Our Menu: Week of January 21 to 27

First, my apologies for not posting this sooner!  I've been a little busy getting little O on track with sleep and naps.  Here is our menu from the week of January 21 to 27, 2012. 

Mexican Pulled Pork and Pinto Beans (Crock Pot) 

This is a rotating favourite of ours in the fall/winter.  I adapted a recipe called “Pork Burrito Bowls”, which was neither a burrito nor a bowl, into this.  I don’t have a ‘recipe’ per se, but this is what I do:

Sprinkle a package of taco seasoning in the crock pot, pour in some salsa (our fave is Herdez, and I use about half the jar), a cup of water (this amount can vary depending on the size of your pork roast or tenderloin) and add a can of pinto beans (don’t drain).  Stir it up so that the taco seasoning gets well mixed.  Then place a good size pork tenderloin or a 1.5-2 lb pork loin roast in the crock. Spoon some of the liquid over top of the pork. Cook it on high for 6 hours or low for 8, or until the pork is done.  Pull the pork apart with a fork and mix it all up.  I serve it over rice with a dollop of sour cream on top and sometimes some extra salsa.  As a side, we will have steamed broccoli and a salad.   You could also make this into burritos and put it in tortillas. 

Butter Chicken with Cauliflower and Chana Masala 
I buy President’s Choice Butter Chicken sauce, cut up boneless skinless chicken breasts and a head of cauliflower and mix it all together in a big pan on the stovetop.  To make more sauce and to use up all of the sauce left in the jar I pour about ¾ cup of milk in the jar, shake it up and add it to the mix.  For the Chana Masala I bought a small box of spice mix at an Indian market and follow the directions. I use canned chickpeas.  Served with basmati rice cooked in our rice cooker (best invention ever, perfect rice every time), and added a salad to this meal as well.  

Baked Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese 

See my post titled Skinny and Tasty.  Love this recipe!  Served with a salad. If your kids (or husband... ahem, my brother-in-law...) won't eat broccoli, this might be a good way to get it in them. You can't even taste it.

Turkey Meatloaf, Roasted Potatoes, Steamed Asparagus and Salad 

I don’t follow a recipe for my turkey meatloaf, but basically I just mix the ground turkey together with half an envelope of onion soup mix, a good squeeze of BBQ sauce (PC Gourmet is my fave), an egg and about half a cup of bread crumbs.  I always line my loaf pan with parchment paper too (soak the parchment paper in water first for best results).  I also tossed some baby potatoes with olive oil, S&P and garlic powder and roasted them in the oven while the meatloaf was cooking.  Asparagus – just steamed on the stove top.  And a salad.

Quinoa Chicken Broccoli Casserole – from my "Quinoa 365" cookbook 

Love this cookbook so much, but this one was a miss.  Somewhat strange ingredient combination and flavour and not worth talking about.  Wouldn’t make it again!

Sausage, Peppers and Tomatoes over Pasta with Caesar Salad   

This is really simple and a nice alternative to your typical spagballs (as they say in the UK!).  I cook a package of Italian sausages on the stovetop (hot or mild, you choose), and then cut them into 1 inch pieces.  Cut up a couple of peppers (I prefer red or orange), an onion and add in a can of diced tomatoes.  Sprinkle some garlic powder or some fresh minced garlic and maybe a tbsp of oregano and let it cook for a bit.  Serve over brown rice spaghetti.  For the Caesar salad, I cheat and buy it in a bag.