Menu Plan, May 18 - 24

     This is a post I meant to publish several weeks ago, but simply forgot.  Things have been busy at work and home so I haven't had much time for blogging.  I am hoping to be a little more consistent in the future.  Although our anniversary trip occurred almost a month ago, I want to remember the details.  We pulled out of Tuscaloosa early Saturday morning and were able to get to Atlanta before lunch.  Our first stop was Trader Joe’s because I am obsessed with food!  I spent way too much money on restocking our pantry and loved every second of it.  Next, we headed to lunch at Farm Burger, a small restaurant chain that specializes in grass feed beef.  Gluten-free buns were on the menu so this is what really lured me in. This was easily one of the best burgers I have ever had out and we can’t wait to for a return visit. 

     After lunch we made our way to IKEA, a place neither J.T. nor I have ever been before.  Although I did buy a few things, I wasn’t overly impressed.   Most items (especially furniture) seemed cheaply made and I am indifferent about a second trip.  J.T. spotted this cute door hanger and I couldn’t help but spend $3.00 for Otis. 

     We spent the majority of the afternoon at IKEA, so we decided to go check in our hotel and rest up before dinner.  A few weeks ago, J.T. and I had looked over different restaurant menus and selected Einstein’s.  We were so excited to eat at this restaurant and made reservations.  Needless to say, we will NEVER be returning.  The food was mediocre, the environment was extremely uncomfortable, and the service was slow.  One day we will look back and laugh J.  Sunday morning was spent lying around the hotel room watching my favorite Food Network shows before heading off to Turner Field.  

     The Braves faced the Cincinnati Reds, a team J.T. and I had never seen in-person before.  The game was slow, but the Braves won in the 10^th inning. 

 

We drove back to Tuscaloosa after the game and our boy was so excited to see his parents!  

Sunday

• Chicken Pot Pie
• Veggies
• Leftover Carrot Sheet Cake

Monday

• Sweet Potato & Black Bean Veggie Burgers
• Roasted Plantains

Tuesday

• Ham Pizza
• Roasted Carrots

Wednesday

• Hummus Sandwiches
• Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Thursday

• Ham (last batch!)
• Green Bean & Potato Salad (new recipe)

Friday

• Peanut Butter Waffle Sandwiches
• Eggs

Saturday

• Leftovers

Gluten-Free Multi-Grain Flour Blend

     Although this gluten-free flour blend works in most recipes that call for whole wheat flour or whole white wheat flour, it is not an exact substitute.  All the recipes on my blog that list multi-grain flour blend as an ingredient have been tested.  Trial and error along with experimentation may be needed in recipes outside of this blog.  This flour blend is referred to as multi-grain instead of whole grain because it is a blend of 73% whole grains and 27% starches.  I have played around with alternate flours including brown rice, millet, sweet white rice, and buckwheat, but oat, sorghum, and arrowroot are my favorite.  If you don’t own a scale, don’t fret.  I simply dump a bag of each of these into my mixer and whisk together to blend.  Of course I cannot take credit for this ingenious flour blend myself.  I had a little help from another blog post by Gluten Free Girl and the Chef.

     Be sure to check out recipes on the blog that include this flour.  If you are not gluten-free, try substituting whole wheat or whole white wheat flour.  I would love to hear if a recipe worked using the gluten alternative, since many of them were adapted from recipes that originally included a gluten flour.  

Chicken Pot Pie

Whole Grain Popovers

Banana Muffins

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Pumpkin Muffins

Sweet Potato Muffins

Homemade Pop-Tarts

Waffles

Ingredients

• 22 ounces (624 grams) whole grain oat flour
• 22 ounces (624 grams) sweet white sorghum flour
• 16 ounces (454 grams) arrowroot starch

Directions

1. Whisk together the oat flour, sorghum flour, and arrowroot starch.  Store in a large (5 pound capacity) container in the refrigerator.  Use in place of whole wheat flour or whole white wheat flour.  

Menu Plan, April 27 - May 3

     The Easter Bunny was very good to me last weekend and he sure knows what I like. Some food gifts included a bottle of olive oil and 4 new herb plants.  We also took home one of my dad’s tasty smoked hams.  He did one for both me and my brother and I know we are all thankful for the free food!  The menu plan was altered for the upcoming weeks to include this ham.  During Easter lunch we feasted on another ham my dad had made specifically for Easter.  Since spiral hams tend to dry out, my dad normally buys regular hams that you must slice yourself.  This became quite the ordeal on Sunday.  My dad cut himself pretty badly on two fingers, when the knife slipped during his first cut.  I, of course, took over with an electric knife and ended up cutting into my index finger.  Ouch.  My cut isn’t too terrible, but it is in a very inconvenient location and is still quite sore.  My brother saved the day by slicing the rest of the ham without hurting himself – thank goodness J

     Tomorrow, J.T. and I will celebrate our second wedding anniversary.  While we are going on a little getaway, we will be enjoying dinner in our own kitchen on our actual anniversary.  I consulted Ina Garten for this meal, because her recipes are always so foolproof.  We can’t normally afford to eat seafood or more expensive vegetables, but we are making an exception.  Our anniversary meal is not included in my normal grocery budget and we are very grateful to the Easter Bunny for funding this rare treat!

     Below is a picture of the homemade vegetable chicken stock I threw in the crock pot one morning.  The broth turned a dark brown color because it was made from roasted chicken bones.  I always keep bones (from raw meat or roasted meat) in the freezer until I have enough accumulated to make stock.  I want to clarify that I do not save bones that people have eaten off.  Any roasted bones that are saved have had the meat shredded off by hand and not someone's mouth!  I also save carrot tops and celery leaves.  Once I have enough vegetables and bones, I place them in the crock pot, along with garlic, peppercorns, and a bay leaf, on low for 12 hours.  The stock turns out rich every time and it is quite inexpensive to make.    

Sunday

• Atlanta

Monday (Anniversary Dinner)

• Salmon with Melting Cherry Tomatoes (new recipe)
• Green Beans Gremolata (new recipe)

Tuesday

• Mini Ham Sandwiches
• Sautéed Peas, Carrots & Onions

Wednesday

• Hummus Sandwiches
• Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Thursday

• Falafel Burgers
• Vegetable Millet Pilaf

Friday

• Peanut Butter Waffle Sandwiches
• Eggs

Saturday

• Leftovers

Marinara Sauce

      In an effort to save money, I began substituting my homemade marinara sauce in any recipe that called for tomato sauce.  This sauce has become essential to Homemade Hamburger Helper, Spinach & Chickpeas, Sloppy Joes, and homemade pizza.  Anything that can be thrown into the slow cooker, without sacrificing flavor, is a brilliant recipe in my kitchen.  While I used to make fun of my mother for her love of crock-pots, I now understand the magic behind this handy kitchen gadget.  In this recipe, I exclusively use whole tomatoes.  Substituting crushed or diced tomatoes results in a watery sauce.  My favorite brand of canned tomatoes is Muir Glen and I strongly recommend using them in this recipe.  I have experimented with other organic store brands, but none produce the equivalent results of Muir Glen.  This sauce is great for the freezer.  I use wide mouth canning jars to portion out my sauce, but any freezer safe container will work.  

Ingredients

• 2 (28 oz.) cans Muir Glen whole peeled tomatoes, in juices
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• ½ cup celery, chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 teaspoons Celtic sea salt
• 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a slow cooker, combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, oregano, olive oil, sea salt, and pepper.  Cover and cook on high for 6 hours.  Cool the sauce slightly before using an immersion blender to puree it.  Yields 7 1/2 to 8 cups of sauce.

Make ahead:  Cool the sauce over night in the refrigerator.  Freeze up to 6 months.  I divide the sauce in 1 or 2 cups portions when freezing.   This makes it easy to pull out for pizza, meatballs, spaghetti, and casseroles.