sliced and drained
1/2 c. sour cream
1 T minced parsley

Combine flour, garlic powder, pepper, and paprika in slow cooker. Cut meat into 1 1/2 inch strips. Place in flour mixture and toss until meat is well coated. Add soup, water, and stew mix. Stir until well blended. Cover and cook on low 6-7 hours. Stir in mushrooms, sour cream, and parsley and then cook on high 10-15 minutes until heated through. Serve over egg noodles. (Depending on the consistency of the sauce, you may need to add cornstarch to thicken or add more water/broth to thin)

To freeze: Pour into gallon freezer bags (I used Ziploc containers for this one). Allow to cool before freezing.

To reheat: Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Warm on stove and serve over rice or egg noodles. (Add sour cream when warming if you left it out of the initial recipe)

WW points = 7 points/serving, 6-8 servings (add 3 points for 1/2 c. cooked pasta or 5 points for 1 cup)

FRIDAY:

Breakfast – Mini omelets 

Lunch – Turkey and cheese roll-ups

Dinner – Rice meatballs – This is a recipe from my mother in law.  I love it because it’s quick and easy!

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked minute rice
1 lb ground beef (I use 93/7)
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 t. grated onion
2 t. salt (I cut this in half)
1/8 t marjoram
dash pepper
2 1/2 cups tomato juice (or two 8 oz cans tomato sauce mixed with 1/2 cup water)
1/2 t sugar

Combine rice and all other ingredients except tomato juice and sugar. Form balls and arrange in skillet. Pour tomato juice & sugar over meatballs. Bring to boil. Reduce heat & simmer uncovered 15 minutes.

WW points = 7 points per serving

SATURDAY: 

Breakfast – Puffed pancakes

Lunch – Tuna sandwiches

Dinner – Sub sandiwches 

*This post may contain affiliate links. Please refer to my disclosure policy for more information

Cooking With Kids Thursday: Easy Calzone Rolls

I can already tell that my kids are going to love this dinner.  These calzones look so yummy and kid friendly.  I love finding recipes that the kids can help with and I don’t have to worry about huge messes.  Once again Disney Family comes to the rescue!

Here’s what you need to make these:

  • 2 loafs frozen bread dough, thawed
  • 1/2 pound sliced ham
  • 1/2 pound sliced hard salami
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1 cup jarred marinara sauce

Here’s how to make them -> Easy Calzone Rolls Tutorial