What is on your menu this week?

I made these Busy Day Beef Tips today since I needed dinner to be ready in the crockpot when we got home from gymnastics.  It was super easy (except that I cut up a roast instead of buying stew meat or beef tips).  I got my rice ready to cook in my rice cooker while we were gone.  Dinner was ready when we got home with very little preperation.  Gotta love that! I used the leftover beef and sauce to make beef pot pie the next day.  Just added some steamed potatoes and carrots and covered it with a pie crust and baked it.  Yum! Busy Day Beef Tips recipe from The Recipe Room 2 lbs. beef tips (stew meat, or cut up roast) 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 can cream of celery soup ½ c water 1 pkg. dry onion soup mix Mix all ingredients in casserole dish. Cover and bake for 3 hours at 300 degrees. Serve over rice. (May also be cooked in the crock pot on low for 8-12 hours).

I made had some of this spicy honey chicken at a friend's house the other day and was really excited to try it at home.  The recipe is from Our Best Bites and is so easy.  It's just chicken that you rub yummy spices on and grill, then drizzle with honey/vinegar.  Yum!  My 6 year old gave it a thumbs up and asked for some in her lunch tomorrow.  That says a lot!  I'll definitely be making it again. The original recipe says to use chicken thighs, but I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts since that's all I had on hand.  Next time I might use chicken thighs. I bought some chipotle chili powder to use in this dish.  It was a little pricey, (about $5 for a jar) and I was a little nervous about how hot it would make the chicken.  I used 1/4 tsp. instead of 1/2 tsp like the recipe said and it was great.  I loved the chipotle flavor.  I told my kids that it tasted like BBQ flavored potato chips and they gobbled it up.

I made this for dinner for the first time and my family enjoyed it.  My 6 year old was not too happy about having to eat fish, but when she tasted it she gave me a thumbs up.  Then she ate half of her little brother's fish and asked me if we could make it tomorrow.  We'll be making this again soon, maybe not tomorrow, but soon.  Broiled Tilapia Parmesan recipe from The Sisters' Cafe   and also from my SIL, Maggie 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese 1/4 cup butter, softened 3 T mayonnaise 2 T fresh lemon juice 1/4 tsp dried basil 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 1/8 tsp onion powder 1/8 tsp celery salt 2 lbs tilapia fillets Preheat broiler.  Grease broiling pan or line with foil.    In a small bowl, mix together Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise, and lemon juice.  Season the cheese mixture with basil, pepper, onion powder, and celery salt.  Mix well and set aside. Arrange fillets in a single layer on prepared pan.  Broil a few inches form th...

I have a great hamburger for you to try for your Labor Day BBQ tomorrow.  It's a teriyaki burger found on the Sisters' Cafe blog.  I made these this week and we enjoyed them.  I made them with a combination of ground turkey and hamburger and served them on a bun w/a little mayo, tomato and lettuce.  My kids even gobbled them up. I love all the recipes I've tried on  the Sisters' Cafe .  I love their blog.  That being said, here's my menu for this week: Monday:  grill something, maybe Rosemary Ranch Chicken Tuesday: tinfoil dinners Wednesday: Orange chicken w/rice Thursday: making broiled tilapia parmesan again Friday: easy Saturday: easy Sunday: easy Have a great Labor Day weekend!  If you've planned your menu for this week, go ahead and share it in the comment section.  Or you can post what you made last week .  Have a good one!

I made these baked chicken taquitos last night and my family loved them.  And, I discovered that I love the tomatillo salsa that is used in the recipe.  My family gobbled these up (except my four year old, but he doesn't gobble much of anything up).  Give these a try!  I found the recipe on Mel's Kitchen Cafe and Our Best Bites . These would be great to make ahead and bake when it's dinnertime.

We have french dip sandwiches pretty often at our house.  Usually on a Monday, if we have had a roast for Sunday dinner.  Last time we had french dip the kids loved it, but they had a hard time keeping the beef in their sandwich.  This got me thinking and today I solved the problem by making french dip sandwiches in little pocket/roll form.  You can use any kind of bread dough, roll dough or even Pillsbury crescent roll dough would probably work.  I used this recipe for roll dough since it doesn't need to rise much.  I rolled the dough out and cut it into squares and also triangles (couldn't decide which shape I liked best).  Spoon the roast beef (without any liquid) into roll and fold over (or roll up like a crescent roll).  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve with french dip "juice" (that's what my husband calls the beef broth) for dipping. This is how I usually make the beef and "juice".  In saucepan mix ...

This recipe from This Week for Dinner has been on my menu for weeks now and I haven't made it until tonight. It was great! Even my three year old son gobbled it up. Bistro Chicken recipe from Jen Schulte, a This Week for Dinner reader ( with my two-bits in parentheses ) 2 (or you could use 4 - 6) boneless, skinless chicken breasts ( I used two breasts sliced really thinly ) - 1/2 cup chopped onions ( I didn't add these onions ) - 14-oz can diced tomatoes ( I used Italian-flavored diced tomatoes ) - Italian seasoning or a few shakes of oregano, basil, parsley and garlic powder ( I didn't add this since I used the flavored tomatoes ) - 1 can Campbell’s French Onion soup ( I used all the broth and half of the onions from the soup ) - Swiss cheese, sliced ( I grated some over the chicken ) Cut chicken breasts thinly or pound them thin. Brown chicken breasts in a medium-high skillet in oil or butter. Remove and place in casserole dish. ( I made this in my dutch ...

I'm not going to plan a menu for this next week. We have lots of leftovers from Christmas and I didn't use up all my menus from last week. I hope everyone had a great Christmas! Mine was great, nice and relaxing. Did you make a turkey for Christmas dinner? I didn't, I made a ham. But if you did make a turkey here's a really simple, pantry-ingredient dinner to use up some of that turkey.. Green Chili Turkey (or Chicken) Pot Pie I got the recipe from some ladies at church I usually half this for my family 2 green onions, chopped 3 Tbl. oil 2 (4.5 oz) cans chopped green chiles, undrained 1 (2.25 oz) can sliced ripe olives, drained ¼ cup flour 1 ½ tsp ground cumin 2 (16 oz) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained 1 (14 oz) can chicken broth ( I used 2 cans, to thin it out a bit) 2 cups chopped cooked turkey breast (or chicken) 2 cups shredded Mexican four-cheese blend biscuit dough ( I've used crescent roll dough and made these biscuits from the Sisters...

This week I made some really yummy BBQ chicken pizza. My family gobbled it up and we fought over the leftovers. No one even commented on the spinach and tomatoes in it (it was chopped up really small). I'll post the recipe after I post my menu for the week. Wow, this is my 50th time posting my weekly menu! I've been doing this for over a year now. I've really enjoyed having my menus all planned out and it's made making dinner (and grocery shopping) a little easier. Monday: Chicken Salad in Soft Wraps Tuesday: Rich & Creamy Pasta Bake Wednesday: My last freezer meal given to me when I had the baby, 1 hour Breadsticks Thursday: Chicken Avocado Sandwiches on fresh bread Friday: try Tamale Griddle Cake tacos (thanks Maggie!) Saturday: easy night (maybe I'll use up the extra honey-lime enchiladas I froze two weeks ago -- yum!) Sunday: Crockpot black bean salsa chicken (maybe I'll try making some corn tortillas) I guess I'll need to mix up ...

Another week has flown by. It's amazing how fast it goes with my daughter in school all day. Thanks Meagan & Maggie for posting your menus this last week and thanks to all of you that stop by to check out recipes, etc. Last week I tried Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas from the Sister's Cafe . They were so good! Even my not-so-chicken-loving-5-year-old gobbled them up. I don't think I'll ever make those cream cheese chicken enchiladas that I used to make again. I usually don't recopy recipes from other people's blogs, I just post the link, but I'm going to recopy this recipe since it's so yummy and I don't want to lose it. Anyway...Here's my menu for the week: Monday: try Chicken a l'Orange w/fried potatoes Tuesday: Spaghetti Wednesday: easy night (might use one of my frozen dinners that my friends brought me after I the baby -- I've kind of been hoarding them) Thursday: Tatortot casserole Friday: Chicken Salad...

I love crockpot recipes! This one is super easy and uses ingredients that I always have on hand. Chicken Stroganoff I got this recipe from my friend, JoDee 1 or more chicken breasts (I usually just use 1 that's enough for my family. I buy the chicken breasts w/bones & skin -- it's tender and cheaper than boneless skinless) 2 Tbsp flour 1/2 tsp garlic powder 1/4 tsp paprika 1/2 tsp pepper 1 T. onion soup mix  ( here's the link to make your own ) 1/2 cup water 10 oz can cream of mushroom soup 9 oz jar sliced mushrooms, drained (optional) 1 Tbsp minced fresh parsley (optional) 1/2 cup sour cream (I usually throw in 1/4 c. butternut squash puree from my freezer --completely optional) Remove skin from chicken. Combine flour, garlic powder, pepper, and paprika in slow cooker. Place chicken in flour mixture and toss until meat is well coated. Add mushroom soup, water, butternut squash puree and soup mix. Stir until well blended. Cover. Cook on high for 3-3 ...

Have you ever grilled your pizza? I was making dinner the other night and I didn't want to heat up the oven, so I thought I'd grill the pizza instead of turning on the oven. Here's a good link on msnbc.com that I found that explained how to grill pizza. I made BBQ chicken pizza. So, after I grilled the dough on one side of each mini pizza I spread BBQ sauce & ranch on the crust, and covered it with grilled chicken, fried turkey bacon, green onions and cheese. Then I put it back on the grill following the directions on MSNBC (turning the heat off of one burner and grilling the pizza for 10 minutes or so. It was pretty good hot off the grill, but I prefer having my pizza baked on a pizza stone. I might make it again on a really hot day. Anyway...Here's my menu for this week. I didn't make hardly anything off my menu last week, so there are lots of repeats and I'm taking it easy on the weekend. Monday: Swedish Meatballs w/IKEA gravy and potatoes (didn...

Here's another quick and easy recipe for pizza. Sometimes I make these into calzones too. My family ate it for dinner tonight, without complaint about the spinach. Chicken Caesar Pizza 1 pkg Pillsbury pizza crust or make your own crust Kraft Fat Free Classic Caesar Dressing 2 c. chopped cooked chicken 2 c. lightly packed spinach leaves, chopped finely 1 tomato, diced 2 T. Parmesan cheese green onions, optional black olives, optional mozzarella cheese, shredded Spread pizza crust onto pan. Lightly cover crust with Caesar dressing. In seperate bowl, mix together chicken, spinach, tomato, Parmesan cheese, green onion and olives. Salt and pepper chicken mixture, then mix in 1/4 c. Caesar dressing. Spread chicken mixture over crust. Top with mozzarella cheese. Bake at 425 for 12-15 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Pick these two great ingredients up at the grocery store and give this easy recipe a try. Enjoy!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to share a link to a recipe for some yummy crockpot pork chops. I saw on Maggie's menu this week that she was making this recipe from Picky Palate . I made it tonight for dinner and my kids loved it! I loved it because it was so easy -- three ingredients in the crockpot! Check it out here . Crockpot Ranch Pork Chops This is my version of Picky Palate's recipe: as many pork chops as you like, I usually do 3 1/2 package (or about 1 1/2 T.) dry ranch dressing mix 1 can. cream of chicken soup 3/4 c. water (or add more or less depending on how thin you'd like the gravy) Mix ranch dressing mix, cream of chicken soup and water together and pour over pork chops in the crockpot. Cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 5 - 6 hours. Serve with mashed potatoes.

Happy Monday everyone! Before I get to my menu for this week, here's my recipe for pizza pockets that I made this last week. BBQ Chicken Pizza Pockets Quick Pizza Dough BBQ sauce chopped cooked chicken cheddar & monterey jack cheese spinach, finely chopped turkey bacon, crisped and chopped green onions, finely sliced Prepare Quick Pizza Dough . Mix chicken, BBQ sauce, spinach, turkey bacon and green onions together in a bowl. Roll dough out in small sections. Spread BBQ sauce on half of the dough. Scoop chicken mixture on top of sauce-covered dough. Top with cheese. Pull the other half of the dough over the chicken mixture forming a pocket. Press down the edges. Place on baking sheet. Brush with olive oil & garlic salt. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Pepperoni Pizza Pockets (for the kids) Quick Pizza Dough turkey pepperoni, cut into fourths spaghetti or pizza sauce spinach, finely chopped mozzerella cheese Prepare as e...

This is a really easy meal made with stuff that I always have on hand. It's a comfort food for me, since this is a recipe that my mom would make when I was growing up and I still make it today. Here's my version of the recipe: Chicken Tetrazinni 8 oz whole wheat spaghetti 1/4 c. chopped onion 2 T. butter 3 T. flour 1 chicken bouillon cube 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. dry mustard 1/2 tsp. pepper 1 - 12 oz can fat free evaporated milk 1 1/2 c. water or chicken broth (if using chicken broth omit the bouillon cube) 1/4 c. butternut squash puree (optional) ** 1 1/2 c. cooked chicken, chopped or shredded cheddar cheese, or cheese of your choice 1. Cook and drain spaghetti. Place in 8 c. shallow baking dish. 2. Saute 1/4 c. chopped onions in butter. Add flour, chicken bouillon cube, salt, dry mustard, and pepper. Slowly stir in evaporated milk and let thicken, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth or water and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until thick. (Th...

The other day my daughter wanted to make a heart-shaped pizza for dinner (like they do at Papa Murphy's for Valentine's Day). She helped me roll out the dough and then decided to use heart-shaped cookie cutters to make little heart pizzas. Then she finished off the pizzas with sauce, ham and cheese. They were cute and yummy! A fun idea for Valentine's Day. Here are my two favorite pizza dough recipes, a yummy recipe that needs to rise and a quick and easy recipe. Both are great! Pizza Dough 7/8 c. warm water (I know it's a weird measurement, so just do a little less than 1 c.) 3/4 tsp. salt 2 Tbsp. olive oil 2 1/2 c. flour 2 tsp. sugar 2 tsp. yeast If using a breadmaker, put all ingredients inside and set it on the dough setting. If using a kitchenaid, mix all ingredients using dough hook and let rise for about an hour (give or take). Roll out dough and put in one 12" round pizza pan. Let rest for 10 minutes. Add toppings. Bake at 400 for 15 - 20 minutes. Qui...

Update on 9/25/2015:  I've been making these meatballs for ten years or so.  We've eaten meatballs at IKEA many times and each time my family tells me that they like my meatballs better.  This is my picky six year old's favorite meal and one of our go-to meals for company.  I've updated the recipe with better instructions of how I make it and some new pictures.   Swedish meatballs are a favorite meal at our house. It reminds me of the many times I've eaten them at IKEA. Too bad IKEA is so far away from where we live now. My husband went on a LDS mission to Sweden and ate lots of meatballs there. However people didn't make their own meatballs, they just bought the frozen ones. We found this recipe on some Swedish website a few years ago and love it! This is a favorite Sunday dinner at our house along with mashed potatoes or steamed red potatoes, some green beans or broccoli and some light and fluffly one hour rolls.  We also also serve it with I...

Pork Salad from Cafe Rio or Costa Vida is my all-time favorite meal. But since we live so far away from both of those great restaurants, every once in a while I buy a pork roast and make my own salad or tacos. I've tried a few recipes for the pork, but I think I've figured out how I like to make it. My secret ingredient in the sauce is adding a little BBQ sauce. Here's a picture of my salad using some leftover pork that I had for lunch today. It didn't have any cilantro-rice on it, but it was still yummy. Cafe Rio-Style Pork recipe by Jenny 2 -4 lb. pork roast 1 1/2 c. coca-cola salt and pepper garlic salt/powder Season pork with salt and pepper and garlic salt or powder. Place in crock-pot and pour coke over the meat. Cook for 6 -8 hours on low, or 3 -4 hours on high. Remove pork from crockpot and shred. Discard juices from crockpot. In a saucepan simmer for 10 minutes or so: 1 c. ketchup 1/2 c. red enchilada sauce 1/2 c. brown sugar 4 oz. dic...

Happy Sunday everyone! Thanks to everyone that posted their menus last week. You gals are great! Here's my menu for this next week: Monday: hamburgers, pasta salad Tuesday: crockpot beef stew, homemade bread Wednesday: white chili, cornbread muffins Thursday: quiche Friday: eating out Saturday: BYU vs. Airforce game -- not cooking! Sunday: spaghetti Here's a quick recipe for a easy, yummy sweet and sour sauce to put over my favorite turkey meatballs . My family loved it. I got this recipe from my sister-in-law Melinda (everything she makes is yummy!). Sweet and Sour Meatballs 2/3 c. ketchup 1/2 c. chili sauce 2 - 16 oz. can jellied cranberry sauce 1 package of 25 turkey meatballs 1. Mix all ingredients for sauce together in a sauce pan. 2. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Sauce will smooth out as cranberry sauce melts. 3. Mix in 1 package of meatballs. 4. Heat through. 5. Serve over rice. *** I halved the recipe for the sau...