Menu Plan Monday

Last week I wrote that I was on a mission to fill my freezer with breakfast foods and easy-to-reheat dinners. Well, I think I did a pretty good job. I made 2 batches of banana bread (8 mini loaves) and a batch of vanilla muffin mix. Both will last us for several weeks. I am still planning to make zucchini bread as Miss M keeps requesting it. I also tried some new recipes and found some winners.

The tetrazzini was good, but not a hit with the whole family. They'll eat it, but won't request it. Bummer since it made 2 8"x8" casseroles - plenty for my family of 4 for many meals. If I make it again, I will make it in loaf pans to make the sizes more family-friendly for us.

The Amazing Pork Loin was amazing. I think I liked this one better than I ever did in France! We all definitely prefer the meat with some of the juices to dip in though.

The caramelized onion pot roast was good. My husband didn't like the taste of the onions, but enjoyed the meat. Both of the Misses liked the meat and deemed it a keeper.

I need to make the Coffee beef roast again. I took it to a party on New Year's Eve, and did not prepare the gravy as directed. The meat seemed to have good flavor, and I had several people tell me how much they enjoyed it. I just didn't eat much of it so don't have too much of an opinion. My husband did say that he would like to have it again. That is pretty big praise for a meal from him. I won't write it off yet.

We didn't get to the soup or tangy pork roast so those have been moved to this week. Here is what else we are having this week:

Mustard Glazed Pork Chops, Rosemary chicken with white beans, Beer can chicken in the oven, tacos, prime rib leftovers with mashed potatoes, and manicotti leftovers (recipes will follow)

I hope you are enjoying your week. If you are in the mood for some new menu ideas, check out OrgJunkie and her weekly menu roundup.

Here are the recipes:

Mustard-Glazed Pork Chops

1/4 cup bread crumbs salt and pepper

4 boneless pork chops, 1 inch thick

Cooking spray 4 tsp Dijon-style mustard

*Preheat oven to 450 F

* In a small bowl, stir together bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Season the pork chops with more salt and pepper and place chops on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.

* Spread the tops of each pork chop with 1 teaspoon of the mustard then sprinkle with the seasoned bread crumbs (pat crumbs gently so that they adhere to the chops)

* Bake chops about 10 minutes until the crust is golden and the pork is cooked through - it should register 160 F on an instant read thermometer.

Beer Can Chicken

1 Tbsp packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp sweet paprika
2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 chicken rinsed and dried (chicken should be about 3.5 lbs)
1 (12 oz) can of beer

1. Combine first 7 ingredients
2. Loosen skin along the chicken breast and thighs; place about 1 Tbsp of spice rub under skin. Sprinkle the rest of the rub over the outside of the chicken, and inside the cavity. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 20 minutes to 6 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350 F
4. Wash and rinse unopened beer can; pour our 1/2 of the beer. Make 2 more holes in the top of the can.
5. Insert can into the cavity of the chicken with bird upright; legs will make a tripod.
6. Cook 1 to 1.5 hours until thigh temp is 180 F.
7. Remove, stand 10 minutes. Remove can and carve.


OrgJunkie