Coupon Brag

Today was a banner day in my Coupon World.

First I stopped at Walgreens to pick up photos for our Christmas cards (yeah, I'm THAT behind.) I had ordered them online using a sweet 25%-off deal.

The photos weren't ready yet, but there were a few other things I needed at the store. So I picked up the Dr. Pepper (on sale, pretty good price) and found some candy bars that I had BOGO coupons for. I told the photo clerk that I'd be back for the pictures after I ran some other errands. When I paid for my other stuff, I got a "save $2 on your next purchase" coupon at the register.

Next stop, Shop Rite, where they had some great sales this week. Plus they'd sent me a "save $10 on a $100 purchase" coupon that was only good through Saturday. Post cereals were on sale 2/$3 AND I had a few coupons for "save $4 on 4." I bought 8 boxes of cereal and paid $4--then got back $4 in catalina coupons. 8 boxes of good cereal--FREE! (For the record, that was 4 Honey Bunches of Oats, 3 Grape Nuts Flakes and 1 Shredded Wheat.) All in all, I had 10 bags of groceries including 12 boxes of cereal, 1 roasting chicken, 12 chicken legs, 3 pounds of chicken breasts, juice, milk, bread, cheese, ice cream, peanut butter and more. After store sales and coupons I paid $65 for all that. My coupon and sale savings totaled $70!

Cha-Ching! I'm stocking the freezer and the pantry--and it was ALL ON SALE.

Then I went back to Walgreens, got my pictures, and used that $2 off coupon on top of the 25% off I'd already saved!

Sesame Chicken Bites

Sesame Chicken Bites (prep /total time 30 min)

1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup sesame seeds
2tsp minced fresh parsley
1/2 cup mayo
1tsp onion powder
1tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp pepper
1 lb boneless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
HONEY MUSTARD SAUCE
3/4 cup mayo
4 1/2 tsp Honey (or honey flavored syrup)
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
In large resealable plastic bag combine,crumbs ,sesame seed and parsley, set aside.
In small bowl combine, mayo,onion powder,pepper,and mustard.
Coat chicken in mayonaisse mixture,then add to crumb mix a few pieces at a time, and shake the pieces in the bag.
In large skillet, saute the chicken in oil, in batches, until the juices run clear.
In small bowl combine the sauce ingredients for dipping.
8 to 10 servings

Source: sandieluvsbears at Family Corner

Menu Plan December 2009

TUES 1: Pork roast with rosemary roasted potatoes

WED 2: Scarborough Fair Chicken Soup, Outback Steakhouse bread

THURS 3: Spaghetti and meatballs

FRI 4: takeout

SAT 5: Hawaiian Chicken

SUN 6: Big Brother's Eagle Scout Ceremony and Philly-Food Extravaganza, featuring cheesesteaks, hoagies, Philly pretzels and Boost (actually a Riverside, NJ beverage, and you don't get any more local than that)

MON 7: Cheesesteaks (leftovers)

TUES 8: Balsamic Chicken with Thyme

WED 9: Cheesesteaks (leftovers)

THURS 10: Spaghetti & meatballs

FRI 11: Pizza

SAT 12: Cheesy Garlic Chicken

SUN 13: Diner

MON 14: Pork Chops in Lemon-Garlic Marinade

TUES 15: Sesame Chicken Bites

WED 16: Beef enchiladas

THURS 17: Spaghetti

FRI 18: Waffles

SAT 19: Roast chicken, baked potatoes, Stove Top stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce

SUN 20: Baked 20 dozen Christmas cookies! For dinner, Italian Veal Stew over linguine.



TO TRY: Sesame Chicken Bites

Monster Cookies

In Big Brother's Scout troop, a summer-camp tradition is a big tin of Monster Cookies, baked by the Assistant Scoutmaster's wife.

Since we're preparing for Big Brother's Eagle Scout Court of Honor on Sunday, I thought I'd make a batch of these cookies to bring along as part of the dessert. First I checked with the usual baker of the cookies, just to make sure she wouldn't be upset if someone else made her signature dish. I think she thought I was silly for asking, but I've seen that kind of thing backfire before, so I just wanted to be sure.

This batch makes 100 or so cookies if you use the same size scoop I have. It does NOT fit in a stand mixer--you need a Really Big Bowl for these. And a really big cookie jar.

I am not responsible for any wooden spoons broken during the process of stirring these cookies. You have been warned. Use a really sturdy spoon to stir the batter!

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup (2 sticks) margarine, softened
2 cups sugar
2 cups brown sugar
3 cups peanut butter
6 eggs
1 1/2 tsp corn syrup
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 tsp baking soda
9 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 bag (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups M&Ms (I think I used 3 cups--didn't measure these!)

I used a stand mixer to help the beginning of this process along. Cover baking sheets with silicone liners or parchment paper.

Cream margarine, sugars, peanut butter together. Beat in eggs, then add corn syrup and vanilla.

At this point, transfer the batter to your super-huge bowl (Mrs. Assistant Scoutmaster recommends "sink-size").

Add baking soda and oats and mix.

Mix in chocolate chips and M&Ms.

Using an ice cream scoop (I used the Pampered Chef model), scoop balls of dough onto your baking sheet. Leave plenty of room between cookies. I only put 8 balls of dough on each full-size baking sheet.

You can flatten the cookies slightly if you want. You probably should. I didn't, but I think it would have been a good idea.

Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes. I switched the pans from bottom rack to top midway through baking.

Cool completely before serving/storing.

Maple-Hoisin Salmon

This recipe is a super-easy and delicious way to make salmon. The whole thing including preheating the oven takes 25 minutes!

I tripled the recipe and changed the directions a little bit from the original.

3 tablespoon maple syrup
3 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
6 6-oz salmon fillets

Preheat oven to 400. Brush Pyrex pan with olive oil.

Combine first 4 ingredients in a small bowl.

Place salmon skin-side down in prepared pan. Brush with sauce.

Bake 15 minutes.

Serves 6.

Source

Secrets of a Lazy Dishwasher

I'd label this "secrets of a lazy cook" but my laziness really comes in when it comes to cleanup, not to cooking itself.

I'm all about the shortcuts.

But I have some very nice pots and pans that are not dishwasher safe. Sometimes that's a real pain in the neck. It's so much nicer at the end of a meal to just toss everything in the dishwasher and be done with it.

It took me long enough, but I finally remembered that I have Corning Ware. I can cook on the stovetop with it. I can use it in the oven, or even the microwave. Best of all, it's dishwasher safe!

I'll definitely be using the Corning Ware for more than au gratin potatoes and baked beans.

Chicken Caroline

An original recipe by my friend Caroline! We loved it.

Get the recipe with photo and nutrition facts at Cook and Count!

Apple Pie

This recipe has been in my family a long time. We got it from the lady who used to live in the apartment downstairs from my grandmother. Mrs. Heerschap was famous for her apple pie.

Get this recipe along with a photo and nutrition information at CookAndCount.

Honey Pork Chops

Here is my version of Honey Pork Chops, inspired by the recipe at Alicia's Recipes. I make this in a foil packet for easy cleanup. This can even be done in individual foil packets if you prefer.

1 Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
2 apples, peeled & thinly sliced (tart, firm apples like Granny Smith work best)
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons caraway seeds, divided
6 boneless pork chops, (1/2" thick)*
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 TBL Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 9X13 baking dish with enough foil that it can be used as a cover. Spray with nonstick baking spray. Layer onions and apples in the bottom of the dish. Drizzle honey on top and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon caraway seeds. Sprinkle pork chops with garlic salt and pepper and spread mustard on them. Place chops on apples (mustard side up) and sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon caraway seeds. Cover and bake 45 minutes.

Note: Thicker or bone-in pork chops will need a longer cook time.

NOVEMBER 2009 Menu Plan

Updated as I go.

SUN. Nov. 1: Ham and cabbage at Mom & Dad's.

MON. Nov. 2: Easy Chicken Enchiladas

TUES. Nov. 3: Dr. Pepper Pork Roast (this was a "technology fail" since we got home from a basketball game almost an hour late. It was, shall we say, quite overcooked.)

WED. Nov. 4: Garlic & cheddar chicken, yellow rice, mixed vegetables

THURS. Nov. 5: Spaghetti

FRI. Nov. 6: Chinese take-out

SAT. Nov. 7: Attended a wedding

SUN. Nov. 8: Nacho night!

MON. Nov. 9: Honey-barbecue chicken wings

TUES. Nov. 10: Beef paysanne

WED. Nov. 11: Teriyaki Pork

THURS. Nov. 12: Spaghetti

FRI. Nov. 13: Sandwiches

SAT. Nov. 14: Boy Scout spaghetti dinner

SUN. Nov. 15: Burgers with pepper-jack cheese & caramelized onions

MON. Nov. 16: Cousin Sharon's Chicken & Biscuit Casserole

TUES. Nov. 17: Honey Pork Chops, au gratin potatoes, green beans with almonds

WED. Nov. 18: Chili

THURS. Nov. 19: Spaghetti

FRI. Nov. 20: Pizza

SAT. Nov. 21: Spanish Garlic Shrimp, rice

SUN. Nov. 22: Garlic & Cheddar Chicken, yellow rice, mixed vegetables

MON. Nov. 23: Chef Mark's Pot Roast, noodles, gravy, fresh green beans

TUES. Nov. 24: Spaghetti

WED. Nov. 25: Taco Skillet

THURS. Nov. 26: Thanksgiving dinner

FRI. Nov. 27: Mini penne with shrimp marinara

SAT. Nov. 28: Chicken Caroline, rice, green beans amandine

SUN. Nov. 29: Tandoori Chicken, au gratin potatoes, broccoli

MON. Nov. 30: Maple-Hoisin Salmon

Easy Enchiladas

I was in the mood for some enchiladas yesterday, and I remembered that Amanda had posted a recipe for Enchilada Sauce that I wanted to try. I changed the recipe a bit to reflect what I had in the house, and we really liked the result. (Also, I skipped the part about using a blender.) This is a great way to use leftover chicken (or turkey, or pot roast).

ENCHILADA SAUCE
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce

1/4 cup chopped green chilies and 1 tbl juice (I buy the chilies in a jar)

2/3 cup water

1 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 heaping TBL garlic, minced
2 TBL minced onion, mixed with 2 TBL water and allowed to sit 15 minutes

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 5-7 minutes.

ENCHILADAS (makes 8)

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken, beef or pork mixed with 1/2 cup enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 1/2 cups cheddar-jack cheese, shredded (reserve a little for topping)
8 flour tortillas (8-inch size)
1 cup enchilada sauce

Cover the bottom of a casserole dish with a little enchilada sauce.
Add a scoop of the chicken-and-sauce mix to each tortilla. Top with a handful of cheese and some onion and roll like a burrito. Place in the casserole dish.
When all enchiladas are in the dish, pour the rest of the 1 cup of sauce over the top. Sprinkle a little cheese over the top of the enchiladas as well.
Bake, covered, at 400 for 15 minutes.

Meal Plan October 2009

Keeping up as I go:

1 THURS: Spaghetti & meatballs

2 FRI: baked flounder, brown rice, vegetables

3 SAT: Mustard Pork Chops, Salt potatoes, green beans

4 SUN: Chili

5 MON: Cheese ravioli with marinara sauce

6 TUES: Chicken piccata, rice, mixed vegetables

7 WED: Homemade hamburger helper (noodles, cooked ground beef, can of brown gravy with onions), broccoli

8 THURS: Spaghetti & meatballs

9 FRI: Chinese takeout

10 SAT: not home

11 SUN: Barbecued chicken, broccoli, mac & cheese

12 MON: Flips (quesadillas filled with refried beans, taco meat, and cheese)

13 TUES: Tami's Chicken Enchilada Soup, Portuguese Easter Bread

14 WED: Chick-Fil-A (school fundraiser)

15 THURS: Spaghetti & meatballs

16 FRI: Garlic & Cheddar Chicken

17 SAT: Chinese

18 SUN: Pork roast with hoisin-molasses sauce, rice, broccoli

19 MON: Italian chicken stew

20 TUES: Beef stew

21 WED: Hawaiian chicken, rice, green beans

22 THURS: spaghetti

23 FRI: Shrimp quiche

24 SAT: leftovers

25 SUN: eat out

26 MON: Beef Paysanne

27 TUES: Roast Chicken

28 WED:

29 THURS: Pork chops

30 FRI: pizza roll-ups

31 SAT: make big batch of spaghetti

Garlic & Cheddar Chicken

Get the recipe at Cook and Count!

MENU PLAN SEPTEMBER 2009

I'll complete this as I go through the month.

TUES. 1: Hawaiian Chicken, rice, green beans

WED. 2: Tacos, corn muffins, mac & cheese

THURS. 3: Spaghetti & meatballs

FRI. 4: not home

SAT. 5: not home

SUN. 6: not home

MON. 7: Mexican steak, noodles & gravy, corn on the cob

TUES. 8: Garlic & Cheddar Chicken, rice, green beans

WED. 9: spaghetti

THURS. 10: chili

FRI. 11: pizza

SAT. 12: not home

SUN. 13: Tandoori Chicken

MON. 14: Pork Chops in Lemon Juice & Herb Marinade


TUES. 15: Lemon Mushroom Herb Chicken

WED. 16: Beef Paysanne

THURS. 17: Spaghetti

FRI. 18: Ate out

SAT. 19: Barbecued chicken, 4-cheese noodles (from a Knorr mix) & corn

SUN. 20: leftovers

MON. 21: Hawaiian Chicken, rice, pineapple, green beans

TUES. 22: Balsamic roast pork with potatoes & vegetables

WED. 23: Garlic & Cheddar Chicken

THURS. 24: Spaghetti

FRI. 25: Pizza

SAT. 26: Janelle's Chicken Tacos, Fifteen-Minute Macaroni and Cheese from Scratch

SUN. 27: Steak on the grill (London broil marinated in soy sauce, garlic powder and black pepper), salt potatoes, green beans

MON. 28: Chicken francese, rice, corn

TUES. 29: Chef Mark's Pot Roast with potatoes and carrots

WED. 30: possibly Chicken & Dumplings

THIS WEEK:


THINKING OF TRYING:
Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
St. Anthony's Italian Dinner Rolls (adapted for the bread machine, of course!)
Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins
Jack's Ranch Chicken
Leasmom's Southern Biscuits

MENU PLAN AUGUST 2009

I'm just going to fill this in as I go.

Sat. 1: pizza

Sun. 2: sloppy joes, corn on the cob

Mon. 3: Hawaiian Chicken, rice

Tues. 4: ravioli with meatballs

Wed. 5: pot roast

Thurs. 6: takeout

Fri. 7: Tilapia with tomatoes and wine

Sat. 8: diner

Sun. 9: picnic with friends.

Mon. 10: Lemon Mushroom Herb Chicken

Tues. 11: Pork paprikas

Wed. 12: Tandoori Chicken, hash-brown casserole

Thurs. 13: spaghetti

Fri. 14: Rainbow Stir-fry

Sat. 15: Sausage & Pepper sandwiches

Sun. 16: leftovers

Mon. 17: spaghetti

Tues. 18: Beef Paysanne with noodles

Wed. 19: Leftovers

Thurs. 20: Chicken Swiss melt with rice

Fri. 21: lobster rolls

Sat. 22: family party (I don't have to cook!)

Sun. 23: Barb's Italian Chicken with pasta, green salad

Mon. 24: Sandwiches at BIL's

Tues. 25: Chicken Parmesan

Wed. 26: Sandwiches at MIL's

Thurs. 27: Sandwiches at BIL's

Fri. 28: Roast chicken, spinach, baked potatoes

Sat. 29: Barbecued chicken, Crab fries, broccoli

Sun. 30: Chicken Fajita Soup

Mon. 31: Pork chops in lemon juice and herb marinade, salt potatoes, vegetables

Tilapia with White Wine and Tomatoes

If you have an abundance of tomatoes, try them in this tilapia dish! You can substitute chopped grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes or plum tomatoes as long as you have about a cup of chopped tomato.

TILAPIA WITH WHITE WINE AND TOMATOES

olive oil for the pan
6 tilapia fillets
1 Jersey tomato, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 small Vidalia onion, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt
pepper
6 basil leaves, sliced in thin strips
3 sprigs fresh oregano
1/2 cup white wine
butter
6 sprigs fresh Italian parsley

Preheat oven to 400. Brush the bottom of a casserole dish with olive oil. Place fish into the casserole dish. Season with salt and pepper. Add tomato and onion, then season with basil and oregano. Dot with butter. Pour wine over all. Cover and bake 20 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley before serving.

A Contest!

If you'd like a chance to win the church cookbook I picked up on vacation, just pop over to my SFO Mom blog and find out how to enter. Bonus entries are also available! Contest ends Friday, August 7 at NOON Eastern.

(I disabled comments on this post. If you want to enter the contest, you have to follow the link above. Thanks!)

Vacation!

It's been so long since I've posted here, it looks like my vacation was a lot longer. I have no idea what we ate for dinner in July. From the looks of things, nothing exciting!

We took a cruise to eastern Canada last week. So I didn't have to cook on vacation, but I sure did get to eat. Here are some of the fabulous meals I enjoyed.

MONDAY: shrimp cocktail, pan-seared tilapia with green pea fondue, vichy carrots, mac & cheese, creme brulee for dessert

TUESDAY: shrimp cocktail, lobster tail and broiled shrimp, mashed Yukon Gold potatoes, roasted broccoli

WEDNESDAY LUNCH: grilled mahi mahi with pico de gallo, cornbread, shredded carrots with raspberry vinaigrette

WEDNESDAY: shrimp cocktail, rack of lamb, carrot and turnip puree, lime sherbet for dessert

THURSDAY: chicken noodle soup, vegetarian lasagna, apple pie for dessert

FRIDAY: crab cake, fried jumbo shrimp with panko crust, curly fries, cappuccino pie for dessert

Rainbow Stir Fry

From a Michele Urvater cookbook, The Monday to Friday Cookbook. This is one of the first cookbooks we had when we got married and the recipes give a lot of variations--kind of like what Rachael Ray does. Using this cookbook gave me confidence in the kitchen. This dish is really delicious and very fresh-tasting.

I don't make this recipe exactly as the author wrote it, so here is what I did:

RAINBOW STIR FRY (4 servings)
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 bell peppers, cut in chunks (get different colors if possible, it makes the dish look prettier!)
1/2 cup frozen peas (don't need to thaw)
1 small-to-medium onion, chopped
1 tbl minced garlic
2 tbl lemon juice
salt
olive oil for the pan

Heat the oil in the pan and stir-fry the peppers, peas and onion for about 4 minutes. Add garlic and lemon juice and cook 2 more minutes. Add shrimp, stir-frying until the shrimp is cooked. Salt to taste and serve over rice.

This recipe cooks quickly, so start the rice before you put anything in the pan! If you have it all chopped ahead of time, you're probably looking at about 10 minutes total cook time.

Next time I make this I will need to enlarge the recipe: 1 1/2 lb. shrimp, 3 peppers and 1 medium onion. A little more garlic and lemon as well.

NOTE: Instead of frozen peas, snow pea pods are great in this recipe. About a cup of washed, trimmed fresh snow pea pods are all you need.

Leftover Magic!

I'm not "anti-leftovers" but I do think that disguising them is the way to go. When we eat leftovers, they are rarely in the same form as the original meal.

Here are some recipes I use when I have leftovers.

Mashed potato cakes
Fried rice and Frugal Leftover Fried Rice
Quesadillas

BEEF
Fajitas
Beef paysanne
Enchiladas. This is a great way to use up leftover pot roast or roast beef--pour some canned enchilada sauce into a casserole dish, mix some sauce with shredded cooked beef, chopped onions and cheese, roll up enchiladas, and top with more sauce and cheese. Cover and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
Beef Burgundy Stroganoff
Chili (great way to use up cooked hamburgers!)

CHICKEN (or TURKEY)
Turkey stock
Fajitas
Turkey or chicken paprikas
Cousin Sharon's Chicken & Biscuit Stew
Chicken & Dumplings
Chicken Fajita Soup
Grandpa's Dark Meat Chicken
Pot Pie
Chicken Chili Blanco
Chicken & Noodle Casserole
Chicken Divan
Scarborough Fair Chicken Soup (I made stock with the turkey carcass, so this would be a great way to use it!)
Crescent Casserole
Lo Mein (also works with pork, and--BONUS--uses up the leftover spaghetti!)

PORK
Pulled pork sandwiches (also works with chicken)