Weekly Menu

I thought it might be fun to share my menu for the week every Sunday. If you don't meal plan, YOU SHOULD! It saves tons of time and money. I try to meal plan a week ahead of time, and then keep a small notepad next to the fridge with a list of everything I will need for the meals this week. Then it's one trip to the store and you are done!Everything is dairy free :)Here's what's up this week: MONDAY Chicken Pot Pie - this is an All Recipes recipe that I adapted a little bit.

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed

• 1 cup sliced carrots

• 1 cup frozen green peas

• 1/2 cup sliced celery

• 1/3 cup veggie butter

• 1/3 cup chopped onion

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

• 1/4 teaspoon celery seed

• 1 3/4 cups chicken broth

• 2/3 cup soy creamer

 

• 2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts - Publix has dairy free crust

  

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)

• 1. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
  2. In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in veggie butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and soy creamer. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
  3. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
  4. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

 TUESDAYVeggie SpaghettiI make my sauce in a large sauce or soup pan with:

•  5-6 fresh diced tomatoes, 5-6 diced cloves of garlic, 2 tablespoons of olive oil - cook on medium/low until tomatoes break down and a sauce begins to form.
• Add 2 cans of diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning, teaspoon of salt, and a dash of red wine - cook another 5-10 minutes.
• Add chopped zucchini and squash and cook until tender.
• Add fresh spinach and cook until tender.
• Serve with your favorite noodles and french bread
• If you need more sauce you can always add canned tomato paste and double what you've got!

WEDNESDAYFried Catfish with green beans

• 4-5 catfish, fresh of thawed from frozen
• 1 egg beaten
• 2 cups cornmeal
• salt
• pepper
• Cajun seasoning
• canola oil
• fresh green beans
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

1. season 2 cups of cornmeal with salt, pepper, and a dash of cajun spice.
2. dip both sides of the catfish into egg
3. then coat the catfish in the cornmeal mixture
4. fry the catfish in canola oil until golden brown
5. meanwhile set oven at 400
6. place washed green beans on a baking sheet (I line mine with aluminum foil)
7. drizzle with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper
8. bake beans in the oven for 15-20 mins
9. We usually serve fish with ketchup for the girls

THURSDAYChili (slowcooker) with Salad and cornbread

• I usually just throw my chili together with anything I have laying around. Pinto beans, organic grass fed ground beef, fire roasted diced canned tomatoes, cumin, chili powder. There is a GREAT soy sour cream substitute made by Tofuti that we use to top it off.
• My favorite new quick salad mix is this Kale salad.
• Here is my cornbread recipe (All Recipes)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 cup soy creamer

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1/4 cup honey

• 2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease a 9x9 inch baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together flour, cornmeal, sugar and baking powder. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add the cream, oil, honey and eggs; stir to combine. Pour batter into prepared baking pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of pan comes out clean.

FRIDAY Take out!SATURDAYChicken Marsala with broccoli

• 1/4 cup veggie butter
• 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• chicken thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup sherry

• 1/2 cup dry Marsala wine

1. Saute garlic in butter.
2. Add salt and pepper to flour and coat chicken with mixture both sides
3. Cook chicken about 10 minutes on medium heat
4. Add Marsala and sherry
5. Add mushrooms
6. Cook over medium/low heat for about 30 minutes or until chicken is done and sauce has thickened

I serve this with steamed broccoli and mashed cauliflower as a healthier version to mashed potatoes.SUNDAYTomato Bisque with Roasted Veggies and Pumpkin Bread

• Tomato bisque I start with sauteing garlic (2-3 cloves) in butter and olive oil, then add 5-6 diced fresh tomatoes. Cook for 10 minutes on medium low heat.
• Add 1 table spoon of flour, cook 1 minute
• Add 2 cans of fire roasted canned tomatoes

 

• Add 1 cup chicken stock
• Add 2 cups soy cream
• cook 10 minutes and serve

• Roast veggies (red onion, sweet potato, asparagus, green beans, garlic, olive oil, cauliflower) on 400 for about 30 minutes or until tender. If I use sweet potatoes I start them first for about 10 minutes then add the remaining veggies.

• Pumpkin Bread

• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree

• 4 eggs

• 1 cup vegetable oil

• 2/3 cup water
• 3 cups white sugar
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Here is a great gluten free option 

• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

 You can use this instead of eggs to make anything Vegan Enjoy!