Well, hello again my friends! First, let me offer my apologies for missing last week! Sick kiddos and a bit of sleep deprivation were on my plate and my dear little blog just had to be neglected in favor of tending to little hot bodies, yucky coughs, and squeezing in a few zzz's for mama. BUT, all you busy moms out there know how that goes! We're hopefully on the upswing from this round of yuckiness and back on schedule! But, I must also say that this week is a week of quite a few repeats as my usually organized and planning mind is still a little foggy! Here we go!
Monday - Almond Chicken Stir Fry (family fave! and same recipe as Week#3)
From Pampered Chef "29 Minutes to Dinner"
What you need for Chicken: 1 egg white, 1 tbsp cornstarch, 1 seasoning packet from chicken-flavored ramen noodles (you'll need the noodles later), 1 lb chicken tenders, 1 tbsp veggie oil
What you need for the Stir Fry: 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger, 2 pressed garlic cloves, 1/4 cup slivered almonds, 1 tbsp cornstarch, 1 1/2 cups chicken broth, 8 oz snow peas, 1 can (12oz +/-) baby corn drained, 1 can (8 oz +/-) sliced water chestnuts drained, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
What you need for Pan-Fried Noodle Cake: 2 packages chicken ramen noodles (one noodle set from above and one complete package).
Instructions: Cook the noodles from both ramen packets until tender. While noodles cook, work on the chicken, whisking the egg white then add the seasoning packet and cornstarch and whisk again. Slice chicken tenders on the bias into 1/2 inch pieces. Toss chicken in egg white mixture and set aside. For the Stir Fry, grate gingerroot, add pressed garlic and set aside. Place almonds in your trusty wok (or skillet) and cook over medium high heat for 3 - 4 minutes until nice and toasted. Remove almonds from skillet and set aside. Now back to the noodles: lightly spray a saute pan (about 10 inch pan) with veggie oil and heat over medium heat until nice and hot (1 - 3 minutes), combine noodles with 1 tbsp oil and 1 seasoning packet. Add noodles to the pan and gently form into a round cake. Cook 3 -4 minutes on each side - you'll know it's done when it's golden and slightly crunchy on each side. Back to the Stir Fry: whisk together cornstarch and broth and add to your wok. Bring to a simmer remembering to stir and add the gingerroot-garlic mixture. Heat until "fragrant" (that's what the recipe says - it really does start to smell really good) being sure to stir a lot. Add veggies and chicken and simmer for 1 -2 minutes. Stir in half the toasted almonds. Cut the noodle cake into 4 wedges and then top each wedge with 1/4 of the chicken mixture and a dash of toasted almonds - you've got one amazing dinner! :)
Tuesday - Toasted Angel Hair with Sausage & Peppers (family fave! and repeat from Week #2)
Adapted from Pampered Chef "29 Minutes to Dinner"
What you need: 1 lb hot Italian sausage (we use a turkey sausage and spice it up with ground cayenne pepper), 2 medium red peppers, 1 lb uncooked angel hair pasta (we use a whole grain or whole wheat variety), 2 cloves garlic, 5 3/4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth (yes, you read FIVE), 1 cup fresh basil, 1 oz parmesan cheese
Instructions: Brown sausage (should look like ground beef but smell like yummy sausage!). As sausage is browning, slice the tops off the peppers. De-seed the peppers. Dice the tops and bottoms and julienne cut the bulk of the pepper (means thin strips). Now put the peppers aside and remove the browned sausage from the skillet and set aside. This is the strange part but totally MAKES this recipe - add dry pasta to the skillet and toast for about 8 to 10 minutes, stirring at about 2 minute intervals. After the pasta is nice & toasted, press garlic over the pasta and add chicken broth, peppers and browned sausage to the skillet. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer for about 5-6 minutes. As pasta simmers, chop basil, reserve half for garnish. When pasta is done, remove from heat and add basil. Divide among serving bowls (serves 8) and garnish with reserved basil and grated parmesan. YUMMY!!!
Wednesday - BBQ Salmon with Roasted Asparagus and Sweet Potatoes
What you need: 1/2 cup cider vinegar, 1/3 cup honey, 4 skinless salmon fillets (4 oz each for 1 lb of salmon), 2 tbsp of your favorite BBQ rub, olive oil, one bunch asparagus, two good size sweet potatoes
Instructions: Preheat oven to 450. Peel and rinse sweet taters, then cut into one inch rounds. Rinse asparagus and trim the ends. Place all potatoes and asparagus spears on a greased pan. Brush all veggies lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 13 minutes at 450 - maybe a tad longer if your taters are cut on the thick side or if you get hefty asparagus. Next, for the salmon, heat your grill pan on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Coat the salmon with your favorite BBQ rub - if you don't have a fave, there are a bunch to chose from at your local grocery store. Lightly brush the grill pan with a bit of olive oil. Then grill the salmon for about 2 - 3 minutes on each side or until it flakes nicely. While the salmon is grilling, mix together the cider vinegar and honey. When the salmon is flaky (aren't all fish a little flaky? LOL), brush it with the mixture and serve with your taters and asparagus. YUM!
Thursday - Ham Steak and Rice
What you need: One good size ham steak, a box of your favorite quick rice or pasta dish, and a can or frozen bag of your favorite veggies.
Instructions: This is for a quick dinner on a busy night! Pan fry the ham steak over medium heat - I season mine with quite a bit of pepper but you could use just about any seasoning that you fancy with ham, maybe even some brown sugar and honey - just be careful not to scorch it if your pan gets too hot. :) I usually use a box of reduced sodium and/or whole grain Rice-a-Roni (the San-Francisco Treat!! Ding-ding!!). And heat a bag of frozen corn in the microwave and dinner is served!!! This is my go-to cheat dinner - always have it on hand for a just in case crazy night. Ham steaks defrost quickly and the others can be purchased super cheap on a good sale so I stock up when the price hits about $0.90 a box.
Friday - PIZZA! However, you get a dessert as a consolation prize since I've been such a slacker!!
Creamy Lemon Cake
What you need: 1 box vanilla cake mix (which will require some veggie oil, eggs and water), 3 Tbsp poppy seeds, 1 box cook and serve Jello pudding and pie filling mix (you'll need more egg yolks sugar and water here too), 4 1/2 cups freshly whipped cream (I buy heavy whipping cream and whip it up myself), 12 oz. cream cheese (softened).
Instructions: Bake the cake according to package directions but add the poppy seeds to batter. Divide batter between two 8 or 9 inch round pans. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes at 325. Let the cakes cool. Make the pudding according to package directions and let cool. Next, whip up your whipping cream until it's nice and thick then add in the cream cheese and whip until nice and smooth. Then level your cakes and stack them nicely with the lemon filling inside. It's best to pipe a line of frosting around each layer before filling with lemon pudding because the pudding is pretty slipper and your cake will be unstable without this extra line of support frosting in each layer. You could do up to four layers but I prefer to just do two. After you've stacked your layers, then frost all the way around and the top of the cake. Smooth it out and then quickly pipe a border (the frosting doesn't react well to heat so you must work quickly). Once your top and bottom borders are in place, spread a light coat the lemon pudding on top. Garnish with a little extra frosting in the center or I like to add a couple fresh lemon slices to top it off. One variation to this is to take some coconut and press it onto the sides but I prefer to keep it simply a lemony version. YUMMY!
Have a great week my friends! I'm hoping to catch up on some sleep and have a healthy household very soon! AND, I'm finally cashing in on my Mother's Day gift on Saturday! A facial and a massage!!! WOOHOO! This Saturday cannot come quickly enough! Until then....
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