2 Week Menu starting on Sunday!

Well SInce we are poor I am doing a 2 week menu this week in order to avoid buying more than we need. I am only making one small trip to the store, since we have a well stocked pantry and freezer I should be able to do this.

Sunday:
We are going to party and I only have to bring hot wings.
1 quart vegetable oil for deep frying
24 chicken wings, tips removed and wings cut in half at joint
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
5 tablespoons hot pepper sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Heat the oil In a large skillet or deep fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Deep fry chicken wings in oil until done, about 10 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet or deep fryer and drain on paper towels.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Stir in the, vinegar and hot pepper sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garlic powder. Add cooked chicken to sauce and stir over low heat to coat. The longer the wings simmer in the sauce, the hotter they will be. Serve warm.

Monday:
Lamb Stew:
1 pound cubed lamb meat
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1 pound baking potatoes, peeled and sliced
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 large stalk celery, sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste ( I made lamb stock)
2 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Layer the lamb meat, onion, potatoes, carrot and celery in an oven proof pot or casserole dish. Season each layer with parsley, salt and pepper as you go. Pour in the beef stock and cover tightly.
Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours in the preheated oven, until vegetables and meat are very tender. Divide into bowls and garnish with additional parsley.

Tuesday:
1 (3 ounce) package ramen noodles
1 1/2 cups hot water
8 ounces boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch strips
2 teaspoons canola oil, divided
1 large green pepper, cubed
1 bunch of asparagus cut up
2/3 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt-free seasoning blend

In a bowl, place noodles in hot water for 2 minutes; drain and set aside. Discard seasoning package or save for another use. In a large nonstick skillet, stir-fry chicken in 1 teaspoon oil until no longer pink. Remove and keep warm. Stir-fry the green pepper, aspararagus, onion and garlic in remaining oil until crisp-tender. Add the chicken broth, soy sauce, seasoning blend and noodles; toss gently.

Wednesday:
Spaghetti Carbonara:
1 pound spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 slices bacon, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)
4 eggs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 pinch salt and black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook spaghetti pasta until al dente. Drain well. Toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and set aside.
Meanwhile in a large skillet, cook chopped bacon until slightly crisp; remove and drain onto paper towels. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon fat; add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, and heat in reused large skillet. Add chopped onion, and cook over medium heat until onion is translucent. Add minced garlic, and cook 1 minute more. Add wine if desired; cook one more minute.
Return cooked bacon to pan; add cooked and drained spaghetti. Toss to coat and heat through, adding more olive oil if it seems dry or is sticking together. Add beaten eggs and cook, tossing constantly with tongs or large fork until eggs are barely set. Quickly add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, and toss again. Add salt and pepper to
taste (remember that bacon and Parmesan are very salty).
Serve immediately with chopped parsley sprinkled on top, and extra Parmesan cheese at table.

Thursday:
Basic Taco Salad

Friday:
Chicken potpie:
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups milk
3 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 (9 inch) pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie
1 egg, lightly beaten

In a large saucepan over medium high heat, combine the chicken meat, chicken broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear.
Remove the chicken and let cool. Pour the remaining chicken broth mixture into a measuring cup. Let stand; spoon off fat. Add enough milk to the broth mixture to equal 2 1/2 cups. Cut chicken into 1/2 inch pieces.
In the same pan, melt butter or margarine over medium heat. Add the onion and celery. Saute, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in flour until well blended. Gradually stir in broth mixture. Simmer, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens and boils. Add the chicken, vegetables, parsley and thyme. Pour mixture into a 1 1/2 quart deep casserole dish.
Preheat oven to 400. Roll out pastry 1 inch larger than the diameter of the casserole dish on a lightly floured surface. Cut slits in the pastry for venting air. Place pastry on top of casserole. Roll edges and cut away extra pastry; flute edges by pinching together. Reroll scraps to cut into decorative designs. Place on top of pastry. Brush pastry with beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. Let cool for 10 minutes and serve.

Saturday:

Canned soup
Roasted red pepper and ham sandwiches
2 teaspoons mayonnaise, or condiment of your choice (optional)
2 slices sourdough bread
2 slices provolone cheese
2 thin slices ham
1/2 roasted red pepper packed in oil, drained and sliced
2 teaspoons butter
2 teaspoons grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Spread mayonnaise onto one side of each slice of bread. On one slice of bread, place one slice of provolone cheese, then ham, red peppers, and the other slice of cheese. Top with the other slice of bread with the mayonnaise facing the filling. Butter the outsides of the sandwich, and sprinkle a little bit of Parmesan cheese onto the butter.
Heat a skillet over medium heat until warm. Fry the sandwich on both sides until golden brown and cheese is melted. Cut the sandwich in half, and serve.

Sunday:
Venison Roast
Mashed Potatoes

Raost:
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 pounds boneless venison roast
1 large apple, cored and quartered
2 small onions, sliced
4 cloves crushed garlic
1 cup boiling water
1 cube beef bouillon

Spread the olive oil on the inside of a slow cooker. Place the venison roast inside, and cover with apple, onions, and garlic. Turn to Low, and cook until the roast is tender, about 6 to 8 hours.
When the roast has cooked, remove it from the slow cooker, and place onto a serving platter. Discard the apple. Stir the water and bouillon into the slow cooker until the bouillon has dissolved. Serve this as a sauce with the roast.

Monday:
Spaghetti and meatballs
green salad

Tuesday:
Out to eat! We have a BOGO free adult coupon, at a local pizza chain. Also it kids night so our son eats for $1! It will be less than $8 for the whole all you can eat meal!


Wednesday:
Chicken Enchiladas
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - boiled and shredded
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (7 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups cottage cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
12 (6 inch) corn tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 (10 ounce) can red enchilada sauce

To Make Meat Mixture: Heat oil in medium skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken, onion and green chile peppers and saute until browned, then add taco seasoning and prepare meat mixture according to package directions.
To Make Cheese Mixture: In a medium bowl mix sour cream with cottage cheese and season with salt and pepper; stir until well blended.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat tortillas until soft. In each tortilla place a spoonful of meat mixture, a spoonful of cheese mixture and a bit of shredded cheese. Roll tortillas and place in a lightly greased baking dish. Top with any remaining meat and cheese mixture, enchilada sauce and remaining shredded cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Thursday:
Leftover chili from the week before, I froze the remainder of it.
corn muffins

Friday:
Florentine stuffed chicken
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 bone-in chicken breast halves, with skin
2 cups spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, combine the spinach, Parmesan cheese and onion and mix thoroughly. Stuff the cavity of each chicken breast with 1/4 of the mixture. (NOTE: Bone-in split breasts usually have a little cavity; if one is not naturally present, use a sharp knife to make a slit in the side of the breast.)
Lay stuffed breasts in a baking dish, and cover with the sauce.
Bake at 350 for about 35 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through and tender; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and bake another 5 minutes, until cheese is melted.

Saturday:
Hamburgers and oven baked fries
Seriously you guys can figure this one out!

Jam its been awhile!

No..not damn. I really mean jam. I made some peach almond jam last night because I need the money, and someone was requesting it. I had some on toast today, and as usual its divine.
So excited about my bulk order last night. Ordered some laundry liquid, dish soap, and dishwasher soap. Also some organic tomato paste and another 5lbs of organic peanut butter! My total is less than $40!! And its all evironmentally friendly!
Guess we will be eating a lot of PBJ sandwiches around these parts, with the recession and layoffs an all.
Not much going on here today, I have a bundle of housework since i am having playgroup here tomorrow.

Doggie training

Ahh the fun times..the messes on the floor..the scolding. Well I am putting little Miss Freeda on a schedule, hopefully this will help with her elimination issues!
In other news I wanted to post a pic of the bread I have been making with the new recipe.

Not perfect but I am getting there. We are really enjoying the wonderful taste of the artisan bread with our meals..YUM-O!

Artisan Free Form Bread

Baking bread at home saves hundreds of dollars on groceries every year. With this easy method, each deliciously crusty-on-the-outside, moist-and-chewy-on-the-inside loaf will only cost you about 50 cents and 5 minutes a day.
Great breads really only require four basic ingredients: flour, water, yeast and salt. The rest is detail.


Makes 4 1-pound loaves

3 cups lukewarm water
1 1⁄2 tbsp granulated yeast (1 1⁄2 packets)
1 1⁄2 tbsp coarse kosher or sea salt
6 1⁄2 cups unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose white flour
Cornmeal for pizza peel

Mixing and Storing the Dough
1. Heat the water to just a little warmer than body temperature (about 100 degrees Fahrenheit).

2. Add yeast and salt to the water in a 5-quart bowl or, preferably, in a resealable, lidded container (not airtight — use container with gasket or lift a corner). Don’t worry about getting it all to dissolve.

3. Mix in the flour by gently scooping it up, then leveling the top of the measuring cup with a knife; don’t pat down. Mix with a wooden spoon, a high-capacity food processor with dough attachment, or a heavy-duty stand mixer with dough hook, until uniformly moist. If hand-mixing becomes too difficult, use very wet hands to press it together. Don’t knead! This step is done in a matter of minutes, and yields a wet dough loose enough to conform to the container.

4. Cover loosely. Do not use screw-topped jars, which could explode from trapped gases. Allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flatten on top), approximately two hours, depending on temperature. Longer rising times, up to about five hours, will not harm the result. You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period. Refrigerated wet dough is less sticky and easier to work with than room-temperature dough. We recommend refrigerating the dough at least three hours before shaping a loaf. And relax! You don’t need to monitor doubling or tripling of volume as in traditional recipes.

5. Prepare a pizza peel by sprinkling it liberally with cornmeal to prevent the loaf from sticking to it when you slide it into the oven.

Sprinkle the surface of the dough with flour, then cut off a 1-pound (grapefruit-sized) piece with a serrated knife. Hold the mass of dough in your hands and add a little more flour as needed so it won’t stick to your hands. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on four “sides,” rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go, until the bottom is a collection of four bunched ends. Most of the dusting flour will fall off; it doesn’t need to be incorporated. The bottom of the loaf will flatten out during resting and baking.

6. Place the ball on the pizza peel. Let it rest uncovered for about 40 minutes. Depending on the dough’s age, you may see little rise during this period; more rising will occur during baking.

7. Twenty minutes before baking, preheat oven to 450 degrees with a baking stone on the middle rack. Place an empty broiler tray for holding water on another shelf.

8. Dust the top of the loaf liberally with flour, which will allow the slashing, serrated knife to pass without sticking. Slash a 1⁄4-inch-deep cross, scallop or tick-tack-toe pattern into the top. (This helps the bread expand during baking.)

9. With a forward jerking motion of the wrist, slide the loaf off the pizza peel and onto the baking stone. Quickly but carefully pour about a cup of hot water into the broiler tray and close the oven door to trap the steam. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is browned and firm to the touch. With wet dough, there’s little risk of drying out the interior, despite the dark crust. When you remove the loaf from the oven, it will audibly crackle, or “sing,” when initially exposed to room temperature air. Allow to cool completely, preferably on a wire rack, for best flavor, texture and slicing. The perfect crust may initially soften, but will firm up again when cooled.

10. Refrigerate the remaining dough in your lidded (not airtight) container and use it over the next two weeks: You’ll find that even one day’s storage improves the flavor and texture of your bread. This maturation continues over the two-week period. Cut off and shape loaves as you need them. The dough can also be frozen in 1-pound portions in an airtight container and defrosted overnight in the refrigerator prior to baking day.

Enjoy! And thanks to Mother Earth News for the wonderful article where this information came from.

Call me cheap...

Yeah call me cheap but those doggie accessories are kind of expensive! So I made a little doggie bed for her, and am working on her sweater.
Here is her little bed:

Menu for the week

Sunday:
Roasted Lamb shoulder
Mashed potatoes
steamed carrots

Roasted Lamb:
2lb shoulder with bone
2 tablespoons fresh minced rosemary
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Cover shoulder with olive oil, then spinkle with salt, pepper, rosemary and garlic.
Bake at 350 for about 1 1/2-2 hours or until done.


Monday:
Black bean and cheese enchiladas
1 can black beans
1 8oz package mexican blend shredded cheese
1 small diced onion
1 package frozen spinach(cooked, drained and squeeze dried)
1 package meduim sized tortillas
oil(for frying)

Mix beans, onion and spinach. Heat oil in pan on meduim high heat. Place one tortilla in pan, sprinkle with cheese, and top with bean mixture. Sprinkle another layer of cheese on top of bean mixture, and top with another tortilla. Use spatula to flatten it. Cook for a few minutes, or until cheese on bottom tortilla begins to melt and cements the layesr together. Flip and cook on other side ofr an additional few minutes. Remove to cutting board and let rest for a few minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Tuesday:
Balsamic chicken breasts
seasoned rice
steamed frozen asaparagus

Balsamic chicken:
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried rosemary

Salt and pepper chicken. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl. Place chicken in non-stick baking dish. Pour over balsamic mixture. Bake at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle.

Rice:
Cook 1 cup basmati rice with 1 and 3/4 cup chicken broth and 1 tsp each dried rosemary, parsley and oregano. Bring chicken broth and rice and seasonings to a boil. Rduce heat to low and cook for 15-20 minutes with lid on until rice is cooked and liquid has been absorbed.

Wednesday:
Spaghetti and sauce
with prepared Turkey meatballs
Green Salad

Thursday:
Yay leftover night!

Friday:
Crockpot Thai chicken
8 chicken thighs, skin removed (2 pounds)
3/4 cup salsa
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon grated gingerroot
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Place chicken in slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except peanuts and cilantro; pour over chicken.
Cover and cook on low heat setting 8 to 9 hours or until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut. Remove chicken from cooker, using slotted spoon; place on serving platter. Remove sauce from slow cooker; skim fat from sauce. Pour sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with peanuts and cilantro. (Adapated from a betty crocker recipe)
Enjoy!

Woman Shoots crabby husband..

No not really...but watch the headlines. Gene has been a real dick since he got laid off. He is freaked out, but I wish he would not take it out on us. He has a few side jobs lined up but nothing that pays the mortgage..well all of it anyways.
There are not many prospects on the horizon...I am so greatful that I have these daycare kids. They drive me crazy but I love them. And it helps to know that I can at least contribute to our finances in some way. I almost have all of the papers in order to become a registered daycare..I should be able to send them out by next Wednesday..it then takes about up to 2 months to get your certificate. Once I do that I get on the food program where all the lunches are paid for and that will be helpful!