What’s for Dinner?

Kelly over at According to Kelly had a great idea for a Menu Exchange.The premise is simple – make a week of dinner menus. Write it up. Share it with Kelly. She’s then going to take all the contributions and make them into an e-book! How awesome is that!? An entire book of other blog mommas’ favorite recipes!

You have until Thursday to join in. I hope you do… the more recipes, the better.

This week, LM starts daycare, and I’m going back to work! So, I’m using this week’s dinner menus for my contribution:

1 lb ground turkey (you could use ground beef, but we’re using less red meat around here)
6oz Stovetop Stuffing
1c water
1/2 c shredded cheese
1tbsp garlic powder
3/4 c BBQ sauce
1 can peas
2 tbsp butter (optional)
4 baking potatoes
baked potato toppings (butter/sour cream/cheese/green onions/bacon/whatever)
Heat oven to 375. Mix meat, stuffing, cheese, garlic powder and BBQ sauce. Press into 12 greased muffin cups. Bake 30 min.
Last 10 min – clean potatoes. Pierce several times with fork. Put in microwave for 3 min. Turn over and around. Cook another 3 minutes. Keep turning and cooking until done.
Open can of peas. Drain. Dump peas into microwave-safe bowl with 2 tbsp butter (if desired). Cook 3 minutes in microwave.

3 whole chicken breasts, split and de-boned
6 pieces thinly sliced ham
6 slices swiss cheese
salt & pepper
about 1 1/2c chicken broth
French bread
Butter/margarine
Garlic Powder
Bag of Salad
1-2 Tomatoes
Split chicken breasts along the thickness to make two thinner pieces. Place a slice of ham and cheese each. sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roll up and place fold down into crock pot. Repeat with all chicken pieces. Pour chicken broth over top until barely covered. Cook in crock pot for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
Slice garlic bread. Spread on a generous amount of butter/margarine, sprinkle with garlic powder, and put under the broiler for 4-6 minutes. Dice tomato and put over top of bagged salad.

8 oz bow tie pasta
12 oz spicy Italian sausage links
2 med red bell peppers, cut into 3/4″ pieces
1/2c vegetable or beef broth
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 c snipped Italian parsley
Cook pasta according to package directions. Cut sausage into 1″ pieces and cook with peppers over med-high heat until sausage is brown. Drain off fat. Stir in broth and pepper, bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 min. Remove from heat, add pasta and parsley and toss gently to coat.

1 lb ground turkey (you can use ground beef)
1 pkg taco seasoning
2 c chicken broth
1/4c flour
1 c sour cream
1 can (7oz) diced green chiles
2 c Jack or Cheddar cheese
1/2c sliced green onions
tortilla chips
Heat oven to 375. Brown meat, drain fat. Add taco spices and mix well. In small bowl, mix broth and flour, then add to meat mixture. Bring to boil to thicken slightly. Stir in sour cream and chiles. layer meat, cheese and green onions, then meat cheese and green onions again in a 13×9 casserole dish. Bake 20 min. Serve over tortilla chips.

1/4 c tomatoes
6 oz penne or bow tie pasta
2 c green beans cut into 1 1/2″ pieces
1 med yellow squash, sliced and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 c milk
3/4 c chicken broth
1 green onion. sliced
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp lemon-pepper seasoning
1/4 tsp salt
1 lb boneless pork loin chops
1 tbsp olive oil.
Cook pasta according to package directions, adding in green beans. Add in squash the last 2 min. Stir together milk, chicken broth, green onion, cornstarch, lemon-pepper and salt. Set aside. Trip fat from pork chops. Season lightly with additional lemon pepper and salt. cook in skillet over med heat for 10-12 min until just slightly pink in the center and juices run clear, turning once. Remove from skillet and cut into thin bite-sized strips. Drain fat from skillet and pour into cornstarch mixture. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly, scraping brown bits from bottom. Reduce heat and cook for 2 more minutes to thicken. Stir in tomatoes. Serve pasta topped with pork, spooning sauce over the top.

Cooking Spray
1/2 lb shredded mozarella
1/2 pkg pepperoni
3 med tomatoes, cored and diced
1 loaf french bread, cut into cubes
5 eggs
1 1/4c milk
1/2 c sour cream
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Day before: Spray 9×13″ casserole dish with cooking spray. In large bowl, toss together mozzarella, pepperoni, tomatoes & bread. Arrange evenly in baking pan. Beat eggs, add milk, sour cream, oregano, basil and garlic powder and beat well. Pour egg mixture over bread, tilting pan to coat bread evenly. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
Next Day: Remove from fridge and leave at room temp for 20 minutes. Heat oven to 350, uncover and bake 35-45 minutes or until golden brown and crisp on top.

Hamburger Patties
Hamburger Buns
Fixin’s: tomatoes, lettuce, onion, pickle
cheese slices
condiments: mayo, mustard, katsup
bag of frozen fries
Prepare frozen fries as directed. Have dad grill up burgers, adding cheese in last minute so it gets “melty.” Enjoy a night off from cooking!

I’m looking forward to trying everyone’s contributions!

Always,