Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
7day menu planner
SUNDAY: Enjoy family day with your own roast chicken (5 to 7 pounds), mashed potatoes, gravy, peas with pearl onions and mixed greens. For dessert, drizzle creme fraiche or halfand-half over bread pudding. Plan ahead: Save enough chicken for Monday; save enough pudding for Tuesday. Tip: Look for creme fraiche in the dairy section.
MONDAY: Take it easy and enjoy Sunday’s leftover chicken in Chicken and Ham Roll-Ups (see recipe). Add some oven fries on the side. For dessert, how about pears?
TUESDAY: For a low-cost meal, try Rustic Lentil Minestrone.
In a 4-quart pan, cook 3 slices bacon (chopped) on medium until browned and crispy. Remove and set aside. Drain all but 1 to 2 tablespoons bacon drippings. Add 1 cup thinly sliced carrots, 1 cup thinly sliced celery, ½ cup chopped onion and 3 cloves minced garlic to pan. Reduce heat to low and cook 5 minutes or until onion is softened, stirring occasionally. Add 4 cups unsalted chicken broth, 2 cups water, 1 (14 ½-ounce) can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano, and 1 package lentil pilaf mix (such as Near East), including seasoning packet. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, cover pan and simmer 30 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons dry red wine, if desired, reserved bacon and ¼ cup minced fresh parsley. Serve with a lettuce wedge and wholegrain rolls. For dessert, warm the leftover bread pudding. WEDNESDAY: The kids will come quickly for Tamale Pie. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a 7-by-11-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Heat a large skillet on medium and cook 1 pound lean ground beef for 5 minutes or until no longer pink; drain. In a large bowl, combine beef, 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1 (8 ½-ounce) package cornbread mix, 2 eggs, 1 cup frozen corn (thawed), 2 cups water and ½ teaspoon chile powder; mix until well-blended. Spoon mixture into baking dish. Bake 20 minutes; sprinkle with ½ cup more cheese. Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted. Let stand 10 minutes. Serve with carrot sticks. For dessert, tempt the kids with Blue Floats. Blend any fruit juice with frozen or fresh blueberries until smooth. Pour into tall glasses and add a little club soda; top with a scoop of frozen yogurt. Slurp away!
THURSDAY: For a perfect nomeat dinner, prepare Peanut Sesame Noodles (see recipe). Serve with a spinach salad and crusty rolls. Enjoy coconut pudding for dessert.
FRIDAY: Glazed Ham Steaks make a quick meal. Heat a large nonstick skillet to mediumhigh. Add a ham steak; cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides. Brush with 2 tablespoons honey mustard. Turn and cook 30 seconds until glazed. Divide ham into individual portions and serve with o’brien potatoes, fresh broccoli and biscuits. Chunky applesauce is good for dessert.
SATURDAY: For a festive fall meal, serve Grilled Pork Tenderloin Chimichurri (see recipe). On the side, add roasted sweet potato wedges, green beans and sourdough bread. Buy a carrot cake for dessert.
THE RECIPES Chicken and Ham RollUps
1 cup garlic-and-herb cheese
spread (such as Boursin) ½ cup chopped roasted red
bell peppers
6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
3 cups baby spinach leaves,
firmly packed
12 ounces sliced deli ham
(see note)
12 ounces leftover sliced chicken or turkey breast
In a small bowl, mix the cheese spread and peppers until smooth. Spread the mixture evenly over each tortilla. Place ½ cup spinach on each tortilla. Top evenly with ham and chicken or turkey. Roll, jelly-roll fashion, and cut in half on the diagonal. Secure each half with a wooden pick. (Adapted from Quick-Fix Dinners by the editors of Southern Living, Oxmoor House.)
Makes 6 roll-ups.
Note: If sodium is a concern, skip the ham or look for lower sodium ham.
Nutrition information: Each roll-up contains approximately 540 calories, 54 g protein, 16 g fat, 44 g carbohydrate, 159 mg cholesterol, 1,611 mg sodium (the ham contributes 900 mg; the tortillas, 500 mg) and 4 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 3.
Peanut Sesame Noodles
1 pound linguine
¾ cup smooth peanut butter
1/3 cup unsalted vegetable
broth
1 /3 cup water
¼ cup unseasoned rice
vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium
soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar 2 teaspoons dark sesame oil 2 teaspoons peeled, finely
chopped fresh ginger ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon crushed red
pepper
3 tablespoons sesame seeds 2 green onions, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal
Cook linguine according to package directions; drain and plunge into ice water; set aside.
Meanwhile, in a medium pan, whisk together peanut butter, broth, water, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic powder and red pepper. Cook on mediumhigh — about 10 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. While sauce simmers, toast seeds over medium heat for 5 minutes, shaking pan to keep from burning. Rinse and drain noodles again. Toss with half the dressing and allow to soak for a few minutes. Add remaining dressing and sesame seeds; toss until well-combined. Top with sliced green onions and serve cold.
Makes 8 servings. Nutrition information: Each serving contains approximately 404 calories, 14 g protein, 16 g fat, 53 g carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 226 mg sodium and 4 g fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 3.5.
Grilled Pork Tenderloin Chimichurri
1 cup flatleaf parsley leaves,
lightly packed
4 cloves garlic, coarsely
chopped
¼ teaspoon coarse salt Freshly ground pepper to taste 1/3 cup white vinegar
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup water
1 ½ pounds pork tenderloin (1 large or 2 small tenderloins) Place parsley, garlic, salt and pepper in food processor and process until finely chopped. Add vinegar and process to combine. Slowly add oil and water in a thin stream with machine running. Place pork in a large resealable plastic bag. Pour half of sauce over pork; close and turn to coat pork. Refrigerate 30 to 60 minutes, turning bag occasionally. Transfer remaining sauce to serving bowl and refrigerate. Meanwhile, prepare grill. Remove pork and discard marinade. Place tenderloins diagonally on grill rack. Grill, uncovered, on direct heat for 15 to 25 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees, turning every 3 or 4 minutes with tongs. Transfer pork to cutting board; tent with foil and let stand 3 minutes. Cut pork into thin slices and arrange on dinner plates. Serve with reserved sauce.
Makes 8 servings. Nutrition information: Each serving of pork contains approximately 112 calories, 18 g protein, 4 g fat, no carbohydrate, 56 mg cholesterol, 53 mg sodium and no fiber.
Each serving of sauce contains approximately 85 calories, no protein, 9 g fat, no carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 33 mg sodium and no fiber.
Carbohydrate choices: 0.