Melissas Bargains

SUNDAY –

Here is our menu plan for the week. My $40 weekly grocery shopping trip is pictured here. Since I’ve been off for summer, I’ve been having fun browsing online for new recipe ideas and trying them out. If you have a weekly meal plan post or a favorite recipe and would like to share, feel free to link up below!

Breakfast – cereal

Lunch – Chef Boyardee (ABCs and 123s and mini ravioli) and fruit salad

Dinner – Cilantro Lime Chicken – We were actually supposed to have this last week, but things got hectic and we ended up not trying it, so we tried again this week – my family loved it!

Ingredients:
2 T lime juice
2 T vegetable oil
1 T honey
4 chicken breasts
1 C finely crushed tortilla chips
16 oz. thick-n-chunky salsa
2 T minced fresh cilantro
1 C shredded Monterey Jack Cheese

Combine lime juice, honey, and oil. Dip chicken in lime juice mixture then coat with crushed chips. Place in ungreased 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake uncovered @ 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until juices run clear. Combine Salsa and Cilantro. Pour over and sprinkle with Cheese, bake for 20 more minutes or until the cheese melts. (they also added avocado to theirs which looked yummy, so I’m going to try that!)

MONDAY –

Breakfast – Blueberry-Cheese Rolls – I got this recipe from the Babycenter Cooking for Your Family board – the original poster of the recipe was Rachel (keenerrk) – we are excited to try this recipe out!

1 pkg. (8 oz.) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese, 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup blueberries, divided

PREHEAT oven to 375ºF. Unroll dough into four rectangles; firmly press perforations together to seal.

COMBINE Neufchatel cheese and sugar; spread onto dough rectangles to within 1/2 inch of edges. Top evenly with blueberries. Bring opposite corners of rectangles together; press together to seal. Place on ungreased baking sheet.
BAKE 11 to 13 min. or until golden brown.

Lunch – out with friends

Dinner – Texas Kielbasa skillet – I originally got this recipe from a freezer swap and it has become a big hit with our family

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) CREAM OF CELERY SOUP
1 1/2 cups WATER
1 Tablespoon BUTTER
¾ cup uncooked LONG GRAIN RICE
1 pound SMOKED KIELBASA SAUSAGE, cut into 1/2 pieces
1 pkg. (10 oz.) FROZEN PEAS
½ cup SLICED MUSHROOMS
1 cup SHREDDED CHEDDAR CHEESE

Combine soup, water and butter substitute in a large skillet with a lid.
Bring to a boil. Add rice and sausage. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir in peas and mushrooms. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes,
or until rice Is tender. Sprinkle with cheese and serve hot.

Makes 4-6 servings

TUESDAY –

Breakfast – Pancakes

Lunch – Egg salad sandwiches

Dinner – Beef Tenderloin with Mushroom Gravy – we were supposed to have this last week, but things didn’t work out as planned, so we’ll try again this week! This was originally posted by Amy (amyls) on the BBC Cooking for Your Family board and comes from Cooking Light magazine

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
4 (4-ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, trimmed (1/2 inch thick)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1/2 cup low-salt beef broth
1/3 cup fat-free sour cream
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Sprinkle steaks with pepper and salt. Add steaks to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove from pan.

Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic to pan; sauté 5 minutes. Stir in broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 3 minutes. Place sour cream in a medium bowl. Gradually add mushroom mixture to sour cream, stirring constantly with a whisk. Stir in minced parsley. Serve gravy with steak.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 steak and 1/4 cup gravy)

CALORIES 210 (33% from fat); FAT 7.8g (sat 2.9g,mono 2.9g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 26.2g; CHOLESTEROL 75mg; CALCIUM 45mg; SODIUM 237mg; FIBER 0.7g; IRON 3.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 6.7g

Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2002

WEDNESDAY –

Breakfast – Strawberry and Cream Cheese French toast – when I was a kid, my mom would make french toast at least once a week and I hated it, but everyone else loved it….there are so many yummy and different french toast recipes out there that I am learning to enjoy it. This one comes from Favorite Family Recipes (this has to be made the night before)

1 loaf french bread, cut into 1 inch slices.
Whipped cream cheese

Spread cream cheese between two slices of bread, place sandwiched slices in a glass pan sprayed with cooking spray.

Mix together:
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Pour over bread and let sit for five minutes, turn bread over and cover pan with saran wrap. Refrigerate overnight. Drizzle melted butter over the top and bake at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.

Whipped Topping:
1 pt whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. almond or amaretto flavoring

Top with strawberries mixed with sugar and the whipped topping.

Lunch – Crisp bean burritos (this recipe also comes from favorite Family Recipes)

Ingredients:
1/2 c. oil
5 soft flour tortilla shells
1 c. refried beans
1/4 c. cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat oil in a medium-sized skillet. Spread about 2-3 Tbsp. of refried beans on each tortilla, sprinkle with cheese, then roll up. Fry in oil for about 15 seconds on each side. Then place on baking sheet and put in the preheated oven for about 5-7 minutes. Remove from oven and serve. Dip in enchilada sauce, guacamole, sour cream, or salsa.

Dinner – Pasta Carbonara – I found this recipe on the Babycenter Cooking for Your Family board (the original poster of the recipe was Elyselovesherboys)

Ingredients:
3 cups uncooked penne pasta
6 slices bacon, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 1/4 cups milk
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened & cubed
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions
Cook pasta according to package directions, drain.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook bacon until crisp.
Remove to paper towels, reserve 3 Tablespoons drippings,
Sauté garlic and onion in drippings until tender.
Add the milk, cream cheese and butter; stir until smooth.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese and bacon; heat through.
Toss with pasta.
Serve.

THURSDAY –

Breakfast – Scrambled eggs and cheese

Lunch – Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches

Dinner – Beef tips (slow cooker) – I found this recipe in Taste of Home Magazine. We have eaten it a few times now and my whole family (even my picky eater kids) loves it!

Ingredients:
1 beef top sirloin steak (1 pound), cut into 1-inch cubes
2 to 3 medium carrots, chopped
1 to 1-1/2 cups chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed golden mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 to 1 cup white wine or beef broth
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
Hot cooked egg noodles

Directions:
In a 3-qt. slow cooker, combine the beef, carrots, celery, onion, soup and wine or broth. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until meat is tender.

Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually stir into cooking juices. Cover and cook on high for 15 minutes or until thickened. Serve with noodles. Yield: 4 servings.

FRIDAY –

Breakfast – Pop Tarts/cereal (I have a doctor’s appointment that morning, so things will be rushed)

Lunch – turkey cheese roll-ups

Dinner – Rio Grande Pork Chops – This recipe comes from the Slow Cooker and Crockpot Recipes blog and sounded interesting

Ingredients:
6 pork rib chops, cut 3/4″ thick (about 2-1/2 lb.)
1 can (15 oz.) Mexican style or Tex-Mex style chili beans
1-1/4 cups bottled salsa
1 cup fresh* or frozen whole kernel corn
2 cups hot cooked rice
Chopped fresh cilantro, optional

Trim excess fat from chops. Place chops in the bottom of a 3-1/2 or 4 quart crock pot.

Add chili beans and salsa.

Cover; cook on HIGH heat setting for 2-1/2 hours or on LOW heat setting for 5 hours.

When that step is complete, turn to HIGH heat setting, if necessary. Stir in corn. Cover and cook 30 minutes longer on HIGH heat setting. Serve over rice. Sprinkle with cilantro, if desired.

For all day cooking: Substitute 8 boneless pork chops for the 6 rib chops. (When cooked this long, chops with bone may leave bony fragments in the cooked mixture.) Cover and cook on LOW heat setting for 9-1/2 hours. Turn to HIGH heat setting Stir in corn. Cover and cook 30 minutes longer.
Serve as above.

Makes 6 servings.

*Note: 2 medium ears of fresh corn equal about 1 cup of whole kernel corn.

SATURDAY – HAPPY 4th of JULY!

Breakfast – Monkey bread (my computer is having issues, so I will have to post the recipe later)

Lunch – Quesadillas

Dinner – BBQ at my parent’s. I’m bringing chicken spinach bowtie pasta salad and fruit salad. For the fruit salad, I basically just cut up whatever fruit I have on hand (this week will probably be cantaloupe, watermelon, grapes, blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries).

Chicken Spinach Bow Tie Pasta Salad – I got this recipe from Marci’s blog. It was served at her baby shower and it was SO good.

Ingredients:
baby spinach
grilled chicken
bow tie pasta
pesto
feta cheese
toffee glazed almond accents
diced tomatoes

-make the dressing by mixing equal parts Italian dressing and Caesar dressing