It's that time of year...

....when meal plans go by the wayside, days are long and it's starting to get hot! It's been almost a month since I posted the last meal plan and I did a pretty decent job sticking to it, but I think I'm done w/ meal planning till the weather cools down a bit. I promise that I am still feeding my family! We eat a lot more salads, cold pastas, fruits, we love to grill and I definitely play it by ear since I'm never quite sure when Jay will get home or if Lane wants to just have several small meals throughout the evening.

Weekly Meal Plan - May 6-11

Well hello there! It has been to long since I have made a meal plan of any sort...I have been winging it lately. I actually made one this week and am going to try my darnedest to stick to it! Although I have to say that once we hit this time of year (spring, the hubby in the fields and getting home later aka 'Ag Deployment') I tend to not cook as much. I do a lot more grilling or we eat salads, I'm even happy with just a lunch meat sandwich.

I try to have the little man fed around 7 pm sometimes I eat with him and leave Jay to fend for himself. Sometimes if I want to make something I know the little man won't eat, I'll feed him one of his favorites and then cook the meal right around 7:30 so that it is ready when Jay gets home. I never thought I would be one of those parents who cook different meals but when you have a kid who turns picky you will do anything to try to get him to eat! A lot of times the little stinker just prefers to graze all evening, he'll have fruit then he will have crackers, then something else - I swear he is a bottomless pit!

Here is my Meal Plan this week - I planned it all w/ foods I have at home. That's another bonus to this time of year - my grocery bill lightens as I don't cook as often.

Sunday

• Steak Tips in Gravy w/ Crock pot Mashed Potatoes

Monday

• FFA Banquet

Tuesday

• Brats & Hotdogs on the grill

Wednesday

• (Crockpot) Dump Chicken - new pinterest recipe

Thursday

• Boys are on their own as my sister and I will be attending the Jason Aldean/Luke Bryan concert at the Civic Center

Friday

• Taco Pasta

Saturday

• Shrimp Scampi

Weekly Meal Plan: March 11-17

I totally slacked off last week, I had a meal plan made on Thursday (the 1st) and made a grocery list, got my groceries and when I was cleaning out my purse on Saturday I pitched it. That was the only place that I had written out my meals for the week! Oops! So last week I was winging it.

This week, however, I am back on track! I planned it out and wrote it in my inventory google doc. So here is the week's meal plan.

Sunday

• Lunch - Brats on the grill
• Dinner - Fish packets (oven)

Monday

• Baked Mac & Cheese

Tuesday

• Chicken Quesadillas

Wednesday

• Burgers on the grill w/ Foil packet potatoes

Thursday

• Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole (new recipe)

Friday

• Breakfast Casserole

Saturday - Gone to Hearts at Home Conference (MOPS) at ISU

Weekly Meal Plan - February 26 - March 3..and a Recipe!

Oops! Sorry that this is a couple days late....crazy busy weekend and then I barely cracked open the computer last night. I'm already switching things around and probably moving a few things to next week. Last night I had the headache from hell that left me feeling blah so we ended up eating popcorn for dinner. Lane thought that was awesome by the way! Tonight we have an FFA Alumni meeting so we will probably do leftovers or something quick. Tomorrow night is the annual Marshall-Putnam-Stark Beef Association Meeting (of which Jay is the President). So looks like I'm only going to be cooking Thursday, Friday & Saturday this week haha! Sunday we went to the IL Beef Expo and had Chinese leftovers for dinner (and Sonic for a mid afternoon meal). So here's what the menu plan was supposed to look like...definitely did not happen this way though!

Sunday

• Lunch - IL Beef Expo
• Dinner - Chicken Stir Fry (instead we had leftover Chinese that I brought home Saturday afternoon)

Monday

• Chicken & Dumplings (popcorn instead, moving this to Saturday)

Tuesday

• Waffles, Bacon & Scrambled Eggs (FFA Alumni meeting, not sure what we'll actually be eating)

Wednesday

• MPS Beef Dinner - Prime Rib Family Style...YUM!

Thursday

• Easy Lasagna w/ Garlic Bread (using frozen hot dog buns for this)

Friday

• Hardshell Taco's

Saturday

• Lunch - Leftovers/Sandwiches 
• Dinner - Chicken & Dumplings (from Tuesday)

The recipe that I would like to share with you this week is Shrimp Scampi. I finally made it the correct way last Tuesday...omg so delish!! This is definitely not for those of you on a diet as the shrimp are swimming in buttery goodness! We just ate the shrimp w/o pasta on Tuesday, but I've made it with pasta before...yummy either way!

Shrimp Scampi Bake

(from babycenter CFYF board)

1 cup butter

2 T prepared Dijon-style mustard

1 T fresh lemon juice

1 T chopped garlic

1 T chopped fresh parsley (I used dried parsley, about 1 tsp)

2 lb medium raw shrimp, shelled, de-veined, with tails attached

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter, mustard, lemon juice, garlic, and parsley. When the butter melts completely, remove from heat.

Arrange shrimp in a shallow baking dish. Pour the butter mixture over the shrimp.

Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until the shrimp are pink and opaque.

Serve w/ angel hair pasta

6 servings

Sandy's Note: To keep the sauce from separating, combine the sauce ingredients in a small glass bowl and microwave until the butter is just melted.

 

Weekly Meal Plan - Feb 19-25 and a recipe

I'm a day late w/ this. Had it figured out for the most part Friday night. Then I had to go back and switch things around since I remembered that we have a Shrove Tuesday Pancake supper at our church tomorrow night. So here is the (semi) finalized meal plan for the week:

Sunday

• Lunch - Hot Hammies
• Dinner - Sausage Stuffed Shells

Monday

• Shrimp Scampi Bake w/ Rice

Tuesday

• Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper @ Church

Wednesday

• Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings

Thursday

• Leftovers (might bring Pizza home as I have a hair appointment)

Friday

• Meatballs Burgandy over Egg Noodles w/ Cheesy Baked Veggies

Saturday

• Lunch - Leftovers/Sandwiches
• Dinner - Burgers w/ Seasoned Tater Wedges

I am definitely doing better with Meal Planning, it helps when I post it here (and also on the CFYF board on Babycenter). I have more of a tendency to hold myself accountable to actually cook meals (and now that I'm home by 4:30 I really shouldn't have any excuses right?). Let me know if you want any recipes that you don't see posted, I'm more than happy to share my recipes (or sometimes methods)!!

The recipe that I want to share with you this week is one that came from my MOPS group, it is Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings. It is incredibly easy and fool proof! This recipe can be tailored to your likings - I've added cream of mushroom soup to it, you could also whip up a roux and add that in to thicken it up.

Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings

3-4 b/s chicken breasts (I start off w/ frozen)
1 box chicken stock (plus some water if needed)
1 bag frozen mixed veggies
1 can refrigerated biscuits, quartered
seasonings to taste (I use salt/pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and sometimes a pinch of dried sage).

Place chicken breasts and veggies in crock pot. Pour in chicken stock (the liquid should cover the breasts & veggies, may need to add a bit of water to achieve this). Add in seasonings, cover and cook on low 6-8 hours. Pull chicken out and shred (I use my kitchen aid mixer for this), place back in liquid. About 45 minutes before serving place quartered biscuits in crock (be sure to push down under liquid, they will pop back up which is ok). Cover and cook an additional 45 minutes (30 minutes for a more doughy 'dumpling'). Enjoy!

Notes: This recipe can be done in 4-5 hours, I only say 6-8 because I generally throw it in the crock pot in the morning before leaving for work so it's cooking all day long. The chicken is usually cooked through at the 5 hour mark.