Menu Plan Week of 01/19/14-01/25/14

Good morning all!

Here is this week's menu plan! I was getting ready to post my menu along with other blogger's menus on www.orgjunkie.com and I saw a post about setting up beverage stations. It was super cute and a fun idea to try! Check out the other tips on the website about getting organized. Be sure to also check out the other menu's to get some ideas for your own menu plan this week. You can find them and mine here!

Hope you all have a great week!


Menu Plan Week of 01/19/14-01/25/14

Rocky Road Cupcakes

My son is a big time chocolate chip cookie lover. Whenever I ask him what he wants me to make, his answer is always chocolate chip cookies (or mac & cheese). This time I said “What about something else?” He says “I want chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting.” I agreed but I like adding a little extra to the cupcakes so they aren’t so plain looking. The kids love marshmallows so I decided to throw a few minis on top and add some pecans to the base and the frosting. Check it out at the link below!

Rocky Road Cupcakes

Menu Plan Monday - NEW WEBSITE!

First things first - I am now the proud owner of my own domain! For Christmas, that is what my husband got me! I'm so excited about it and I hope you'll follow me over to my new and improved site! Instead of posting the actual recipe or topic - I will provide a link to the actual post on my new site once I get everything up and running. I'm transferring all of my previous posts to the new site so you can still find everything there. So be on the lookout for that!

Second - here is this week's menu plan! It's full of warm recipes since it is bitter cold and snow covered where I'm at! Check out some other menu plans here, hosted by www.orgjunkie.com!

Menu Plan Monday - Week of 12/29/13-01/04/13

Good Morning All!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday! I know we sure did. We wrapped up our 12 Days of Giving, went to Midnight Mass, celebrated with all of our families, relaxed a little, spent extra time together - it was perfect! I'm not too thrilled to be back to the normal Monday craziness but that's what pays the bills! We've been discussing our New Year's goals (not resolutions!). I'll be posting those later in the week. What are some of your goals or resolutions for 2014? Save money? Lose weight? Travel? Strengthen your faith? I hope to help those of you that answered yes to some of these... we've got some big plans for the new year! If you are looking to get a little more organized this year, check out the Menu Plan Monday hosting site www.orgjunkie.com. If you click on this link, you will also find some other menu plans to start your week and new year off right! Enjoy bringing in the New Year and stay safe!!!

29	30	31	1	2	3	4
SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY
Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast
egg	tofu eggs	Breakfast	cinnamon rolls	tofu eggs	fruit/nut	scones
toast	muffin	quinoa	hashbrowns	toast	cereal	eggs
banana	fruit	apples	orange	banana	apple	fruit
tea/milk	tea/milk	tea/milk	tea/milk	tea/milk	tea/milk	tea/milk
Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
chicken	olive	fruit & nut	leftover	lettuce	chicken	chicken
veggie	chicken	salad	pasta	wraps	soup	chili
spring rolls	lettuce wraps	carrots	salmon	carrots	rolls	cornbread
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner
leftovers	salmon	butternut sq.	crockpot	chicken	KIDS	tuna steaks
or	asparagus	pasta	roast chicken	enchilada	CHOICE	kale salad
salad	salad	kale	potatoes	casserole	burgers	squash
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack
pretzels	apples	celery/PB	apples	pretzels	smoothie	smoothie
orange	carrots	pretzels	carrots/hummus	celery/PB	carrots	trailmix
brownies	chocolates	party food!	milk shake	cookies	fruit pizza	cupcakes

I hope 2014 brings as many blessings as 2013!

Menu Plan Monday - week of 12/22/13-12/28/13

Oh boy--- 2 days until Christmas!?! We are so ready! Presents are wrapped, house is cleaned, goodies have been made... now comes the waiting... impatiently. I might be worse than the kids! On Christmas morning, I will likely be awake at 4 or 5 am... laying in bed until I hear my son rustling around. Or if I'm sneaky enough, I can quietly wake him up before my husband finds out. Apparently, it's weird if you wake up before the kids - just ask him.

"Is it Christmas yet?!"

Here's this week's meal plan. Notice Christmas Day is a little crazy. I plan on eating junk. So it may be a healthier version of junk but still not our usual treats! Lots of GF cookies, candies, cakes, etc. We are having brunch at our house and that will include some scones, cinnamon rolls, etc. Make sure you check out what the other bloggers have lined up this week at OrgJunkie.com's host site for this week's Menu Plan Monday. I'm sure they have lots of great meals, tips,etc for you!

22	23	24	25	26	27	28
SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY
Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast
cinnamon	egg	banana	CHRISTMAS	cranberry	scrm egg	french
rolls	muffin	smoothie	BRUNCH	scones	apple/milk	toast
fruit	banana	toast	(pancakes)	banana	smoothie	banana
tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea
Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
spaghetti	shrimp	kale	ham	chicken	veggie	mixed
squash w/ olives	veggie	salad	potatoes	lettuce	baked	veggie
garlic bread	rice	fruit	lots of food!	wraps	potatoes	salad
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner
bean/corn	baked	stuffed	leftovers	bean	KIDS	turkey
nachos	chicken	acorn	cookies	soup	CHOICE	taco
salad	spaghetti sq.	squash	splurge!	cornbread	(pizza)	salad
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack
graham crackers	carrots	cheese	all	carrots	PB celery	veggies
oranges	celery	grapes	kinds of	apple	trailmix	trailmix
cookie	trailmix	popcorn	goodies!	yogurt	fruit	GF granola

Peanut Butter Popcorn Mix

Think of this like Chex Mix – popcorn style, drowned in peanut butter. It’s fantastic. This would make a perfect homemade holiday treat to give a loved one or neighbor. Throw it in a cutesy container, slap on a bow and you’ve got yourself a wonderful, tasty, thoughtful gift! Makes about 5 cups of mix

3 cups popped plain popcorn

1 cup rice cereal (like Chex - any flavor will work)

¼ cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)

½ cup oats, toasted (heat them in a greased skillet)

½ cup coconut flakes, toasted (heat them in a greased skillet)

1 cup all natural peanut butter (other nut or seed butters will work also)

¼ cup honey

¼ cup sugar or stevia

½ cup butter or coconut oil

• In a large saucepan, melt peanut butter, honey, sugar and butter/oil until melted and smooth. 
• In a large mixing bowl, combine popcorn, cereal, nuts, oats and coconut flakes. 
• Drizzle peanut butter mixture over popcorn mix and stir until mix is coated with peanut butter sauce. 
• Spread evenly over a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 
• Bake at 250°F for about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let set for about an hour. Break apart and put into sealed containers. 

Gingerbread Pancakes

Wouldn’t these be perfect for Christmas morning?? You bet they would! My kids loved helping making them and loved eating them even more. We have so many cookie cutters that we use maybe once a year. This idea gave us two uses this year – ha! You have to use metal cookie cutters, or at least ones that won’t melt on the griddle. Be sure to spray them with cooking spray so the batter doesn’t stick. Makes about 8-10 servings

1 ½ cup GF all purpose flour

3/4 cup almond milk

½ cup coffee, strong brewed

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp allspice

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg

• In a large mixing bowl, combine ingredients. Blend over medium speed for about 30 seconds or until well combined. If batter is too runny, add in additional flour or if it is too dry, add in additional milk – consistency will depend on the GF flour blends used. 
• Place greased cookie cutters onto a hot griddle. Slowly pour batter into cutters and cook first side about 10 minutes. Flip pancakes and cutters and cook on the other side for about 5 minutes. 
• Carefully remove pancakes from cookie cutters (they will be hot!). Serve with maple syrup or powdered sugar. 

Mini Polenta Pizzas

These little pizzas are a favorite at our house. They are fun for the kids and really quick and easy to make. In addition, it is gluten-free and low-fat. Polenta is a perfect alternative for carb filled pizza crust. You can use homemade polenta or cheat a little and use pre-made. Either way this is an easy, filling and delicious recipe!

1 roll of polenta (or homemade cut into small slices)

¼ cup balsamic vinaigrette

½ cup mushrooms, diced

1 cup fresh spinach

1 tbsp olive oil

¼ tsp minced garlic

¼ tsp sea salt

¼ tsp black pepper

2 small tomatoes, sliced thin

Shredded cheese

• In a large skillet, sauté mushrooms, spinach and garlic in olive oil until slightly tender. 
• On a large greased cookie sheet, place thin slices of polenta (about ¼ in thick). 
• Using a pastry brush, spread on balsamic vinaigrette over polenta slices. 
• Top each slice with a little of the mushroom/spinach mixture. Then top each slice with a tomato slice and sprinkle with cheese. 
• Bake at 375°F for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. I got one roll of polenta to make about 15 pizza slices. 

Meal Plan Monday - week of 12/15/13-12/21/13

Happy Monday All!

Just over a week until Christmas!!! Are you ready?! We are slowly getting there! This week we will be starting our holiday goodie baking and prep! We've finished the grocery shopping we could so we'd be able to avoid some crowds (hopefully!). Now we just have to make everything! We are in full swing of our 12 Days of Giving. It's proven to be a lot of work but worth it! We will be going to the homeless shelter, library, fire dept, etc to deliver our goodies! Here is this week's menu plan. Be sure to check out www.orgjunkie.com for some organizing tips! Here's a link to all the other menu plan's hosted on their site.

Potato Hash and Eggs

Have a great week!

15	16	17	18	19	20	21
SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY
Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast
french	egg	maple	PB/banana	potato hash	poached egg	currant
toast	toast	oatmeall	toast	toast	toast	scones
fruit	banana	apple	egg	egg	apple	fruit
tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea
Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
bean sprout	salad w/	lettuce wraps	salad w/	lettuce wraps	PB&J	veggies
& cucumber	beets	hummus	beans	quacamole	sandwich	stew
sandwich	crackers	carrots	fruit	crackers	carrots	hot rolls
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner
turkey	shrimp	turkey	leftovers	baked	KIDS	chicken
meatballs	stirfry	chili	chili/rice	chicken	CHOICE	parmesan
mac & cheese	rice	cornbread	salad	potatoes	tacos	salad
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack
smoothie	fruit	smoothie	cheese	trailmix	nuts	cheese
veggies	nuts	trailmix	veggies	fruit	veggies	almonds
cupcakes	milk shake	fruit nachos	cookies	frozen yogurt	smores	brownies

Stuffed Pizza Bites

I don’t know about you but my kids love anything they can eat with their hands or on a stick. My son actually ate dinner the other night solely with a toothpick just because he could. Anyway, we also love pizza so to make everyone happy, I just made these little pizza balls. They are perfect for kids! Plus you can customize them and stuff them with your favorite topping ingredients. They are a little more work than rolling out pizza dough onto a pan but it saves on the fight at dinner later. I actually got my son to eat these with NO complaints – and they were stuffed with spinach and mushrooms (something he hates!). I hope your family enjoys these as much as mine did! Makes about 16-20 dough bites (depending on your dough recipe!)

1 recipe for GF pizza dough (I made a batch of Bob’s Red Mill and threw some spices into the dough)

Extra GF flour for rolling out dough bites (maybe ¼ cup)
¼ cup diced onions
1 cup spinach
½ cup diced mushrooms
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Italian seasoning (I like oregano, basil, thyme blend)
½ cup shredded cheese (I used DF)
1 can diced tomatoes plus 1 tsp italian seasoning

• In a small blender (I used my Magic Bullet), blend tomatoes and 1 tsp Italian seasoning until smooth. This will be your dipping sauce for your pizza bites!
• In a large skillet, sauté spinach, onions and mushrooms in olive oil. Add Italian seasoning to vegetable mixture.
• On a clean floured surface, roll out pizza dough into a large ¼” thick circle. Cut circle into about 2” squares (they don’t have to be perfect).
• Place dough square in the palm of your hand. Spoon on about ½ tsp of tomato sauce, 1-2 tsp of vegetable mixture and 1 tsp of cheese.
• Wrap up the dough mixture around the stuffing and secure seams, making the pizza balls. Repeat with remaining dough and ingredients.
• Place stuffed dough balls into a greased baking dish (a 2 qt dish should work).
• Bake at 450°F for about 20-25 minutes or until dough is cooked and starting to brown.
• Top with some tomato sauce and additional shredded cheese if desired and serve with dipping sauce!

Menu Plan Monday Week of 12/8/13-12/14/13

Good Monday Morning All!

It's just over two weeks until Christmas! Crazy!!! On Saturday, Dec 14 we will begin our 12 Days of Giving so check back often to see what we've been up to! Also, I will be posting a lot of Christmas recipes that are great for gifts or for yourself!

Be sure to check out OrgJunkie.com to get the rest of this week's menu plans and other organizing tips! Plus there is a bonus giveaway this week! Check it out!!

Have a great week!

8	9	10	11	12	13	14
SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY
Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast	Breakfast
oatmeal	egg	scrambled egg	breakfast	scrambled egg	oatmeal	pumpkin
banana	toast	toast	casserole	w/ veggies	berries	french toast
apple	banana	banana	fruit	banana sandwich	almond milk	banana
tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea	tea
Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
salad	chicken	salad	salad	turkey	salad	veggie
with chicken	dumpling	hummus/carrots	w/ veggies	lettuce wraps	hummus	pizza
carrots	soup	crackers	chicken	fruit	celery	wraps
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner	Dinner
chicken	shrimp	turkey	leftover	chicken	KIDS	bean soup
dumpling	stir fry	stroganoff	turkey or	potstickers	CHOICE	salad
soup	veggies	salad	stirfry	rice	(burgers)	biscuits
water	water	water	water	water	water	water
Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack	Snack
granola	apple/orange	smoothie	trailmix	celery	smoothie	smoothie
cheese stick	carrots/celery	fruit/nuts	cheese	apple	carrots	orange
spiced apples	cookies	apple nachos	fruit	banana parfait	frozen yogurt	cookies

Here's a sneak peak to my Chicken & Dumpling Soup - recipe to come soon!!