January 16- January 22

The Barley Stew was excellent!  It does make alot.  I froze 2 quarts for later this winter.  I never made the Cider Pork, oh well.  I also skipped the risotto last week.  Each dinner was replaced with chicken fajitas and steak with roasted red potatoes.

Monday, January 16-  I wanted to make a tortellini soup.  I decided to make it healthier with chicken sausage and to my surprise actually found a recipe on allrecipes.com that used chicken sausage.  Below is the recipe with my changes to it.

Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage Tortellini Soup 5 WW Points

• 8oz Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage
• 2 1/4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 onion diced
• 1 cup carrots chopped
• 1 cup celery chopped
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 28 oz chicken broth
• 9 ounces refrigerated cheese tortellini
• 1 can petite cut diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 4 ounces baby spinach leaves

Directions

1. Heat large pot with half the oil to coat and saute chicken sausage until browned and internal heat is 165 degrees. Remove from pan, remove casings and slice into small pieces and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, finely mince the garlic cloves.  Heat remaining oil in pan, add garlic and onion and saute until onion tender, stir carrots and celery and saute 1-2 minutes.
3. Stir in wine and broth and bring to a boil. Add can of tomatoes and Italian seasoning and sausage. Simmer for 30-40 minutes.  In a separate pot cook tortellini. And drain.
4. Stir in spinach into soup and cook until the spinach wilts, 2 minutes.
5. Add tortellini to soup and cook 5 minutes.  Serve

Tuesday, January 17-  With a Girl Scouts meeting after dinner, I am opting for a simple meal.  I found this recipe on Good Housekeeping. 

Turkey Bean Stovetop Chili  WW Pts. 4

• 1 tablespoon(s) vegetable oil
• 1 large (10- to 12-ounce) onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 1/4 pound(s) lean ground turkey
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1-2 red or yellow peppers, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon(s) chili powder
• 2 teaspoon(s) ground cumin
• 2 can(s) (14-ounce each) tomatoes, fire-roasted and diced
• 2 can(s) (15 ounces each) no-salt-added white kidney (cannellini) or pink beans, rinsed and drained

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Directions

1. In 7- to 8-quart saucepot, heat oil on medium-high. Add onion and garlic and cook 5 minutes or until softened and brown, stirring occasionally.
2. Add turkey and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cook 3 minutes or until meat browns, stirring and breaking up meat with wooden spoon.
3. Add peppers; cook 4 minutes or until just softened, stirring occasionally. Add chili powder and cumin and cook 1 minute, stirring often.
4. Stir in tomatoes and beans. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat to simmer. Cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spoon into serving bowls.

Wednesday, January 18- On my own with the girls tonight and an evening filled with meetings and lessons, I will make simple Chicken Fajitas with grilled peppers and onions and quesidillas for the girls.

Thursday, January 19- Pizza and a Movie Night in Apex!  Kung Fu Panda 2

Friday, January 20- Leftovers will be tonight's meal.

Saturday, January 21- My husband put his culinary skills to use and made chicken sausage spinach and cheese stuffed ravioli served with a vodka sauce.  He used wonton wrappers for the ravioli.  They were awesome!

Sunday, January 22-  Rotisserie Chicken, biscuits and french fries will most likely round out tonight's football meal.  Go Giants!

Last Box this Season

Sadly, this was our last Produce Box delivery for the season until next Spring.  After this week, I will have to conjure up my weekly menus without the aide of my Box for inspiration.

This week we recieved:

• Green Beans
• Romaine Lettuce
• Spinach
• 2 Broccili
• Butternut Squash
• 7 Granny Smith Apples
• 5 medium Sweet Poatoes

The sweet potatoes and the butternut squash )along with another butternut from an earlier delivery) will be saved for our Thanksgiving Feast.  I will most likely blanch and freeze the green beans for future use.

Wednesday, November 16-  With the fresh spinach from my box I will try out a tweaked recipe I discovered on allrecipes.com.  I will serve this with mashed potatoes.

Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breasts WW 9pts

• 1/2 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup cream of chicken soup
• 4 slices swiss cheese
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/2 inch thickness (soaked in buttermilk)
• 1 pinch ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a frying pan.  Add pressed garlic and saute.  Add spinach and saute until wilted.
3. Mix soup and sour cream.
4. Remove spinach from heat and stir in 1/2 the cream mixture until combined.
5. Lay the chicken breasts out on a clean surface, lay a slice of swiss cheese onto breast and spoon some of the spinach mixture onto each one. Roll up chicken to enclose the spinach and secure with toothpicks.  Arrange in a shallow baking dish. 
6. Pour remaining cream mixture over chicken.
7. Bake uncovered for 35-45 minutes in the preheated oven. 

Thursday, November 17- We will be doing pizza and a movie at the Halle Cultural Arts Center tonight.

Friday, November 18-  I made Lettuce Wraps last time we had a head of romaine lettuce so I am thinking Asian Lettuce Wraps tonight.

Asian Lettuce Wraps WW 9 pts (2 wraps with 2 small scoop beef)

• 16 lettuce leaves
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 1 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• Asian chile pepper sauce (optional)
• 1/2 cup chopped peanuts
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons Asian (dark) sesame oil

Sauce

• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 T soy
• 2 T rice vinegar
• 1 T chile paste

Mix ingredients and spoon desired amount over wrap before rolling.

Directions

1. Rinse whole lettuce leaves and pat dry, being careful not tear them. Set aside.
2. In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef in 1 tablespoon of oil, stirring often and reducing the heat to medium, if necessary. Drain, and set aside to cool. Cook the onion in the same pan, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, vinegar, and chile pepper sauce to the onions, and stir. Stir in chopped peanuts, green onions, sesame oil, and cooked beef; continue cooking until the onions just begin to wilt, about 2 minutes.
3. Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter, and pile meat mixture in the center. To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Add desired amount of sauce. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito, and enjoy!

Nutritional Information

Servings Per Recipe: 4 (2 wraps)
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 388 Total Fat: 22.3g Cholesterol: 69mg Sodium: 580mg Total Carbs: 24.3g Dietary Fiber: 4.7g Protein: 23.4g

 Saturday, November 19-  I think I will roast a chicken tonight.  I'll season it with garlic cloves, oregano and thyme.  I'll serve green beans from my Box and perhaps roasted or baked potatoes.

Sunday, November 20-  I think grilled hamburgers along with homemade macaroni salad and sliced apples will round out this evening's meal.

Monday, November 21- Pork Chops and my favorite, Potato Pancakes served with applesauce will be tonight's meal. (I'll post the pancake recipe later)

Tuesday, November 22- I am contemplating making again from an earlier summer post,  Chicken and Tortellini Salad which I found in my June issue of Southern Living.  If not this recipe I may just make tortellini with vodka sauce.

Chicken and Tortellini Salad

• 2 (9-oz.) packages refrigerated cheese-filled tortellini
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 1 cup frozen sweet peas, thawed
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste

 1. Prepare tortellini according to package directions.

2. Process olive oil and next 4 ingredients in a blender until smooth. Toss olive oil mixture with tortellini, chicken, and next 3 ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Southern Living
JUNE 2011