Meal Plan Week 12

It was really nice to have my meal plan as a guideline for Christmas Week, but of course with the festivities my plan didn't really go as planned. My Dad, Brother & his Girlfriend came for Christmas so besides our huge Christmas dinner we also went out for a big sushi feast to introduce my brother to the wonders of raw fish and maki. He was pretty stoked but his girlfriend was rather squeamish and after seeing our platter of raw fish and sushi rolls she lost her appetite and couldn't finish her bowl of Chicken Teriyaki. We also have an amazing local pizza place that my Dad loves to order from when he's in town visiting us, so my homemade Katsu Donburi got scrapped in lieu of Chicken Soprano Pizza with artichokes & spinach. I was hoping to post the recipe for Katsu Donburi but it will have to be put on hold until I can get around to making it.

Despite not posting any new recipes I did post pictures for Hummus and Butter Chicken, as well as pictures and updated versions of Aloo Pakoras and Carla's Not Calorie Conscious but Delicious Mashed Potatoes.

I feel exhasted after the craziness of Christmas and all the food preparing I did this past week, and want some time to relax. This baby could be coming any day now, so I've got a pretty low-key week planned and they all reflect the comforts of my childhood. I'm usually all about trying new things and visiting the corners of the world in our food for the week....but I'm looking forward to settling in to prepare for the baby and delving into some low-energy, satisfying favorites.

Day 1: Asparagus Stuffed Chicken with Hollandaise Sauce and Roasted Potatoes

Day 2: Hamburger Soup & Cheese Biscuits
We've had a long cold stretch here with lots of snow and I haven't even made a single soup yet. This will be nice for cuddling up on a cold evening.

Day 3: New Years Eve - Homemade Pizza
We are going to hang out with friends for New Year's Eve and I'll bring the homemade pizza dough (made in my new bread maker!) so we can have fun making pizzas, eating food and playing games.

Day 4: Leftover Soup

Day 5: Dijon-Honey Ham, Hashbrown Casserole and Broccoli
Hashbrown casserole is a classic recipe that reminds me of my Mom (who passed away) every time I eat it. I love it with ham so this is making me really excited to eat. I won't post the recipe for the casserole since I've seen variations of the recipe all over the internet, and I'm sure everyone has eaten it at some time so it's not really that original. This link is to Allrecipes and is pretty close to the one my Mom made...we don't use any onions, and I use Cream of Mushroom instead of Cream of Chicken. But everything else is the same.

Day 6: Leftovers

Grocery List:

MEAT
4 chicken breasts
1lb ground beef
Pepperoni/Ham for pizza
3 lb ham

PRODUCE
4 cloves garlic
Asparagus bunch
5 sprigs fresh thyme
5 potatoes
1 bunch broccoli
Veggies you like for pizza
1 onion
4 carrots
3 celery stalks

DAIRY
3 eggs
3/4 cup butter
1 3/4 cup milk
1 1/4 cup grated cheddar
1 cup mozzarella
1 cup sour cream

BAKERY
Pizza crusts (or make your own dough from scratch)

FROZEN
2 lb bag of hashbrowns

CANNED GOODS
1 1/4 cup chicken broth
4 cups beef broth
Olive oil
1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil
Pizza sauce
28 oz. can of tomatoes
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 tbsp orange juice

DRY GOODS
1/2 cup barley
2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
Crushed cornflakes

SPICES, SEASONINGS & SAUCES
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp Tabasco sauce
Favorite seasoning for roasted potatoes
1 bay leaf
Salt & pepper
1/3 cup honey
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp brown sugar

For more meal plan ideas check out my Complete List of Meal Plans or the Menu Plan Monday Links at Orgjunkie.