Here is my weekly Menu 28th-June 2nd
The recipes at the bottom are for the items in bold. Be sure to vistit I'm an Organizing Junkie for more menu ideas!


Monday- B- bacon and eggs ~ L- Grilled cheese~ D-Leftovers

Tuesday- B- Strawberry Smoothies, Toast ~ L- PBJ on Pancakes From freezer ~ D- Quick and Easy Sausage Rotini and Garden salad

Wednesday- B- Granola bars ~ L- Finger food plates ~ Ritz Chicken, Broccoli

Thursday- B-Bananas slices in cereal~ Tuna fish salad~ D- leftovers

Friday- B- Toast and eggs, ~L- Mac N Cheese with Hotdogs~D- Spanish Rice With beans, Garden salad

Saturday- B- hash brown casserole (Leftover from freezer) ~Frozen Pizza~Meat Loaf and mashed Potatoes and green beans

Sunday- B- Blueberry Muffins~ L- fruit salad and mac n Cheese~ D- Chicken Dumplings

The Recipes:

Quick & Cheesy Sausage Rotini

3 cups rotini pasta, uncooked
1 lb. Italian sausage links, cut into bite-size pieces
1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup chopped onions (about 1 medium)
1/4 cup KRAFT Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
3/4 cup KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided

COOK pasta as directed on package.
MEANWHILE, cook sausage in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat 10 min. or until sausage is cooked through, stirring occasionally. Drain sausage; return to skillet. Add tomatoes with their liquid, the onions and dressing. Cook 5 min. or until onions are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.
DRAIN pasta. Toss with the sausage mixture and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese.


Finger Foods Plate-
Simply bits of meat, cheese and veggie- cut for dippin in favorite sauce
Ritz Chicken

1 stick of butter
1 roll ritz crackers
1 packet Ranch Dressing Mix
4 boneless chicken breasts
Mashed Potatoes (Prepared)

In large ziploc bag, put dry ranch packet and roll of Ritz crackers, crush- not too fine, leaving some bigger chunks. Add chicken to Ziploc and shake to coat chicken (you can leave in breasts or cut in to fat strips or chunks for kids). Put stick of butter in a 9x13 pan and melt in the microwave. Place entire bag of crackers and chicken in the melted butter (don’t stir) and bake in the oven at 350* for 1 hour. When nearly done, prepare mashed potatoes. Remove chicken from pan and place on serving dish. Scrape all the buttery drippings and leftover crumbs into mashed potatoes and mix well.

Authentic Spanish Rice with Beans (From: Tammy’s recipes)

1 Tablespoon butter
3/4 cup Basmati rice*
2 medium-large onions, diced
1 1/4 cups chicken broth**
3/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 pound ground beef
1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1-2 teaspoons freshly crushed cumin***
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
2 large tomatoes, washed and diced
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 cup cooked black, pinto, or kidney beans
salt, to taste
1 Tablespoon freshly chopped cilantro (or more, if you love cilantro!)
4-6 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions:

1. Melt butter in saucepan and add about 1/4 of your total chopped onions (about 1/2 an onion). Cook and stir for several minutes; add rice and stir until mixed. Add chicken broth and turmeric and stir. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir once and re-cover. Cook on low for 20 minutes or until rice is fully cooked.

2. In skillet, brown ground beef with remaining onions; drain excess grease. Add lemon pepper, chili powder, cumin, pepper, bell pepper, tomatoes, sugar, corn, and peas. Cook and stir until simmering; simmer for a minute or so.

3. Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Drain a little of the juice from the meat mixture into the dish, to coat the bottom.

4. In a large bowl, combine cooked rice, meat mixture, beans, and cilantro. Toss to mix well, and add salt to taste. Pour into prepared baking dish and top with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.
Authentic Spanish Rice
Authentic Spanish Rice with Beans
Additional Notes:

*Can substitute other rices, but Basmati is best because it doesn't over-absorb the liquid and become soft and mushy.

**Can substitute water, but chicken broth gives a better flavor.

***May substitute pre-ground cumin, but use more because it won't be as flavorful as freshly-crushed.


Hash brown Casserole

2 pound package frozen hash brown potatoes
3/4 cup butter -- divided
16 ounces sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
minced onion -- to taste
1/2 cup milk
2 cups grated cheese
corn flakes to cover

Mix hash browns with 1/4 cups melted butter and place in a greased 9x13-inch casserole dish. In a bowl, mix sour cream, soup, onion and milk. Pour over the hash browns. Sprinkle cheese on top of the casserole. Top with corn flakes and pour 1/2 cup of melted butter over all.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 and 1/2 hours.

Chicken and Dumplings

1 whole store-bought roast chicken (about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 container (7 ounces) chopped onions
6 cans (14 ounces) low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 container (14 ounces) pre-cut carrot sticks, chopped
1 container (14 ounces) pre-cut celery sticks, chopped
1 roll (16.3 ounces) golden buttermilk biscuit dough
1 can (10.5 ounces) condensed chicken gravy

Remove skin from chicken and shred meat into large pieces. Set aside.
In a small frying pan, add vegetable oil and heat over medium heat. When oil is hot, add chopped onions and saute until soft.

In a large pot or Dutch oven, add broth, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, carrots, celery, and sauteed onions. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer for about 10 minutes to soften vegetables, and then add shredded chicken. Continue to simmer while making dumplings.

While stew is simmering, prepare dumplings. Open can and remove biscuits. On a lightly floured surface, roll each biscuit to 1/4-inch thick. With a knife, cut each biscuit into 4 pie-pieces. Set aside.

Skim surface for any scum that has risen to top. Stir in chicken gravy.

With the stew still simmering over low heat, stir in dumplings a few at a time. Once all dumplings are in to pot, cover with a tight fitting lid and cook for 10 minutes.

Ladle into bowls and serve piping hot.