Week 6 Meal Plan

This week I've decided to go lighter. A little less meat and a little lighter cost, that is. But don't worry; it's nothing drastic.

Although I enjoyed last week's meals, there was too much meat for my taste and too much money spent (thanks in part to my pesto snafu; sorry about that). Ah well, that's the good thing about meal planning: there's always another week to try all over again!

Wednesday
Baked Potatoes, Green Salad, Peas

Thursday
Parmesan Tilapia, Rolls, Broccoli, Cauliflower

Friday
Sloppy Joes, Carrots, Round Fries

Saturday
Go out or eat leftovers.

Sunday
Cabbage Chicken Salad, Carrots, Fruit

Monday
Chicken Chili, Cornbread, Green Salad

Tuesday
Palamino Pasta, Green Beans, Fruit

For this week's Tips click here.

For this week's grocery list, click here.

Week 6 Tips

Wednesday
Only use half of your lettuce. Save the rest for Monday.


Friday
The Sloppy Joes are easy enough to make, but they need a couple hours to simmer. Start in the afternoon so the food will be ready by dinner time.

If you have any leftover rolls after dinner, save them to toast as garlic bread to go with the salad on Sunday.


Sunday
Start your Cabbage Chicken Salad ahead of time. You can start it in the morning, or even Saturday night.


Monday
Don't forget to start the crock pot in the morning! You can even start on low the night before if you prefer.

While the cornbread bakes, shred the chicken and finish the chili.

Week 6 Grocery List-- with Prices!

This week I shopped at Maceys.

Ingredients for Week 6 Dinners
I need to purchase:
5 large potatoes ($1.79)
1 bunch green onions ($.50)
1 head lettuce ($.99)
broccoli ($.51)
cauliflower ($.39)
2 onions (.70)
1 medium head cabbage ($1.05)
1 red bell pepper ($1.00)
carrots ($1.49)
fruit ($1.00)
milk (1 gallon = $1.88)
cream (I'll just use milk)
eggs (1 dozen= $1.39)
Parmesan cheese ($2.59)
1 dozen rolls or hamburger buns (rolls $2.79)
1 lb tilapia fillets ($3.98)
1 (5 oz) pkg slivered almonds ($2.89)
1 (11.5 oz) can tomato juice ($.79)

In total, I paid 25.73 for this week's six dinners.

Here's the approximate breakdown:

Baked Potatoes, Green Salad, Peas cost me $2.18.
Parmesan Tilapia, Rolls, Broccoli, Cauliflower cost me $7.11.
Sloppy Joes, Carrots, Round Fries cost me $4.10.
Cabbage Chicken Salad, Carrots, Fruit cost me $5.44.
Chicken Chili, Cornbread, Salad cost me $2.83.
Palamino Pasta, Green Beans, Fruit cost me $4.09.

I will be using from my pantry:
1 lb ground beef
3 chicken breasts
sour cream
cheese
2 pkg chicken flavored Ramen
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 (14 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 can green beans
2-3 cans beans (black, white, pinto, or kidney)
spaghetti sauce
16 oz bowtie pasta
frozen peas
frozen corn
butter
Miracle whip or mayo
lemon juice
ketchup
vinegar
mustard
flour
corn meal
baking powder
brown sugar
sugar
Worcester sauce
oil
cumin
chili powder
basil
salt and pepper
minced onion
garlic powder
sesame seeds

I also stocked up on these items:
1 dozen English muffins to freeze- I have an idea to use these next week ($2.50)
4 lbs Western Family butter to freeze ($1.58 each = $6.32)
5 loaves Macey's cottage bread to freeze ($.98 each = $4.90)
2 lbs Western Family medium cheddar cheese ($3.49 using the coupon book that came in the mail last week)
2 Dryers ice cream ($2.49 on sale with two $1/1 coupons = $1.49 each or $2.98 total)
fruits and veggies

Baked Potatoes, Green Salad, Peas

Top your baked potatoes with your own favorite toppings. If you prefer meat on your potatoes, try last night's leftover beef stroganoff, a can of chili, bacon bits, ham, etc.

4 large potatoes or 8 small ones

toppings:
1/2 c sour cream
1/2 c shredded cheese
3 green onions, sliced
salt and pepper
etc.

green salad

frozen peas


Preheat oven to 350. Scrub potatoes. Pierce each potato skin several times with a fork. Place potatoes on a baking sheet and bake for 1 1/2 hours. Check with a fork to make sure they are done. Cut down the middle and top with desired toppings.

Prepare green salad.

Microwave frozen peas. Season with salt and pepper.

Parmesan Tilapia, Rolls, Broccoli, Cauliflower

I got this tilapia recipe from my sister-in-law Amber, who found it somewhere. It is our favorite fish recipe by far. Tilapia is a very mild-tasting white fish. Fish isn't cheap, but compared to salmon or other kinds of fish, tilapia is relatively inexpensive. Enjoy!

1/2 c Parmesan cheese
1 T butter, softened
1 T mayo or Miracle Whip
2 T lemon juice
1/4 t dried basil
1/4 t black pepper
1 t minced onion
1/4 t garlic powder
1 lb tilapia fillets (2-4 fillets)

broccoli florets
cauliflower florets

4 rolls


Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl, mix together Parmesan topping (Parmesan cheese through garlic powder). Arrange fish fillets in a foil-lined pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cut each fillet in half lengthwise. Cover fillets with Parmesan cheese mixture on the top side. Turn oven to broil. Broil 2 minutes a few inches from the heat (or 4 minutes from the middle rack), or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Steam broccoli and cauliflower. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve rolls at the table.

Sloppy Joes, Carrots, Round Fries

This sloppy joe recipe is from my great-grandma.

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1/4 c ketchup
2 T vinegar
3 T mustard
1 (11.5 oz) can tomato juice
4 T brown sugar
1 T Worcester sauce
4-8 rolls or hamburger buns

1 large potato, cut into thin circles
steak seasoning or salt and pepper

1/3 lb baby carrots


In a large frying pan, brown ground beef with onion. Drain off fat. Add next 6 ingredients (ketchup through Worcester sauce). Simmer on low for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every half hour, until thick. Serve on buns.

Preheat oven to 400. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Place potato slices in a single layer. Spray with more cooking spray. Season with steak seasoning or salt and pepper. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until desired crispiness.

Cabbage Chicken Salad, Carrots, Fruit

The cabbage chicken salad recipe is from my Grandma. The longer you refrigerate the salad, the more marinated the cabbage becomes. For more crisp cabbage, only refrigerate for 30 minutes. For marinated cabbage (the way my Grandma made it), prepare the night before.

2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 medium head cabbage, chopped
4 green onions, sliced
1 (5 oz) pkg slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 c sesame seeds, toasted

1/2 c oil
1/2 c vinegar
3 T sugar
1 t salt
1 t pepper
2 flavoring packets from Ramen

2 pkgs Chicken flavored Ramen noodles, broken

1/3 lb baby carrots

fruit of your choice


To cook the chicken, place in a pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then lower heat to medium. Simmer until chicken is cooked through; check after about 15 minutes. Remove to a plate to cool, then cut into small cubes.

To toast almonds and sesame seeds: In a dry frying pan, place almonds and heat to medium heat. Stir often as almonds begin to brown. Once almonds are toasted golden brown, remove to a plate to cool. Repeat the process to toast the sesame seeds. Cool sesame seeds.

Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl (chicken through sesame seeds). Whisk together dressing ingredients (oil through Ramen flavoring packets). Pour dressing over salad mixture and refrigerate 30 minutes to overnight. Just before serving, stir in Ramen noodles.

Serve salad with raw carrots and fruit on the side.

Chicken Chili, Cornbread, Green Salad

The chicken chili recipe is my adaptation of a recipe on AllRecipes. The cornbread recipe is from my mother.

Chicken Chili
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 (14 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 chicken breast (or 2 if you prefer more meat)
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
2-3 cans beans (black, white, pinto, or kidney), rinsed and drained
1 can corn (or a couple handfuls frozen corn)
3/4 c chicken broth, approximately

In a crock pot, combine both cans tomatoes, chicken, garlic, cumin, chili powder. Cook on high all day.

Meanwhile, finish the chili. Shred the chicken in the pot. Add the beans, corn, and broth to desired consistency. Cover and cook another 30 minutes to 2 hours.


Cornbread
1/3 c butter
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 c flour
1 1/4 c corn meal
3 t baking powder
3/4 c sour cream
1 c milk

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and beat. Mix in remaining cornbread ingredients (flour through milk). Pour into a lightly greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 30- 40 minutes, until edges are slightly pulled away from the pan.



Green Salad
Prepare green salad.

Palamino Pasta, Green Beans, Fruit

The palamino pasta recipe is from my mom. She got it years ago in a magazine or newspaper article. My family loved pasta, so this was a favorite growing up.

1 T butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T flour
3/4 c milk
1/2 c cream (I may just use milk; we'll see)
1/2 t salt
1 1/4 c spaghetti sauce
16 oz bowtie pasta
1/4 c Parmesan cheese (or try 1/2 c mozzarella if you have it)
1/4 c fresh basil, sliced (or try 1 1/2 T dry basil)

1 can green beans

fruit of your choice


In a large skillet, saute onion, bell pepper and garlic in butter until tender. Add flour and cook 1 minute. Stir in milk, cream, and salt. Bring to a boil at medium-high heat. Stir in spaghetti sauce. (If using dry basil in place of fresh, add that now.) Boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to directions; drain. Return pasta to pot. Add sauce and toss to coat. Top with Parmesan cheese and basil.

Microwave green beans.

Prepare fruit.