Laid back week..........

Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday filled month. I know my family has been pretty busy! I had a great and busy weekend. We attended a hockey game in Topeka, Go Roadrunners...on Friday night, last night I catered a small company Christmas party, and today I am going to our PTO adopt a family X-mas wrapping party. This is not just the holiday season, its the pack as much as you can into a weekend season.
Luckily there is not a whole lot going on this week. Enjoy the menu. Hearts, Evie

Sunday:
Beef and barley stew

1 1/2lbs boneless beef cubed
3 T vegetable oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
2 1/2 cups beef broth
6 cups water
4 stalks celery chopped
6 carrots chopped
6 green onions chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup barley
1 tsp dried thyme

In a skillet over medium heat, saute the beef in the oil until browned. Stir in the salt, pepper and garlic powder and place seasoned meat in a slow cooker. Add a little water to the skillet and stir to pick up the browned bits. Add to the slow cooker. Add the broth, water, celery, carrots, green onions, parsley and barley. Cover and cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours, or until the vegetables and barley are tender. Add the thyme just before serving.

Monday:
Tortilla pizzas
green salad

Take tortilla and cover with pizza sauce and favorite toppings. Bake at 375 for 5-10minutes until crisp and toppings are cooked. Serve with a nice green salad.

Tuesday:
Oven Basil Lemon Pasta

3 cups bow tie pasta
1 chicken breast cut into bite-size pieces
1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning
1/4 cup margarine
2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup white wine(or apple juice)
2 C sour cream
1 T chopped fresh basil
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1 T chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup torn fresh spinach

Cook pasta.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Season chicken with lemon pepper. Melt the margarine with the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook chicken, remove from pan, and place in casserole dish. To the same skillet, add the garlic, white wine, sour cream, basil, lemon zest, and 1/2 of the lemon juice. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove the skillet from the heat; stir in the pasta. Spoon the pasta and sauce mixture over the chicken. Cover with foil.
Bake in the preheated oven until heated through, about 15 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle evenly with Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, parsley, spinach, and drizzle with the remaining lemon juice. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Wednesday:
Blue cheese burgers
sweet potato fries

2 pounds lean ground beef
4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup minced fresh chives
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard

In a large bowl, mix the ground beef, blue cheese, chives, hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, salt, and mustard. Cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours. Cook on stove or broil. Serve with oven baked sweet potatoes and burgers condiments.

Thursday:
Crock pot BBQ Chicken
canned baked beans
prepared coleslaw
rolls

1 onion, coarsely diced
4-6 bone-in skinless chicken thighs
1-2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Remove skin from chicken. Place the coarsely diced onion on the bottom of a slow cooker. Sprinkle paprika on both sides of the chicken. Place the chicken in a large non-stick pan. Turn heat on to medium and brown the chicken on both sides. If the chicken is sticking too much to the pan you can add 1-2 teaspoons of water.

Sauce: In the same pan that you browned the chicken, saute the finely diced onion. Mix the cornstarch and the tomato sauce together. Add this tomato sauce mixture along with the remaining ingredients to the pan with the sauteed onions and simmer, stirring fairly often, for 3-5 minutes. Pour this sauce over the chicken. Turn the chicken pieces so that they are thoroughly covered with BBQ sauce. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. Serve with yummy sides.

Friday:
Ultimate grilled cheese sandwiches
canned minestrone soup

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese
1/2 brick cream cheese (room temp)
8 slices cooked bacon
4 slices Cheddar cheese
8 slices sourdough bread

Freeze bread overnight, on frozen bread, spread four slices with cream cheese. In a small bowl, mash together the butter and Parmesan cheese until evenly blended. Make sandwiches by placing two slices of bacon and one slice of Cheddar cheese on half of the bread slices. Top with the remaining slices of bread with cream cheese
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Spread some of the butter mixture on the top of each sandwich. Place sandwiches butter side down in the skillet. Spread the remaining butter mixture on the other sides. Cook until golden brown on each side, about 3 minutes per side. To serve, cut in half diagonally. Serve with steaming bowls of soup.