Scheri's week of 5/26

We made it back from our camping trip all in one piece :-) It was beautiful and I can't wait to go again in June. Anyway, since we were gone, I neglected to do my menu for the week. Mon, Tues & Wed, we did the usual camping type food. Starting tomorrow, we'll be back in the swing of things for normal cooking.

This is what I have planned for the rest of the week:

Thursday:
Pad Thai Noodles and veggies - we have left over Peanut Pad Thai sauce from Saturday, so I'll thin it and use on sauteed veggies & rice noodles.

Friday:
Black bean tacos
Mexican coleslaw
(we didn't get this one in last week, so it's a repeat)

Recipe Website

Just thought I would share a website that I often look at for ideas. When I have an open day on my menu and am stumped, I'll browse through Chef Jeenas blog. I've made a few recipes and they were great. Here it is:

http://jeenaskitchen.blogspot.com/

And for presentation, I always like this site:

http://www.finedinings.com/

I like to make my food look pretty, plus they have some great recipes too :-)

Birthday Party Menu

We decided to have a small dinner/cake gathering for Birthday #2 for Miles! I can't believe he is going to be two!! The original plan was to BBQ, but I changed my mind :-) This is what we have on the menu:

Thai Iced Tea
Mango Passion Cocktails (the kids will get alcohol free cocktails)
Lettuce Wraps
Edamame
Pad Thai Pizza

And Birthday cake - probably some type of coconut cake with choo choo trains :-)

The menu is supposed to be very easy! It all looks very easy, so we'll see... If I am stuck in the kitchen for longer than an hour, I'll have to nix something. Keeping my fingers crossed that it will all work out like I want it too :-) With Harsha as my sous chef, it should all go smoothly!

Jenn's Menu Week of 5/19

We have a fun filled week of school, soccer and birthday parties so I don't have a lot on the menu. Should be a great week w/not a lot of cooking :) We'll be out of town next week so I'm making a lot of casseroles for our family (since they are watching the kiddos) but probably won't have time to post everything. I'll check back in in June (wow!).

Monday:
Grilled Balsamic Chicken
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1585276
Baked Asparagus w/Balsamic Butter Sauce
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Asparagus-with-Balsamic-Butter-Sauce/Detail.aspx
Grilled Red potatoes w/rosemary

Tuesday:
Chicken salad sandwiches, fruit salad
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=604812

Wednesday:
Soccer Pizza Party

Thursday:
Spaghetti and salad

Friday:
Soccer Pizza Party

Saturday:
Birthday party

Sunday:
Birthday party

Scheri's Week of 5/19

It feels so good to be home! We enjoyed some good food while on vacation, however it just isn't the same as our home cooking.

Monday:
Harsha is making an Indian curry of some kind :-)

Tuesday:
Veggie Wraps (hummus, cream cheese, onion, tomato, olives, lettuce, cashews, avocado)
Couscous Salad with Corn & Red Bell Pepper (new recipe)

Wednesday:
Linguine w/ veggie marinara
Garlic Bread

Thursday:
Wedge salad w/ tomatoes, red onion & blue cheese (pic has bacon)
Garbanzo & Tomato Soup

Friday:
Black Bean Tacos
Spanish Rice (I use brown rice and salsa)
Jenn's Mexican Coleslaw recipe
Chips & Salsa

Valerie's week of 5/12

Note from last week: The falafel was good, but no comparison to the deep fried you can get in Manitou (but a lot healthier). I didn't like the Tahini sauce, but Rich did.

This week:

busy Monday: Burritos (bean and cheese) and corn

Tuesday: (Braden) Mac and Cheese w/steamed carrots and french bread. This one has been on the menu for 3 weeks now, finally Braden got his dinner!

Wed.: (Elana) Cheese tortellini, fruit salad, whole wheat french bread, and salad

Thurs: Oven fried chicken (breasts dipped in cracker crumbs, sprinkled with olive oil) and leftover mac and cheese with salad

Fri: (Devin) Tacos, fruit, carrot sticks

Banana Bread Recipe

So I was trying to figure out what to pack for airplane food and decided to make some banana bread. I've made this recipe in the past and enjoyed it, so here it is:

Banana Bread

I follow the recipe for the most part. I use the half applesauce/half oil modification. I also decrease the sugar to 3/4 c. and sprinkle natural sugar crystals on top of it. The kids really like having the sugar on top of the bread and you won't miss any sugar from within.

Scheri's Week of 5/12

I really don't have anything to post, but thought I'd check in anyway :) We leave for vacation tomorrow, so we'll be enjoying the Orlando cuisine. We are home tonight, however it will be pizza and packing. Have a wonderful week!

Jenn's Weekly Menu - 5/12

Monday: Kung Pao Chicken (didn't have last week)
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1134086

Tuesday: Guy and I have meeting so kids will have something easy w/sitter

Wednesday: Spaghetti and salad

Thursday: Pasta Bean Toss
- 1 pound whole wheat pasta
- 1 med red onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 5 carrots chopped
- 2 c raw broc
- 12 plum tomatoes diced
- 2 tbsp worcestershire
- 2 tbsp basil
- 15 ounce can red kidney beans
- 15 ounce can white kidney beans
- 1/2 c parmesan cheese

Friday: Grilled turkey brats, cucumber relish (I will send this - sorry!), potatoes (mashed w/cheese, onions, milk, sour cream)

Saturday: Brother's house for dinner

Sunday: Pizza/out

Terriyaki sauce/marinade from last week

1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 T. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. veg. oil
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
I didn't follow the recipe exactly, so add more of what you like (I added 2 cloves of garlic) and enjoy! It was great on BBQ chicken and rice!

Val's menu for week of 5/5

Sunday (Devin): Bowties with broccoli and french bread with butter.



Monday (Elana): Soft Tacos (No sides... no time... Dance after school, Landsharks running at 5:30, soccer at 6:45, swim team at 7:15!!!)


Tuesday: Thai peanut noodles



Wed. (Braden): Mac and cheese (didn't get it last week because he was sick!) with steam carrots. (Leftovers, too!)

Thurs.: Falafel with Tahini dressing (both are new recipes) and Tzatziki sauce (I use plain yogurt, garlic, shredded cucumbers, and I will experiment w/a little buttermilk. When I was in Germany, my Palestinian friend used a type of sour milk that is not available here... so, we'll see!)


Fri: Hopefully leftovers, otherwise pizza or something easy because I have a piano recital at my house at 7!

Scheri's Menu for 5/5

We have a crazy busy week ahead of us. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, Harsha or I have evening appointments. And we have to get some shopping done for our trip to Orlando next week (I need a couple new swim suits - yay!) So with all that said, our menu isn't super exciting.

MONDAY:
Lentil & Tomato Soup




















TUESDAY:
Veggie Burgers
Grilled Corn
Steamed Edamame

WEDNESDAY:
Steamed Artichoke Hearts w/ Lemon Butter dip
Parmesan & Spinach Risotto

THURSDAY:
Summer Corn Chowder (I use milk rather than half & half. I also had .5 tsp of cumin and .5 tsp of cayenne to add a little spice to it.)
Hard Rolls

FRIDAY:
Pani Puri - If you are wondering what it is, there is a description on Wikipedia that I thought was interesting. We buy a kit from the Indian Market that has the Puris and chutney mixes. We make the potato filling ourselves, so it is fresh. The kids love it and I have a few friends who are hooked on it too :-)
Cucumber Salad



We almost always go out on Saturday and I'm hoping Harsha will make dinner for us Sunday, since it is Mother's Day :)

Jenn's Menu Week of 5/4

Guy is gone this week again so this will be an easy week! I also decided to try giving the kids a night to pick dinners like Val does - it's such a great idea!

Monday:
Chicken Piccata, caesar salad, garlic bread

Tuesday:
Asparagus and Ham Casserole
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=226485

Wednesday:
Lentil soup and corn bread (went out on Friday so missed this last week)

Thursday (Emma's choice):
Spaghetti and garlic bread

Friday:
Kung Pao Chicken
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1134086

Saturday:
Out (Emma has 5:15pm soccer game)

Sunday (Mother's Day so hopefully I'm not cooking :)!)

Valerie's week of 4/28

This week has got to be one of the most hectic weeks I've had in ages! I figured a late post is better that none at all, though!

Mon. Leftovers

Tues. Terriyaki chicken (BBQ) with rice and salad. (The terriyaki marinade/sauce is very good... but I don't have the recipe handy. I will post it later.)

Wed.(Devin's dinner): Pita bread pizza. I just make a quick pizza sauce w/tomato sauce, garlic, onion, oregano, basil, thyme and a pinch of brown sugar. Then, the kids make their own pizza with mozarella, cheddar and assorted toppings.

Thurs. (Elana's-- and she made it!): Salad and Mexican Pizza: Mash a can of black beans w/2 tsp oil, add garlic (I diced 2 small cloves for Elana), 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp chili powder and mix well. Then add small can (I only had Elana add half, because the kids are picky) of diced green peppers and mix.

Spread the beans evenly on 4 (she did 5) tortillas and cover with another tortilla. Top w/salsa, mozarella cheese, onions and peppers. Bake at 400 for 15 min. Rich and I also added some guac. on top before serving.

Friday: (Braden): Mac and cheese w/brocc and carrots and salad for all but Braden.