Busy, busy, busy -- must get back to a menu plan, week of 2011-04-18 plus Paneer Manchurian

Okay, so we're on this season's third (or is it the fourth?) complete new set of seedling flats under the lights. Lettuces, cabbages, broccoli, kale, spinach, lots of onions, some potatoes, horseradish, sugar snap peas, and some other cool weather veggies (daikon radishes? bok choy?) that I can't recall right now (nor ask DH because he's at work...) are growing out in the garden. The latest batch of seedlings, which DH spent part of the past weekend potting up in newspaper pots, is mainly tomatoes and peppers. We're getting ready for warm weather and the last average frost date for our area which is around May 15.

DS and I try to spend a couple hours every day weeding, trimming back herbs and mowing. Just yesterday I found, under the leaf mulch, two rhubarb starts that were planted late last year and I thought were lost to the fall's dry weather -- Cherry, I think, and Canada Red. Or maybe they're both Canada Red. I definitely need to keep better gardening notes...

And thinking of garden journaling, I should note that DH set out another grape vine last week, a seedless red called Reliance, plus, in an area of the backyard where plants often fail to thrive or even die because of the many black walnut trees, he put a couple of currant bushes. Currants, along with raspberries, are included on many plant lists suggested for tolerance to juglone. I'm determined to find productive plants that can co-exist, even thrive, with the black walnuts.

So whenever time is short (and, really, when isn't it?) I know I need to plan a menu in order to make the best use of available foods, leftovers, and prep time. Otherwise we end up stopping for a sub sandwich or chinese takeout when we'd be better off budgetwise and foodwise to eat at home or take a packed lunch with us. Not to mention it seems silly to spend so much time growing our own food only to declare we don't have time to prepare and eat it! So back to menu planning for me.

Monday, April 18
Potato soup with ham bits and fresh chives
Cornbread

Tuesday, April 19
Spaghetti with meat sauce
Carrots and celery sticks with ranch dressing as a dip

Wednesday, April 20
Egg salad or homemade pimiento cheese sandwiches
Harvey House slaw
Peach crisp

Thursday, April 21
Paneer Manchurian (recipe follows) over brown rice or noodles
Stir-fried vegetables (whatever's in the crisper or ready in the garden)
Stewed rhubarb

Friday, April 22
Scrambled eggs and/or sausage patties
Homemade biscuits and apple butter
Milk

Saturday, April 23
Country-style steak with gravy
Mashed potatoes
Green beans
Pickled beets

Sunday, April 24
Potato salad
Cold ham
Yeast rolls
Fruit salad
Oatmeal cookies or gingersnaps
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Paneer Manchurian

This is adapted from a recipe I found at dhara.org. The sauce is wonderful with the paneer but equally good on cubed and sauteed chicken or tofu, too.

12 to 16 ounces paneer, cubed
2 tablespoons grated ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 poblano pepper, diced or other fresh pepper of your choice
1 cup chopped onion
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon sriracha sauce
up to 1/4 cup vegetable oil, divided

In a medium saucepan, heat a tablespoon of oil and add ginger, garlic, pepper and onion to saute. Stir in the soy sauce, ketchup and hot sauce after the onions have started to turn translucent and cook for a couple of minutes to blend flavors.

Meanwhile, heat a wok or iron skillet over high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. Toss in half of the paneer and lightly brown on all sides, stirring or tossing as for stir-frying. Remove the toasted paneer to a holding dish or, if the sauce is finished, add to saucepan and toss lightly to coat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, if necessary, and repeat with the rest of the paneer. Serve with rice or noodles, if desired.

Notes: I use my home-canned Western Gourmet Ketchup but regular ketchup or even a thick tomato sauce (spicy or plain) would work, too.
I use a poblano pepper and opt for a hot sriracha sauce however it could be switched around a bit by choosing a hotter pepper but a milder sweet chile-garlic sauce instead of sriracha.

Menu plan, week of 2011-03-14, plus scalloped potatoes from our dehydrated potatoes and kefir

Monday, March 14, 2011
Scalloped potatoes (recipe below)
Deviled eggs
Applesauce

Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Pork potstickers with dipping sauce
Harvey House slaw

Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Egg salad
Potato wheat bread
Strawberry-banana yogurt


Thursday, March 17, 2011
Green beans
Butternut squash
Sticky chicken
Homemade egg noodles


Friday, March 18, 2011
Homemade pizza
Carrots and celery with ranch dressing made w/ kefir
Sliced apples

Saturday, March 19, 2011
Cilantro-lime brown rice topped with taco-seasoned ground beef
Corn salsa
Tortilla chips
Fruit salad

Sunday, March 20, 2011
Vegetable-beef soup
Soda crackers
Ice cream and brownies 

Scalloped Potatoes (from dehydrated potatoes)

2 - 3 cups dried potato slices
enough boiling water to cover potatoes
1 cup kefir or light cream
1 egg, beaten (optional)
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt or celery salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon butter (optional)
1/4 - 1/2 cup cheese, grated (optional)

In medium bowl, pour boiling water over dried potatoes and set aside for 10 minutes.  Grease a shallow 2-quart baking dish.  Lift potatoes from water and spread in bottom of baking dish.  Don't worry if a little water clings to potatoes.

Discard (or save for other use) all but 1 cup of the potato water.  Add all remaining ingredients, except cheese, to the cup of water and whisk to blend well.  Pour the mixture over potatoes, cover and bake in 375ºF. oven for 40 minutes or until sauce is bubbling and starting to thicken.  Then dot potatoes with butter and grated cheese and continue to bake, uncovered, for another 20 minutes or until potatoes are fork-tender, sauce is thickened and top is golden brown.  Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes: I decide how many potatoes to use by pouring the dried slices into the baking dish I want to use to get a measure then moving them to another bowl for soaking.  This is very good layered with onion slices -- 1/2 cup fresh or 1/4 cup dried.  Or sprinkle chives in with the potatoes. If using dried onions, I don't bother soaking them first.  The egg may be omitted but I like the way it adds to the sauce -- similar to a very creamy mac-and-cheese.  When I want to make this more substantial, I add diced cooked ham or sausage to the potatoes.

Menu plan, week of 2011-02-22

Still trying to make this a habit.  So much for 21 days...  And, yeah, my week's starting today (Tuesday) -- it's gonna be that kind of week, I guess.

Tuesday, February 22
DS's pasta dish (whole wheat ziti, corn, tomatoes, some type of beans, onion, garlic, chili powder, arbol chiles and Italian seasoning)
Tossed salad w/ranch dressing made with kefir
Peaches, home-canned in light syrup

Wednesday, February 23
Spicy turmeric chicken
Garlic mashed potatoes
Pickled beets

Thursday, February 24
Salmon, marinated and grilled
Roasted vegetables (potatoes, onions, carrots, butternut squash)
Apple salad

Friday, February 25
Thai noodles with vegetables and peanut sauce (and leftover salmon if available)
Chocolate cake
Kefir ice cream

Saturday, February 26
Chicken and dumplings (from leftover spicy turmeric chicken and home-canned chicken broth)
Apple-carrot salad

Sunday, February 27
Egg salad sandwiches on homemade rye (local rye but NO fennel seeds!)
Harvey House slaw
Sliced apples

Monday, February 28
Meatloaf
Greek-style oven fries
Steamed cabbage
Rye bread

Menu plan, week of 2011-02-14 plus ranch dressing made w/ kefir

We got a bag of produce from my mother this week.  She decided on the spur of the moment to take advantage of the warmer weather and go visit my cousin in Ohio for a week or so.  When I went to help her pack Monday night, we also cleaned out her fridge and I came home with cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and more.  Altered our menu plan a bit but mainly it created a need for some salad dressing -- something we don't use a lot of over the winter.

Monday, February 14
CORD at Mom's

Tuesday, February 15

Tuna loaf
Oven fries (spicy)
Green beans

Wednesday, February 16

Curried chicken thighs
Basmati rice
Tossed salad w/ Ranch dressing made with kefir (recipe below)

Thursday, February 17

Country-style steak w/ potatoes and onions
Harvey House slaw

Friday, February 18

Homemade pizza
Tossed salad

Saturday, February 19
Cheese and black bean quesadillas, topped with lettuce, diced tomatoes and cucumbers
Corn salsa

Orange wedges


Sunday, February 20
Bbq on buns
Pumpkin Seed salad dressing over salad of green peppers, bean sprouts, corn, and sweet onion
Chocolate cake
Kefir ice cream
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I can't believe how much I like this kefir made from the grains.  We made ice cream with it this weekend and I've even been drinking a cup of it plain every day.  It's soothing and refreshing at the same time.

And it makes a good ranch dressing -- thick and tangy. Like ranch dressing should taste but rarely does.

Ranch Dressing with Kefir

2 heaping tablespoons dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups mayonnaise
2 cups kefir

Blend mayonnaise and kefir together till smooth.  Add dry ingredients and mix well.  Refrigerate for at least 12 hours before using to allow flavors to blend.  Makes 4 cups.  Recipe can be halved.

Some make-a-mix recipes for ranch dressing call for a thickener such as crushed saltines.  Using kefir keeps the dressing thick yet pourable, without need for any thickener.  Buttermilk or thinned yogurt can be substituted but dressing may be thinner.

Menu plan, week of 2011-02-07 plus Kefir-Honey dressing for fruit salad

Except for the marshmallows, I've always loved what my mother calls 5-cup salad.  It's made with a cup of each ingredient: pineapple chunks, shredded coconut, mandarin oranges, sour cream and the dreaded marshmallows, usually mini-.  (I like homemade marshmallows and toasted marshmallows but I haven't found a dish yet where I like intact marshmallows as an ingredient.  Weird?  Probably.)

This Kefir-Honey dressing, while it has a touch of orange from the juice, makes a similar salad when tossed with fruit.  If you don't have kefir, see the note following the recipe for suggestions on substituting sour cream or yogurt.  This makes a nice winter fruit salad but is very refreshing in the heat of summer, too.

Kefir-Honey Dressing for fruit salad

1/2 cup kefir (drained to thicken, if you prefer)
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon orange juice

In a large bowl, mix kefir, honey and orange juice till smooth.  Add 4 or 5 cups of fresh or drained, canned fruit to the bowl and toss lightly to coat.

I use orange sections (clementines are nice), sliced bananas, grapes (cut in half), pineapple chunks, strawberries, sliced peaches and blueberries, depending on the season.  Mandarin oranges, pineapple and shredded coconut will make a salad similar to 5-cup salad (a southern specialty?) and, if you like nuts, chopped walnuts, pecans or almonds are nice to sprinkle on top.  (But I like nuts with almost everything...)

If you don't have kefir, you may substitute sour cream or a good whole-milk plain or vanilla yogurt. If using low-fat or non-fat yogurt, I'd use half sour cream and half yogurt to keep it rich-tasting. YMMV

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Menu planning that's actually written down (and even better, made public) holds me accountable and makes for a smoother week.  And I'm all in favor of the latter, if not always the former.  So here's this week's plan:


Monday, February 7
(Super Bowl party leftovers)
Chili
Crackers and cheese spread
Carrots and celery sticks
Chocolate cake

Tuesday, February 8
Chicken roasted with potato and onion wedges
Bean sprout salad w/Outrageous Dressing

Wednesday, February 9
Frittata (eggs, ham and leftover roasted potatoes and onions)
Fruit salad with Kefir-Honey dressing (recipe above)
Rye 5-minute artisan bread

Thursday, February 10
Baja-style fish tacos w/Chipotle White taco sauce (made with kefir instead of sour cream or yogurt)
Shredded cabbage, bean sprouts and onion for topping tacos
Orange sections

Friday, February 11
Chicken sandwiches on rye w/nectarine mustard
Applesauce
Preserved bean sprouts

Saturday, February 12
(Family dinner for 15 -- I'm responsible for cobbler and ice cream...)
Tenderloin and gravy
Mashed potatoes
Green beans
Corn
Cole slaw
Macaroni and cheese
Apple salad
Rolls
Blackberry cobbler
Homemade ice cream

Sunday, February 13
Crockpot tortellini vegetable soup
Crackers
Apple slices

Menu plan, week of 2011-01-31

Busy month ahead so back to menu planning to stay on track.  I don't like to lose food in the back of the refrigerator, forget to use what (little but worthwhile!) is in the garden, or spend money on something quick-to-eat when a little planning would make all the difference.

Monday, January 31
Costa Rican-style tilapia (made w/already-cooked basmati rice, black beans and canned pineapple)

Tuesday, February 1
Beef pot roast with potatoes, carrots and onions
Rye bread (5-minute artisan - local rye and hard wheat)

Wednesday, February 2
Blender oatmeal pancakes with maple syrup
Breakfast sausage patties

Thursday, February 3
Hot roast beef sandwiches (from Tuesday's pot roast)
Mashed potatoes
Spinach or Swiss chard from the garden

Friday, February 4
Homemade pizza

Saturday, February 5
Vegetable soup (last of Tuesday's pot roast)
Homemade soda crackers

Sunday, February 6
Superbowl party at Mom's - take oatmeal-raisin cookies, crackers and cheese ball

Menu plan for week of Feb1/10

Forgot to do a menu plan last week but we survived. It is easier for me with a written menu, tho, so here's another attempt at making this a habit. The recipe for Monday's soup is included at the bottom of the post.

Monday, Feb 1
Tortellini Italian Vegetable Soup in the crockpot
No-knead wholegrain bread

Tuesday, Feb 2
Roast chicken
Broccoli
Mashed potatoes

Wednesday, Feb 3
Broiled fish (whatever's in the freezer - flounder or tilapia)
Potato cakes (made with Tuesday's mashed potatoes)
Peas

Thursday, Feb 4
Oatmeal Blender Pancakes w/blueberry syrup

Friday, Feb 5
Chicken & cheese quesadillas (using Tuesday's chicken)

Saturday, Feb 6
Black olive & mushroom pizza (crust recipe)
Carrots & celery
Rhubarb-ade

Sunday, Feb 7
Swiss steak over noodles
Green beans
Fruit cup (canned or frozen)

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Crockpot Tortellini Italian Vegetable Soup
12-15 servings

1 quart whole tomatoes
1 quart tomato juice
6 oz tomato paste or 4 oz dried tomatoes, powdered
1 quart green beans
1/2 to 1 pound ground beef or venison, optional
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped or 1/2 cup dried, chopped bell pepper
1 carrot, chopped or 1/4 cup dried, chopped carrots
1 quart chicken, beef or vegetable broth or water *See Note
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon dried basil leaves or 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon garlic granules or 2 cloves, crushed
1 pound fresh or frozen cheese tortellini or 9 oz. dried tortellini

Brown ground meat in olive oil. Add onions, cook till they're translucent.

Combine whole tomatoes and tomato juice in 6-qt crockpot. Use large spoon to break apart tomatoes. Add chicken broth, green beans, tomato paste, chopped carrots and peppers, salt, basil and garlic. Add cooked meat and onions.

Cook on HIGH for 2 hours or LOW for 4-8 hours. About 30 minutes before serving, turn crock to HIGH if on LOW, and add tortellini. Monitor cooking as frozen tortellini may be cooked in as little as 10 minutes, dried will take longer. If preferred, tortellini may also be prepared by boiling in a separate pot of water (4 minutes for frozen, 10 minutes for dried). Drain then add to soup mixture. I do it all in one to save a step and a pan...

Note: If using dried tortellini and cooking it in the crockpot, add an additional 1 cup liquid (water or broth).

Menu plan for week of Jan 18/10

When I try to write down a menu plan my mind seems to go blank. Here's another attempt at using what we have without repeating till we're bored.

Monday, January 18

Spanish rice
Green beans

Tuesday, January 19

Potato soup
Cornbread

Wednesday, January 20

Egg salad sandwiches
Baked apples

Thursday, January 21

Spaghetti with marinara sauce
Carrots and celery with ranch dip

Friday, January 22

Fish tacos (directions below)
Cole slaw

Saturday, January 23

Black olive and mushroom pizza
Green salad

Sunday, January 24

Brown beans
Cole slaw or pickles
Cornmeal griddle cakes

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Baja-style Fish Tacos

1/2 cup flour
Beer - start with 1/3 cup and add more as needed for proper consistency, should be like thick paint
Salt and pepper
2 tbs vegetable oil
1 pound fish (whiting, bream, bass, tilapia, any type of firm mild fish)
Oil for frying (I use peanut oil)

Watch the video below of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall as he mixes up this plain beer batter and fries fish and squid. I've been reading his River Cottage cookbooks lately -- they have lots of ideas for using "everything but the squeal."


I serve the fish in a tortilla, preferably corn that's been lightly grilled to heat and soften, and add shredded cabbage or, sometimes, cole slaw. If I'm using plain cabbage I usually make a small batch of chipotle white sauce for a topping and there's always homemade salsa, fresh or canned, depending on the season, too.

Chipotle White Taco Sauce

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1 or 2 canned chipotle peppers, mashed

Combine all ingredients, stir to blend.

Menu plan for week of Jan 11/10

I sat down this morning with a cup of winter herb tea (recipe below) and wrote out another quick menu for the upcoming week. If something becomes a habit after 21 days, I should be well on my way to making this one. But in my experience I think that works best with BAD habits...

Monday, January 11

Pot roast and vegetables w/noodles
Green salad (depends on what's under the snow)
HM bread

Tuesday, January 12

Chicken fried rice
Orange and grapefruit segments

Wednesday, January 13

Black bean and cheese enchiladas
Canned peaches and pineapple

Thursday, January 14

Oatmeal pancakes w/maple syrup
Sausage patties

Friday, January 15

Tortellini-Vegetable soup
No-knead bread
Fruit salad

Saturday, January 16

Chicken and Dumplings
Peas

Sunday, January 17

Macaroni and cheese
Green beans
Beets (pickled or not)


Winter Herb Tea

1/2 teaspoon dried lemon balm
1/2 teaspoon dried lemon verbena
1/2 teaspoon dried chamomile
1 cup pink grapefruit juice -- warmed

Steep the herbs in the warmed juice, covered, for 4 minutes. Then discard the herbs and sip the tea.

Menu plan for week of Jan 4/10

Followed last week's plan except for Saturday -- I slept on the couch most of that day due to a lingering sinus infection. Instead of following the planned menu, DH and DS ate assorted leftovers from the fridge. Today's meal is what was scheduled for Jan 2.

Everything listed will come from our well-stocked pantry or freezer, too. This is the first week of our Austerity Plan for the quarter and, except for fresh dairy (mainly milk), I want to avoid the store for awhile.

Monday, January 4

Shrimp curry
Green beans
Applesauce


Tuesday, January 5

Venison w/onions and potatoes
Red cabbage and apples
Pumpkin pie w/o crust


Wednesday, January 6

Chili from the freezer
Crackers
Clementines


Thursday, January 7

Salmon cakes
Greek-style oven fries
Corn relish
Carrot and celery sticks


Friday, January 8

Spaghetti with veggie sauce
No-knead wholegrain bread


Saturday, January 9

Sugar snap peas w/pork (Use stir-fry sauce)
Brown rice
Pink grapefruit segments


Sunday, January 10

Vegetable soup from the freezer
LO no-knead bread slices topped w/cheese and broiled

Menu plan for week of Dec 28/09

Working out a menu plan is so helpful when I bother to do it that I'm trying to make it a habit. Since I'm planning to implement an Austerity Plan for the first quarter of 2010, this head start on accountability seemed like a good idea.

We have our main meal at lunch when DH is working so that means I put today's crock pot meal together by mid-morning and we sat down to a hot dinner at noon. Kind of nice to have it over and done with -- both the planning and now the meal itself. Hope the rest of the week will go as smoothly.

Monday, December 28

Crockpot turkey and dressing (made from leftover turkey frozen in meal-sized portions - recipe below)
Fruit salad (blend of canned fruits)

Tuesday, December 29

Beef stew (potatoes, carrots, celery and onions)
Applesauce (HM)
Lettuce and spinach salad from coldframe w/viniagrette

Wednesday, December 30

Chili (make extra for freezer lunches
Cornbread
Clementines

Thursday, December 31

Steamed shrimp with Old Bay seasoning
Hummus with cilantro and jalapenos (Trader Joe's)
Baked pita chips (HM)
Carrots and celery sticks
Yogurt dip (HM)
Pound cake with lemon curd (HM, home-canned)
Rhubarb punch (home-canned and spiked with rhubarb liqueur for the adults)

Friday, January 1

[delayed Christmas meal at Mom's - will be assigned dish(es) to take later in week]

Saturday, January 2

Shrimp curry (made with leftover shrimp from Thursday)
Peaches or nectarines (home-frozen)
Pound cake (leftover from New Year's Eve)

Sunday, January 3

Potatoes au gratin with ham bits
Green beans
Pickled beets
Baked fruit compote (peaches from Saturday, dehydrated apples and pears, etc.)
Hot rolls

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Crockpot Chicken or Turkey and Dressing

4 cups cooked chopped chicken or turkey
1 box stove-top stuffing mix or a M-I-Y version with dried bread cubes and seasoning
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup water or chicken broth
1-1/2 cups milk, half-and-half or heavy cream
1 cup frozen peas, optional
butter or cooking spray

Grease 1-1/2 or 2-quart crock pot with butter or cooking spray. Combine stuffing mix and chicken in crock. Toss to blend.

Combine eggs and liquids in a bowl and stir to blend. Pour over mixture in crock pot and cover with lid. Cook on High for 2 to 3 hours. Pour peas on top of mixture about 30 minutes before end of cooking time. Replace lid and finish cooking. Serve.

Thanksgiving dinner

As usual we hosted family and friends for Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday afternoon. Ever year we try to streamline the job and this year was one of the easiest feasts we've managed.

I brined the turkey Wednesday night and, in keeping with our goal to get as much as possible done before guests arrive, went on to put green beans and a cayenne pepper pod into a slow cooker, added garden-fresh red cabbage with apples to another crock, and steamed just-picked spinach for a bowl of dip. DH made wholegrain bread and make-ahead mashed potatoes, then pared carrots and celery and the ingredients for a fruit salad. I also brewed a gallon of tea and squeezed lemons for another gallon of lemonade so they would have time to chill before serving. DS spent Wednesday afternoon at his grandmother's baking pumpkin pies, Japanese fruit pies (recipe follows) and a batch of sugar cookies.

On Thursday I roasted the turkey along with a pan of dressing while DH opened a jar of the pickled beets canned earlier this year and packages of the few items we couldn't grow and/or prepare ourselves: pimiento-stuffed green olives, black olives and a bag of potato chips. My sister brought a pan of cheese-y corn pudding and Mom showed up early to make the gravy.

By mid-morning early arrivals were snacking on crudites and dip and we all sat down to dinner, right on schedule, at one o'clock. We set butter and fruit preserves on the dining tables DH set up in the living room but, to save space, served the food buffet-style in the kitchen.

With so much of the food prep done in advance, the only thing we could think of to improve on this year's dinner would be to raise our own turkey. Maybe that's what my mother envisioned years ago when she made this wall-hanging for me?


Who knows where the name for Japanese Fruit pie originated? It certainly doesn't have any identifiably Japanese ingredients. But it's been a family favorite for over 35 years.

My mom got the recipe from a friend when I was a kid and one nephew still asks for it for his birthday. He refers to it as "Japanese Fruit Fly Pie," the name he thought we all called it when he was little. Sounds great, doesn't it?

Well, it is.

Japanese Fruit Pie

1 stick (4 oz.) butter, melted
4 whole eggs, beaten
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 cup raisins, seedless
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup coconut, flaked
2 9-inch pie shells

Stir ingredients together in order given. Pour into formed 9" pie shells. Bake at 325° for 40 minutes. To halve the recipe, halve all ingredients except butter.

Do you brown bag it?

Well, DH does. Though his employer provides a large break room complete with sandwich and snack machines, he prefers to pack his lunch every day. One reason is he's a thrifty guy and would rather not fork out a minimum of 5 bucks a day to eat a day-old sandwich, a handful of chips and a soda plus the closest restaurant is almost 4 miles away. But the main reason is he's envious of me and DS.

Yes, that's right. He's driven by jealousy. He thinks of us, at home, doing our usual chores, homeschooling, stretching out with a book and then enjoying home-cooked meals without him. He can handle it all right up to the point when DS describes some great tasting dish we cobbled together for dinner. Then, especially if the meal included fresh garden produce, he turns green.

Now for me, having to cook and preserve almost all our food, I sometimes dream of being served a meal I didn't have to prepare. Just goes to show, one man's bane is another's pleasure. And it's not even that DS and I dine on exotic dishes or seek out little known recipes to enjoy when DH is at work. I think it's just the idea that we're enjoying the fruits of his labor without him.

So what does he pack for lunch? Usually leftovers. Yep, all this fuss and the man eats leftovers. But since I usually cook extra chicken with the idea of making tortilla soup from the remains or turn a few slices of ham and boiled potatoes into a fritta with the addition of eggs and onions, it's not always traditional leftovers. More of the cook once, eat twice or plan-ahead cooking style.

One day this past week, I realized he'd packed a totally local meal to take to work. Here's what he packaged up: ruby red beets, steamed and sliced, zucchini and yellow squash in browned butter, sugar snap peas with garlic-soy sauce, Harvey House slaw, sliced cucumbers in vinegar and a slice of locally raised and smoked ham.Except for the ham slice (the last of a fellow homesteader's delicious Christmas basket), DH grew everything from beets, cabbage, cucumbers, garlic, onion, sugar snap peas, yellow squash to zucchini. The dried and crushed hot red pepper on the peas came from last year's garden.

The butter came from Burnt Chimneys, the soy sauce from Richmond, and the honey in the slaw came from an apiary on the next county road over. The apple cider vinegar was more of the batch we made last fall from (non-pasturized) local cider. Non-local ingredients included in the meal were celery seed, dry mustard, kosher salt, a teaspoon of brown sugar and salad oil.

Sugar Snap Peas in Garlic-Soy Sauce

1 pound sugar snap peas, ends clipped, strings removed
2 tablespoons garlic-infused olive oil (OR sub plain olive oil and 1 minced garlic clove)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
dash of crushed cayenne pepper

Toss olive oil with peas to coat. Broil 2"-3" from heat for 5 minutes. Mix soy sauce and brown sugar together and pour over peas in broiler pan. Toss to coat. Season lightly with pepper. Serve.

These are good hot or cold.

Invalid Cookery

Not many cookbooks these days include chapters on cooking for invalids but if you pull out older ones, especially from the early 20th century, they often have a chapter on preparing soothing draughts such as barley water or nourishing dishes like blancmange or some type of gruel. Sound delicious, huh? Here's a link to an online cookbook circa 1902 with a chapter on the subject.

I'm thinking of this as I'm home from a short hospital stay during which I shared a room with a fellow surgical patient who will be on an all-liquid diet for 21 days, clear liquids* only for the first week. It got me considering her options and my own. My diet isn't restrictive but is still limited by how I'm feeling; I couldn't tolerate a steak and loaded baked potato right now if you paid me.

Some meal planning guidelines for invalids come easy. If the doctor recommends clear liquids or no citrus fruits that's clear cut but if you're in charge of setting the menu without medical directives keep these things in mind. Invalid meals should be healthy, easy to digest, easy to swallow or chew as necessary, served at the right temperature for the food and/or the patient's preference.** Easy on the pocketbook, good for the whole family (meaning fewer separate dishes to prepare) and quick to prepare are things worth considering, too. Remember comfort foods may be as much about presentation as ingredients. Toast cut into triangles or cookie cutter shapes, applesauce sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, orange slices arranged in a sunburst on a small plate -- something mom used to make for them when they were small.

I have at least one cookbook devoted to invalid cookery and it's from modern times: Laurel's Kitchen Caring: whole food recipes for everyday home caregiving by Laurel Robertson of Laurel's Kitchen: a handbook for vegetarian cookery and nutrition
fame. Robertson includes simple recipes like Ginger Tea which she recommends for relief of mild stomachache or headache, or for nausea, colds or fever. It's a standby at out house for mild stomach problems.

Ginger Tea

1 quart water
2" nub of peeled and thinly sliced gingerroot

Drop gingerroot into boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain and serve plain or with honey. Cool and keep extra in a jar in the fridge for a few days. Serve cold or reheat as needed.

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This one's in Robertson's book, too, but my mom's made this blend as a sore throat or light cough relief for years.

Lemon and Honey

Squeeze a lemon and stir in honey in an approximate equal amount, to taste; then add boiling water to make a cup. Sip to soothe throat. Add a shot of whiskey to an adult's cup for a hot toddy.

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For heartier fare, rice is a good choice. It can be served bland with just salt, pepper and maybe a pat of butter or you can tempt appetites with Robertson's Green Rice Casserole:

1 small bunch green onions or 1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 clove garlic
vegetable oil
2-1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup grated cheese (try swiss, mild cheddar, or Monterey jack)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups milk
3/4 to 1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350F.

Saute garlic and onion in oil until soft. Crush garlic with fork. Combine with remaining ingredients. Pour mixture into greased 2-quart casserole. Bake about 45 minutes, until set. Cool slightly if you want to slice it into squares.

Tailor it to diet needs--

Lower fat: Cut cheese in half, use skim milk. Sub 4 egg whites for whole eggs.
Vegan: Omit cheese, milk and eggs. Add plenty of sauteed mushrooms and chopped grilled bell peppers. Lighter dish -- delicious.
Bland, but good: Leave out sauteed onion and garlic, cosider substituting a preferred salt-free seasoning blend such as Mrs. Dash or Spike for salt.

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Robertson even includes a recipe for barley water. It's suggested for anyone with weakness, irritated digestive tract or sore throat.

Barley Tea

2 quarts boiling water
1/2 cup barley, whole-grain "naked" or hulled, but NOT pearl
3 cardamom pods (or 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom)

Boil water in large saucepan. Wash barley in cold water and drain. Put it in boiling water and simmer actively about 30 minutes, until water is a deep pink and cloudy. Either strain it or let stand and then pour off the clear liquid. If desired you can add another quart of water to the barley and boil again, combining the liquid from both batches. You should end up with about 8 cups of barley tea but you can make it stronger or dilute as desired.

With mortar and pestle, finely grind seeds from cardamom pods and add to hot tea. Serve hot with honey or sugar. May store extra in refrigerator to reheat over the next couple of days as needed.

For more kitchen tips check out Tammy's Kitchen Tip Tuesday posts.

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*The test is, if you put it in a glass, you can see your hand through the glass. Water, weak black tea, weak herbal teas like chamomile or raspberry leaf, mild clear broth, and diluted apple juice can be appropriate.

**I can still remember ending up in the hospital overnight after a bicycle wreck as a young teen. No food since the previous morning and I thought I was starving. My mouth was filled stitches so I needed something soft or, even better, liquid and not too hot temperature-wise. Instead I was served a steaming (truly!) bowl of oatmeal, thin toast and canned orange juice. I couldn't eat any of it. The toast was dry and had to be chewed thoroughly, the juice was too acidic and by the time the oatmeal had cooled enough to try, the tray had been removed. I spent the next week eating all my food thru a straw. That was one of the few times I would have appreciated something like Carnation Instant Breakfast drink...

No menu plan this week -- we're winging it

My sister is away on business so this is my week to stay with my mother. DSis and I and several other family members have been sharing this job since Mom came home from the hospital after her stroke in early December. I'm finding out this week how much of the work usually falls on my sister -- she does live next door to Mom while I'm about 7 miles down the road, but, boy, am I appreciating DSis more this week!

What does all that have to do with menu planning? Well, I'm trying to juggle 3 meals a day for Mom and myself or whoever might drop in. And she has a lot of visitors over a week's time. Plus, DH and DS are learning to fend for themselves or, more accurately, raiding my supply of OAMC stashed in the freezer. These are the times that strain the grocery budget -- at least at our house.

In the freezer I have about 4 dozen cornish pasties made with ground meat, in this case venison, and shredded white potatoes and chopped onions. I made them last week when I was recovering from the "ick" we all shared during January. Since I had managed to make more dough than filling (why does it always come out uneven?), I sliced a kielbasa and used it with some nectarine mustard to fill the last of the pasties. Those last few are all for DH as DS has decided most sausages are not for him.

Then there's the supply of individual vegetable-beef soup bowls (probably an even dozen now), several multiple-piece packages of individually-frozen oven-baked crispy-battered chicken. (note 3 hyphenated compound words in a row -- a new record) Add 6 egg and cheese burritos, a dozen beef and black bean burritos, and several tv dinner-style frozen dinners with a main dish and 2 veg and I think they'll make out okay. Plus, if they hold to past performance, they'll both manage to eat lunch at Mom's most days and DS will eat dinner there every night as DH will bring him by on his way to work each weekday.

There's a thread running this week on a site I frequent, Fractured Frugal Friends, asking about fish cookery. The person that started the thread mentioned she'd been reading about how 3 fish-based meals each week could improve one's health and she wondered how many times people served fish and some of the preparation methods. That got me to thinking as, in that small survey pool, we seem to eat fish a lot. Well, compared to other posters, I mean. Once a week we have some type of whole fish or fish fillets, either fresh or, more frequently, frozen. Sometimes we have shellfish and there's always canned tuna and salmon. So I've been trying to write down our favorite recipes that use some type of fish and I'm going to try to add at least one new recipe using fish to our menu sometime this month. I worry about getting in a rut with meals but I hardly ever think about expanding the fish side of the menu.

So this week's menu planning will probably become this week's menu after the fact if I even manage that. Here's hoping next week will be better.

Menu planning for week of January 21

I know, it's already Tuesday but when you're sick you don't want to eat, right? Writing this out is really helping, especially with everyone sick and worn out as a result. At least we don't have to think about what to fix. It's all written out and I make sure we have the ingredients before I write the menu. We keep the pantry and freezer pretty well stocked anyway so except for DH stopping on the way home tonight to get a gallon of milk, we won't have to run out to the grocery this week.

Monday, January 21

Chicken noodle soup
Oyster crackers
Carrot sticks

Tuesday, January 22

Egg and cheese burritos
Homemade salsa
Black beans topped w/chopped sweet onions
Iceberg lettuce wedges w/dressing

Wednesday, January 23

Spaghetti bolognese
Waldorf salad
Garlic toast

Thursday, January 24

Greek-style oven fries
Steamed cabbage wedges, served with vinegar
Braised boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Yogurt with frozen peaches or strawberries

Friday, January 25

Homemade sausage w/gravy
Scrambled eggs
Fried apples
Wholegrain toast
Orange juice

Saturday, January 26

Barbecued venison, chopped
Homemade wholegrain hamburger buns
Coleslaw
Potato chips

Sunday, January 27

Calico fish
Baked potatoes
Apple carrot salad

Menu planning for week of January 14

Surprised even myself and followed last week's menu faithfully. So I'm going to try again this week.

Monday, January 14
Since DS is suffering from an upper respiratory complaint (requiring a doctor's visit this morning...) and DH just called from work to say he's coming down with something, too, I think we need some chill-chasin' chicken soup to start off the week. Will let me put Friday's leftover chicken to good use, too.

Chicken and barley soup
Saltines
Red pepper cheese spread
Orange sections

Tuesday, January 15

Spaghetti w/meat sauce
Tossed salad (lettuce, green pepper, sweet onion and carrots)
Hard rolls

Wednesday, January 16

Macaroni salad
Club rolls with ham, provolone, green tomato pickles and shredded lettuce
Sliced apples

Thursday, January 17

Navy beans
Cornbread
Carrots, celery sticks and garden-fresh turnips
Apple cake

Friday, January 18

Grilled T-bone steaks
Spicy potato wedges
Green beans with chopped onion
Ice cream and apple cake

Saturday, January 19

Catfish bites
Pickled beets
Mashed potatoes
Baked apples

Sunday, January 20

Vegetable beef soup
Oyster crackers
Peanut butter (on crackers or wholegrain bread)
Frozen peaches with almond cookies

Menu planning attempt for the week of Jan 7

The last month was a bust on menu planning around here what with my mom having a stroke in early December and DH taking a week or more off for the Christmas holidays but we should be able to get on track (sort of) since DMom came home at the end of last week and DH is back on his regular work schedule. So with all good intentions, I'm going to try posting the menu for the main meal of each day so I can stay focused.

Monday, January 7

Chili
Oyster crackers
Stewed apples
Carrots and celery sticks

Tuesday, January 8

Beef and noodles
Salad (romaine, sweet onion, carrots)
Sue Gregg's 2-step whole wheat muffins

Wednesday, January 9

Potato soup
Oyster crackers
Carrot sticks
Sliced apples

Thursday, January 10

Frittata
Whole wheat bread
Waldorf salad

Friday, January 11

Baked chicken
Mashed potatoes
Green beans
Corn relish

Saturday, January 12

Homemade pizza with black olives, mushrooms and ?
Sliced apples

Sunday, January 13

Bacon
Eggs (over easy, over medium and over hard -- everyone likes them a different way...)
Whole wheat toast
Rhubarb preserves
Orange sections