Weekly Meal Plan - Week #1

For Ellen.....xoxo

Suppers for the Week

Monday - One pot chicken & quinoa casserole
Tuesday - Chicken stir-fry
Wednesday - Smokies, kale salad & homemade sweet potato fries
Thursday - Homemade pizza with whole wheat crust
Friday - Crockpot chicken fajitas
Saturday - Lasagna
Sunday - Homemade chicken fingers, homemade sweet potato fries & spinach salad


Sweet Treats

• Chocolate-y zucchini brownies
• Whole wheat oatmeal cookies

RECIPES

One pot chicken & quinoa casserole (from Cookin' Canuk's website)

 

Ingredients

• 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
• ¾ tsp crushed, dried rosemary
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground pepper
• 2 tsp olive oil, divided
• ½ yellow onion, chopped
• 8 oz. crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups low-fat chicken broth
• 1 ½ cups sliced spinach leaves
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Place the chicken thighs in a medium bowl. Add the rosemary, smoked paprika, salt and pepper, and toss to coat the chicken.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in large nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
3. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil in the skillet. Add the onion and mushrooms, and cook until the vegetables are tender, 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Stir the quinoa and broth into the vegetables. Bring to a boil, then reduce cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Nestle the chicken into the quinoa and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
5. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Stir the spinach into the quinoa. Serve with the chicken. Season to taste.

My Favorite Kale Salad

Ingredients

• 1 bunch of kale, washed, dried and torn into small pieces
• 2 cups brussel sprouts, shredded (I use my food processor)
• 4 slices cooked crispy bacon, cooled and chopped
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 cup toasted silvered almonds
• Poppyseed dressing to taste

Instructions

1. Mix everything together in a large bowl. Bam!

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (from Cookin' Canuk's website)

Ingredients

• 1 package traditional yeast (2 ¼ tsp.)
• 1 cup warm water (not hot!)
• 1 tsp. honey
• 2 ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• Flour for kneading
• Cooking spray

Instructions

1. Pour the yeast into a large bowl. Add the water and honey, and stir to combine. Let the mixture sit until foamy bubbles appear on the surface of the water, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the flour, olive oil and salt, and stir with a wooden spoon to combine.
3. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic, about 5 to 6 minutes.
4. Coat a large bowl with cooking spray, place the ball of dough in the bowl and lightly spray the surface with cooking spray.
5. Cover the bowl with a dishtowel and let the dough rest in a warm room for 1 hour.
6. After 1 hour, the dough will have doubled in size. Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll to the desired size for the pizza.

 

Crockpot Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast halves, sliced
• 1 small can petite diced tomatoes with green chilies
• 1 red, orange and green bell pepper, julienned
• 1 large yellow onion, halved and sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 3/4 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp pepper
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 Tbsp honey

 

Instructions

1. Pour half of the canned tomatoes into the bottom of a slow cooker and spread into an even layer. Top with half of the peppers and half of the onions. Sprinkle garlic in. Top with chicken breasts.
2. In a bowl whisk together chili powder, cumin, paprika, coriander, salt and pepper. Evenly sprinkle half of the seasoning over chicken breasts then flip chicken and sprinkle in remainder. Top with remaining half of the tomatoes, then layer in remaining peppers and onions.
3. Cover and cook on HIGH heat 3 - 4 hours. I wouldn't recommend cooking on the low heat setting as the peppers will become soggy if left cooking all day.  
4.  Remove about 1 cup of the broth from the slow cooker (mostly tomato liquid) and discard. In a small bowl whisk together lime juice and honey and add to slow cooker along with chicken and season with additional salt to taste if desired. Gently toss. Sere warm in warmed tortillas with sour cream and optional guacamole, cheese and salsa.

 

Lasagna

 

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pound Ground Beef
  
• 1 pound Mild Breakfast Sausage
• 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 cans (14.5 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes
• 2 cans (6 Ounce) Tomato Paste
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Basil
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 3 cups Lowfat Cottage Cheese
• 2 whole Beaten Eggs
• 1/2 cup Grated (not Shredded) Parmesan Cheese
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 pound Sliced Mozzarella Cheese
• 1 package (10 Ounce) Lasagna Noodles
• (add 1/2 Teaspoon Salt And 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil To Pasta Water)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet or saucepan, combine ground beef, sausage, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat until browned. Drain half the fat. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil and salt. After adding the tomatoes, the sauce mixture should simmer for 45 minutes while you are working on the other steps.

3. In a medium bowl, mix cottage cheese, beaten eggs, grated Parmesan, 2 more tablespoons parsley, and 1 more teaspoon salt. Stir together well. Set aside. Cook lasagna until “al dente”. I usually cook mine for the minimum cooking time as listed on the box.

To assemble:
4. Arrange 4 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a baking pan, overlapping if necessary. Spoon half the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles. Spread evenly. Cover cottage cheese with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Spoon a little less than half the meat/sauce mixture over the top.

5. Repeat, ending with meat/sauce mixture. Sprinkle top generously with extra Parmesan.

6. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is all bubbly and yummy looking.

Homemade Chicken Fingers

 

Ingredients

 

Breadcrumb

• 1¾ cups panko breadcrumbs

 

Batter

• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1½ tbsp dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp flour
• ½ tsp salt
• Black pepper

Chicken

• 1lb chicken breasts cut into strips
• Oil spray

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Place the Batter ingredients in a bowl and whisk with a fork until combined.
3. Add the chicken into the Batter and toss to coat.

 

Crumbing

1. Pick up a piece of chicken with your left hand and place it into the panko bowl.
2. Use your right hand to sprinkle some breadcrumbs onto one end of the chicken, then pick up that end of the chicken and turn it over. Pat down gently to press the breadcrumbs onto the chicken, then transfer onto baking tray.
3. Repeat with remaining chicken.
4. Spray lightly with oil. Bake for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Chocolatey Zucchini Brownies

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vanilla yogurt
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cocoa
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 cups grated zucchini (1 medium zucchini)
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 9" square pan with nonstick baking spray.
• In a large bowl gently whisk eggs. Add in vanilla and sugar and yogurt and mix until combined.
• In a separate medium size bowl mix together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
• Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Gently stir in zucchini and then chocolate chips.
• Pour batter into sprayed pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool for 30 minutes before serving.

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter at room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups brown sugar
• 4 large eggs (room temperature)
• 4 tsp vanilla
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 1/4 cups large flake oats
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, beat the wet ingredients and sugar (eggs, sugar, vanilla and butter) together until smooth
2. In another large bowl, sift flours, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon until well blended.
3. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir by hand until almost combined, then add chocolate chips and stir until well blended
4. Spray cookie sheets or cover with parchment paper and drop spoonfulls of cookie dough about 2 inches apart on cookie sheets
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes until a light golden color on around the edges, but still soft on the inside. Allow to cool and transfer to a wire rack.