So Still working...TOO MUCH

SOOOO my resignation is in... it's signed...and the new replacement is working....but that mean's I'm TRAINING the new girl.... UGH... still looking forward to having the time to blog more and work less...

At any rate.... here's our meal plan for the week! (regardless of the lack of posts...I HAVE been keeping up on my meal plans!! YES YES YES! Don't think I could do it without it anymore!!)

Sunday: Garlic Italian Chicken Breast, Corn on the cob, french loaf (OHHH SOOO YUMMY, just DELISH!! And sooo easy too!)

Monday: Chicken Thighs Romesco... this has been on my meal plan for like a MONTH now, and because it has a lot more prep than some, it's been the one that's gotten skipped when leftovers need eaten up instead...so this time we're going to put in the work and TRY IT! Hope it's worth the wait!)

Tuesday: Crockpot Mexican Chicken Rice & Beans looks easy...hope it's tasty!

Wednesday: Pineapple Chicken over rice, egg rolls... another recipe that keeps getting left on the backburner ... so we'll keep putting it on here until we try it! LOL

Thursday: Crockpot Smothered Steak Meal, Steamed Veggies
Friday: Chicken Tortilla Soup, Cheese Quesadillas, Bananas

Saturday... GONE GONE GONE :) Thanks Wendy! :)

Meal Plan Monday... On Tuesday

I so can NOT wait to have more time to myself so I can enjoy and do more with my blog... countdown is going SEPTEMBER 11th is my deadline! YAY!

This week's MPM:
Monday: Broccoli and Ham Dinner, sweet corn, Hot Cranberry Apples
Tuesday: Greek Chicken over Angel Hair pasta, Red Grapes
Wednesday: Club Salads, Strawberry Jello Dessert
Thursday: Baked Beef Ziti, Salad Wedges
Friday: Chicken Thighs and Romesco Sauce (Still haven't done this recipe! LOL), salads

Saturday: Garlic Chicken, Cauliflower, French Loaf
Sunday: Beef and Turkey Meatloaf, Green Beans and Potatoes, Melon

I can not wait to post some of my favorite recipes from last week! It was an AWESOME week of meals for sure!! I'll try to do that SOON!

Best Recipe of Last week....

OK So last Thursday I felt like a Chef had stopped at my house, cooked me an amazing meal and left by magic powder leaving me to believe I actually cooked such a DELISH dish. My boys BOTH went back for THIRDS....THIRDS... you read that right!!! My Hubby loved it....I LOVED it...even my 92 year old Grandma LOVED it... it was simple to make and tasted like I had slaved over it all night! YOU HAVE to try this one!!

Pork Cutlets & Caramelized Onions

1 1/2 center cut lean pork chops
1/4 t. salt, 1/4 t. pepper, 2 t. olive oil

1/3 C. Balsamic Vinegar
3 T. Brown Sugar

2 Medium Onions, thinly sliced into rings

Season chops with salt & pepper, and cook in oil on med-high heat 3-4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove from pan. Add onions to pan; cook 6 minutes or until tender. Add Vinegar & sugar; stir, cook 1 minute. Divide chops & onions into 6 servings. Top Chops with onions.

ENJOY!

Recipe Courtesy of E-Mealz! ONE of my NEW FAVORITES!

Meal Plan Monday...

Last week we didn't follow our Meal Plan exactly, but I'm really OK with that. We never do. It's just awesome to know WHAT you have in the fridge, WHAT is available, and when it works...exactly what's for dinner tonight! :) I'm definitely a Meal Planning Mommy... for sure!

Here's this week's Meal Plan:
(Again with help from E-Mealz! LOVIN' this site!)

Monday: Fiesta Chicken Salads, Mandarin Orange Jello

Tuesday: Italian Herb Chicken, Broccoli Italiano

Wednesday: Sausage, Spinace & Bean Soup, Watermelon, Parmesean Crisps (Crisps are one of my new obsessions! YUM) This is a meal we didn't use last week off our plan.

Thursday: Greek Chicken & Pasta, Red Grapes (Trying Feta Cheese for my first time ever!)

Friday: Ham & Swiss Quiche, Fres Green Beans, Fresh Fruit Salad

Saturday: Pineapple Chicken over Rice (This was one we didn't use last week) with a steamed Veggie

Sunday: Chicken Thighs & Romesco Sauce; Romaine Salads (the last of the 3 meals we didn't get to last week LOL)

My favorite part of the E-Mealz is that I make just enough for a meal for EVERYONE and leftovers for the Hubby and I each to take ONCE to work. It keeps down on the leftovers that go to waste...keeps us down on grocery bills, and gives us a whole variety of new kinds of recipes we may never have tried before. Plus it's SIMPLE to use and cuts down on my time!! It really is for me!!

Meal Plan Monday.... Post Vacation!

Soooo... Vacation keeps you away from blogging for awhile! It also helps PACK ON THE POUNDS! LOL So this week I'm going to focus on healthier eating and trying out my new e-mealz grocery list and weight watcher friendly recipes! Can't get any better when then figure out the points per meal FOR YOU! :) YAY!

Monday: Italian Burgers, French Fries
Tuesday: Chicken Spiral Salad, Fruit Salad, Parmesan Crisp

Wednesday: Pineapple Chicken over Rice, Steamed Veggies
Thursday: Fiesta Chicken Salads *YUMMY*, orange jello
Friday: Sausage, Spinach & Bean Soup, Watermelon, Parmesan Crisp
Saturday: Pork Cutletts & Carmelized Onions, Baby Red Potatoes, Peaches
Sunday: Chicken Thighs & Romesco Sauce, Romaine Salads

This was all on one grocery list from e-meals and my grocery cost only came out to $.50 over their estimated grocery cost! NICE!!!!! The only meal that I added was the Fiesta chicken Salads, which we tried on vacation and LOVED! I removed an "all veggie" dish for the sake of my veggie hating 15 month old! LOL

BONUS: Fiesta Chicken Salad Recipe
(5 Stars from ALL of our family...)
And another 5 Stars for EASE OF PREP!!!

Ingredients: Head of Lettuce
12 oz Southwestern Chicken Strips (Tyson), chopped
14 oz can of black beans rinsed and drained
14 oz can of yellow corn, drained
1 c. 2% shredded cheddar cheese
Baked Tostitos, crushed
1/2 c. FF Sour Cream 1 c. Salsa

Chop your lettuce

In a skillet, warm your chicken, corn and black beans together.
Toss lettuce, chicken, corn, black beans, and cheese together in a large bowl.
Divide into 6 servings.
Combine sour cream and salsa. Use 1/4 c. per salad, as dressing
Crush 36 chips and divide evenly over salads.

EAT AND ENJOY!

6 points per salad

This recipe courtesy of E-mealz.com.... check them out! :)

I'm SO Excited!

SO... I'm finally in a very good routine of meal planning at my house... and although it can be a lot of work for a newbie, I've leared that your return is IMMEDIATE! My time in the evenings is so much less hectic and everyone can know what's for dinner without a gian debate!

Although I love dearly staying up until 1 am digging through websites, cookbooks, etc. for new exciting recipes and tired old favorites we've forgotten about... I just don't seem to have the time!! Besides, not all of those recipes have known "nutritionals"...etc. So if you're trying to watch what your'e eating...it can be hard to marry that all together!

SOOO I googled "Weight Watcher Meal Plans"...thinking perhaps I'd get a few websites that gave a couple weeks of ideas I could steal and use to make life a little easier! :)

Google provided me with a....

JACKPOT!!

I've discovered www.e-mealz.com! This is an AWESOME website. It is a SUBSCRIPTION website, but at only $5 a month ABSOLUTELY, TOTALLY, WITHOUT A DOUBT WORTH IT! (Atleast this newbie to it thinks so! :)) E-mealz not only gives you 7 days of meals (1 meal a day...complete with side dishes), but it ALSO provides you a shopping list that is organized by aisle with EVERYTHING FILLED IN for those menus! SCCCCCCCORE! There are TONS of different plans you can sign up for, but I went with the "Points Plan"... a no-brainer for someone who continues to try to "weight watch". Then when you chose the type of plan you want, you can chose the store you most shop at. (My only problem with this is the only store around here on the list is Wal-Mart.) It will price each thing on the list and use items on sale at that store for the week. It gives you a grocery total at the bottom of the page! ~VOILA!~ Oh...that sounds wonderful, you think?? WAIT! It gets better!! Lets say you don't like the meal planned for day 3 and want to swap it out for a family favorite... find all of the #3's on the grocery list and eliminate them...and you've eliminated all the unnecessary items from your list! HOW SLICK IS THAT?!

SOO, I'm very excited to try out my e-mealz menus next week. Looks like some fun new recipes, and the simplicity I need!

If you're reading this and decide to try it out... type in "DAVE" as a coupon code to save 20%! It bills you for 3 months at a time, so for 3 months worth of new recipes (all points are figured for you on the "points based plan"!) it's just $12.50! And you can cancel at any time!)

I'll keep you updated on how I'm liking this... how the recipes are, etc.!!! I'm just excited that for $1.05 a WEEK! All this work is done for me! :)

OH Quick Thought

If you are in need of some great new recipes.... go to my June 29th posting... The only one I wouldn't recommend is the "Crockpot Steak & Potatoes"... although it was "O.K." it wasn't anything to write home to mom about!!!

However, the Breakfast Puff Casserole was DIVINE!! Seriously... add this to one of your meal plans and give it a try! It's SOOO good!

All of the others were great, quick, recipes that most everyone at my house enjoyed!!!!