Sunday
Breakfast - scones, milk
Lunch - fried zuchinni
Dinner - Japanese curry rice (curry sauce from a mix)
Dessert - zuchinni bread
Monday
Breakfast - cream of wheat, milk
Lunch - fruit & crackers, cheese stick & nuts
Snack - nachos
Dinner - Spaghetti Carbonara & salad
Dessert - Cinnamon Struessel muffins (from a mix)
Tuesday
Breakfast - english muffins, hot chocolate
Lunch - fruit & crackers, muffins
Snack - pumpkin pancakes
Dinner - Chicken and Dumplings
Dessert - fend-for-yourself treats
Wednesday
Breakfast - bagels and berry jam, hot chocolate
Lunch - fruit & crackers, cheese stick & nuts
Snack - quesadillas
Dinner - hot wings and salad
Dessert - fruit smoothie
Thursday
Breakfast - eggs, fruit, milk
Lunch - veggies & crackers
Snack - nachos
Dinner - whole wheat waffles & fruit
Dessert - sugar cookies
Friday
Breakfast - cream of wheat, milk
Lunch - fruit & crackers, cheese stick & nuts
Snack - homemade fries
Dinner - Fend-for-yourself leftovers
Dessert -
Saturday
Breakfast - cold cereal & milk
Lunch - fruit & cheese
Snack - nachos
Dinner - home made french bread & salad (recipe to follow)
Dessert - ginger cookies
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
Hannah's Whole Wheat Waffles
Hannah got her wish to have breakfast for dinner Thursday night. She didn't make the batter, but the waffles were delicious. Brennan whipped up the batter, and Hannah and I cooked them up in our many-years-old, $10 waffle iron.
Speaking of many-years-old, the hand mixer Brennan used to beat the batter is from our wedding. That makes it over 17 years old. It was given to us by our best man, and has served us well all these years. A few years ago I got a hand-me-down Kitchen-aid for myself as a Christmas present. I love that machine. But, I didn't get rid of my old hand mixer and it still serves us well for smaller jobs like a batch of whole wheat waffles.
Here's the recipe. We pulled it out of Betty Crocker's classic red and white cookbook, one of my favorites.
Whole Wheat Waffles
2 eggs
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup veggie oil (Bren used canola)
1 3/4 cup milk (we used 2 T dry milk pdr. and 1 3/4 c. water)
1 Tbsp. sugar (we used 2 Tbsp.)
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Beat eggs and add other ingredients beat just until smooth. Pour by cup-full into center of iron, cook until waffle stops steaming.
So, what is your oldest kitchen appliance and how often do you use it?
Speaking of many-years-old, the hand mixer Brennan used to beat the batter is from our wedding. That makes it over 17 years old. It was given to us by our best man, and has served us well all these years. A few years ago I got a hand-me-down Kitchen-aid for myself as a Christmas present. I love that machine. But, I didn't get rid of my old hand mixer and it still serves us well for smaller jobs like a batch of whole wheat waffles.
Here's the recipe. We pulled it out of Betty Crocker's classic red and white cookbook, one of my favorites.
Whole Wheat Waffles
2 eggs
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup veggie oil (Bren used canola)
1 3/4 cup milk (we used 2 T dry milk pdr. and 1 3/4 c. water)
1 Tbsp. sugar (we used 2 Tbsp.)
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Beat eggs and add other ingredients beat just until smooth. Pour by cup-full into center of iron, cook until waffle stops steaming.
So, what is your oldest kitchen appliance and how often do you use it?
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Wings and Things
Brennan's meal this week was hot wings. He is a bit of a wings connoisseur and is picky about the spice and tang applied to his favorite pieces of poultry. KC and Hannah don't prefer the spice, but love a little teriyaki on their wings, so we made two batches along with a bunch of corn on the cob, free from a friend's garden.
Sorry I don't have any photos, the battery on the camera is dead and the battery pack is in an undisclosed location (in the car, in the shop, getting some warranty issues resolved - the car, not the camera). But here's what we did:
Bren's Barbecue Wings
Spicy Wings start with a dry rub - Here he used a Cajun seasoning mix along with paprika, cayenne, chili powder, garlic and salt. He dumped this generously over the wings and coated them all with the seasonings. Then he let them sit for about two hours.
Asian Wings Marinate -1/4 c. Soy sauce, 1/4 c. rice vinegar, 2 tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. sesame oil, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. ginger powder. Pour over chicken, mix and marinate for two hours.
After the wings have sat in their seasoning for a couple of hours, throw them in a 500 degree oven for about 20 minutes. If you really need the crisp and crunch of fabulously fried wings, get your pan and oil heating and cook them up that way, but similar results can be had by another method. I coat the wings with a bit of olive oil (on top of their rub or marinate) and then dredge with flour (that means I coat them with flour on all sides). I still bake them, but the little bit og oil and flour creates a nice crust you don't get otherwise.
Bren likes to baste the spicy ones with a bottled wing sauce he's doctored to make even zestier and spicier. We serve them with veggies and dip. The cool of the dip is a nice contrast to the hot of the wings.
Sorry I don't have any photos, the battery on the camera is dead and the battery pack is in an undisclosed location (in the car, in the shop, getting some warranty issues resolved - the car, not the camera). But here's what we did:
Bren's Barbecue Wings
Spicy Wings start with a dry rub - Here he used a Cajun seasoning mix along with paprika, cayenne, chili powder, garlic and salt. He dumped this generously over the wings and coated them all with the seasonings. Then he let them sit for about two hours.
Asian Wings Marinate -1/4 c. Soy sauce, 1/4 c. rice vinegar, 2 tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. sesame oil, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. ginger powder. Pour over chicken, mix and marinate for two hours.
After the wings have sat in their seasoning for a couple of hours, throw them in a 500 degree oven for about 20 minutes. If you really need the crisp and crunch of fabulously fried wings, get your pan and oil heating and cook them up that way, but similar results can be had by another method. I coat the wings with a bit of olive oil (on top of their rub or marinate) and then dredge with flour (that means I coat them with flour on all sides). I still bake them, but the little bit og oil and flour creates a nice crust you don't get otherwise.
Bren likes to baste the spicy ones with a bottled wing sauce he's doctored to make even zestier and spicier. We serve them with veggies and dip. The cool of the dip is a nice contrast to the hot of the wings.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Soup Kitchen
Today, kids came home to pumpkin pancakes, a favorite fall-time after school snack. I mixed 'em up and Don cooked Here's how you do it:
Pumpkin Pancakes
Make your favorite pancake recipe and add 1/2 cup pumpkin for ever 2 cups flour. Mix and make like you would normal pancakes. Serve with syrup.
Later, Caleb (8) made Chicken and Dumplings for dinner. He cut potatoes and carrots, opened cans of chicken and chicken broth. He also measured ingredients for dumplings and added dollops of dough to the boiling broth when it was time. All-in-all, I'd say he and I spent a total of 30 quality minutes preparing dinner together. Here's the recipe:
Easy Chicken Soup
1 12 oz. can chicken breast
2 medium potatoes, cubed
2 cups cubed carrots
1 can chicken broth
8 cups water
4 tsp. chicken bullion
2 tsp. garlic powder
Seasoning salt to taste
Put all ingredients into a medium stock pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Cheater Dumplings
2 1/4 cup baking mix
1 Tbsp. dry milk powder
2/3 cup water
Stir with a fork until all dry ingredients are moistened.
When soup begins a rolling boil, drop dumpling dough about the size of an extra large egg (don't you love the precision of my measurements) into the boiling soup. When all dumplings (you should have gotten about 8 of them) are in the pot, turn temp. down to medium-low and start a timer for 10 minutes. Leave to slow boil, uncovered for 10 minutes. Then, cover the pot, start the timer for 10 more minutes and continue to boil. After 10 minutes remove from heat and serve.
Pumpkin Pancakes
Make your favorite pancake recipe and add 1/2 cup pumpkin for ever 2 cups flour. Mix and make like you would normal pancakes. Serve with syrup.
Later, Caleb (8) made Chicken and Dumplings for dinner. He cut potatoes and carrots, opened cans of chicken and chicken broth. He also measured ingredients for dumplings and added dollops of dough to the boiling broth when it was time. All-in-all, I'd say he and I spent a total of 30 quality minutes preparing dinner together. Here's the recipe:
Easy Chicken Soup
1 12 oz. can chicken breast
2 medium potatoes, cubed
2 cups cubed carrots
1 can chicken broth
8 cups water
4 tsp. chicken bullion
2 tsp. garlic powder
Seasoning salt to taste
Put all ingredients into a medium stock pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Cheater Dumplings
2 1/4 cup baking mix
1 Tbsp. dry milk powder
2/3 cup water
Stir with a fork until all dry ingredients are moistened.
When soup begins a rolling boil, drop dumpling dough about the size of an extra large egg (don't you love the precision of my measurements) into the boiling soup. When all dumplings (you should have gotten about 8 of them) are in the pot, turn temp. down to medium-low and start a timer for 10 minutes. Leave to slow boil, uncovered for 10 minutes. Then, cover the pot, start the timer for 10 more minutes and continue to boil. After 10 minutes remove from heat and serve.
Pasta From The Pantry
Sunday we sat down and from our master menu made a "buy nothing meal plan" for the week. Everything from here on out comes from the freezer or the pantry. Each kid chose the meal they wanted to make this week. Monday I did breakfast, kids made their own lunches and snack, dinner was made by KC (11) and dessert was courtesy of Caleb (8), both needed some small supervision from me. Here's Monday's plan:
Monday
Breakfast - cream of wheat, milk
Lunch - fruit & crackers, cheese stick & nuts
Snack - nachos
Dinner - Spaghetti Carbonara & salad (recipe to follow)
Dessert - Cinnamon Struessel muffins (from a mix)
Spaghetti Carbonara is one of our favorite pastas. It's quick and easy. It calls for cream and bacon. What more do I need to say. The eggs in the sauce itself is heated and cooked on the piping hot pasta. The heat from the cooked noodles is enough to sightly cook the eggs and thicken the sauce, but you have to work fast as everything comes together the minute you drain the spaghetti. KC made it mostly herself with a little help from me in crushing the garlic and her dad drained the pasta. So, here goes:
Spaghetti Carbonarra
1 lb. spaghetti
1 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup grated parmesean
1 tsp. salt
Start water boiling, add pasta when you have a rolling boil. Cook according to package directions. DO NOT overcook. While pasta is boiling prepare the cream portion of the sauce. In a medium bowl mix cream, milk, eggs, cheese and salt. Set aside and wait for pasta to finish cooking. Once the pasta has less than 4 minutes left to cook, add bacon crumbs and crushed garlic to a small, hot saute pan. Saute over medium heat (add optional ingredients once the garlic has a nice golden tan). Drain pasta and immediately pour cream sauce over it. Stir quickly and follow with sizzling hot bacon crumbs, etc. Stir until mixed well. Serve steamy and enjoy.
Monday
Breakfast - cream of wheat, milk
Lunch - fruit & crackers, cheese stick & nuts
Snack - nachos
Dinner - Spaghetti Carbonara & salad (recipe to follow)
Dessert - Cinnamon Struessel muffins (from a mix)
Spaghetti Carbonara is one of our favorite pastas. It's quick and easy. It calls for cream and bacon. What more do I need to say. The eggs in the sauce itself is heated and cooked on the piping hot pasta. The heat from the cooked noodles is enough to sightly cook the eggs and thicken the sauce, but you have to work fast as everything comes together the minute you drain the spaghetti. KC made it mostly herself with a little help from me in crushing the garlic and her dad drained the pasta. So, here goes:
Spaghetti Carbonarra
1 lb. spaghetti
1 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup grated parmesean
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups precooked bacon crumbs
2 cloves garlic, crushed
drained canned mushrooms and a cup of frozen spinach are optional
Start water boiling, add pasta when you have a rolling boil. Cook according to package directions. DO NOT overcook. While pasta is boiling prepare the cream portion of the sauce. In a medium bowl mix cream, milk, eggs, cheese and salt. Set aside and wait for pasta to finish cooking. Once the pasta has less than 4 minutes left to cook, add bacon crumbs and crushed garlic to a small, hot saute pan. Saute over medium heat (add optional ingredients once the garlic has a nice golden tan). Drain pasta and immediately pour cream sauce over it. Stir quickly and follow with sizzling hot bacon crumbs, etc. Stir until mixed well. Serve steamy and enjoy.
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