Recipe Reviews

So the menu planning is going meh.  I have been winging it so I do need to focus more on a "plan".  I have been trying the freezer meals though and I think this is going to be very beneficial especially on the nights I just don't want to cook.

I enjoy trying new recipes & I really need to write a review on these meals so I can reference them in the future.  I'll start with Tuesday's dinner.  I made tuna casserole, I've never made tuna casserole before so this was trial.  I made this recipe http://allrecipes.com/recipe/best-tuna-casserole/detail.aspx and I ended up freezing half the batch so there will be no tossing out the leftovers that we've forgotten about.  My hubby liked it, I think it was a smidge dry and I think I got a little too much crust on the top.  All in all it was pretty good and a nice budget meal.

Last night I made dorito chicken.  Not the most healthy meal but oh my it was delicious.  Hubby thought it had rice in it, I guess the doritos gave it a ricey texture.  I thought it tasted a bit like the Schwans lime chicken dinner minus the lime so I think if I added lime it'd be pretty close.  Hubby suggested making it into enchiladas sometime & add some rice to it.  I agree it'd be worth a try.  I also split this recipe, it was small to begin with (8x8) pan so I ended up freezing half of it.  The portions for the 2 dishes were probably 2-3 servings (about the size of the frozen meals we get from Schwans).  Here's the link to that recipe http://www.jamhands.net/2008/12/mexican-chicken-casserole.html

Tonight I threw in 2 pork chops and some baby ray's bbq sauce.  It was really soupy so I broke apart the pork to make shredded pork, it soaked it up nice and I think it's going to be tasty.  It sure does smell delicious in the house.  I also made up some roasted red potatoes which I tossed in some oil, Wildtree garlic, pepper & parmesan cheese.  I think those are going to be rather tasty too.  And lastly I made up some homemade biscuits http://allrecipes.com/recipe/moms-baking-powder-biscuits/detail.aspx the revisions I made to this recipe was 3 tsp of baking powder & I used butter instead of shortening.

Oh I want to note a meal I made last week too, Ranch House crock pot pork chops.  This was good but a bit salty.  I used a packet of ranch I had in the cupboard but I think if I use the Wildtree ranch mix it might not be quite as salty so I will try this one again some time.  I served it with mashed potatoes.  Here's the recipe for the pork http://realmomkitchen.com/287/ranch-house-crock-pot-pork-chops-with-parmesan-mashed-potatoes/

I have no plan for the rest of the week and the only thing left in the freezer is Schwans baked cod & some frozen blue gill besides the 2 frozen meals from this week.  So I definitely need to get a plan for the coming week.

Meal Planning Confessions

I need to confess my meal planning shortfalls.  I fail at it, I fail miserably which leads us to frequent McD's, Pizza Hut, Culvers, BK, Taco Johns, Arby's...well you get the idea.  Worst thing is this happens way too often.  I honestly think having kids would make it easier to plan but when it's the two of us with crazy days that are different from one day to the next with really no set routine it's just so easy to go to the fast food plan especially when I think my hubby is going to do dinner and he thinks I'm going to dinner & we realize neither of us really has a plan or ambition to cook and the heat we've been having lately really doesn't help either.

Hubby and I got married in our 30's so we also had quite a few years of bachelor/bachelorette habits.  I recently decided I need to get a handle on this whole planning thing....AGAIN (I go through spurts but it doesn't ever stick).  Recently I have gone from a 40+ hour a week job to working at home and my husband has gone from unemployed to starting his own business plus a job that requires him to be on call 24 hrs 3 days a week along with managing our 2 duplexes.  This is going to be a HUGE adjustment for me and I've decided I don't want my hubby eating junk food from gas stations on the road while he's working (I'm not sure why it's ok for us to eat fast food all the time though lol).  So somehow I need to plan meals (breakfast, lunch & dinner) around wacky scheduling & on the go snacks for my hubby that he will eat and all on a budget.  See this is all overwhelming to me but I'm determined to get it figured out.  And somehow I need to do this without spending a day a week at it because in the past that's what I've done.  I will surf the internet for recipes I'd like to try because I like trying new things, then I get lost in cyber world lol.  Then I compile my grocery list which leads me to searching the grocery store ads (which I should've started out with first) then I search coupon sites thinking I'm going to find a coupon for every thing on my list...not reality.  At this point I hit the store(s) and let me tell you, I despise grocery shopping which is probably one of the reasons I fail miserably at this whole planning thing.

So there it is, my confessions in a nutshell.  Now, I'm hoping to blog this journey in hopes that it'll help me stay on track.

Dill Potato Salad

I have one word for this recipe YUM!  I have never made potato salad before, I guess I always had this perception of it taking a long time to make & that it was difficult.  Besides I'm not a HUGE fan of potato salad since there are so many varieties out there and some just aren't good.  But this one I had to try.  I was in Door County in May and had lunch at The Cookery and they serve a potato salad on the side with their sandwiches and it is so delish!  I had to hunt down the recipe when I got home and this is what I found.  I'm not sure if it's the exact recipe they use, it says it's theirs but I think their's was better.  This recipe was super easy with not a lot of ingredients, I challenge you to give it a try especially if you like dill.

The Cookery's Dill Potato Salad

3 pounds new red potatoes

1/2 cup tangy Italian dressing of your choice

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup finely chopped green onions

2 teaspoons dried dill weed

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Thinly sliced green onions and/or freshly chopped parsley (optional garnish) Boil the potatoes until tender. In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients except the garnish.While the potatoes are warm, cut them into small chunks and toss them in the dressing. Top with thinly sliced green onions or freshly chopped parsley.