November 11-17 menu planning

• Sunday
  Pork roast
  Pan roasted potatoes and carrots
  Spinach salad
  Oatmeal and apple cookies
• Monday
  Hot pork and gravy sandwiches
  Mashed potatoes
  Slice tomatoes
• Tuesday
  Vegetable soup using rest of leftover pork
  French bread
• Wednesday
  French bread pizza
  Green salad
• Thursday
  Canned salmon (instead of tuna) casserole with veggies
  Green salad
• Friday
  Squash bisque
  Crackers
  Green salad
• Saturday
  Leftover salmon casserole
  Leftover squash bisque
  
  

Squash bisque:
3 Tbsp butter or oil
1 small carrot grated
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 acorn squash, peeled and cubed
6 cups chicken stock
1 cup milk
salt and pepper

In frying pan, melt butter or add oil; saute carrot until tender, about 5 minutes. Add carrots, potatoes, squash and chicken stock to your slow cooker and cover. Cook over low at least 3 hours, but may be all day if needed. Puree about 1.5 cups per time in the blender or run through a ricer. Add back into a large saucepan. Add the milk and salt and pepper to taste. Heat on medium heat until hot and ready to serve.

For flavor variations: add 1 apple to the squash and potatoes, then a dash or two of cinnamon to the seasonings.
Add a dash of curry or garlic to the seasoning

Dinner Menus for October 28-November 3

1. Sunday
   Green salad with pears, pomegranate, Gorgonzola and balsamic vinaigrette
   Manhattan fish chowder
   Parmesan bread sticks
   Apple crisp
2. Monday
   Oven fried chicken
   Mashed sweet potatoes
   Broccoli
3. Tuesday
   Left over chowder
   Crackers
   Green salad
4. Wednesday
   Homemade quick tomato soup
   Grilled cheese sandwiches
   Green salad
5. Thursday
   Sweet and sour pork and veggies (replace 1/2 the recipe pork with mixed chinese veggies instead-cheaper and healthier)
   Brown rice
6. Friday
   Cream of chicken and veggie soup-add 1/2 cup vegetables to canned cream of chicken soup
   Crackers
   Waldorf salad
7. Saturday
   French bread pizza
   Green salad

Recipe guidelines

I'll give recipes for some of our favorties. I cannot eat onions, so if you like them, feel free to add them. I strive for 5-9 fruit and veggie servings per day. We try to get fish at least twice per week and eat relatively little read meet. Once cold weather sets in, we have soups and stews often. I work full time outside the home, so I do as much prep work as possible on the weekends. Our weeday meals tend to be quick and easy.

The chowder for Sunday is:

Place everything in the slow cooker as follows:

• 2 15.5 oz cans crushed tomato (cheaper at my grocer than the larger cans)
• 6 cans water
• 3 diced potatoes
• 2 diced carrots
• 2 diced stalks celery
• 2 diced cloves garlic
• bay leaf
• salt and pepper

Let cook on low for 4-6 hours, depending on how busy your day is. Then add

• 3/4 to 1 and 1/2 pounds mild white fish
• 1 cup chopped chard or spinach or other greens you like to cook

Let cook an additional hour. With about 5 minutes left, add one can clams.

Apple crisp

Spray baking pan with non stick spray. I used 2 qt today, but you can use any size. Fill pan about 3/4 full with diced apples. Top liberally with butter (about 1/2 cup). Cover that with about 1/2 cup sugar (or to taste after you have tried this a few times). Sprinkle with apple pie spice. Mix topping-equal parts brown sugar, butter, flour, and raw oats. Today, I used 1 cup of each. Use a pastry cutter to mix them all together and cut in the butter. Sprinkle over the apples. Bake 375 for 45 minutes. We top with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or nothing, depending on mood.

Homemade quick tomato soup

Add one 16 oz can of tomato sauce to saucepan. Add one can water. Sprinkle with instant chicken or beef boulliion (about 1 tsp) and salt. Heat and serve as standard tomato soup. Alternatives: Add chili powder, cumin, oregano and 1 Tablespoon salsa to make tex-mex. or Add basil, oregano, garlic, parsley to make Italian.

Waldorf salad

Dice a 2 pears and 2 apples into a bowl. Add 1 Tablespoon lemon juice and stir to coat the fruit. It is nice if they are different colors and flavors. Add 1 cup of seedless grapes, halved. Add 1/4 cup chopped nuts. Coat with about 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise or to taste. Serve over salad greens.