Resolution: Make a weekly menu

Resolution: Eat better meals, eat more vegetarian

When I have a full pantry and frig, it is so much easier to make dinner. When I start the week with a rough menu, shop with the list based on that menu, it all seems easier, quicker and less stressful. Most people don't make a menu for the week or even shop with a list. There isn't a lot of support out there for that kind of organizing. Certainly no one ever reminds me about my planning and list making.

In my work at DinnerSmith, I got to see what that kind of planning does for families especially for moms. Mostly I have a conversation with the regular customers once a month where we planned the month. We try to balance favorites and proteins. It is so easy to add some vegetarian meals and some fish or seafood meals when making a list of 20 meals for the month.

Try it this week. Think of 10 meals you would might want to have. Balance the proteins by adding more. Look for synthesis: ground beef and tomatoes diced might into chili and spaghetti with meat sauce. Leave out new (I-never-tried-this-before) recipes. Make your shopping list: adjust in store for sales or unreasonable pricing. I won't pay $5 a pound for beef steak.

At home, do some prep while putting away. Cut some veg or onion and freeze chopped and ready to use. Divide the meat in to meal size. Post your possible menu on the frig. Starting from ten possibilities, there could be seven left.

I think it is easier to plan dinner in the morning if I know everything is there ready to cook. I can look at the menu, make a choice and on the way home think about cooking and prepping, Or ditch the whole thing and order Chinese. I am not forced to get Chinese because there is nothing else. I choose!

Happy New Year!

Pullled Pork....so easy...really

I see a lot of food blogs and mostly they look like this:


Maple pumpkin pulled pork



For most people, this is interesting to look at but it is not getting to a table near you. Here's some pulled pork you can do:

Pork shoulder 3-4 pounds bone in
2 bottles of your favorite BBQ sauce
1 -2 cups of water.

Cook on high for 4 hours. It is done if flakes when you poke it with a fork.

Get your butcher to cut your pork in to large pieces: it fits batter in the slow cooker. The supermarket meat department will do that, too.

No slow cooker, go to Goodwill. There is always a cheap one on the shelf. Or buy brand new and get the best you can. The newest one have timers and warmer settings. I have three: none have that..

Yes you can make a sauce from scratch. I do. But there are some awesome BBQ companies out there, probably some locally infamous place where you live. Even Jack Daniels makes it own sauce.

To "pull" the pork, place the pork on a cutting board. Use two forks to separate the meat from the fat and bones. Shred the meat with the forks and out back in sauce. Throw out bones and  fat.

At this point, some of the mixture can be frozen to be thawed and eaten at another time.

Get some good rolls. A good roll is the roll you love!

Enjoy!

Bacon egg and cheese on a roll

DinnerSmith is all about the best meals prepared ahead in batches. My sister called me and suggested i try this..freezer-breakfast-sandwiches-from-scratch. I read thru the whole blog post and think this is a great idea. With modifications. 

I use an English muffin because they are sturdier. This breakfast needs to travel and stay together. Also i used bacon instead of sausage. I cooked the whole pound of bacon up first and chopped in smaller pieces and cooked it into the eggs. This way the bacon stays in the muffin and doesn't fall out. I recommend use this recipe first. Then modify it for your personal taste, like sausage or taylor ham. Note: a dozen eggs seems like a lot: it wasn't.

Bacon egg and cheese on a roll.

Dozen eggs
 one pound of bacon
cheese, pre-sliced or not
6 English muffins

Cook all bacon and chop in to 1" pieces

Scramble eggs in a bowl and cook in one large piece in the pan, adding bacon at the begining.

slide eggs onto cutting board, cut into pieces that fit into a muffin, you can use an upside water glass as  a cutter. or just squares. 

Assemble sandwiches , laying out all muffins and layering cheese and egg . 

Wrap in foil or put in individual ziplocks.

This was a big hit around here! try it and make a lot at one time: they disappear!

Easy choco-cherry cake

Heat wave simplicity! Make at night in the cool kitchen.


Chocolate cherry cake cake , simple and yummy


This cake is moist and sweet.so easy to make. Made in a loaf pan, it is simple to slice in a good sized serving piece. It could be served with whipped topping or ice cream. 


One box chocolate cake mix
2 eggs
One can cherry pie filling


Mix together and pour into loaf pan. Bake for one hour at 350. allow to cool before slicing.

Chickpea salad inspired vegetarian fare

Another hot weather idea. Try this during the heat wave. Lots of protein and you can substitute your favorite salad dressing. This is a simple salad I make up in a big batch for side dishes or lunches or a filling snack.


Chickpea salad


1 can of Chickpeas
1 bunch of parsley ( i like flat leaf)
1/2 cup each of vinegar and oil
1/2 cup scallions or red onions
juice and zest of one lemon


Drain can of chickpeas.


remove leaves from stalks on parsely and mince with knife


cut onions in small slices or dice. Or leave them out.


mix all together with lemon and oil and vinegar.


Best the next day when chilled. ( Never lasts so long here.)

Heat wave coming!!!

Heat wave this week..Here is my hot tip for today.make a plan now to beat the heat.


1. Make a menu for the week. include things like coleslaw, potato salad, your favorite pasta salad and baked goodies. Think of grilled dinners like chicken, hamburgers and hot dogs. see also my early post about roasting a pork shoulder.Pork roast because you need time


2. Make a list and do all the shopping at once. Remember hamburger and hot dog rolls and lots of beverages.Also check to see if you have pantry items like mayo and salad dressing.


3. In the cool evening, boil pasta and potatoes, bake cake and breakfast muffins or bread. While waiting for pasta to boil and cake to bake, chop up veg for the salads. Store everything in frig.


4. Eat good food according to plan, keeping cool in the kitchen!

Pork Roast: because you need time to garden!!!

Pork Roast is very inexpensive this week. At $.99, it is good cheap eats. Here is a recipe that anyone and everyone can do. This  was a seven pound roast and i rubbed it with a store bought spice rub and put it in this alum pan. The oven was set to 250 degrees and left the roast in there for 12 hours. Yes 12 hours. This is an overnight. you can cover it with foil if you want. It was so tender : like butter. It can be in sandwiches or with potatoes and veg. It was so simple and so good. The bone is going in the crockpot with two pounds of split peas and water to cover....So much good eating but me not in the kitchen. Thinking about flowers and vegetables. Gardening. If you dont garden , this roast will give you plenty of time for whatever your passion is!!!