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• Check NOTES under each meal for ahead-of-time preps.
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• Next week I will be out of town and will not be posting recipes. Look back to a previous week for recipes and check back here Friday, May 21 for new ones.
RECIPE 1: TACO SALADS
Becky Luigart-Stayner from Cooking Light
NOTES:
• Oops! We forgot to take a picture of this one so I found a picture similar to what our salads look like.
• This recipe is so versatile. My favorite toppings are listed below but feel free to modify to suit your tastes!
• Cook meat and chop up veggies the night before, storing them in different zip-lock bags or containers for a quick dinner prep the next day.
INGREDIENTS
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• Your favorite corn tortilla chips (I like Mission brand)
• Several green onions, chopped
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 sweet green pepper, chopped
• Frozen & cooked (or canned) corn
• Crunchy lettuce like romaine, torn into salad-size pieces
• 1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 avocado, either thinly sliced or mashed with a fork & lightly salted
• Shredded cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese
• Sour cream
• Salsa
DIRECTIONS
1. Cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add taco seasoning packet, the amount of water indicated on the packet (usually ¾ - 1 cup) and simmer until water has cooked off.
2. Mix lettuce and desired amount of crushed tortilla chips in large bowls. Top with meat and the desired amount toppings listed above.
RECIPE 2: SLOW COOKER SWEET & SPICY ASIAN PORK SHOULDER
(Real Simple)
Jonny Valiant from Real Simple
NOTES:
• I had pork shoulder left over from when I made pulled-pork tacos and this was a great way to use it!
• This was the first time I had cooked with bok choy and I really liked it!
• Cook the rice and cut up the bok choy the night before. About 5 minutes before serving, stir in the bok choy and reheat the rice.
INGREDIENTS
• ½ c. low-sodium soy sauce
• 1-2 tbsp (I used 1 tbsp so it ended up just a little spicy) chili-garlic sauce (found near the soy sauces)
• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• About 2 ½ lbs pork shoulder, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 c. long-grain white rice, cooked (or more…1 c. is for 2 people)
• 1 medium head bok choy, thinly sliced (slice it sideways & DO use the white part it’s tasty!)
• 2 green onions, sliced
• Salt & pepper
DIRECTIONS
1. In a slow-cooker, combine the soy sauce, sugar, chili-garlic sauce, ginger, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp pepper. Add the cut-up pork and toss to coat. Cook, covered, until the pork is tender, on high for 4-5 hours or low 7-8 hours.
2. About 5 min before serving, stir in the bok choy and cook, covered, until heated through, about 3-5 min. Serve pork & bok choy over rice and sprinkle with scallions.
RECIPE 3: SPINACH & RICOTTA PIZZA
(modified from Cooking Light)
NOTES:
• Make your own pizza dough (see my entry from April 6) or use a store-bought dough of your choice. It’s also worth asking your favorite local pizzeria if they will sell you a ball of their fresh-made dough to use that day.
INGREDIENTS
• Pizza dough (your own homemade, refrigerated or from your favorite pizzeria)
• Olive oil
• Store bought pizza sauce or make your own (easily!) with 1 14.5-oz can crushed or diced tomatoes (with Italian seasoning or with roasted garlic), whizzed briefly in a food processor to a chunky purée; 2 garlic cloves, minced, & 3-5 fresh basil leaves OR dried basil (about 2 tsp)
• 2 tbsp grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 ½ c. loosely packed baby spinach leaves (I used 1 small box of frozen spinach & it tasted great)
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 ¼ c. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 c. part-skim ricotta cheese
• 2 plum tomatoes, cored and thinly sliced
• Salt
DIRECTIONS
1. To make pizza sauce, heat 2 tbsp. olive oil over medium heat until hot but not smoking in a medium pot. Add garlic and swirl in hot oil until it starts to smell good, about 15 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and simmer, uncovered, to thicken and cook off the "canned" flavors, at least 25 minutes. While sauce is cooking, put a little olive oil and basil leaves in a food processor and whirl to finely chop basil, scraping down sides of processor as needed. Stir basil oil into tomato sauce as it's cooking, along with 1 pinch salt.
2. If using frozen rather than fresh spinach, cook in the microwave according to pkg directions then let sit in a colander until cool enough to squeeze out extra liquid.
3. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Coat a pizza pan with cooking spray. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a circle big enough to fit on pizza pan. Transfer dough to pan. Brush dough evenly with olive oil and spread pizza sacue over dough, leaving a ¼-inch border.
4. Sprinkle dough with parmesan, top evenly with spinach (fresh or cooked and squeezed dry if using frozen), and garlic. Sprinkle mozzarella over spinach and spoon teaspoonfuls of ricotta over mozzarella.
5. Bake at 500 degrees for about 12 min or until mozzarella melts and the crust browns. Let stand 5 min; top with tomato slices.
RECIPE 4: TURKEY BEAN BURGERS
(Modified from TASTE OF HOME)
NOTES:
• I followed the recipe exactly but the meat/bean mixture was too wet so I had to add about ½ c. flour to get it to stick together.
INGREDIENTS• ¾ canned black beans, rinsed & drained
• 1 egg white
• ½ c. shredded zucchini
• ½ c. finely chopped sweet red pepper
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp pepper
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¾ lb ground turkey
• Hamburger buns
• Crunchy lettuce leaves (like romaine)
• Sliced onion for topping burgers
• 1 avocado, mashed and mixed with a little salt (or add finely chopped red onion, a little lime juice (about 1 tsp), salt and pepper to make guacamole)
• 1 tomato, thinly sliced, for topping burgers
DIRECTIONS
1. In a small bowl, use a potato masher and mash beans. Add egg white, zucchini, red pepper and chili powder, onion powder, pepper and salt. Crumble turkey over mixture and mix well. Shape into four patties (if meat mixture is super sticky and won’t form into patties, try adding ¼ cup flour. Add more flour if necessary).
2. In a large skillet, cook burgers in oil over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees and the juices run clear. Serve on buns with onion, mashed avocado and tomatoes.
RECIPE 5: SALMON WITH MUSTARD HERB SAUCE
(BODY & SOUL)
INGREDIENTS
• 4 salmon fillets
• 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• Salt and pepper
• ½ c. Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp fresh chopped dill
• 3 tbsp fresh chopped basil
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat broiler with rack 4 inches from heat.
2. Rinse salmon and pat dry with paper towels. Place on a broiler pan (or a cookie sheet covered with foil and sprayed with oil) and drizzle 2 tbsp of lemon juice over top. Season with salt and pepper. Broil until salmon is just cooked but still moist, 8-10 minutes. Remove skin.
3. While salmon is cooking, stir together the mustard, remaining 2 tbsp lemon juice, oil, dill and basil. Spoon over salmon and serve immediately.
SHOPPING LIST:
NOTES:
• I have organized the shopping list by category and then within each category by meal. After each item you’ll see a number in parenthesis which corresponds to the meal number. That way you can easily pick which recipes you want to try and then find those items (or cross items out) on the list.
• Under Veggies/Fruit I have italicized anything that is a veggie or fruit but NOT found in the fresh fruits and veggie area of the supermarket.
• For Sides: Add sides to the meals as necessary. Suggestions: Fries & a green veggie with (4), baked potato & side salad with (5).
Meat/Fish
• 1 lb ground beef (1)
• About 2 ½ lbs pork shoulder (2)
• ¾ lb ground turkey (4)
• 4 salmon fillets (5)
Veggies/Fruit
• 1 bunch green onions (1), (2)
• Tomato – 2 large (1), (4), 2 plum (3)
• 1 sweet green pepper (1)
• Frozen & cooked (or canned) corn (1)
• Crunchy lettuce like romaine (1), (4)
• 2 avocados (1), (4)
• Fresh ginger – 1 tbsp grated (2)
• 1 medium head bok choy (2)
• Store bought pizza sauce OR buy the next three ingredients below to make your own
• 1 14 ½-oz cans chopped tomatoes (with roasted garlic or Italian spices) (3) (if making your own pizza sauce)
• Garlic: 2 cloves (3) (if making your own pizza sauce), 1 tsp minced for pizza (3)
• 3-5 leaves fresh basil leaves OR 2 tsp dried (3) (if making your own pizza sauce)
• 1 ½ c. loosely packed spinach leaves or 1 small box frozen spinach (3)
• Zucchini – ½ c. shredded (4)
• Onion – for topping burgers (4)
• Sweet red pepper – ½ c. chopped (4)
• Fresh dill – 3 tbsp chopped (5)
• Fresh basil – 3 tbsp chopped (5)
• 1 lemon (5)
Breads & starches
• Your favorite corn tortilla chips (I like Mission brand) (1)
• 1 c. (or more…1 c. is for 2 people) long-grain white rice (2)
• Pizza dough – homemade (see my recipe form April 6), store-bought, or ask your local pizzeria if you can purchase their fresh dough (3)
• Hamburger buns (4)
Spices/Sauces/Vinegars/Oils/Condiments
• Salt
• Black pepper
• 1 packet taco seasoning (1)
• Chili powder – ½ tsp (2)
• Low-sodium soy sauce – ½ c. (2)
• Chili-garlic sauce (found near the soy sauces) – 1-2 tbsp (2)
• 1 tsp chili powder (4)
• 1 tsp onion powder (4)
• Dijon mustard – ½ c.
Dairy
• Shredded cheddar or Monterrey jack cheese (1)
• Sour cream (1)
• Fresh Parmesan cheese – 2 tbsp (3)
• Mozzarella cheese – 1 ¼ shredded (3)
• Ricotta cheese – 1/3 c. (3)
Other
• Oil
• Cooking spray
• 2 can black beans (1), (4)
• Salsa (1)
• ¼ c. brown sugar (2)
• 1 egg white (4)
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