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.
