Monday, March 22, 2010
Menu Plan Monday - March 22
Gosh, it's been ages since I've been able to participate in Menu Plan Monday. The whole time difference thing totally throws me off. By the time I get online over here on my side of the world, y'all have gotten posted so quickly that I'd be #973, so it just kind of seemed silly. LOL! But now that it's going up at a new time (6 am PST, 4 pm my time) there's a slight chance I might be able to crack the top 200!! ;)
This week I am doing a frugal version of menu-planning. For one thing we are pretty tight on finances from now until the end of the school year what with paying off school fees, saving for vacation and such, so it's good to just tighten the belt and make do on what we can. Also, since the kids and I will be vacating the house for 6 weeks while we are in the States for the summer and Hubby will probably eat out a majority of that time, I figured it's a good idea to begin "shopping at home" as much as I can, using up what I already have.
Here's my menu plan for this week:
- Monday - Homemade pizza using this fabulous pizza crust recipe. The kids' pizza will be cheese and pepperoni, but Hubby and I will enjoy pizza Margherita, fresh sliced tomatoes, fresh basil and cheese (no sauce). Yummy!!
- Tuesday - Roasted chicken in the crockpot (I recently discovered this great tip - ball up tin foil at the bottom of the crockpot and place the chicken(s) on top of it. No more slimy chicken!
- Wednesday - Lentils and rice with a lemon-dressed salad - the ultimate frugal meal!
- Thursday - Ribs with baked potatoes and steamed veggies. I'm so excited about this meal!!! A friend of mine, whose husband is stationed at the US airbase nearby, has kindly given us this rack of (shhhhhh!!!!) pork ribs!! I'm dancing gleefully around the computer right now just thinking about it. (Well, not really, but in my imagination I am!)
- Friday - Tuna salad sandwiches (hitting the bottom of the barrel, here, right?!)
- Saturday - Mezze - homemade hummous (recipe below), pickles, olives, cheeses, crudites, and pita bread
- Sunday - Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup
Hummus seems to be gaining in popularity these days in the U.S. It's healthy and a great dip for breads, carrots and other veggies. But when I see those small little tubs of it selling for close to $4 in the deli section, I want to cry. It's SOOOO easy and so cheap to make, it should be a crime to charge that much for it. Here's how I make it at home in less than 5 minutes:
Hummous
1 can chick peas (liquid reserved)
3 Tbsp. tahini (kind of like a sesame seed peanut butter)
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 cloves garlic
salt to taste
Put all ingredients and about 1/3 of the liquid from the chick peas into a blender. Blend, adding more liquid as necessary, until the mixture is smooth and is the consistency of a thick dip. Put onto a plate and drizzle a swirl of olive oil onto it and sprinkle on a little parsley and paprika for an authentic look. That's it! You've just made hummous!
Be sure to visit Orgjunkie.com for more great menu plan ideas!
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