Monthly Menu Plan: August 2015

Here I am again, having not posted in 6 months. I'm still doing my menu plan almost every month, but haven't had time to post due to having two wildly energetic boys, a husband, a home to take care of and a business to run. (In case you were unaware of my starting a business, you can check it out here.) But, I have a rare moment today, so thought I'd take time to check in and let you know what we're going to be eating this month!

1 - BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
2 - Steak and Potato Hobo Dinner
3 - Crockpot Roast
4 - No dinner :: Small Group Cookout
5 - Chicken, broccoli Alfredo
6 - French Dip Sandwiches (with leftover roast)
7 - Calzones
8 - No dinner :: State Fair
9 - Meatloaf, mashed potatoes
10 - Chicken Stew
11 - Lasagna
12 - Beef Enchiladas
13 - Chicken Pot Pie (with leftover chicken stew)
14 - BBQ Chicken Kabobs
15 - No dinner :: State Fair
16 - Homemade Pizza
17 - Breakfast
18 - Steak, red potatoes, and corn on the cob kabobs
19 - Pollo con Queso
20 - Chicken Fried Rice
21 - Chicken and Potato Hobo Dinner
22 - Hot dogs and Hamburgers :: Luke's Birthday Party
23 - Beef Stew, corn bread
24 - Pork Chops
25 - Teriyaki Chicken Kabobs
26 - Garlic Pepper Steak
27 - Quesadillas
28 - Spaghetti and Meatballs
29 - Chili
30 - Deer Steak
31 - We inevitably skip a meal sometime during the month, so this is our make up day!

Monthly Menu Plan: January

We are trying to conserve our money again after the holidays, traveling, eating out, etc. so we're being pretty strict about our menu this month! I've also been getting tired of some of my "go-to" recipes and am trying some new ones for January. Plus, we have some meals frozen from previous months that we didn't eat all of, so those made the menu this month, too. 

If you've never planned your menu for the month before, you can see my original post on how I do it here. I've adapted it some since then, but basically use it the same way. 

Anyway, here is my main dish menu. As always, I've linked to the recipes that have been posted already. Some of these recipes I love but haven't written about yet, so feel free to ask if you see one you want but isn't linked! 

Tacos
Beef and noodles
Pizza roll-ups
Ravioli
Chicken tetrazzini (freezer)
Chili
Baked potato bar
Chicken taco melts
Breakfast
Quesadillas
Ground beef stew and cornbread
Chicken poppers and homemade macaroni
Homemade pizza
Crockpot ham and potatoes
Chicken and noodles (freezer)
Chicken caesar salad
BBQ short ribs
Chicken chili (freezer)
Crockpot BBQ chicken
Meatloaf
Salsa chicken wraps
Steak
Chicken parmesan
Taco casserole
Ziti with meat sauce
Chicken fried rice
Calzones
Cornflake chicken

Muffin Tin Mini Pies

For my small group this year, we are doing a "theme night" for food every week. This week's theme was Fall Food. I immediately thought something with apple, which progressed to apple pie, which progressed to cherry and apple pie, which progressed to mini pies (my brain is haywire right now, if you can't tell). 

So I did a quick Google search for the easiest way to make a mini pie and found this recipe. This was a winner in my book because I didn't have to make the pie crust! 

Here's what I did. (Sorry in advance for the HORRIBLE quality of pictures. My kitchen has awful lighting and I was in a big hurry to get them done before small group!) 

Buy some refrigerated Pillsbury pie crusts (I found these near the refrigerated biscuits). If you want to make a full muffin tin, buy 2 packages. I didn't realize I would need 2 until it was too late. 

Roll out the pie crust.

Use a circular bowl or cookie cutter (about 4" diameter) to cut the crust.

Press it into your sprayed muffin tin so a little bit sticks up over the edge.

Add whatever kind of pie filling you want. 

Mine took about 2 big spoonfuls each. And I have leftover filling waiting for me to make more.

Roll out your extra crust and use a pizza cutter to make the lattice top. Whisk an egg and baste it over the tops of the lattice. This helps give it the nice golden brown color after it's baked.

Since I didn't have enough crust, I made a crumble topping for the apple to turn it into a Dutch apple mini pie. Which was actually amazing.

Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

Let them cool in the pan for about 15 minutes then use a knife to remove them. Then quickly take a picture on a paper plate before it gets consumed.

INGREDIENTS: 

Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust

Pie filling

1 egg

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin. Roll out the pie crust. Use a circular bowl or cookie cutter (about 4" diameter) to cut the crust. Press it into your sprayed muffin tin so a little bit sticks up over the edge. Fill almost to the top with your pie filling. Roll out your extra crust and use a pizza cutter to make the lattice top. Whisk an egg and baste it over the tops of the lattice. Or make a crumble topping. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Let them cool in the pan for 15 minutes before using a knife to remove them. 

Don't forget to check out my Linky Party page to see where I'm linking up. And you can follow me on Pinterest and Twitter to get updates as soon as I post something new!

Easy Mini Pizzas

So I know a lot of my readers are getting back into the swing of school, sports practices and games, and homework starting during this new school year. While I don't have a child in school yet, I remember the crazy busyness! I thought you might be able to use a recipe that is quick and easy that you can whip up between all the activities going on.

Pillsbury has this amazing recipe for mini pizzas that we made last night and it only takes about 20 minutes total to make! We had a bunch of family over and we all had our own personal pizzas.

Ingredients:
1 can Pillsbury Grands! refrigerated biscuits
1 cup pizza sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 package of pepperonis
*Any other ingredients you want on your pizza!

Directions:
Grease a cookie sheet (or 2 depending on how many pizzas you're making!) Place biscuits on sheets and press each biscuit until they're about 6-inches around. Top each pizza with whatever toppings you're wanting. Bake at 375* for 10-15 minutes, or until the crust is turning brown.

I love this recipe for families because what kid doesn't like creating their own pizza? They get to pick whatever toppings they want and do it themselves. I can't wait until my son is old enough to get involved in helping make dinner. He sure did love to eat it though!

You can find more recipes for Grands biscuits here. What are your favorite easy recipes?


I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective. The content and opinions expressed here are all my own and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of General Mills. Compensation was provided by General Mills via Clever Girls Collective.

Parmesan Ranch Chicken

So I've been looking for new recipes to put on my Monthly Menu plan. I tried one tonight and it was a big hit with my husband (and I loved it too)! So I thought I would share it with you.

It's SUPER easy to make and has a really easy clean-up. It's called Parmesan Ranch Chicken and you grill it in a foil packet. I got the recipe from good ol' Betty Crocker. You can see the original recipe here.

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts filleted (to make 4 chicken breasts...they cook faster this way)
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/4 cup water
4 quartered red potatoes (I actually chopped them up more than quarters so they would cook faster)
1 cup baby carrots, cut in half length-wise
1/2 package frozen green beans
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Cut 4 (18x12 inch) sheets of foil; spray with cooking spray. Place each piece of chicken on foil sheets. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of ranch dressing over each breast. Mix the rest of the ranch dressing with the water in a large bowl. Stir in the potatoes, carrots and green beans. Divide the vegetables among the chicken breasts. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Fold the 2 long sides of the foil together; fold them again to make a tight seal. Fold in the other 2 sides to make a packet. Place packets on grill over medium heat. Cook 10 minutes; rotate packets 1/2 turn. Cook 15 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender and the chicken juice is clear when cut into.

Eat and enjoy!

Another quick note about this dish: it's pretty darn cheap to make! Here is what I paid:
$4.00 chicken breasts ($10/ 5 full size chicken breasts)
$0.50 green beans ($1 for full bag of frozen green beans)
$0.75 carrots ($2.99 for full bag of baby carrots-- used about 1/4 bag)
$0.55 potatoes ($4.99 for 3 pound bag-- used about 1/3 lb. estimated)

For a grand total of $5.80 for 4 meals or $1.45 per meal!

Monthly Menu Plan: July

Wow, I can't believe it's already July! We have been EXTREMELY busy these last few months. Sorry I haven't posted more for you to read! Don't worry, there will be a lot of blog posts in the *hopefully* near future. We are in the middle of about 1000000 projects that I will be posting when they get finished.

In the meantime, I don't know if I've announced it on my blog, but we are expecting baby boy #2! He is due at the beginning of October and we are thrilled. Now that that exciting news is announced, here is the main event of this post: July's menu plan!

As always, let me know if you want any recipes that I don't have a link to!

Crockpot roast
Spaghetti and garlic bread
Chicken chili
Breakfast for dinner
Meatloaf and mashed potatoes
Spicy paprika lime chicken
Grilled pork chops
Chicken alfredo
Steak
Sweet and sour chicken with fried rice
Homemade pizza
Tacos
Calzones
Easy chicken parmesan
Chicken fried rice
Grilled chicken
Hamburgers and homemade macaroni

I'm starting to see a pattern in my menus! Anyone have any new recipes I should try?

Monthly Menu Plan: April

We went out to eat a LOT last month and as a result of not sticking to our menu, have to eat at home a LOT this month to restock the eating-out budget. So, I haven't left any dates out this month (except Tuesdays where we are at our church and they feed us).

Here is my plan for April. As always, if you see something that sounds intriguing and it's not linked to anything, let me know and I can put the recipe up!

Crockpot BBQ Chicken
Chili
Calzones
Spaghetti and garlic bread
Roast
Chicken and Rice
Potato Soup
Breakfast
Homemade pizza
Steak
Grilled pork chops
Chicken alfredo
BBQ sandwiches
Beef stew and cornbread
Meatloaf and mashed potatoes
Cornflake chicken
Tacos
Crockpot ham
Easy chicken parmesan
Chicken chili
Sweet and sour chicken
Lasagna
Grilled chicken
Crockpot BBQ ribs

Monthly Menu Plan: March

It's been a while since I've written anything, but I haven't forgotten about all of you! I have my menu for March made up and wanted to share with you what it is, in case anyone needs ideas. I've linked some of the recipes, but as always, if you want the recipe for anything else, just let me know!

Crockpot roast and potatoes
Grilled chicken and cheesy potatoes
Spaghetti and garlic bread
Beef stew (with leftover roast) and cornbread
Sweet and sour chicken
Chili
Hamburgers and macaroni and cheese
Mexican chicken tacos
Steak and baked potatoes
Sloppy joes
Calzones
Quesadillas (with leftover Mexican chicken)
Breakfast
Meatloaf and mashed potatoes
Grilled chicken
Crockpot BBQ chicken
Baked cheesy chicken penne (Pinterest)
Homemade pizza and a movie (DATE NIGHT!)

Monthly Menu Plan: January

So, this I'm about half a month too late on posting this, but better late than never!

As always, if you would like any of these recipes, let me know!

Tacos
Chicken Fried Rice
Hamburgers with homemade mac and cheese
Steak
Sloppy Joes
Calzones
Freezer Chicken Chili
Breakfast
Grilled chicken
Pulled BBQ chicken
Roast
Beef Stew
Homemade Pizza
Quesadillas
Steak
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Chili
Chicken Noodle Soup

Marshmallow Brownie Cupcakes

I love baking new things, especially when I can give away the sweets so I don't eat them all myself! I found a new recipe for Marshmallow Brownie Cupcakes and they sounded so good I made them for my small group at church. Big hit, let me tell ya. I followed the directions exactly like she said to make them and they turned out great!

 I used a box brownie mix. Make as directed.

Spray the pan really, really well. These things stick like glue! Then pour a little brownie batter into the bottom of each cupcake holder. 

Drop a large marshmallow on top of the batter.

 Cover with the rest of the brownie batter.

Bake at 325° for 20-25 minutes.

Monthly Meal Plan: December

I told you in my last menu plan post how I like to do my menu planning monthly. It saves me time and effort and I get most of my shopping done at once! Here is my menu for December.

Because of the holidays, there are a lot of days we won't be home (see all events in purple!) and therefore, don't have to make dinner!

My menu includes:
Calzones (twice this month!)
Chili
Hamburgers and homemade macaroni
*Pinterest recipe (Sweet and sour chicken with fried rice)
Meatloaf
Quesadillas
Oven BBQ Chicken
Sloppy joes
Chicken chili
Tacos
Breakfast
*undecided Pinterest recipe
Lasagna
Pulled BBQ chicken sandwiches
Roast
Pork chops
Steak
Buffalo chicken wraps

Apple Cake

If you haven't noticed, I love food. I love to bake. I love to eat what I bake. Baking in the fall and winter is one of my favorite things. I had some leftover apples that I wanted to bake into something. So I made one of our family favorites, apple cake.

Directions: 
Mix together
2 c. sugar
1 c. applesauce
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Add
3 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix in
3 c. peeled, sliced apples (I used Cortland)

Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 325° for 45 minutes

P.S. It tastes really good with some cool whip on top!