A Week Worth of Meals in 1 Hour

As I stated earlier, I am a lazy haus frau so I like to get as many things done ahead as I can so I have time to do what I like to do … playing with my toddler grandson, visiting my granddaughter & her fiancé, crafting, taking long drives, mini vacations, and moseying around Fall/Winter Bazaars and Spring/Summer Garage Sales ;-)

So I make a week’s worth of meals on Monday so I have the rest of the week free to do whatever catches my fancy …

I baked meatloaf last night for Dinner, so we’ll have meatloaf sandwiches and chips midweek sometime. This morning I got 3 crockpots underway and plan to use the electric skillet later on today for a bratwurst/swiss fried spuds meal we’ll enjoy tonight – that’s 5 meals taken care of. I usually leave the weekends open-ended because we may want to fellowship or we  may get urge to go for a long drive, fellowshipping exclusively with Yeshua and admiring His creation; and we’ll grab a burger … or a bag of chicken strips … along the way when that happens. We eat leftovers on Sunday because that is our kick-back-do nothing day :-D So basically on my Monday haus frau docket, we have 4 fresh cooked meals (3 will be refrigerated when their cooking cycle has ended, to be reheated later this week), 2 left-over meals - frozen from previous weeks, and 1 open-ended ‘whatever’ meal: 7 meals … cutting, slicing, dicing, and cooking; taking stock of previous meals stashed in the refrigerator and freezer; and quick, simple menu planning – all this only took me 1 hour to do.

These particular crockpot meals are intended to be rounded out later on with a starch dish such as spuds or rice, a green side dish such as salad or a cooked vegetable dish, a fruit – fresh or canned, and a bread for a healthy and balanced meal. Usually I make casserole style meals and pot roasts, but Hubs has requested the brats we’re having tonight; and I am hankering for spaghetti, so these meals will take more time to prepare this week, but they are worth it ;-)

Here are the recipes for the meals I have underway today:

COUNTRY STYLE RIBS – Serves 3

Country Style Ribs. Boneless.

Country Style Ribs in homemade BBQ Sauce.

1 pound country style ribs, cut into serving pieces * 1-1/2 cups homemade BBQ Sauce

Make BBQ Sauce as follows – in medium sized bowl put … ¼ cup chopped Onion * 1 TBSP drippings or other fat * ½ cup water * 2 TBSP Vinegar * 1 TBSP Worcestershire Sauce * ¼ cup Lemon Juice * 2 TBSP Brown Sugar * 1 cup Chili Sauce or ketchup * ½ teaspoon Salt * ¼ teaspoon Paprika * ¼ teaspoon ground Black Pepper * 1 teaspoon Mustard, or chili powder, or curry powder

Place half the sauce in the crock pot, add ribs and cover with remaining sauce. Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours, or until meat is tender.

ITALIAN SPAGHETTI SAUCE – Makes 6 Servings

1 pound Hamburger * 1 large Onion, chopped (about 1 cup) * 1 clove Garlic, crushed * 1 cup water * 1 teaspoon Salt * 1 teaspoon granulated Sugar * 1 teaspoon dried Oregano leaves * ¾ teaspoon dried Basil leaves * ½ teaspoon dried Marjoram leaves * 1/8 teaspoon dried Rosemary leaves (optional) * 1 Bay Leaf * 1 can Tomatoes (14 ounces) * 1 can Tomato paste (6 ounces) * COOKED SPAGHETTI & PARMESAN CHEESE

Put everything into a crockpot, cover, and and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.

DIANA’S SPICY CHILI – Serves 6

Diana’s Spicy Chili

Homemade Chili Powder

1 pound Hamburger * 1 cup water * 1 Onion, chopped * 1 teaspoon Salt * 1 TBSP EACH of Oregano, Basil, Cumin & Paprika * 4 TBSP homemade Chili Powder * 2 cups dry Chili Beans * 1 32-ounce can Tomatoes * ¼ teaspoon ground Cayenne Pepper

Make Chili Powder as follows – in a small bowl, 2 teaspoons ground dried Red Chili Peppers * 3 TBSP Paprika * 1 TBSP Turmeric or Curry powder * 1/8 teaspoon ground Cayenne pepper. Mix to combine thoroughly.

Combine all ingredients in the crockpot, cover, and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.

BRATWURST WITH ONION SAUCE – Makes 4 Servings

Bratwurst Sausages

Sautéed Onions

1-1/2 pounds precooked Bratwurst Sausages * 1 TBSP Butter * 2 large Onions, cut into thin slices * 2 TBSP Butter * 1 TBSP Flour * 1 cup Beef Broth * 1 TBSP Butter * freshly ground White pepper

Sauté sausages in 1 TBSP butter in large skillet over medium heat, turning frequently, until brown on all sides – about 10 minutes. Remove from pan to warm serving platter; keep warm.

Sauté onions in pan drippings and 2 TBSP butter over high heat until brown – about 10 minutes. Remove from pan with slotted spoon; reserve.

Add flour to skillet; cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Stir in beef broth; cook over medium heat until sauce thickens and bubbles for 1 minute. Stir in 1 TBSP butter and the reserved onions. Season to taste with pepper. Pour sauce over bratwurst.

SWISS FRIED POTATOES – Makes 4 servings

Swiss Fried Potatoes

1/3 cup unsalted sweet Butter * 1-1/4 pounds potatoes, pared & shredded * ½ teaspoon salt * ¼ teaspoon freshly ground White Pepper * 1 TBSP milk

Heat butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until foam subsides – about2 minutes. Add potatoes, salt & pepper; toss to coat. Press potato mixture with spatula into a large patty; sprinkle milk over patty. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook patty uncovered until brown on bottom – about 15 minutes.

Invert patty onto plate; invert onto second plate. Invert back into skillet; cook uncovered until brown on bottom – about 10 minutes. Invert onto serving plate and serve.