March 31, 2008...8:19 am
Menu Plan Monday
Ugh! All of this talk about an economic dip/recession/depression is getting to me. I keep reading that the price of corn is going up so all of those yummy processed foods with corn syrup (which is everything) will get more expensive too. I might as well buck up and sharpen my skills now. Here is a great post about Recession-Proofing Your Diet, and another about 6 Easy Ways to Battle Rising Food Costs. I’m getting pretty good at stocking up, so I shouldn’t have to buy much this week to make this menu happen.
My own personal attempt at saving money on groceries is to work my way up the food pyramid. Why not? Naturally, my bread maker died immediately upon hearing this announcement. I am now equipped with a new one, so I’ll also be experimenting with that this week.
MONDAY
We had spaghetti and meatballs with my Dad and Grandma Sunday night they are both doing much better, thank you everyone for your very kind words!!) and have plenty of leftovers.
TUESDAY
I’m going to give this recipe for Mexican Lasagne from Heart Matters a try. As a side we’ll have Super Fresh and Tasty Lentil Salad from Sarah’s Musings.
WEDNESDAY
I love copycat recipes; and although I’ve never had the original I’m going to make Applebees Tequila Lime Chicken.
We’ll also have Slow Cooker Baked Beans from ‘Burgh on a Budget with a few modifications. I use dried beans and I’m not sure what varities I have on hand, but I’ll make it work.
We’ll also have some corn.
THURSDAY
I made a lasagne last week and put it in the freezer. It was a day of cooking frenzy, and I can’t remember what all went into it, but I think that sausage was involved. I’ll serve it with fresh steamed carrots.
FRIDAY
I need to use up the rest of my frozen asparagus from LAST year before the new crop comes in. Note to self; easy on the asparagus this year. We have decided to try and eat less meat, so I was happy to come across this recipe for Roasted Asparagus with Poached Egg and Parmesan on the Cheap Healthy Good Blog. Just a little tidbit for my fellow Grand Rapidians - I use regular parmesan (not the dried stuff in a shaker) for everything, and have found that Horrocks has the best price per pound.
Although it seems like a weird combination I think I will also make some baked potatoes to ‘bulk up’ the meal a bit.
SATURDAY
Here is a recipe for Fried Rice from life.after.baby. I will throw some bacon in there and see if I can pass it off as a meal 
My weird kids like spinach salad, so I’ll make some of that too.
SNACKS AND TREATS
We found one of those old school popcicle trays in the cupboard, and started making our own last week. The kids are crazy about them, and since we either use juice or leftover smoothies, they are very healthy.
We go through a ridiculous amount of popcorn, but I’m happy to keep buying it. This is a great snack for the kids, and for us.
I am on the lookout for the perfect blueberry muffin recipe, please toss any suggestions my way!
For more Menu Plans, head over to Laura’s blog.
14 Comments
March 31, 2008 at 10:22 am
I’ll take that extra asparagus
Everything looks great!
March 31, 2008 at 11:00 am
your menu looks great. I love all the ideas you put into as well.
March 31, 2008 at 11:04 am
I am going to have try the Applebee’s tequilla lime chicken. Thanks for posting the link.
March 31, 2008 at 1:36 pm
Thanks for that link! I didn’t know there was such as thing as copycat recipes! What a fabulous idea!!!
March 31, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Tequila lime chicken sounds divine..thanks for sharing.
March 31, 2008 at 11:00 pm
We are also trying to eat less meat. I found this really good recipe for a southwestern bean medley. It’s really yummy. I served it with rice and tortillas. then a salad. the best part it’s a slow cooker recipe. I can send it to you if you want for another menu plan Monday.
April 1, 2008 at 12:16 am
I want an update on the breadmaker experiment. I have been toying with the idea of making our own bread every week.
April 4, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Hey, thank you including a link to my recipe for Tequila Lime Chicken on your site.
Don’t keep us in suspense though…Did you like it?
Mark
April 4, 2008 at 10:55 pm
Looking for a blueberry muffin recipe??!!! Here is a link to one that is most excellent!
http://dangerouslydeliciousrecipes.com/blog/?p=55
April 7, 2008 at 8:18 am
[...] Plan Monday, April 7 Jump to Comments Oh I had big plans last week, didn’t I? Yes I had the menus, I had the ingredients.. what I didn’t have was a [...]
April 13, 2008 at 9:28 pm
[...] is my ‘Food Triangle Theory’ update (the original post is here): I am happy to report that I have successfully made white bread, wheat bread, pizza crust, [...]
April 14, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Your menu looks so yummy. I made the chili cococa ribs this week also. lol They were yummy.
June 1, 2008 at 10:03 pm
[...] am moving up the food pyramid again, this time up to milk, yogurt and cheese. I have already been dabbling in soaking my grains [...]
June 22, 2008 at 10:35 pm
[...] Jump to Comments It’s been an interesting journey into the Milk and Dairy portion of my food pyramid improvement plan. I thought the changes would be minimal, since my whole family generally likes dairy products. [...]
Leave a Reply